Can Rabbits and Dogs Live Together?

Many pet owners have dog or dogs already living with them in their house. Or even some pet owners already have a bunch of rabbits with them. But what if you add up the two animals together in the same house?

Depending on the situation the results may be good, but there are some cases in which it didn’t go well. The good stuff is that your big old dog is there acting like a parent for the little rabbit while the little rabbit plays around with the dog. The bad stuff is that the rabbit might be injured by the dog or the worst case that could possibly happen is that the rabbit is killed by the pet dog. Unless you have a small dog and a big rabbit, then things might get interesting.

Either way, you must check if the dog and rabbit is a good match for each other if you want them to live together in the same home.

Personality Evaluation

The first thing you need to do if you want them to be living together is to evaluate the dog’s personality. Some dogs that are too active and playful can be dangerous and can have a high predatory drive towards the rabbit. The dog’s breed plays a huge part in this. But most of the time it just depends on the dog’s personality and how the owner cares for the dog and if the dog is well disciplined.

Control Hormones

It is very important that both the dog and the rabbit is neutered or spayed. Dogs who have not been neutered or spayed is likely to go and injure or kill the rabbit because of their high predatory drive because of their hormones. While rabbits that have not been neutered or spayed will likely go and hump the pet dog big or small. If you have kids in the house, your rabbit might also try to hump them if the rabbit is not spayed or neutered.

Observe and Test Their Reactions

If someone already have a dog living with them and then decides to adopt a rabbit because of its cuteness then they must first observe and test the reactions of both parties. They must test first how the dog reacts upon seeing the rabbit for the first time. It is very important that they must never have contact with each other yet to avoid injuries on both parties if something goes wrong.

The best test to do is to let the rabbit go in a room or an exercise pen with a rabbit playpen or cage for it to hide. The next thing to do is put the dog on a leash just like you are going for a walk. Walk the dog back and forth passing the pen in which the rabbit is in. if the dog is over eager to go to the rabbit and tries to pull the leash just to go to the rabbit then it is not advisable to have the rabbit and dog live together. The dog showing a lot of interest in the rabbit is not a good sign. Sometimes the dog just wants to get the rabbit which might scare the rabbit or even injure it in whatever it wants to do. It might be the dog’s predatory drive or it’s over playfulness that can injure or kill the rabbit if it tries to get to the rabbit.

And if ever the dog shows less interest or is not even interested in the rabbit then it is a good sign. It means the dog is well behaved or has no predatory drive to the rabbit or just totally not interested in the rabbit.

It is very important to have a few more test and observations in their meeting to see if the rabbit and dog can live with each other. It takes time and patience to see if they are compatible living together.

How Well Do You Know Your Dog

If you have a very playful and active dog then things might get unpredictable if the dog and rabbit live together. That kind of dog might do whatever they want to do and might go out of control if they get in contact with the rabbit. If the dog is well behaved and very disciplined and listens to whatever the owner is saying, then it is a good sign for both the dog and rabbit. Some dogs that are always free to go and live outside the house tend to have a higher predatory drive that those dogs who live inside the house.

Some dogs also want to play with the rabbit and does not mean any harm, but a dog playing with the rabbit can be deadly to the rabbit if it goes out of control and unsupervised.

Also Consider the Rabbit’s Personality

This is one of the important things to consider especially if the rabbit is a big scaredy cat. Rabbits can die from shock and being scared. So if the rabbit easily gets scared or nervous around him then it is not advisable for the rabbit to be with the dog especially if the dog is very active and usually runs around and barks around.

Now, if you’d ask us whether rabbits and dogs can live together, our answer is yes. It just depends on you as the owner on how you handle the situation. As long as you keep an eye on them, then there is nothing you should be scared of. If you do things right, chances are, you’d enjoy the perks of living with multiple pets.

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