Pet-Rabbit Information - What Is Domesticated Rabbits? How To Care For Your Pet-Rabbit?

Domesticated rabbits are one of the most popular pets, apart from dogs and cats. They look attractive, lovely, gentle, friendly and cute. They are easy to take care and undemanding in terms of care and housing. They will settle well either indoor or outdoor, at home.

There are 40 species of rabbits and hares worldwide. All domesticated rabbits are originated from European rabbits. The scientific name for domestic rabbit is Oryctolagus cuniculus.

Typically, domesticated rabbits weigh between 2.2-221lb (1-10kg). The domesticated rabbits can be fed on commercially produced rabbit food, pellets, hay, green food, root vegetables, tree bark, herbs and apple.

The gestation period of a rabbit is 31 days and the typical litter size ranges from 6-8 young. The lifespan varies with breed.

Keeping a rabbit as pet requires a good training system to prevent unnecessary destructions or hassle. For example, furniture and carpet chewing problems, pseudo pregnancy symptoms, litter problems, fights, behavioral problems, rabbit-house worries, sickness, fleas, predators and etc. Nevertheless, these challenges can be overcome when the owners have the knowledge and experience to deal with them. Thus, one of the recommended ways to acquire the important knowledge is to read widely and exchange practical information with experienced rabbit owners.

A good rabbit cage must be large enough for the average sized-rabbit. A rabbit's living area must be spacious enough for a litter box, toys, and perhaps a cardboard box, with enough room left over for him to be comfortable. The minimum size recommended is 4 times the rabbit's stretched out length as to ensure the cage is tall enough for the rabbit to stand up straight.

It is important to watch out for any abnormalities in your rabbits as rabbits are susceptible to various digestive ailments and other life-threatening diseases. For example, rabbits are vulnerable to myxomatosis and VHD viruses. These are the killer viruses!

There is no universal system of classification for rabbit breeds. Some popular breeds of rabbits include:

o Alaska

o American Fuzzy Lop

o American Sable

o Angora

o Belgian Hare

o Beveren

o Californian

o Champagne D'Argent

o Checkered Giant

o Chinchilla

o Dutch

o Dwarf Hotot

o English Lop

o Flemish Giant

o Florida White

o Harlequin

o Havana

o Himalayan

o Hotot

o Jersey Wooly

o Lilac

o Holland Lop

o Mini Lop

o Mini Rex

o Netherland Dwarf

o New Zealand

o Palomino

o Polish

o Rex

o Rhinelander

o Satin

o Silver

o Silver Fox

o Silver Marten

o Tan

Domesticated Rabbits As Pet

The most important criterion before deciding to adopt a domesticated rabbit as pet is that you MUST have interest, love and willingness to take great care of your rabbit. This little cute bunny will need care and attention for approximately 10 years. Never adopt a rabbit and leave it uncared for at the corner of your house and the worst case is to abandon it in shelters, parks or even woodland areas. Once the poor rabbit is left wild, it has very little chance to survive. I am a rabbit lover, so I cherish rabbits a lot and treat them with bundles of affection.

What Are The Daily Rabbit Care Rituals?

Balance Diet:

A rabbit's diet should be balance, made up of good quality pellets, fresh hay, fresh vegetables and water.

Water should be fresh. It is recommended to change it twice a day. If water is not available, the rabbit will stop eating. The water container should be washed daily.

Treats such as bananas or carrots should be given in small amounts and only on occasion. Rabbits have a sweet tooth and will consume sugary foods to the exclusion of healthy ones. Never give a rabbit chocolate, sweets or chocolates. These stuffs may lead to an overgrowth of "bad" bacteria in the gut that leads to fatal cases of enterotoxemia.

Litter Training:

Train your rabbits to use litter boxes. Replace litter boxes with fresh litter everyday.

PRECAUTION: Do not use any litter containing pine or cedar shavings as these contain oils, which can cause respiratory and liver disease in rabbits. Litter made of plant material (hay) or paper (cellulose) is the safest litter to use with rabbits.

Droppings should be inspected daily without fail. Normal droppings look like regular round dry marbles, called pills. There may also be some clusters. An abnormality in droppings can be the first sign of illness in rabbits. For example, if you find your rabbit's droppings that are getting smaller, infrequent or misshapen, it signifies less is coming through. Thus, you ought to check out the reasons. It could be intestinal problems or any other kinds of illnesses.

Grooming & Health Care:

Rabbits enjoy human touch and love. By brushing and combing your rabbits for a few minutes daily will help them to feel your care and presence. Typically, rabbits shed every 3 months. Hence, it is absolutely for you to free your rabbits of this excess fur. It is perfectly common for rabbit to shed. So, spend enough time to help your rabbits to remove loose hair or fur.

Nevertheless, rabbits are self-cleaning and healthy small animals. They can groom themselves too. How do they do that? They can swallow excess fur! Once swallowed, these rabbits cannot vomit a fur ball, as what a cat can do. This excess fur can cause an obstruction. Technically speaking, we say that the rabbit has developed GI Stasis, a common slowing down of the GI tract. The symptoms of GI Stasis are smaller size droppings, lesser droppings frequency, loss of appetite, hunched up situation and teeth grinding due to pain. Bring your rabbit to your vet at once when you see these symptoms.

Exercise And Play Time:

Human must get daily exercise, so must your rabbits! The benefits of exercise for rabbits include smoother flow of blood circulation, stronger muscles and prevention from fragile bones. A rabbit's bone weight is only 7% of his total body weight compared with 15% in a cat.

Rabbits are crepuscular. Crepuscular refers to animals that are most active at dawn and dusk. The perfect time for your rabbit to get exercise is in the morning, when you are getting ready for work and in the evening when you arrive home. By the time you get home, your rabbit will have been napping all day! Bet you will be happy and entertained to watch him running and hopping around and doing bunny dances in mid-air, better known as "binkies".

Similar to kids, rabbits love toys! Rabbits like new toys daily! So, what are the toys that your rabbits love dearly? Some ideas of toys include toilet paper roll, cardboard box with a rabbit side doors, newspapers, towels, untreated wicker baskets and paper bags. Tunnels of any kind are always welcomed too!

Spay/Neuter:

This procedure is necessary if you want your rabbit to lead a healthy life, free from cancer. The risk of ovarian cancer in an older female is approximately 85% if she is not spayed during puberty (4-6 months).
The reason for a male rabbit to be neutered is mainly behavioral reason. It is crucial as well as to eliminate random spraying, reduce hormone-related aggression and for easier housetrain.

The process of spaying or neutering your rabbit with minimum risk can be performed professionally by your vet. A bonded pair should each be spayed and neutered to avoid pseudo-pregnancies.

Rabbit Proofing:

Rabbits like to gnaw as it is a expected action for them. Boredom is common reason for their chewing activity and other times, items such as electrical cords get in their way. Thus, they are smart to use their mouth and teeth to shift it. Rabbit is a must! It not only protects your belongings or furniture, it keeps your rabbit safe and sound.

All electrical cords should be concealed in vinyl tubing. Hide the cords before your rabbit move it.

By providing your rabbit with acceptable things like toys and card box boxes to chew will not hurt you rabbit. If you see your rabbit swallowing it whole, remove it.

All the best!

Warm regards,

Amanda Gates

A Rabbit Lover

Email: amanda@careforpet-rabbit.com

Website: [http://www.careforpet-rabbit.com]

Website: [http://www.rabbitinfo.careforpet-rabbit.com]

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The Care of Hamsters

The Care of Hamsters - A Choice of Standard Or Dwarf

Every species of hamster, whether it's a standard or a dwarf, requires pretty much the same level of care and maintenance. However, the biggest surprise has to be in the amount of food required by both, which is virtually the same, even though the physical size of the dwarf hamster is just a fraction of the Syrian hamster. The highly active metabolism found in the dwarf hamsters accounts for the relatively large volume of necessary nutrition. In fact, a typical hamster will generally eat the equivalent of one-tenth their body weight each day.

The bulk of the dwarf hamster diet will consist of a high quality blend of assorted seeds and grains, as well as, specialized food pellets, containing a well balanced mixture of nutrients, vitamins and proteins, all targeted to the primary requirements for maintaining your hammie's optimum health. Food pellets are important vitally important in the care of hamsters, since they contain all of the essentials, whereas seed and grain mixes too often facilitate the picking and choosing of the most liked components, which in the end, leaves the diet lacking in one or more vital ingredients. Fresh fruits and vegetables will also supplement a well-balanced diet. And, it's extremely important to ensure the availability of clean drinking water, by providing a plastic bottle with a metallic sipper nozzle will prove to be both convenient and sanitary.

Dwarf hamsters generally behave quite socially when kept in same sex pairings, however fights can break out and separation may be necessary, so you should certainly be prepared to accommodate the individuals. Males and females should definitely be kept apart, unless of course breeding and caring for the resulting larger family is planned. And, while this may be difficult to believe, dwarf hamsters will often mate once again within 24 hours of giving birth. So, as you can see, separation of sexes is a genuine necessity.

Your choice of cage will necessarily depend upon your choice of hamster. The Chinese hamsters and Russian dwarf hamsters will still need as much room for their active lifestyle as their larger Syrian cousins, but care must be given to a bit more security, as they do have the reputation for escaping from enclosures designed for larger inhabitants. The Roborovski dwarf hamster is aptly named "the escape artist" for good reason. At roughly two inches in length, this little rodent can squeeze through the bars of a standard "wire-barred" small mammal cage. So, if you intend to make the Robo hamster your choice of pet, the best advice is to utilize a 10 or 20-gallon aquarium for safety and peace of mind. You'll also want to secure the top with a locking cover or lid to prevent intrusion by small kids or other house pets.

Hamsters are by nature, burrowing animals who live in holes and tunnels in the shallow underground in their native habitats. Consequently, they love a thick layer of bedding material covering the bottom of their cages. A two to three inch layer provides a depth that facilitates tunneling around in any direction. The safest type of bedding and nesting material should consist of non-aromatic wood shavings such as Aspen (no cedar or pine), hay, cellulose or dust-free paper products that are void of any chemical dyes or inks, thereby avoiding issues with allergies or respiratory irritants.

Rounding out the essentials needed to maintain your dwarf hamster's optimum health is the hamster wheel or ball. In the wild, these little critters will travel up to an incredible eight miles per day in search of food. Consequently, lots of exercise is critical, as an important daily ingredient in the health maintenance program for all captive hamsters. It's also helpful to allow them time out of the cage, whenever possible. It's an opportunity for them to do what they do best, by investigating their surroundings. Such out of cage interacting will also strengthen the bond between you and your affectionate little pet.

Copyright 2010 Walter Tekman. All rights reserved. Please feel free to share the entire contents of this article with your friends or post it on your site as long as it is left intact with all links unchanged, including this notice.

Walter Tekman is a pet hamster enthusiast and author of The Best Ever Guide To Dwarf Hamsters, available at http://www.careofhamsters.com/bestever.html. He spends much of his time advising others on how to setup and maintain the perfect hamster habitat, while selecting the best possible hamster as a pet. Go to http://www.careofhamsters.com/ for his complimentary 10-day free email mini-course, which reveals lots of tips, techniques and secrets for creating the greatest possible experience with your pet hamster.

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Read This Before You Buy a Puppy

It is hard to resist that cute little bundle of fur in the pet shop window. Those big, sad eyes are just begging you to take them home with you. That soft fur is pleading to be stroked. When you pick up that darling little bundle of fur, a moist little tongue begins to lick your hand. Its love at first sight and you cannot bear to be parted. But wait...

...there are things you need to consider before you buy that cute little puppy.

The most important thing is to understand that you will be responsible for the animal for the rest of it's life. Some dogs can live to twenty years old, although this is rare, and you need to be there every day for your pet. You need to provide food, shelter, exercise and companionship for your pet at all times. If you travel or if you work long hours, it is not a good idea to take on the responsibility of a pet.

Another thing to consider before you buy a dog is whether your lifestyle will change dramatically in the next few years. Many people get a pet when they are young and single, then marry, move house, have children, change careers or other major lifestyle changes and find their pet does not fit in with the changes.

Before buying the cute little puppy in the pet shop window, you really need to know what breed of dog he is. That cute little bundle of fur could turn into Cujo. A large breed will eat a lot of food, and what goes in must come out.

Larger breeds will need more exercise than toy breeds. Working breeds need exercise or they become destructive and frustrated. A border collie, if left unexercised will probably just dig under your fence and cause havoc with the neighbour's cat. If your dog gets out in the traffic you are liable for any accidents he causes, and he could be seriously injured or killed. There are also heavy fines for wandering pets.

If you want to be sure you have a sound, healthy pet it is always best to see the parents. I prefer to buy from a reputable breeder. You can get details from your local Kennel Club. Make sure you visit the breeder and check the conditions the dogs live in. If the animals are unhappy, nervous, over-excited or dirty, it is probably better to try elsewhere.

When you find a good breeder with healthy, happy dogs, you can be sure your pup will be healthy and have a good temperament. Many breeders like to keep in contact and can help you with any questions that may arise.

Getting a pet is a major commitment. It is important to know what you are getting into. The rewards are certainly worth the effort but you do need to be able to properly care for and understand your pet's needs. Do some research before you buy.

Wendy Streater goes to http://mrsnoahsark.info for information, advice and ideas on keeping pets.

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Does Your Pet Turtle Recognize Your Voice?

A turtle drawing, with a simple question scrawled at the bottom, "Where are the turtle ears?" made its way to my desk the other day. The drawing, sketched by a young child, showed the turtle with no ears. The child asked me "How does he hear?"

In fact, turtles do have ears, which are actually small holes in the sides of their heads, allowing sound waves to enter.

In the past, people thought that turtles were deaf. This presumption may most likely have arisen from the fact that turtles do not have visible or physical ears that stick out from the sides of their heads, as is the case with most animals.

Even though turtles do not have these visible pair of external ears, they can, nevertheless, discern sounds, and "hear." They do not hear as acutely as we humans, but they do have the necessary auditory nerve and corresponding brain center required for them to feel and decipher surrounding vibrations. Sound waves are gathered via the small external holes found on the side of the turtle's head, and transmitted via the middle ear, which is well designed to increase the volume of the sound waves. Thus, although scientists feel that turtles rely more heavily on their senses of vision and smell, which are much more highly developed, they are definitely capable of hearing.

As the anatomical make-up of each animal has a corresponding physiological function, the reason that the ears of turtles are located inside their heads is so they are more aero-dynamic whenever they are in water. This would allow them to detect sounds and vibrations in their surroundings.

Although turtles do not have tympanum or ear drums that gather sound waves for a more defined hearing, turtles are capable of detecting low-frequency sounds and sensing vibrations, whether they are in the water or on land.

Because of this, they rely mostly on their vision and sense of smell to help them move around. There are even theories suggesting that the refined sense of smell in turtles allows them to return to the exact beach on which they originally hatched in order to mate and lay their eggs.

It is known that turtles find or identify food, mates, and territory by their sense of smell. The vision of turtles is also excellent. They can differentiate between colors and shapes, things that are crucial to animals that live or spend time in water. What turtles lack in a refined sense of hearing, they make up for in their sense of smell and their excellent vision.

Some people consider their pets just as important as their children. Whether true or not, some turtle owners imagine their beloved pets are able to recognize and respond to their voices!

We have no objective data to prove or disprove this theory. The way a turtle responds may, as some experts claim, come from the way they sense vibrations around them. Probably it is not as much the sound or distinctive quality of the voice via the turtle's ears, but the vibrations coming from closing doors and other vibration-inducing motions or stimulations around them. Let's hope that future research will help us determine the truth about turtle ears!

Karma Williams is a pet turtle care enthusiast who has raised turtles for over 23 years, and enjoys helping others get started in this amazing hobby. You can discover more about turtles by visiting the turtle anatomy drawing page of her website. Get your free 10 part Pet Turtle Care mini couse, valued at $49, by visiting her PetTurtleCenter website and requesting it. Her newest eBook entitled "The Ultimate Guide to Pet Turtle Care" teaches turtle lovers everything they need to know about acquiring, caring for, and feeding pet turtles so that they stay healthy, contented, and will thrive for years and years to come!

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Guinea Pig Cage Or Hutch?

The location in your home for your new pet guinea pig to live often comes down to the choice of an indoor cage/ enclosure or an outdoor hutch / run. Many pet stores have both varieties of homes for sale that are appropriate and adequately sized. Even though, similar to rabbits, guinea pigs have been predominantly kept in an outdoor hutch it is more difficult to fully appreciate your guinea's as a companion and a family member unless they live with the owner in their home; likewise the animal won't get to know the owner. A guinea pig that is kept mostly outside will lead a separate life and not enjoy the antics of being part of the indoor family.

There are several factors in favor of keeping the pet indoors; the first is that they generally have longer lives; these is partly due to being sheltered away from bad weather conditions and are safe from any predators that may roam in the garden at night, such as foxes. Outdoor guinea's can often be prone to illness, mostly because outdoor pets' health is more difficult to monitor. Signs of sickness and illness can be subtle at first, and because outdoor pets spend less time with their owners, it can be numerous days before an illness is noticed. In the case of a rapidly progressive illness, such a delay could cost a guinea pig his/her life.

The decision to keep your pet indoors is a favorable one for both the owner and the happiness of the pet, outdoor guinea's will find it easy to acclimate to a happy life indoors.

Written by Nadine Sammons RHA

You can find more helpful information about Your Guinea's at:
http://www.GuineaPigCareOnline.com

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