Bowl or bottle?

[Grasshopper]

What is the difference of drinking water from a bowl or a bottle? Thanks!

[BinkyBunny]

My understanding is rabbits drink more water from a bowl, and I prefer a bowl because it’s just easier to clean out and refill with fresh water daily. But it also depends on your set-up and bunny. Some bunnies will tip over their crocks or dig at them, or just get a bunch of stuff in it. Many times cage set-up aren’t ideal for crocks just because it will usually accumulate more fur, hay, etc due to the more enclosed habitat.

So you just have to figure out what will best.

Important information about bottles: It is important though that you check the water each time you fill it that it is working properly. I many times would find them frustrating – either leaking or not giving out enough water at first. You also have to be sure you replace the water as it can get stale and the inside edges can grow mildew. You also should replace it yearly.

[(dig)x(me)x(now)]

I, along with a couple others on the board, give the rabbit the option of both… a water crock with the bottle hanging right above it. My bunny usually prefers the bowl and definitely drinks more when drinking from the bowl, but does occasionally use the bottle still (and it’s a good alternative when the bowl runs low and I’m not home).

Hope that was helpful

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

I do the bowl at home, because I can check it frequently. At our shelter we use bottles, because they can get litter or junk in the water, or tip and it -it’s just easier knowing they always have water.

But I do think they prefer a bowl

[dmh426]

i personally like the bottle. it’s easy to refill and there’s a floating little duck in there that shows you the water level as it goes down. it’s easier to keep track of how much bunny is, or isn’t!, drinking.

[hooty22]

I too prefer the bottle for many reasons:

1) Felony can be spazzy
2) He’s a manly man and has lots of chest hair which gets all wet
3) He’s a messy hay tosser
4) The click click click click click of the bottle drives my boyf NUTS!

I have a smaller bottle so he drinks probably half of it in a days time, I replace the water daily regardless of whether its empty.

[sweetbluebun]

Dig – I have that same bottle and I love it!

I use both – Cheeky never learned how to use a bottle, so I had offer a crock, and he loves drinking out of that. Guppy on the other hand was weaned with a bottle. At first I tried giving him a crock, but he was getting his ears in it, digging in it and mucking it up so badly I had to remove the crock and replace it with a bottle. He does just fine with it. I thought crocks were better because it seemed more “natural” but some buns are too messy to use them so it’s just safer for thier own health to use a bottle.

[kralspace]

I would prefer the bottle but my buns all prefer the bowl.

They all have a heavy ceramic bowl with no lip to it. (2 of mine liked to sling the regular pet bowls that have had a lip to them, usually getting their mate all soggy.)

[Grasshopper]

Sorry, havent been on in a while.. But i think im going to give him a bowl under the bottle because it would also leaks..

[Crayon]

I have to use a bowl because I think Bunny would die of thirst if he only had a bottle. I don’t know what it is but he just cannot seem to drink enough that way. Plus all the bottles I tried all leaked. He is a very tidy Bun and rarely gets anything in his water bowl and doesn’t try to tip it either. I just have a large plastic one like you get at the pet store for hamsters. At other times I used a ceramic dish but since he doesn’t tip I went with a lighter one to make it easier on me to switch the water everyday..

[Scarlet_Rose]

I use a bowl – rabbits tend to drink more if they have one. My two will not drink out of a bottle.

[BinkyBunny]

I also always had leak problems so I ended up just giving up on the bottle – but I used to us both before I went “Bowl Only”.

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