Is my bunny wild?

[Allanah]

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I got him from a fodder store. The lady at the store said someone dropped him and his brother off. He looked like he had been neglected as his feet and bottom were badly matted. The person that dropped him at the store said he was 6 months old and a dwarf Netherland bunny. We took him in to care for him but I’m worried that he might be wild based on his appearance.

[Bam]

I dont think he is wild, but I dont think he looks like a Nethie either. The ears are to big and the face too long, the body shape doesnt fit either.

Wild rabbits are a lot more skittish than domesticated rabbits. They’re very difficult to handle because of this. Your bun looks like a normal inquisitive young rabbit.

Are there any things except his looks that makes you suspect he’s wild?

[Allanah]

No it’s was more just then colour and ears because his ears don’t really suggest Netherland as they are quite long

[Wick & Fable]

Not wild — you can look here on guidance for identifying wild rabbits: https://wabbitwiki.com/wiki/Wild_rabbits#Is_the_rabbit_I_found_wild_or_domestic?

The ears are thicker and the head is not the typical wedge — those are the obvious indicators to me that you just have a domestic rabbit with the agouti fur pattern often associated with wild rabbits.

Based on ear size and current positioning, it looks like a lop mix. I suspect the ears will fall down into full lop within the next couple months.

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

Nope, he’d only be a dwarf if he were born in a family of Flemish Giants 😉 He’s going to become quite a big boy (or girl), looking at the size of the ears. Rabbits are often mis-sexed when they’re young because everything is still so small.

Beautiful colouring though, I think it’s called agouti.

Have you taken him to a vet yet for a basic intake and vaccinations?

[Allanah]

We have a dwarf lop that is 3 months and is about the size of him so we were actually worried that he might be smaller then he should for 6 months.

we have him booked in for next Friday for a checkup, desexing and vaccinations. He bonded pretty much straight away with our female dwarf lop but we’re having to keep them separate until he’s been desexed. She’s been desexed but he’ll mount her within a second 😂

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

Awesome!

It’s funny, but larger breeds get their puberty and growth spurt later. Our Netherland Dwarf mix boy was already fully hormonal at 11 weeks old and got neutered at 13 weeks. Some larger breeds may not get their puberty until they’re 6-9 months old. For boys it’s pretty much: as soon as they’re hanging they’re good to come off.

It’s good that you keep them separated: hormonal bunnies can be very annoying and persistent in their amorous mood. We caught our Owen doing the Alabama shuffle on his little sister at 9 weeks old. He tried it for the first time, and then he kept on trying it every couple of minutes, and we separated them before Molly neutered him on the spot 🤣

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