Rabbit Breeders in the UK

Please check out rabbit rescues for rabbit breeds first

Before you decide to buy a rabbit from a breeder, please check if any rescues have the breed you are looking for. If you are not going to breed or show yourself then it doesn't matter how pedigree or not a rabbit is, just how healthy it is and what it looks like. Rabbit rescues are inundated with unwanted pets, often bought from pet stores or the result of unwanted litters from pet store bought rabbits where the store can't even guarantee the sex. Please help the rabbit rescues if you can. A good place to check is Rabbit Rehome which has a list of rabbits needing a home.

Check out the rabbit breeder's shed

If you still want a particular breed of rabbit, then please make sure the breeder keeps their animals properly. Although rabbit shows do have sales pens, impulse buys are not a good way to buy rabbits and it is very important to see how the animals have been kept which means visiting the breeder's shed. Beware of any breeder who won't let you see where the rabbits they are selling have been living and what they've been fed on. Good breeders are always proud of the way their animals are kept and keen to show newbie rabbit owners the ropes. There are many good breeders but also a few that are not so good, so choose with care.

Know your rabbit breed

Certain breeds of rabbit have their own health issues, Lop eared rabbits may have dental problems or weepy eyes due to the shape of the skull and the larger breeds such as my favourite the French Lop can be prone to oversized dewlaps. Rex rabbits with their fabulous coats, are also prone to sore hocks. Find out as much as you can about the rabbit breed you are interested in before buying. Long haired rabbit breeds look cute but need special grooming to prevent health problems.

The governing body for the Rabbit Fancy in the UK is the British Rabbit Council which has a Directory of Breeders and a list of Breed Standards

Another recommended place to look is Rabbit Breeders http://www.rabbitbreeders.co.uk/ which has a clickable map so you can select breeders from your local area. It also has some extremely useful articles on rabbits, breeds and showing.

How to find rabbit breeders

A good place to meet rabbit breeders is through rabbit clubs or the rabbit shows that they organise. It doesn't guarantee that you won't come across a bad breeder but it reduces the risk. Having said that I would still go and visit their shed before you buy if at all possible. If you are serious about breeding or showing guinea pigs then you'd be daft not to.

The advantages of buying a rabbit from a good breeder.

Good rabbit breeders will take the time to make sure you understand what keeping rabbits involves. They will show you how they keep their own animals (although pregnant and lactating does do not like to be disturbed by strange visitors) and will make sure you have a starter supply at least of the food the rabbit is used to eating. Often they will advise on shows, grooming and health matters as well. If you're lucky they may also offer boarding for when you go on holiday. They should also know of a good local vet with a special interest or expertise in the veterinary care of rabbits.

Don't be surprised if a rabbit breeder gives you the third degree to make sure you are a suitable owner. You may also have to agree that if you can't keep the rabbit for any reason you will give it back to the breeder. They're not being difficult, just making sure that the rabbits they sell are going to a good home.

Not all rabbit breeders are good rabbit breeders!

There are also free advert sites where you will see rabbits for sale. For example http://www.ukclassifieds.co.uk/general-555.html and http://household.uk.freeads.net/rabbits.htm but the same rule of asking to see how the rabbits are kept still applies. Unscrupulous rabbit breeders have been known to use these adverts to generate income from rabbits which have been factory farmed for the pet market in the same way as the notorious 'puppy farms'.

Never buy from a bad breeder because you feel sorry for the animals.

This only feeds the problems that rabbit rescues have to deal with day in day out. Report the breeder to your local RSPCA, rescue organisation and club. Good clubs do not support bad breeders (even though they may lack the power to ban them) and although the rabbit breeder is unlikely to be a member of their club, it helps them to be aware of bad breeders 'on their patch'. It is especially important to report the breeder to any club they claim to be a member of.

Sign up as a rabbit breeder in our directory

If you are a rabbit breeder yourself, please consider signing up for a free web page in our free searchable Directory which can link to your site. We also have a Classifieds section where breeders can advertise rabbits for sale free of charge. If you don't have a web site, or simply want one on this rabbit breeders site, then tick the box on the Membership Application Form when you sign up for your free Directory page. It may seem odd that we are encouraging people to rescue rabbits in the first instance rather than buy at all, even from breeders, but rabbit rescues are overflowing thanks to impulse buys from pet superstores and similar places. Until sales like that are halted I don't see any way of getting rabbits out of rescues and into good homes other than to tell it as it is....

Free site on www.rabbit-breeders.co.uk

If you are a rabbit breeder you can have your own free mini web site on this site, www.rabbit-breeders.co.uk, which you can edit yourself at any time. The advantage of having a site on www.rabbit-breeders.co.uk is that search engines look for the words people search for in the web site domain name. This index page has also been optimised for search engines looking for rabbit breeders.