Which Breed and Sex is better

[mnyablonski2796]

I am getting a rabbit within the next month or so which means i've been doing tons of research trying to figure of what breed and sex I should get. It's been about 4 years since I had my last rabbit and he was some mix but he was really big maybe a new zealand mix? but he was male when I was really little I had a male lop. So its been a long time but I do have some experience with buns. So my main question is which breed is better male or female? I would like to get two so they could bond (i know just because they are from the same litter doesn't mean they will truly be bonded). Neutering/Spaying isn't out of the question either. But now what breed? I love the lop ears but also love the idea of a giant but where should I start? There is a breeder that has a wide variety (lops, lionheads, rex, dwarfs) and a small animal rescue a few hours away which would be better?

 

[Azerane]

We can't really tell you what breed or gender of rabbit is best. There is no best breed, breeds are really about what you like the look of (and sometimes personality) and also what sized bunny you have the room to accommodate. If you plan to bond, desexing is absolutely essential as you can't expect to bond without doing so. Even then, not all rabbits can be bonded, so that needs to be taken into consideration if getting two separate rabbits, no matter if they come from a breeder or a rescue. The easiest bonds are male-female. In terms of gender personality, the only thing I really know is that females (usually un-spayed) can be territorial and show cage aggression, although this is not always the case. Males can show it too, but it seems to be more common in females, especially if they are having false pregnancies. Both genders make great pets though.

The advantage of adopting from a rescue is that they are often litter trained, almost always desexed and you can also adopt pairs of rabbits that are already bonded, which saves you a lot of work since bonding can be a huge task. I believe some rescues will even start the bonding process for you if they have two separate rabbits that you are interested in. Rescues often have a wide variety, depending where you live. Lops, dwarf breeds and even giant breeds and all sorts of colours.

 

[mnyablonski2796]

Thank you I guess I was more wondering gender differences I guess. I currently have rats and there are a lot of differences in males and females and I know they both make great pets but I personally like males much more, so was wondering if there was any differences in buns since I have only ever had males. My last bunny (Charlie) was from a rescue but he was only about 2 months old when I got him. I have read something saying some breeds are "better" but more they just tend to have personality differences. Does anyone else agree with this? If not then I am glad

Thank you

 

[Aki]

There is no really a breed better than others, it's all personal preferences and of course, each rabbit is different. They weren't bred for personality purpose like dogs, so the differences between breeds are more on a physical level. Nevertheless, it is said that lops are more laid-back than netherland dwarfs. I've had two males lops and they were actually mellower than my female netherland dwarf. Netherland dwarfs are told to be energetic, not always that friendly (I saw reported on several account that they bite more than a dwarf would). It is true of mine, she is not good with being handled either. In my case, it is also true that the female displayed more instinctive reactions (like digging or food guarding) even after the de-sexing but she's a lot smarter and more graceful than my two males ever were (but then again, she's a girl ^^). And both males were nightmares before the neutering - agressive, sex-crazed, spraying urine everywhere... They became great about 24hours after the operation though.
If you get a female, spaying is absolutely necessary if you don't want your rabbit dying of cancer after about 4 years, and I'm not even talking about the phantom pregnancies or the mastitis. For males, neutering is more a thing of convenience (as long as you don't attempt to bond him with another rabbit) but you will beg your vet to do it if your rabbit is anything like mine were - Tybalt, especially, was a monster from hell...
Giant breeds have shorter life span than smaller rabbits, their hearts tend to be weaker. Also, as it was said before, they need more space. Aside from that, they tend to be really laid back and make great pets.


I think going to a rescue and taking a look might be a good idea. You might just fall in love with one of the rabbits there or get a better idea about what you want. When I took home Aki, my netherland dwarf, she wasn't at all what I was looking for. I just fell in love with her because she had that smart spark in her eyes. And for all her skittishness, biting and general bitchiness, I think she will forever be my favorite. She's not half as pretty as my blue otter dwarf lop that everyone goes "aaaaw" over and not nearly as friendly, but she's clearly the rabbit of my life. I've had her for 6 years now ^^.
As Azerane said, the rescue also give you the possibility of having an already bonded, spayed / neutered pair which will spare you a lot of grief and cost you a lot less money than going over the whole process by yourself.
You can go see the breeder too, but I would be careful with a breeder who has a lot of different breeds and too many animals. If you decide to go there, pay really good attention to the animals, the general cleanliness, ask what the rabbits are fed and look for signs of mange. Of course, the rabbit should come with his vaccinations done.
Have fun!

 

[Watermelons]

Having owned 2 of each. IMO.... Males make much better pets.

 

[Minilopbun]

I had the male or female question before I got my male mini lop. I asked here on the forum as well and from what I got, personalities between males and females really depend on the individual rabbit.

I had asked the breeder my bunny is from and she told me that from what she has experienced, males are more laid back while females can become more aggressive and territorial (if unspayed) but even after being spayed, females can sometimes be more territorial than males. I haven't had a femal rabbit but I also took into consideration the spaying/neutering when I decided to go with a male. Spaying a rabbit is much more invasive than neutering a rabbit, so the recovery period may be harder with a female. Also, not all male rabbits need to be neutered. Females must be spayed to prevent cancer, but males only really need to be neutered if they show aggressive behaviors, lose their litter habits, or spray urine. My rabbit is over a year old and he isn't neutered. Litter habits are great and his personality is just as friendly and playful as he was when he was a baby. So, you may get lucky if you get a male and not need to have him neutered. But obviously, if you want to bond then both must be neutered.

I got my rabbit from a breeder because at the time, I didn't even know that rabbits could be adopted from so many shelters. My next rabbit in the future will most likely be an adopted one, visiting a shelter could really help you pick the perfect rabbit or pair of rabbits that really need a loving home!

Good luck

 

[Blue eyes]

I agree with the others that your best option is to look for a rabbit rescue. Most have websites that have photos of available buns. They almost always have already bonded, fixed pairs.

Going this route saves you the hassle of bonding, saves you the cost of surgery for spay/neuter, saves you the risk that the two won't ultimately bond, and - perhaps best of all - allows you to choose your bunnies based on their personality. (you can't do that with a baby since baby 'personalities' can change drastically after hormones.)

Rabbit personalities really do vary greatly among individual buns. That said, of the 13 rabbits I've had, only 2 were female. Perhaps that means I favor males?

 

[ladysown]

Depends on what you want.

If you want the joy of watching babies grow up... then go to a breeder and get an opposite gender pair. NOT housing them together but next to each other. Opposite gender pairs tend to bond more easily then same gender.

If you want adult rabbits that are a more known quantity, then by all means go to a rescue. But check out the rescue...not all are created equal, some will knowingly sell sick rabbits or rabbits with uncertain temperament. Sometimes rabbit breeders will do rescue as well. So be open to various options

 

[flemishwhite]

Our first rabbit was a rescue from a city park. She was a female , it was late September, and she probably was an Easter Bunny that was abandoned after the children went back to school. She had been caged all her life, I could tell (another story). But because being caged, she developed excellent litter box manners. I think she was a neglected and caged rabbit. It took her years to become just really bonded and completely friendly with me and my wife. This compares with the two Flemmish babies we now have....(Tomorrow is their 4 month's birthday!!! ...what babies...they are big!) Before we bought them, the breeder lady had made a point of handling them frequently.. These bunnies have been handled every day of their life, and really makes a difference for a really friendly affectionate bunny. ...Oh! They absolutely positively hate to be picked up! My previous 11 year+ plus bunny would make a groaning sound whenever she was picked up even after all the years. The babies get really more upset....they really don't want to be picked up...l have scratch marks on my hands where they kick me as I set them down.

 

[flemishwhite]

My previous thread was not really finished...we had a power failure. I need to head off to bed.. Bottom line..Flemmish rabbits can be great for some people..like me, but not for others. They are friendly, supposedly low key (the babies are not that low key), affectionate..but big with big appetites. Feeding them with green vegetables from the grocery stores, farmer's markets can be $20 a week and this doesn't include the two shopping bags full of free carrot tops we get every week from the farmer's market. Then also, are the bags of bunny pellets we also feed them($), and in addition apple slices, banana slices, guavas that they eat. Many times, my wife goes to the 99 cent store and buys out all their romaine lettuce. Amazing appetites for such seemingly little animals.....And what goes in, goes out. Fortunately they do poop in their litter boxes.