Lessons from Watership Down: five(r) ways to make your practice more rabbit-friendly

In his famous book, Richard Adams got down to a rabbit's eye view of the world. Watership Down is a very well-observed and researched book, drawing heavily on RM Lockley’s “Private Life of the Rabbit”. A wary prey animal, he or she is always alert for dangerous sights, sounds, and smells that will send them running for cover. 

Now that’s a great attitude for a rabbit to have when faced by their many enemies who will kill them if they catch them. But we are not their enemies, and we have to ensure that their natural wariness doesn’t create such high levels of stress that they suffer as a result.  

That stress can, quite literally kill them, by making them very poor anaesthetic candidates, or depressing their gut motility to the point where it shuts down. So, it’s not just a welfare issue, which would be enough reason to address it, but something that cuts straight to the heart of our standards of rabbit care and affects the outcomes for our patients. 

‘How do I find a rabbit-friendly vet?’ is one of owners’ most asked questions to the Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund (RWAF) helpline. Fortunately, we can point them to our online recommended Rabbit Friendly Vet Directory, where each has been assessed as either Gold or Silver status - the perfect starting point for making your practice more rabbit-friendly (or less rabbit-scary)!  

To help get you started with making your practice more rabbit friendly, we recommend focusing on these five areas: 

1. First impressions (website/telephone contact/receptionist/waiting area)
   

   This is the first experience of the practice the rabbit (and their owner) have. It’s important to be welcoming to them both, and to give the correct information to owners, especially new ones. This is also the chance to impress on owners how vital prompt veterinary care is in these prey species, who, remember, are hiding any signs of illness from their many potential enemies, and may be dangerously ill by the time symptoms are noticed by the owner.
   
   

2. Living quarters (kennels)

   Along with the waiting areas, this is where stress levels can be at their highest, and there’s so much that can be done to mitigate those stresses. This includes adding lots of hay to deaden the sound and provide a more comforting background smell, as well as something to hide in.

3. Humans (staff training, experience, equipment available)
   

   CPD, relatively simple additional equipment, and even more up-to-date information on drugs and doses, can make all the difference.
   
   

4. Out Of Hours
   

   This is a contentious area in the veterinary world generally, now, but an area where even small changes can make a huge difference, especially where a rabbit may be admitted as an emergency at night or the weekend, and where they are hospitalised for several days.
   
   

5. Ethos
   

   This is the most difficult area to clearly define, but, as discussed at the start, it’s important for us humans, who are primarily visual creatures, to look at the world like a rabbit. And to remember how rabbits differ in their outlook from our more commonly kept carnivore pets.

Useful resources

Newsletters covering these areas in more detail are available online (scroll to the bottom). These are very much a starting point! It would be amazing to hear feedback and tips from all the practice staff involved in caring for rabbits. 

If you would like your practice to be considered for the Rabbit Friendly Vet Directory, you will need to become a RWAF Veterinary Practice Member and then complete the application form. Successful applicants will receive a logo and certificate to display in their practice and any marketing.