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Do Rabbits Need Sunlight?

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Let’s start with a saying-

“A thing is valued where it belongs”

Well, this is correct and as this saying animals are better at wild. Still, people out there are kind and brings animals as a pet in their house. Among those animals, the rabbit is one of them. But rabbits are fragile, they receive disease often. When you bring them in the house as pets, you must know what is good and bad for them.

In wild rabbits need grass, hay, leaves, and other things to live on. But are these enough for them or they need other things?

Find out here.

Do rabbits need sunlight?

The Answer is Yes, rabbits need sunlight. Sunlight provides them obtaining vitamin D, it makes their bones and teeth strong. It also helps to reduce skin problems. Their eyesight also gets better through the sunlight.

About sunlight and vitamin D

Calcium is important for both bones and teeth for every animal. Rabbits gain sufficient calcium from their foods. But that calcium is favorable if they are absorbed in the bloodstream. For this, vitamin D is important.

Sunlight provides vitamin D to the rabbit’s body. It has been seen that those rabbits which get sun rays once in a day are healthier and maintain a higher immune system. Lack of vitamin D can make your rabbit weak and unhealthy. So yes, rabbits do need sunlight.

How to provide rabbits more sunlight?

So how can we provide enough sunlight for our pet rabbits? Many of us don’t have an open place to make the playground and keep them inside our house. So what to do right?

Let’s learn these steps:

  • Harness Training: You can give your rabbit harness training. Take your rabbits outside and make them walk. Find a quiet place for them and let them graze for 30 minutes per day.
  • Use the Rooftop: Use your rooftop. Create a place like covered with a fence or something like that and leave them there. You must create shade for them too because excessive sunlight is harmful to them as they hop too much.
  • An Open Window: So if you have reached this much about do rabbits need sunlight? Then you are really concerned about your rabbits. But you aren’t still able to do one of the above to provide sunlight. Then what you do?
    Well, an open window can help you here. Try to give food for your rabbit at a place where you got a window and sunlight comes in. Train them to eat food at a specific place. And what is that specific place? Yes, that corner of your house where sunlight comes in through the window.
  • A secured outdoor run: A secured outdoor run can be another good option for you. If you have a yard or any open place, then secure it and there you can leave your rabbits to get sunlight.
  • UV Bulb: Well this one sounds crazy but effective sometimes. A rainy or winter season this one really helps a lot. You can set a UV bulb and fix the temperature which is suitable for your rabbit’s body.

Cautions You Must Follow

As the outside is always dangerous for rabbits. And if you pet them from a very early age then they are weak and unfamiliar to the outside nature.

So you must follow some precautions before you take rabbits for sunlight:

  • Always Monitor Them: Always keep a sharp eye on them while they are outside. You may think why so serious? I am right here. But No! There are risks of attack from many predators while you are still there.
  • Check Skin and Lower Part: Check your rabbit’s skin and lower part of the body for parasites. Though their fur covers their skin well but still there are risks of skin disease cause of parasites that can lead them to death.
  • Alternative Temperature: Make sure your rabbits are not in a place where it is too hot and sunlight directly falls upon them. Find a place where your rabbit can have a choice to move away from sunlight when it is done or exhausted.
  • Use Harness: Use harness if you rabbits are new to you and you guys are not still so familiar. Rabbits take time to create a good bond with their owner. So use a harness so that you rabbits don’t fear you and run away when they are outside. If it happens, you may lose some of them. I mean there is a chance.

What happens if there is a lack of sunlight?

Well, sunlight is not the main thing that a rabbit needs to live. But it plays a vital role for them. Lack of sunlight means lack of vitamin D. And if your rabbit doesn’t get enough vitamin D then its bone and teeth become weak and weak.

As a rabbit can’t use its hand to take food so it depends on its teeth. I think you can guess how strong their teeth have to be, right?

Take another look at their bones. They are prey animals and they hop, jump, and play so much. They are fast. And behind their long jump, their bones support them much. So not only teeth but also bones also need to be stronger and for that vitamin D means sunlight is important.

Rabbits lose their fur over time. Then they receive attacks from bugs or any parasites which is very dangerous for their skin. Providing them sunlight can be a primary step to treat them when they are infected by some parasites.

Things to consider

Your rabbit doesn’t only need food and shelter. It needs many other things to have a healthy and happy life. Discover them and keep caring for your rabbit. Sunlight is one of those ‘many other things’. So you should provide them sunlight often.

Conclusion

It becomes tough for us sometimes to take our rabbits outside for a while to get sunlight. But there are many alternative steps too. You should follow just one which is comfortable for you.

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