Closed Rabbitry--what does this mean?

A closed rabbitry is one that does not allow the public to visit the place where rabbits are produced, raised and cared for.  Many reputable breeders keep their rabbitries closed for a number of reasons such as disease prevention, liability, and risk of robbery.  Many people may take issue with this because they want to inspect the living conditions of our herd.  Many assume we have something to hide since we don’t allow visitors but they couldn’t be more wrong.  We keep our rabbits in larger than standard size cages, and everything is cleaned and sanitized weekly…sometimes bi-weekly depending on the rabbit.  We actually have most of our rabbits using litter boxes to help keep their living conditions even more sanitary.  We feed a diet of a top quality rabbit feed, unlimited hay and fresh water daily to our rabbits to ensure they have absolute best nutrition at all times. 

Rabbits can be easily scared and stressed by strangers.  We try to keep their environment as peaceful and calm as possible.  At any given time, we may have a rabbit with a new litter of babies and the stress of a stranger can cause her to reject them.  Not to mention the huge liability of a buyer being bitten or scratched by a rabbit when they may put their hands or fingers inside a cage and a rabbit not like that.  Some rabbits can be territorial.  Not all of them are friendly in their cage. 

It is unfortunate, however not everyone in the rabbit world is trustworthy.  We have to protect the security of our animals and our property as we have thousands of dollars tied up in our rabbits and equipment.  Even though we may have exchanged emails or texts regarding a specific rabbit, ultimately, a buyer is still a stranger.  I don’t have strangers come to my property to purchase anything we have for sale as protection for myself and our family.  Not to mention, we have dogs…very large dogs who are here to protect us…again…it is a liability issue.  Meeting a buyer in a public place protects both parties.  You don’t know us any more than we know you so public places are for everyone’s own comfort. 

There are also those people who would like to waste our time.  We have a large family and a very busy life.  We do not have the time to show every single rabbit we have just to have to explain why they are all not for sale.  We are not a pet store or petting zoo open for window shopping for those parents without any real interest in purchasing a bunny.  We encourage questions…and lots of them.  But these can be done through text, email or Facebook messenger as to save time for both parties. 

On top of the many liability reasons for running a closed rabbitry, there are also many biosecurity reasons.  A rabbitry is a biosecure area, although it may not seem like it due to the messy nature of animals.  Buyers can easily bring diseases into the rabbitry which could lead to having to cull an entire herd thus costing us thousands of dollars and heartbreak of animals we care so deeply about.  RHDV2 is spreading around the USA currently.  This virus is extremely deadly and contagious to both domestic and wile rabbit populations.  If any of our rabbits were to contract this disease, we would have to the entire herd culled (euthanized) and disposed of by the USDA.  Again, this would be devastating both emotionally and financially. 

Please help us keep our rabbits safe by understanding why we keep a closed rabbitry.  It is not meant to be an inconvenience to any buyer…it is a way to protect us and our beloved rabbits. 

Thank you for your understanding!