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Can Rats and Rabbits live together in harmony??

 
 
Reply Mon 24 Sep, 2007 01:07 pm
I'm moving in with my boyfriend at the end of this week, and his brother's girlfriend has got two house rabbits.

My two rats will be coming with me and we were planning on keeping all four critters in the spare room.

I've just been told by someone that they think Rabbits might get freaked out by rats because they are natural foes in the wild.

Is this true? Is it possible to keep both types of animal in the same room?

The rats and rabbits would also be allowed to free roam, most probably not together though, but they'd obviously be able to reach eachother's cages when they're let out. Could this cause problems aswell?

Thanks in advance.
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Type: Discussion • Score: 12 • Views: 47,067 • Replies: 24
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Francis
 
  1  
Reply Mon 24 Sep, 2007 01:18 pm
Let's ask Dlowan and CoastalRat...
0 Replies
 
TheCorrectResponse
 
  0  
Reply Mon 24 Sep, 2007 01:37 pm
If you have rats and rabbits in the same room and the rats are hungry enough or just get the urge, you will no longer need to worry about having rats and rabbits in the same room.
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honey rose cr
 
  1  
Reply Mon 24 Sep, 2007 01:44 pm
Can I have some straight answers please? They're not wild, they get fed, are they just going to suddenly go mental when they smell the rabbits or what?

Plus they're not going to magically morph through their cages.

I haven't heard anything about this. We had rabbits in the garden when next doors trash attracted some enormous WILD rats, nothing happened. The rabbits weren't stressed and didn't get consumed...
TheCorrectResponse
 
  1  
Reply Mon 24 Sep, 2007 01:50 pm
Sorry, but that was a straight answer. If the rats want to eat the rabbits they will, if they don't they won't. I would not trust a cage to keep a determined rat out. But hey give it a try. I did volunteer animal handling at a zoo for years we stopped feeding live rats to the snakes. If the snakes weren't hungry they ignored the rats. The rats would nibble on the snakes. They often peeled off a few scales which led to the snakes getting infections. Of course the rats couldn't eat the snakes, if the snakes got mad at the nibbling they just killed the rats.
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Noddy24
 
  1  
Reply Mon 24 Sep, 2007 03:30 pm
Caged rabbits and caged rats coexist at pet stores.

I'd cage the rabbits up wind from the rats and keep an eye on the situation.
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honey rose cr
 
  1  
Reply Mon 24 Sep, 2007 03:51 pm
Thanks, but a straight answer would be "Rats and Rabbits are natural foes and the rats could upset the rabbits, and even try to injure/kill the rabbits." Too tired to remember earlier phrasing of that..

Thanks Noddy, I suppose we could always try and if it doesn't work out, keep them in our room. I was just wondering if there would be serious stress/unrest if we even tried. Or if people had experience of keeping rats and rabbits together..
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TheCorrectResponse
 
  1  
Reply Tue 25 Sep, 2007 01:15 pm
OK:
Rats and Rabbits are natural foes and the rats could upset the rabbits, and even try to injure/kill the rabbits."
0 Replies
 
cyphercat
 
  1  
Reply Tue 25 Sep, 2007 02:29 pm
My rabbits get along with my cats, and vice versa, but the rabbits hate our guinea pig with a passion. The dominant rabbit will just about kill the other rabbit if he sees the guinea pig even across the room.

I'd be very careful with having them around each other. Make sure you're around all the time at first, even when they're in cages, just to be sure the bunbuns aren't getting freaked out. Also better look into whether rats carry anything that rabbits can catch (or the other way 'round). I know guinea pigs carry something that isn't harmful for them but can kill rabbits, for example.
cjhsa
 
  -1  
Reply Tue 25 Sep, 2007 02:54 pm
Get a tomcat and voila. Problem solved.

My Lou's favorite snack: Bunny heads in blood sauce, preferred two to one over mice/rat forequarters in blood sauce.
0 Replies
 
philla
 
  1  
Reply Mon 13 Apr, 2009 06:25 am
@cyphercat,
my rabbit and cat also are the best of friends and when my sister inlaw comes over she brings her guinea pig and we put the the guinea pig with my rabbit and its all fine. also the pet shop we got the rabbit from sells them with guinea pigs in the same encloser
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animalsrawsome
 
  1  
Reply Sun 7 Jun, 2009 11:26 am
@honey rose cr,
Q:Rabbits and rats in the same cage?
A: Imposible.
Rats and rabbits are very different animals and it is a posibility that the rats will eat the rabbits. Sorry but thats not the best idea.
0 Replies
 
Arella Mae
 
  1  
Reply Mon 29 Jun, 2009 12:29 pm
Check this video out! I would say if this cat, rat, and dog can be friends like this, there is hope!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D85yrIgA4Nk
0 Replies
 
liccinuke
 
  1  
Reply Wed 15 Jul, 2009 04:55 am
Have a look at this video, I have a Rat and i will be getting a bunny in the next few weeks, i hope they get on as well as these two Smile
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vW10SMedZKE
0 Replies
 
kaijasart
 
  1  
Reply Sat 29 Jan, 2011 04:34 pm
@honey rose cr,
If I were you I'd just play it by ear. Many of the people responding here have been giving you definite yes or no answers, when in reality every animal is different and every animal responds differently to different situations. Some animals do well together and others don't, regardless of history or species. I personally have two pet rats, and I think the notion of them ever attacking a rabbit in another cage is laughable, but then again, those are my rats, and they're very very mellow and lazy. If nothing else you can invest in a more secure cage if things don't look promising.
Good luck!
0 Replies
 
JGoldman10
 
  1  
Reply Sun 27 Feb, 2011 02:23 am
@honey rose cr,
Yes they can:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e9/Cat_and_rabbit_sitting_together.jpg/300px-Cat_and_rabbit_sitting_together.jpg

Don't they look cute together?
Neby
 
  0  
Reply Sat 9 Jul, 2011 06:49 pm
@honey rose cr,
I have two rats in a huge 5 story cage and one piggy and bunny in a huge two story cage. My piggy died and my bunny is so lonely. My other rat just died so I put the rat and piggy together. I am watching them and they seem to get along. the rat smelled and touched noses with the bunny. She became arfraid and so I put her on the second floor of the cage. She is a timid rat and has gotten out of her cage before but just sits by the door trying to get in. I think they will be ok and hope they can keep eachother company.
0 Replies
 
Lindleberg
 
  1  
Reply Wed 14 Aug, 2013 07:39 pm
@honey rose cr,
Hi, I have a rat and rabbit in my room, the rat is on a raised area so all the bunny knows of it is it's movement and it's smell on me. They seem quite happy living their lives serperately.
0 Replies
 
Callum38
 
  0  
Reply Tue 27 Aug, 2013 04:54 am
@honey rose cr,
no i don't think so it's possible.You should take cage for both otherwise it's not possible.
0 Replies
 
Dantethedon
 
  0  
Reply Mon 27 Oct, 2014 06:28 pm
I have my giant Flemish in a dogshed with hay outside...just looked in an saw two rats curled up with her...they are wild rats.. And they have become her friends...my question is , do rats **** where they nest?
 

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