A pair of rabbits needs a living space of at least 3 x 2 x 1 m (9.8 x 6.6 x 3.3 ft), open to them all the time. A hutch can be the shelter in it, but never the whole home.
Pet
Rabbits
Your cage against each minimum
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Living space
RSPCA, the Rabbit Welfare Association & Fund (RWAF) and Scottish SPCA all give 3 m x 2 m x 1 m high for two rabbits. RWAF counts only the floor the rabbits can reach, so the upper level of a two-storey hutch doesn’t count, and it gives a rabbit living alone the same space as two.
RWAF notes that 60 sq ft is sometimes quoted as a minimum, but an 8 x 8 ft pen (64 sq ft) has no 3 m length in it, so it falls short. Woodgreen gives pairs of large rabbits a 3 x 2 x 1.2 m run and giant ones a 4 x 4 m run, each with a shed of 1.5 x 1.5 m or 1.8 x 1.2 m.
The MSD manual’s cage sizes, 18 x 24 in for small breeds up to 30 x 36 in for giant ones, are far below the UK charities’. RWAF points out that a 4 x 1.5 ft pet shop hutch is the Home Office minimum for laboratory rabbits.
Shelter
Inside that space, RWAF sizes the sleeping quarters at 1.8 m long, 0.6 m deep and 0.6 m high or more. RSPCA keeps the exercise area permanently attached to the shelter, with room to hop, run, jump, dig, stand fully upright and stretch out.
Company
RSPCA encourages a suitable rabbit companion wherever possible; a rabbit can live alone in some cases, such as on a vet’s advice. RWAF keeps them at least in pairs. RSPCA doesn’t pair rabbits with guinea pigs.
Temperature
RSPCA’s ideal is 10–20 °C (50–68 °F). The MSD manual says long spells above 27 °C (80 °F) can make rabbits sick, and that they do poorly below 10 °C.
Everyday food
Most of the diet is hay and grass, with leafy greens and a few nuggets. The shares, a nuggets calculator and the foods to avoid are on what do rabbits eat.
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