Rabbit farming for meat is a small but growing sector in the UK, and welfare standards are largely unregulated compared to other farmed species, with most rabbits housed in conditions causing significant welfare compromise.
Farmed rabbits in small wire cages cannot stand upright, run or perform normal locomotion. Wire floors cause foot sore (pododermatitis) through continuous pressure on soft plantar surfaces. Social animals kept singly cannot form the pair bonds natural to rabbit social structure. The welfare gap between legal requirements for farmed rabbits and those for other species reflects their lower economic and public profile.