Rabbits are frequently kept in housing far below their welfare requirements. Modern rabbit welfare standards call for significantly larger, more complex environments than traditional hutches provide.
Rabbit housing welfare is a significant problem in companion animal care: traditional hutches sold for rabbit housing provide far less than the minimum space recommended by welfare organizations, and rabbits housed in these environments develop musculoskeletal problems, obesity, and behavioral stereotypies. The evolution of rabbit welfare standards has been rapid — what was considered adequate housing 20 years ago is now recognized as severely inadequate. Modern recommendations call for permanent access to a large enclosure allowing running and jumping, substrate for digging, multiple levels for climbing, and companions for social needs. The challenge is that welfare messaging has not reached the general public effectively: rabbits are still commonly marketed as suitable for small hutch housing and positioned as easy, low-maintenance pets — neither of which is accurate.