Farmed rabbits are commonly housed in wire cages that prevent natural behaviors, with alternative systems offering significant welfare improvements.
Farmed rabbit welfare shares characteristics with laying hen battery cage problems: conventional housing systems deny basic species-specific behaviors through extreme space restriction. Rabbits have strong motivation for running, jumping, and exploring that wire battery cages entirely prevent. The resulting frustration contributes to stereotypic behaviors and increased susceptibility to disease from stress. Alternative park housing systems that provide group access to larger spaces represent a welfare improvement while remaining commercially viable. The regulatory trajectory in Europe toward higher standards is promising; expanding these standards globally would benefit the billion rabbits farmed annually whose welfare is currently given minimal consideration.