Rabbits are widely used in biomedical research and vaccine testing, but their welfare needs are often inadequately met in traditional laboratory settings.
Laboratory rabbits in individual barren cages develop stereotypic behaviors including repetitive cage-bar touching, head-bobbing, and abnormal locomotion that indicate poor psychological welfare. Rabbits are highly social animals that experience genuine distress in isolation. Traditional laboratory housing has been designed for experimental convenience rather than animal welfare. Social housing programs have demonstrated that pair-housed rabbits show better welfare indicators and that research validity is not compromised by welfare improvements. The 3Rs drive toward alternatives is reducing rabbit use in some areas while other uses persist.