Rabbits are the third most commonly kept companion animal in the UK but among the most welfare-compromised, largely due to inadequate housing that prevents expression of natural behavior.
Rabbit housing welfare is a systemic problem driven by decades of normalizing inadequate housing standards that were never based on welfare science. The image of a rabbit in a small hutch is culturally embedded but represents chronic welfare failure - a life of spatial restriction, social isolation, and behavioral frustration. Modern welfare guidelines require connected hutch-run systems with far greater space than traditional hutches provide, plus social companionship and environmental complexity. Re-homing rabbits into appropriate housing, supporting welfare-conscious pet retailers, and advocating for minimum housing standards in legislation are all important pathways to improving the welfare of this under-served companion species.