Rabbits and Hares

Question 1

rabbits/hares order and family

Answer 1

order: Lagomorpha
family: Leporidae

Question 2

rabbits/hares characteristics

Answer 2

large front teeth but small teeth behind uppers, molars

Question 3

rabbits vs hares

Answer 3

rabbits:
altricial offspring
generally more compact body shape
hares:
precocial birth
generally longer, thinner body shape

Question 4

jack rabbit

Answer 4

hare

Question 5

belgian hare

Answer 5

rabbit (selected for hare characteristics)

Question 6

male/female terminology

Answer 6

male: buck
female: doe

Question 7

young terminology

Answer 7

kit

Question 8

hearing

Answer 8

very good, big ears

Question 9

smell

Answer 9

very good
approx 100 million receptors

Question 10

sight

Answer 10

wide range of vision, monocular
poor ability to focus/depth perception, color recognition
good ability to detect motion, predators

Question 11

rabbit size

Answer 11

females slightly larger than males

Question 12

agouti

Answer 12

wild type color pattern
banded hair colors

Question 13

normal hair type

Answer 13

guard hairs (thicker) longer than underhairs (softer)

Question 14

rex hair type

Answer 14

guard hairs same length as underhairs
velvety appearance and feel

Question 15

satin hair type

Answer 15

flattened strands of hair
give extra sheen

Question 16

angora hair type

Answer 16

very long hair
can be used for cloth

Question 17

shelter

Answer 17

can be kept outdoors (multiple rabbits)
acclimatize them to cold weather, keep out of wind
wire floor, solid area for resting
wire inside wood frame so they can’t chew through it

Question 18

diet

Answer 18

herbivorous
grass hay, fresh vegetables
salt block

Question 19

coprophagy

Answer 19

eat cecal pellets (not necessarily feces)
cecum digests fiber, nutrients produced can’t be absorbed by small intestine
cecal pellets=source of B vitamins
reabsorb nutrients from cecal pellets

Question 20

rabbit reproduction

Answer 20

induced ovulators
partruition=kindling
female will pull hair from front before kindling to make a nest

Question 21

viral disease

Answer 21

myxomatosis
rabbits introduced to Australia in 1800s, no predators
brought infected rabbits with myxomatosis from Europe to Australia to control population
transmitted by mosquitos, fleas, direct contact
causes fever, swollen head “big head disease”
no treatment, kill and burn animal and rabbit contacts

Question 22

bacterial diseases

Answer 22

snuffles
mastitis

Question 23

snuffles

Answer 23

most common disease
first symptom is wet front feet (runny nose)
problem if bad ventilation, outdoor rabbits have better ventilation
hard to cure with antibiotics

Question 24

mastitis

Answer 24

inflammation of mammary glands
treatable with antibiotics

Question 25

protozoal disease

Answer 25

coccidiosis

Question 26

fungal disease

Answer 26

ringworm
contagious to humans
circular patches of lost hair, sores

Question 27

parasites

Answer 27

ear mites
mange mites
worms

Question 28

malocclusion

Answer 28

buck teeth, teeth don’t align or grow too long
can trim/grind down teeth

Question 29

sore hocks

Answer 29

from always being on wire, poor cleanliness

Question 30

antibiotic use

Answer 30

can cause problems with bacteria in GI tract, kills microbes in cecum