[brentamy]

My 4 y/o son wants a bunny so bad, he is looking at books, researching online...yes researching on the internet...very smart little boy. He has a plan on where to keep him and what to feed him and how he is going to love him and take care of him....very sweet. Wont our beagle Lilley try to kill it? Wont the rabbit drop dead out of fear around her? It's a beagles instint to hunt rabbit so we're thinking this will not be a good decision on our part. Does anyone have any pet rabbits around their dogs? Thanks!

 

[angelaH]

I would be very cautious. I know people on here keep rabbits and other pets and manage to stop them being toys, or food, for the beagle, but rabbits are the natural prey for our hounds. So if you do get your son one, it has to be watched when out of its cage. No chances or your son will be very traumetized.

 

[Pop_Rivit]

Murphy just found and eliminated a nest of baby bunnies this week. I didn't even know there was a nest there, but he quickly found it and did what Beagles were bred to do.

I'd be afraid that a rabbit as a house pet would be subject to a similar fate-it only takes a second.

 

[Toby & Lucky]

While I'm sure it can be done, I would sure be scared of trying!

 

[brentamy]

Well we're not going to do it. We thought maybe we could keep it in our barn but that is not fair, especially in the winter. Lilley is electric fence trained and is doing excellent, she has been tempted by rabbits, turkeys, pheasant, deer, and our cats and she has yet to break thru. We're afraid if she smells it constantly in our barn she will break thru. I think we will settle on a goldfish or hampster or something!

 

[Brien]

That's probably a good idea. There are some loose domestic rabbits a block away. And everytime we go by Bodie pulls towards them. Who knows what he would do if he ever caught one.

 

[RosCole]

We have lots of rabbits on our property and the beags go NUTS!! Gino almost dragged me down our front stairs the other morning (ouch) because there was a cute little bunny hopping along! The sniffers are working full time outside these days!

 

[cheezyridr]

we had a bunny before we had beagles. his name is bunz. here is a pic:
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s180/cheezyridr/cookingbunz.jpg

sophie and twitchy greet him each morning as soon as they are released from the crate. they touch noses through the cage. they are great friends -
AS LONG AS BUNZ IS IN THE CAGE...
if we let him out, sophie and twitchy chase him around and around. they nip but don't bite him. either way, bunz don't like it.

 

[mrsjenlester]

Be very careful! Our neighbors had a bunny and Daisy watched him through the fence day after day and then one day it dug under the fence and came in our yard and by the time I got to Daisy she already had him in her mouth and it was not an easy task making her let go and if I had not been here she would have killed him. My DH has a guinea pig and can only take her outside if Daisy is in. Even Gunnar our never hurt a fly dog has bitten our friends bunny.

 

[tntnjmom]

That is the cutest picture of bunz the bunny!!



Our daughter's been wanting a pet. (she's 6) Apparently a large, lazy cat and an active beagle aren't enough.
She fawned over the bunnies, the hamsters and the fish, but we still haven't gotten one. I was only thinking about the smell and the mess of another animal (and responsibility), it never crossed my mind about JoJo possibly hunting a bunny if we had gotten one! We were more worried about her little brother or the cat!!

I say a fish is definitely the way to go.

 

[kathy5]

we had a pet bunny before we got Georgia & just because of the type of dogs Beagles are I woukld not get a bunny because I felt it would not be fair to either animal maybe If you started off with a puppy & a bunny & they grew up toghether but I would not get a bunny with an older dog


on a side note bunny's make wonderful pets in the short time we had our cocoa he was such an easy pet to take care of & play with
he was litter boxed trained he did not chew on the molding on the floor he did chew through a [email protected] remoth wire in which my son was very upset but other than this he was a very good bunny both he & our cat go along very well you can go to you tube & punch in cocoa the bunny videos in a search & find some of him on there

 

[Sephly]

I'd say go with fish, no rodents or small furry animals, its just not worth the risk, and then explaining to your kid what happens if the beagle ends up killing it. just sounds like a bad situation. ALTHO my beagle and parrot completely ignore eachother and i did expect otherwise when we brought him home. so prey and predator can co-exist but I would stay on the safe side and stay away from giving the beag a furry meal.


Btw I'm great with fish (salt and fresh) if you need any advice pm me. Any questions on filtration, dosing, water params, fish species etc.

 

[MyaMayhem]

I just love bunnies. I've been told that you can let them have the run of the entire house. A friend of mine had a huge boxer with hers and he never touched the little furry animal. Mya, my beagle, on the other hand, would have been after it in a second. I have a pet rat, and she tries to go after it even when she sees her moving in the cage. Brady, the rodent lol, obviously has no sense of danger, and calmly goes up and licks Mya's nose, which is both cute and super scary. I'd hate to get a bunny and always have to be on defense when she was out. =[ Fish are fun pets too =]

 

[weed30]

My 20# beagle Daisy has killed 4 full grown rabbits in my back yard. No mercy. There is just no way I would ever pair a bunny and a hound, especially a beagle.

 

[Murphys Dad]

Summer has removed the rabbits (full grown) from our yard. Once the chase starts, it can only end one of two ways:
1. Summer catches and kills it
2. Bunny escapes and returns to be killed another day.

My main concern is more about how your son would feel about Lilley of she did kill the his bunny.

Its best you don't get one. The only time I've heard that beagles and bunnies co-exist is when they are raised together. The beagle grows up seeing the bunny as just another family member, not a prey. At 4 years old, her prey drive is locked and loaded.

 

[Shilohs Mom]

Shiloh has never caught a rabbit, but I'm afraid of what he would do. When I first brought him home at 8 weeks, he chased the cats. It took about 3 seconds for them to put him in his place. He still chases them and they turn around and chase him and swat his behind. He gets tired of it and lays down.

I think a fish would be safer.

Good Luck!

 

[Murphys Dad]

Well, I have a different take on it! If the rabbit acts like prey, the beagle will treat the the rabbit like prey and that will be bad for the bunny BUT all rabbits are not timid and all rabbits are not intimated by a big cold nose. Such a relationship can develop and it can become a lasting friendship. Beware, some male rabbits can become aggressive and that can be bad for the docile beagle. The key is caution and vigilance but peaceful coexistance is no unheard.

 

[beagleboy74594]

I got a bunny the day I wrote this reply and Ive had a beagle ever since 2019 both my beagle and my bunny are female and my beagle only sniffs my rabbit and my sister's rabbit. but it may only be my beagle. my idea is put the bunny cage up high but when you want your beagle to get used to it id say just put the bunny in front of the beagle but make sure the bunny is in the cage and that the beagle is calm and relaxed. If the beagle barks when they smell the bunny just keep the beagle in your arms when they are in front of the cage with the bunny in it. I hope this reply helps.