Rabbit sitting: arranging care while you are on holiday

Arrange holiday care for your rabbits, covering their enclosure, feeding, care as a pair or group, updates and vet contact details.

Updated on 28 September 2026

A good holiday sitter for your rabbits knows more than where the food is. Discuss their familiar routine, enclosure and how the sitter can recognise changes. Write down the arrangements before you leave and keep the instructions together in one place.

Rabbits are social animals who should live with another rabbit. They need space, suitable food and daily care. LICG explains why rabbits require specific knowledge. Choose someone with rabbit experience and use a meet and greet to show how you care for your animals.

Start with your own rabbits

Tell the sitter your rabbits' names and how to tell them apart. Do they become active as soon as food arrives? Who usually sits where? These examples help the sitter compare what they see with normal behaviour.

Discuss the existing pair or group as a whole. While you are away, the sitter should not introduce new rabbits or change the existing pair or group without an agreed plan. If a vet or rabbit specialist has agreed particular arrangements with you, pass these on clearly.

Show the enclosure

Walk around the indoor or outdoor enclosure together. Demonstrate how the doors, locks and run close. Show where the animals can move freely and which areas are out of bounds. Agree who will check that everything is securely closed after each visit.

Discuss the conditions during your absence too. What shade and shelter are available? What should the sitter do if the weather changes significantly? Choose a suitable solution in advance so the sitter does not have to improvise.

Write down the feeding routine

Prepare their usual food and note what you give and when. Show where to top up hay and clean drinking water, and how the water system works. Stick to their usual food; avoid introducing anything new while you are away without an agreed plan.

Make it practical: point out the correct bowl or measure, label supplies and check there is enough for the whole period. Describe any separate routines for individual animals. The detailed LICG rabbit care sheet provides background on feeding and care.

Agree what the sitter should check

A message saying food has been put down does not tell you how the animals are doing. Ask the sitter to check that each rabbit is eating and behaving as discussed. Agree which changes should be reported immediately.

If a rabbit is not eating, contact a vet immediately. LICG warns against waiting. Make sure the sitter knows which practice is available and how transport can be arranged. Leave medical treatment and dosages to the vet.

Handover checklist

Names, identifying features and the usual routine are written down.The sitter has seen the enclosure, its locks and the supplies.Food, water, cleaning and visit times are agreed.Any instructions from the vet have been passed on clearly.The sitter has your phone number, an emergency contact and the vet’s details.You both know what the sitter should include in an update.

The general pet sitter checklist helps with access, contacts and practical house arrangements. Add your rabbits' routine to it.

Find someone with suitable experience

Look for a pet sitter and discuss explicitly whether they can care for your rabbits. Explain the species, number of animals, visits needed and experience required. A profile or general mention of pet sitting does not itself confirm that someone cares for rabbits.

Sources and further reading

LICG: rabbit — social needs, housing, care, feeding and signs that you should call the vet.
LICG: holidays when your pet stays at home — arranging care and leaving instructions.