Setting up for a new Lionhead rabbit

An 8-week-old Lionhead — brilliant timing to get the setup right before any bad habits form (yours or theirs). Rabbits are genuinely complex animals that most people underestimate: they need space to binky and roam, hay making up around 80% of their diet, enrichment to stop boredom, and ideally a companion down the line. Getting the environment correct from the very start makes a real difference to both health and temperament. So tell me — is this rabbit going to be indoor or outdoor, and what are you most focused on sorting first?

Good instinct — space anxiety is real in rabbits and a stressed kit at 8 weeks can become a fearful adult. For an indoor Lionhead in a flat, the single biggest thing you can do is ditch the idea of a traditional cage entirely. Rabbits need to be able to run, not just sit. Can I ask — were you thinking of a hutch-style enclosure, or were you open to a pen setup that gives her more freedom during the day?

There are much better options for indoors. My clear recommendation for a young indoor rabbit in a flat is a large C&C-style modular pen — specifically the Kavee 6x2 C&C Guinea Pig and Rabbit Cage. It's popular for guinea pigs but works brilliantly for a solo young rabbit: it gives a proper running footprint, you can configure it to suit your space, and it's easy to clean and expand. At her age she doesn't need vast square footage yet, but she needs room to run short bursts and turn around freely. This pen gives you that without dominating a small flat. Pair it with a hay rack mounted inside so hay is always accessible — that alone shapes good gut health from the start.

For bedding, line the base with a good fleece liner — Kavee actually make liners to fit their pens, which saves a lot of faff. Avoid sawdust entirely with a Lionhead; the fine particles can irritate their airways and their thick mane traps dust badly. A hay area, a hideaway like a cardboard box or a wooden hide, and a ceramic water bowl rather than a bottle are the other essentials. Bottles are harder for young kits to use reliably and they often don't drink enough as a result.

At 8 weeks she's young enough to bond reasonably well with a companion later, but there's no rush right now — let her settle in and get used to you first. Most rescue centres recommend waiting until she's been spayed (around 4-6 months) before bonding her with another rabbit, as it makes the bonding process much smoother. For now, just make sure you're spending time with her daily — floor time outside the pen, gentle handling, and talking to her. Young rabbits that get consistent human interaction in the first few months are noticeably calmer adults.