First I'd like to address where one should not go to find the bun of your life. The first place that most people look is the local pet store. However, the majority of pet stores are selling rabbits that they buy from places, known to the rabbit community, as "Back Yard Breeders" and "Rabbit Mills". This is sadly the cheapest option available to them, which enables them to keep their sell prices low.

Back-yard breeders are most commonly people with little rabbit knowledge, whos pets have bred and produced unplanned babies, or who have decided it would be cute to have baby rabbits, and do so without any forethought for behavioural traits, and without the proper knowledge on how to go about raising the kits.

Rabbit mills are operations where the goal is quantity over quality. The does are bred over and over, to the detriment of their health, in foul living conditions, where they and the kits receive little to no care. They are each kept seperate, in very small cages, stacked side by side, one on top of the next, with barely enough room to lay down. Although rabbit kits should not be weaned from their mothers until they reach eight weeks of age, it is common for rabbit mills to sell their kits as young as four weeks. This is no life for any living thing, much less a highly emotional creature like the rabbit.

The result of both operations are kits which are sickly, weak & unsocialized (thus will be human shy, very nervous and edgy). In addition to the above, most pet store clerks are not trained in the proper care of the animals they sell. Their job is to sell... as much as possible, regardless if the products are even adequate, or necessary. Have you seen the rabbit hutches they sell in pet stores? I am saddened when I hear pet store clerks toting them as "all the rabbit needs", when in fact they will barely give the rabbit room enough to stretch out to full length or full height. Consider for a moment how it would feel to live in such cramped quarters day in and day out. They will sell you rabbit pellet with little "tidbits" in it.. because your rabbit will love it. Unfortunately, your rabbit will eat the "tidbit" all too willingly. Rabbits have large "sweet tooths", and if fed this "junk food" pellet mix your rabbit will soon become over weight only to suffer from many ailments which could be prevented if he were on a proper diet, and given adequate exercise. With so much wrong with pet stores many people have bought a pet store bunny only to have them die within the first week. I strongly encourage everyone not to purchase your rabbit from a pet store, and instead give a second chance to a deserving shelter rabbit.

Adoption! You may not have even known that this was an option. But many rabbits end up in shelters when their owners decide that they aren't good pets for their children, or they won't use their litterboxes, or they simply tire of them. The reasons are endless. But many of these rabbits end up making the best of companions. It's kind of like they can really appreciate everything you are willing to do for them. And most reputable shelters will spay and neuter each rabbit before they are adopted out, saving you money and the hassel of many behavioural issues. The other good thing about shelter rabbits is that you can go and visit with a rabbit who has caught your eye, and spend some time accessing their personality to see if they will fit in with your family. If you are interested in having several rabbits you can usually find a pair or a set that are already bonded which will save you the stress of bonding altogether. For help finding a great pet rabbit you can search Pet Finder. On the left hand side of the screen you just enter all the particulars of the pet you are hoping to find.

One final option I will mention is to go straight to a reputable rabbit breeder. This is a really nice option if you are looking for a specific breed of rabbit. Especially if you are interested in having a large breed rabbit, such as a french lop, english lop or a flemmish giant, where the options for locating such a bun are usually limited to breeders. As well most breeders can give you lots of good startup information, and should provide a reliable contact should you encounter health problems. The ARBA has a really nice photo listing of the specific types of rabbits that are bred. Although each rabbit will be unique in his personality it is generalized that lop eared rabbits are usually more "calm" than uppity eared rabbits. This has also been said to be true about larger bunnies as well as male rabbits. I wish you great success in finding the perfect bun for you!