Rabbit Transport
Updated: Jul 19
It is a tale as old as the internet. You have fallen in love with a sweet bunny, states away from you! How ever will you be united?!
There are 4 main ways you can get your bunny in your arms:. * ones are my preferred ways.
Drive *
If you are somewhat close by or are looking for an adventure this is a great way to get your bunny to you! I drove 6 hours one way to get a couple of my first bunnies (and back again) all in one day! It was crazy but getting to watch the sunrise while making my way across the sate and to another was so fun!
Fly
This is the most expensive, but depending on where you live, and your comfort level this may be the best option for you. Flying would be a preferred option if it were more economical. Not all airlines will allow you to fly with your bunny as a carry on and some airlines change whether they do every now and then. Alaskan is on that has allowed it the most consistently but they do not fly everywhere.
This can be a great option if you happen to be coming to the area for another reason though!
Transport *
Surprisingly, this is the most often the most economical option. Before I got rabbits, I had no idea this even existed. However, there are some excellent people who drive all over the country, picking up and dropping off bunnies along their route.
These "Transporters" as we call them, will plan a route and post a map of their potential stops and a start/end date. They may add more stops or remove them if no one is needing it.
Then people fill out a form with their contact info and pay the transport fee (typically $65-100 depending on rabbit breed size, Angoras are usually $75ish).
A week before the transport run starts, they post the schedule. That includes what stops are each day, the rough time they will be there AND the location to meet at. The locations are easy to get to, typically right off the highway, public and are well known business or gas stations. There are usually more than one person picking up or dropping off at a location.
The transporter will also create a facebook group for communication purposes will keep people up to date - the really good transporters are almost always on time, with the exception of unexpected event.
When I drop off your bunny, they are given a good health check to ensure all the animals on board are good and healthy, then they are assigned a transport cage number, given water and food that I have packed up for them, they also have access to hay at all times.
The transporters keep a close eye on your bunny and most even sleep in their van...which is temperature controlled. They only shut their van off when fueling up.
So your bunny is very well cared for and looked after their whole journey to you. <3
I have sent many and received a few bunnies this way and have always had a wonderful experience.
Ship
This is also a possibility, though not my favorite. It is too unpredictable.
I did have two bunnies make their way to my door this way... but they were not supposed to. I was supposed to pick them up at the nearest facility but when I got there, the bunnies were no where to be found... It took some time and a few phone calls to learn that they were in a truck making their way to my door.
Luckily, I was only 30 minutes away BUT they were left at my door without anyone being home.
What if it were too hot and they sat outside while I tried to track them down?
I know some people have had success with this and it works great- I don't know if I feel it is worth the risk if other options are readily available.