Two rabbits sharing a hutch still need individual health attention, because pair living hides individual change: one rabbit can lose weight while the other steals the food, and the pair can look fine while one quietly fades. A planned year solves that by splitting care into an annual professional rhythm, a weekly home rhythm, and seasonal jobs that the weather triggers.
Agree the Professional Rhythm With Your Vet
Book at least one vet examination a year for each rabbit, and discuss whether your pair needs a second visit based on age, teeth history, and condition. At the examination, expect the vet to check front teeth and, as far as handling allows, the back teeth, weigh each rabbit, feel body condition, examine coat, skin, eyes, ears, and feet, and review diet and housing with you. Vaccination sits inside this conversation where relevant: rabbits are vaccinated against some diseases in some regions, and your vet advises what fits your area and a backyard lifestyle. Parasite questions, neutering status, and any lumps or sore hocks also belong on this annual agenda. Leave with the next date booked or at least pencilled, and with a clear picture of which changes should trigger a call sooner.
Run Weekly Home Checks on Both Rabbits
Once a week, lift each rabbit in turn and work through the same list: eyes bright and dry, nose dry, coat smooth, bottom clean and dry, hocks free of sore or bald patches, and teeth visible at the front sitting in line. Feel along the back and ribs for condition change, and weigh monthly on a kitchen scale, recording grams per rabbit rather than a combined impression. Watch each rabbit eat at least once a week, since chewing style and enthusiasm reveal mouth trouble early. Note droppings in the hutch corners for size and quantity, because shrinking droppings often precede a rabbit going off food. Compare the two rabbits against each other as well as against last week, since a shared dip can point to hay, water, or weather, while a single rabbit dipping points at that rabbit. A rabbit who stops eating or produces no droppings across a day needs prompt veterinary advice, whatever the calendar says.
Seasonal Jobs the Weather Triggers
Warm months bring the fly risk, so check bottoms daily when flies are active, keep bedding and litter areas clean and dry, and clear soiled material promptly, since a dirty bottom attracts the flies that cause a fast-moving emergency. Coat checks matter in moult season too, with loose fur removed by gentle grooming before it mats or gets swallowed in quantity. Cold months shift the list: check water bottles and bowls for freezing at least twice daily, add windproof shelter and deep dry bedding, and watch weight closely because a rabbit eating less in the cold loses condition quickly. Shade, ventilation, and frozen water bottles as cooling aids matter during heat, when rabbits overheat easily and should be checked more often through the day.
One Record per Rabbit, Kept All Year
Give each rabbit a page or a file and log weights, vet dates, findings, and seasonal jobs against the right animal. Photograph teeth and any sore hocks when something changes, and note which rabbit a symptom belongs to before you phone the clinic, since vague pair-level reports slow triage down. At the annual visit, the two records show the vet a year of evidence per animal rather than a summary of the pair. Individual files for both rabbits in Pet Passport hold two KinsLe histories cleanly apart, season after season.