Rabbits and rats might not be as timeless an animal pairing as cats and dogs, but they are still extremely popular pet choices. More to the point, they both have unique qualifications and traits that might make one of these small creatures more aptly suited to your lifestyle.
Everything from the overall temperament of these furry friends to their color variety, food needs, and how often you’ll need to be physically involved with them should be taken into consideration in order to decide which of these pets would work best with your family and time availability.
This article discusses multiple topics to help decipher the difference between the two small pets. For those looking to find out which pet is right, we encourage you to continue reading for more information! Afterward, we will discuss some of each animal’s pros and cons, leaving you with the ultimate guide!
What Is the Difference Between a Rabbit and a Rat as a Pet?
Quite a few of these differences will be discernible at a glance, things like their innate size, the length of their ears, and food needs can be pretty apparent from the very start, but it’s only when you begin to dig deeper that you see where each animal’s unique characteristics truly start to shine.
1. Appearance
Assuming for a moment that all small fluffy things look the same to you, rabbits and rants could appear vaguely the same, especially if there is nothing to compare their relative sizes from something as simple as a Google image search. However, on average, rabbits are much larger than rats, especially domesticated variants.
Rabbits
When you attempt to recall what a rabbit looks like, the de facto image most people can pull up is a small, fluffy animal with long, floppy ears. This isn’t too far from the truth, but smaller details like their adorable button noses that perk up when sniffing their surroundings, extended front teeth (that must be whittled down by constant gnawing), and large rounded shape make them quite the charming animal, even at a glance.
Rabbits have very specialized muscular structures in their hind legs that allow them to leap quite far in a single bound (usually when trying to flee from predators). Still, these massive legs also play a very important part in their general physiology. Coupled with their curved spine, they allow them to engage in beautiful feats of athleticism. The combined power of their long ears, rounded eyes, and very sensitive noses allows them to be keenly aware of their surroundings—and cute at the same time!
Rats
In terms of raw appearance, rats are much smaller than rabbits. Instead of long ears, they have smaller, rounded ears, and tails that are usually the same length (or longer) as their body. Focusing on their feet and hands, rats typically have a distinct lack of fur, which can prove to be a point of contention in colder areas. Still, they usually sit down on them to remain warm if such weather merits it.
Rats also have notably small, beady eyes and small pink noses, and their skulls are more cone-shaped than rabbits. Finally, their fur is, on average, shorter and softer than rabbits’. Still, the color varieties can be just as diverse, with the ranges broadening depending on the species.
2. Diet
As far as nutritional needs are concerned, the rabbit and rat differ quite considerably, primarily because rabbits are herbivores, whilst rats are omnivores, both of which have their pros and cons between each other, but the flexibility in a rat diet can also prove problematic, depending on how you view it.
While you can definitely choose a pellet-based food option as a proper solution, it will remove a lot of variety from your pet’s diet. While meal prep can be annoying, feeding it to your pet can be a very intimate time for bonding, so be wary of choosing it as the easy way out.
Rabbits
Being a herbivore, rabbits are notorious for loving more than their fair share of leafy greens, enjoying anything from celery, carrots, grapes, cucumbers, and even collard greens to various hay types, like Timothy, orchard, and oat, but you can double down on the utility of their hay, both as a feed and a pen liner. This is because rabbits deeply enjoy grazing while handling their business (going to the restroom).
The innate flexibility between feed as far as hay goes gives a much more clear cut fire and forget lifestyle on nutrition for rabbits, and it also keeps their gnawing in check by providing nutritional and beneficial options as opposed to settling for one or the other, as far as treats are concerned, you can reward your bun with several different fruits and herbs, but remember to be respectful of fruits, as they are high in sugar, and can lead to obesity.
Rats
Everyone has probably heard the old wives’ tale about rats eating anything. While there is some credibility to it, as rats are omnivores, there are certain limits, especially if you want your pet to have a healthy and nutritionally balanced diet that will facilitate a long life.
Rats can eat most of the more common foods that you can get at a pet store, like grains, seeds, and beans, but they can also branch out a bit, with interesting food types like meat, cereal, and even candy (very, very sparingly, if at all). Again, focusing on nutritional value is a must when regarding your pet rat’s diet, especially sugar intake. Much like rabbits, rats are prone to obesity.
However, you can offset this limitation by giving them toys and options that invoke healthier lifestyles. These toys and options can allow them to burn more calories than normal while enjoying themselves at the same time.
3. Behavior
How your pet behaves towards you or your family can be an integral part of the pet selection process. Having children means needing a pet that might be more understanding of being played with or handled, while a busy business lifestyle might be more comfortable with a pet that is perfectly content being left to its own devices for a vast majority of the time, needing very little in the way of socialization.
The key takeaway here is understanding that regardless of which pet you go with, you will need to invest some amount of time into bonding with the animal and playing with it, regardless of how hands-off this might be. While you can potentially supplement some of this interaction with another playmate, you will still need to interact with it in order for it to have a happy life.
Rabbits
In most cases, rabbits have a very docile, and timid nature, with a mild temperament to match, making them wary of loud noises, and spontaneous movements, giving them the appearance of being very frightened and flighty, but after your rabbit gets to know you personally, you’ll find that they are pretty lovable, and can even be very affectionate creatures.
Alternatively, however, rabbits are keen on expressing their displeasure or dissatisfaction with their surroundings or people. With everything from small grunts and sporadic flicks and jumps to outright anger being displayed in thrashing or biting, you’ll want to be very vigilant on signs that your rabbit is feeling uneasy or unsafe, as these thrashing bouts can be very dangerous, especially because rabbits have delicate spines that they can injure in such instances.
Rats
Even though the uninformed might associate rats as pests or bothersome creatures, they are very social and incredibly delightful pets that enjoy people’s company and love being handled and played with once they feel comfortable with you. Even more to that effect, they form unique bonds with people they consider their “favorites,” with this attitude being displayed towards humans and other rats, assuming they have any playmates.
All the kindness in the world, however, doesn’t change the fact that there are two sides to every coin. While rats can be absolutely adorable pets, if you harm them (accidentally or not), they can become very frightful or aggressive towards you. Making amends is very hard to achieve as their trust is difficult to attain once damaged.
The extreme focus on affection and love displayed by rats means you’ll need to play a big part in their daily lives, interacting with them on a regular basis and playing or spending time with them. As such, you should not get a rat as a pet if you are busy or if there is no one else in the home to interact with them and fulfill this need.
4. Habitat
A solid living arrangement can have a huge impact on your pet’s quality of life and very strong effects on how positively (or negatively) they behave. If their basic needs are met and their living spaces remain tidy, you can expect to have a loving animal that will be extremely responsive to new changes and open to different possibilities.
Suppose they don’t have enough room to stretch their legs adequately or engage in activities with their playmates. In that case, you can experience everything from mood swings to general aggression and destructive behavior, so meeting these thresholds is paramount to having a happy pet.
One shared attribute between rabbits and rats is the sensitivity of their noses and respiratory systems. They can both become incredibly irritated by airborne allergens, dust, fragrant scents, and other such air-modifying products. So be very cautious about how closely you place such things because you can unwittingly hurt your pet.
Rabbits
As far as size is concerned, your average rabbit enclosure should be about two feet wide in all dimensions, with another foot of headspace for height. This will allow them to nimbly hop about with some room for their ears to flop a bit, but the decorations in the enclosure itself should be kept to an absolute minimum.
While this might sound a little bland or even boring for your rabbit, the truth is that they care very little for aesthetics. Even more importantly, the extra complexity in their enclosures could become safety hazards, either by their bumping into them or potentially getting stuck if the decorations fall on top of them, making them very poor investments.
Lining the bottoms of their cages with hay will give them a pleasant snack and also act as a free-range litter pen. However, this won’t make the entirety of the structure disgusting, as rabbits typically only go to the restroom in a singular corner. They are very clean creatures, making the hay itself more for comfort than anything else.
Rats
You could easily say the polar opposite of rabbits is true of rats as far as habitat complexity is concerned. Rats need a variety of tubes, toys, obstacles, and entertainment opportunities to live a healthy and fulfilling lifestyle, as they can quickly get bored, and stagnation can lead to poor behavior.
Change things up in their enclosure and rearrange the same toys in different ways, partially obscuring them or alternating how they are laid to get the most out of them, and even rotate certain toys out to keep things fresh, but the key takeaway is that rats require an immense amount of physical activity and stimulation from their enclosure to be happy.
Another core need is that the floor of any enclosure you get for your rats should be a solid panel. Anything like wire mesh or even strict wire caging can lead to foot damage and injuries in the long run and make cleaning much more problematic than it has to be.
A final noteworthy component of their enclosures would be their overall security. You’ll want to double down on inspections and ensure that your rats have not gnawed through corners or damaged any part of it. Rats are known for being escape artists, but these escapes can prove life-threatening, especially if you have other pets in your home that might hurt them, accidentally or not.
5. Grooming
Bating, grooming, combing, and keeping your pet sanitary are issues for most pets. Whether they get into things they aren’t supposed to or their fur/hair becomes matted, there is typically something you need to do with them to get their hair loss and scents under control, but thankfully enough, neither rats nor rabbits suffer from such an issue.
Rabbits
A rabbit’s fur is naturally very clean, and they groom themselves constantly to keep it in pristine condition. Rabbits are also not very odorous, so aside from droppings in their pen, you won’t have to deal with unsightly smells.
Suppose you do need to clean your rabbit, at most. In that case, you’ll have to do a bit of damp cloth spotting around their rear ends for any droppings that may have become stuck to their bottoms. Still, nothing else, as formal baths, can be very stressful, which could cause them to panic and hurt themselves, or you may not dry them properly, and they can get sick from cold exposure.
Rats
Similarly, rats are also very clean despite their reputation as miniature trash divers. They clean their fur just as meticulously as rabbits and can participate in group grooming if you have several other rats in the same cage, which is both productive and a bonding activity amongst them.
It would be wise to avoid bathing your rats because you’d avoid it with rabbits. Complexities in environments, overstimulation, potential mishandling, or even getting soap in their eyes, ears, or respiratory system make the endeavor too dangerous for the effort. At most, rats will only have issues with their rear ends anyway, so the same spot-cleaning technique will prove effective here as well.
6. Lifespan
Size disparity plays a major role in the overall life expectancy of these delightful creatures, but innate physicality also plays a massive role. Rabbits’ lifespans dwarf those of humans, and that is before unexpected health complications come into play.
Rabbits
On average, a rabbit can live anywhere between three and five years, but some breeds, like the European rabbit, can live for up to nine years. It’s worth noting that most of these time discrepancies lie within the species difference, but how well the animal is treated, how balanced its nutrition is, and how healthy it remains all contribute to that timeframe.
If you want a long time with your furry friend, keeping its diet relatively strict and ensuring that it is as active as possible are core facets of it being with you for as long as possible. Sugary foods and obesity will be some of the greatest hurdles you’ll face regarding longevity.
Rats
Even though these tiny creatures have bigger-than-life attitudes and outlooks on life, it cannot be dismissed that their lifespans are incredibly short, with most having a maximum of about two years. Depending on how it is viewed, this can be both a blessing and a curse.
On the one hand, you can do a lot of things and experience an entire world of joy in such a time period, but on the other hand, the passing of a pet is always very difficult to deal with. This unfortunate fact of life can be tough for many, especially children, so be cautious if you take on a rat as a pet, as you may need to have a deeper talk than you are ready for when the inevitable happens.
7. Health
Health and lifespan go hand in hand, as a focus on one can extend the other, investing in healthy practices for your pet, micromanaging what they eat, and how they navigate their daily lives will extend their lifespan significantly, but some issues crop up that are merely side effects of the breed, or species, which is why this sidebar is here.
If you suspect something is wrong with your pet, you would be wise to get them to a veterinarian as soon as possible, especially if you notice extreme discoloration in any region of the body or strong, pungent smells being emitted from the mouth or wounds.
Rabbits
Some of the most common health issues among rabbits are largely preventable. Things like dental disease or overgrown teeth can be alleviated by simply giving them viable gnawing options. Respiratory infections can arise from unclean living spaces or being in close proximity to irritants.
On the other hand, you have things that are much harder to deal with, like unintentional exposure to parasites, for example, that might require specific treatments and shots, or innate issues like uterine cancer among unspayed female rabbits, such things are considerably rarer than usual, but definitive possibilities, and as such you should be aware of them.
Rats
Rats are often cited as dirty animals that can spread disease and other maladies, but the truth is they are willing to eat almost anything. In the pursuit of their next meal, they expose themselves to a litany of different bacteria that can inevitably lead to disease.
This is probably not likely for a pet rat, but overlapping concepts exist. For instance, rat bite fever is an ailment that can happen to you when your pet rat bites or scratches you and the wound is left unattended. However, this is an issue more for the owner than the rat itself.
Regarding the overall well-being of your rat as a pet, it can be exposed to parasitic infections like fleas and mites, viral infections, and the same respiratory issues noted above. This is especially true when instigated by inhalants or products made to make areas smell better.
Are Rabbits Similar to Rats?
Rabbits are indeed similar to rats, especially in how they deal with any damage to their respiratory system or the general sensitivity of their noses. They also share the ability to have deep relationships with important people. Still, rats are much more expressive of this fondness in most cases.
How Smart Are Rabbits Compared to Rats?
It isn’t exactly right to compare the cognitive abilities of a rabbit to a rat because it is almost akin to fighting blindfolded. Rabbits are capable of quite a few impressive feats of intellectual significance and can be trained to do things. Still, a rat’s natural curiosity and advanced problem-solving skills make it a clear-cut above rabbits in terms of raw mental power.
What Are the Pros and Cons of Owning a Rabbit?
Owning a rabbit is fantastic for people who want a calm, docile animal, that they don’t have to worry about picking up, cuddling with, or spending immense amounts of time attempting to physically interact with it, as they prefer being close to people, and interacting at their leisure as opposed to someone forcing it on them.
On the other hand, however, this means that people who look forward to snuggling with their favorite pet after a hard day might get the cold shoulder, or perhaps the interactions the rabbit wants aren’t up to their love language needs.
Additionally, rabbits might not be the most stimulating pet to observe for people who are looking for more entertainment out of their pet (interaction besides the point). While rabbits do play, they do so at a more calm pace and can be considered dull in certain circles.
What Are the Pros and Cons of Owning a Rat?
Deciding to go with a rat as a pet means you can experience a lot of life quickly. Since these creatures love deeply and are very passionate about how they navigate life, you can look forward to picking them up, nuzzling, and scooting toys around for hours if you so desire, and can relish a fascinating world if you get a few of them, observing how they interact with each other as a society, and you as a friend.
Because of these complex social needs, you’ll need to engage with these little guys much more than you would a rabbit, and sometimes. This may be a difficult chore, especially if you are not in the mood or have a busy work/life schedule. As such, you may want to consider something different, as neglecting your pet isn’t exactly fair.
One of the final reasons you might not want to get a rat as a pet is because their lifespans are so small. It is very easy to become highly attached to them, for their lives to be over in a flash, which can be very painful to experience, and even more challenging to explain to a child if you are in a growing home.
Final Words
In most cases, there is a definitive place in your home for either a rat or a rabbit, with your world and life getting innately better with the addition of either of these creatures, either by raw experience or the opportunity for additional companionship. Still, it’s essential to choose what is best for you and the animal in question instead of one that only benefits you.
