Rabbits come in all sizes – from dwarf bunnies to giant buns. But just how tall is a rabbit? You need to know so you can ensure your rabbit hutch or cage is the right size!
On average, a rabbit stands 16 inches tall. This depends on whether the measurement is the rabbit’s total body length or only the shoulder height. Wild rabbits are slightly taller on average (15.75-17.71 inches), while pet rabbits are 12-16 inches tall. The tallest pet rabbit, however, is 51.6 inches tall.
Ready to learn more about this interesting topic? We’ll discuss the average height or tallness of wild and domesticated rabbits, factors that affect how big a rabbit gets, and the world’s tallest bunny.
How Tall Is an Average Wild Rabbit?
The average wild rabbit is about 15.75 inches to 17.71 inches tall, and its ears are 3.35 inches long.
The smallest wild rabbit is the pygmy rabbit (Brachylagus Idahoensis), and this bunny grows to be 7.78 inches tall.
The largest wild rabbits measure 19.68 inches, which is nearly 2 inches taller than the average height of a wild rabbit.
The Eastern Cottontail rabbit (Sylvilagus floridanus), for example, measures between 7 inches and 9 inches in shoulder height, with an ear length of 2.5 inches to 3.5 inches. Their total body length ranges from 15 inches to 18 inches.
How Tall Is an Average Domesticated Rabbit?
The average domesticated rabbit (or pet rabbit) is between 12 inches and 16 inches tall.
For example, an American Sable rabbit, which is a medium-sized rabbit, grows up to 8 inches to 12 inches in length, while the Harlequin rabbit, also a medium rabbit breed, can grow to be 14 inches tall.
A small rabbit breed, like the Dutch rabbit, typically has a shoulder height of 7.5 inches to 9 inches, an ear length of 3.75 inches to 4.74 inches, and a total body length of 11 inches to 14 inches.
A giant rabbit breed like the Flemish Giant can grow to have a total body length of 2.5 feet (30 inches) on average, while the largest of Flemish Giants can grow to 38 inches in length.
A Continental Giant, another giant rabbit breed, grows to be even bigger than a Flemish Giant. A Conti (as the Continental Giant rabbits are affectionately called) usually average over 3 feet (36 inches) in body length.
Factors That Affect Rabbit Growth
There are various factors that affect a rabbit’s growth and how tall it will be.
Diet
A healthy and balanced diet helps ensure your pet bunny thrives, develops correctly, and grows as big as it should be.
If you overfeed your rabbit and they become obese, then your rabbit will be a lot larger than other ideal-weighted rabbits. But just because you want a large or tall bunny doesn’t mean you should overfeed.
You want your fluffy bunny to be healthy and live a long life, right?
Breed
The rabbit breed of your bun has a massive influence on how tall and big your rabbit will grow to be.
A dwarf rabbit is a small rabbit, and they don’t grow very big. For example, a mature Netherland Dwarf rabbit has a shoulder height of 5 inches to 6 inches, and its ears measure 2 inches to 2.5 inches in length. Their overall body length is between 7.5 inches and 9 inches.
A medium breed rabbit like the Rex rabbit or Satin rabbit grows to be 12 inches in length (on average).
A large rabbit-like an Angora rabbit or an American Chinchilla rabbit can have a body length of 20 inches on average.
The body length of a giant rabbit breed like the Flemish Giant rabbit or Continental Giant rabbit is usually 30 inches, but they can grow as tall as 38 inches.
Exercise
A healthy rabbit is a bun that exercises. Some rabbit breeds are more active than others, but it is your responsibility as fur-parent to ensure your rabbit meets their minimum daily exercise requirement.
A rabbit that is active will develop better.
Breeding
The height of your rabbit is determined by their ancestors or which breeds the rabbit’s parents are.
If you selectively breed rabbits and only choose the strongest and biggest (or tallest) to mate with each other, then your chances of having taller bunnies are greater than when you breed smaller-sized rabbits with each other.
That is how breeders developed the Giant Chinchilla rabbit breed. This bun is bigger than the American Chinchilla rabbit or the Standard Chinchilla rabbit.
What’s the Tallest Rabbit Ever Recorded?
The Guinness World Book of Records states that Darius, a Continental Giant rabbit, is the world’s tallest rabbit.
Darius has a body length of 4 feet and 3 inches (or 129 centimeters in length), and this bunny has held the title of “tallest rabbit” since 2010. This rabbit is the size of a small child or toddler.
Darius lived in Stoulton, Worcestershire, England, with his fur parents; however, sadly, in April 2021 it was reported that 12-year-old Darius has gone missing and had – presumably – been stolen.
Mirror, a UK publication, ran a news story in March 2016 in which they reported that Darius’ son, Jeff, is even taller than his dad.
Jeff was 18 months old when his body length measured 4 feet and 5 inches, and his sister, Enya already had a body length of 3 feet 3 inches when she was 5 months old.
My Last Bunny Thoughts
Knowing how tall (or big) a rabbit grows helps you know exactly what size rabbit hutch or cage you need for one rabbit. If you have more than one rabbit, you need a larger enclosure for them.
If you have a 12-square-foot cage or enclosure that measures 2 feet (30 inches) in width, 6 feet (72 inches) in length, and 2 feet (30 inches) in height, and a medium rabbit is roughly 12 inches tall, then your enclosure is the right size.
Your rabbit should be able to hop 3-4 times (18 inches per-hop times 3 or 4 is 54-72 inches), then the length of 72 inches is more than enough.
The height should be 1.5-2 times the length of the bun, and in this case, it’s a bit more than double – yay! And the width is also more than twice the length of the bunny, so the bunny can stretch out.
