This as much depends on the responsibility of the parent as the child. No 10 year old child, however responsible, should be left in sole charge of any pet. They may ably take care of the rabbit on a day-to-day basis as long as they are well educated in feeding and handling the animal. However, in terms of being able to see subtle differences in behavior or appearance which may give an indication of illness, a child is not as well positioned as a responsible adult.

An adult’s supervision is also necessary to make sure the child is maintaining a strict regime of cleanliness and housekeeping. Last year our readers voted 56% against a rabbit being a good first pet for a child.