Pet Q&A: My daughter would love to have a rabbit as a pet and I wanted to know what type would be the most friendly and appropriate?

A Rabbits can make nice pets, but there is a lot of misunderstanding about how they should be looked after so I would urge you to do your homework first. They live on average for five to ten years and can cost more than 3,000 during the course of their lifetime.

All animals, including rabbits, need five things to be healthy and happy, and under the Animal Welfare Act (2006) all owners must now provide these five things for the pets they keep. These are called the five welfare needs and they are:

A suitable home – eg a large hutch and exercise run.

A suitable diet – eg lots of daily hay with a handful of suitable greens morning and night.

Being able to behave normally – by having a large run and having things to do and explore (eg cardboard boxes and large tubes).

Company – rabbits shouldn't be kept alone as they need company. A neutered male with a neutered female is the best combination.

Protection from pain and disease – eg they need vaccinations just like dogs and cats.

As for friendliness, this depends mainly on how they have been handled and treated from a young age; daily friendly interactions and handling when they are young will make them more tame and confident around people as adults.

For more information, visit www.pdsa.org.uk/rabbits and www.your-right-pet.org.uk.

Q My 13-year-old dog has started to wet herself without realising. She has been fully house trained from being a puppy so I'm puzzled?

A Urinary incontinence is relatively common in older dogs.

In some it is due to age-related degeneration of the nerves that supply the bladder and this can not usually be treated.

In others it can be due to a loss of hormonal control of the muscles which are used in bladder emptying. This can sometimes be treated successfully with daily medicine.

Diabetes can cause a dog to drink more and this extra fluid may make it harder for a dog to control its weeing.

With this range of possible causes, you should take your dog to your vet to have her checked over.

Your vet may wish to do some basic tests, such as gathering a urine sample, and can then recommend any available treatment based on the findings.