By Harry Mount for the Daily Mail. Like super-models, they follow a strict daily diet — in their case, three carrots, an apple and a few cabbage leaves — to keep in shape for their public appearances. Over recent months, they have been feted across the globe and pampered wherever they go. One is even going to have a song written about his life. But when I meet Darius — the biggest rabbit on earth — and his similarly sized son, there is little evidence of diva behaviour.

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A domestic or domesticated rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus —more commonly known as a pet rabbit , a bunny , a bun , or a bunny rabbit —is a species of European rabbit. A domestic rabbit kept as a pet may be considered a pocket pet , depending on its size. A male rabbit is known as a buck, a female is a doe, and a young rabbit is a kit , or kitten. Rabbits were first used by the Romans as sources of food and fur , and have been kept as pets in Western nations since the 19th century. Rabbits can be litter box -trained and come when called , but they need exercise and can damage a house that is not "rabbit proof. Phoenician sailors visiting the coast of Spain c. In the 19th century, as animal fancy in general began to emerge, rabbit fanciers began to sponsor rabbit exhibitions and fairs in Western Europe and the United States.
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Laboratory animal models play an important role in the study of human diseases. Using appropriate animals is critical not only for basic research but also for the development of therapeutics and diagnostic tools. Rabbits are widely used for the study of human atherosclerosis. Because rabbits have a unique feature of lipoprotein metabolism like humans but unlike rodents and are sensitive to a cholesterol diet, rabbit models have not only provided many insights into the pathogenesis and development of human atherosclerosis but also made a great contribution to translational research. In fact, rabbit was the first animal model used for studying human atherosclerosis, more than a century ago.
Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha along with the hare and the pika. Oryctolagus cuniculus includes the European rabbit species and its descendants, the world's breeds [1] of domestic rabbit. Sylvilagus includes 13 wild rabbit species, among them the seven types of cottontail. The European rabbit, which has been introduced on every continent except Antarctica, is familiar throughout the world as a wild prey animal and as a domesticated form of livestock and pet. With its widespread effect on ecologies and cultures, the rabbit or bunny is, in many areas of the world, a part of daily life—as food, clothing, a companion, and as a source of artistic inspiration. Although once considered rodents, lagomorphs like rabbits have been placed in their own, separate family because of a number of traits their rodent cousins lack, like two extra incisors.