The general tl;dr is in the title - rabbit domestication, like what was done to European rabbits in real life! I have bred rabbits, I frequently keep rabbits and keep in contact with a number of knowledgable rabbit people.
General Domestication mechanics are already in game, so there is a precedent.
More in depth suggestions:
- Hutches OR wire caging for housing?
(Wire bottom caging if the right gauge does not in fact hurt rabbits feet. For rabbits with more sensitive feet / poorer fur coverage, like standard and mini Rex, resting mats or a board in the cage works well.)
- Similar behavior to the undomesticated chickens to manage early on would work well in my experience. Rabbits naturally tend to be flighty, so the behavior is near on par already.
- Feed: Dried Grass or Grain would work best, though I could also see a reasonable argument for Mashes. I would personally lean away from mashes, as sometimes the high sugar level in fruit or some vegetables (carrots included) can trigger bloat or gastric stasis in a rabbit - so anything of that ilk is best left for very small amounts occassionally as a treat in real life - so considering VS's general realism lean, I'd veto mash as a rabbit food source.
Uses: Meat, pelts, bones.
Rabbits can also be milked irl or used for wool production, so meat + one of these options might suit well. Probably not the milk, as milking rabbits is rare (though not borderline impossible like pigs.)
Feel free to add on to this suggestion!
Things I have not suggested on purpose, because they would be too complex / difficult for the game to manage:
- Realistic rabbit color genetics. They are... very complex, and none of the other vanilla animals have realistic color genetics.
- Dwarf gene + peanuts. This is complex and annoying to manage irl, and I don't think having Dwarf rabbits would suit the game's themes.
