Objective · To build a rabbit model of early brain injury (EBI) after subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) with endovascular puncture and to assess the validity and reliability of the model. Methods · A total of 59 New Zealand rabbits were used. Five of them were assigned to the sham operation group (undergoing super choice imaging for internal carotid artery without puncture) and other fifty-four underwent endovascular puncture under the guidance of digital subtraction angiography (DSA). The 30 survived rabbits were randomly assigned to the 6 h, 24 h, and 72 h groups (n=10) for subsequent study. The intracranial pressure (ICP) monitor was used to observe the intraoperative ICP of the animals. SAH scores and neurological scores were used to assess the amount of bleeding and neurological dysfunction. TUNEL and FJB staining were used at three postoperative time points to evaluate the degeneration/necrosis and apoptosis in cortical and hippocampal tissues. Results · The successful rate of the SAH rabbit model was 55.6% (30/54). The endovascular puncture resulted in different degrees of intracranial hemorrhage and neurological dysfunction (P=0.000), which caused degeneration/necrosis and apoptosis in cortical and hippocampal tissues. Conclusion · The rabbit model of SAH with endovascular puncture successfully simulates changes in haemodynamics and pathophysiology for EBI and is important for studying the mechanisms of EBI after SAH.