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Ragnarok Plus posted:Thanks very much! I'll put them on my list of vets to call to see where I want to take my buns. It's generally recommended that you wait until they're 6 months old to spay/neuter, since surgery is risky for babies. You technically can do it a couple of months before (as soon as sexual maturity/descent of testicles happens), but it's best to wait. I would get them sexed, separate them if they turn out boy/girl, and re-bond after they've healed up from their surgeries. You can always re-bond them, but you can't get them back if surgery proves to be too much on their young bodies. Your rabbits will need vaccinations? I've never heard of buns needing vaccinations unless you live in a country that has issues with rabbit diseases  They're super cute! 
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Dec 28, 2009 16:34
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I have 3 of these little things, but the only pics I have on hand are of the fat one... her name is Tubby Lumpkins Tubbs always endfs up random places because she is annoying, and wants to know what you are doing at all times.  Tubbs on the counter as she kept trying to jump up to see what was there, so after a few minutes I got annoyed and just plopped her down next to a bag of Kale as I was rinsing it.  a few weeks later she wants to know what the hell is taking so long with the food (again) so I tossed her into the sink with some kale (her favorite) and she happily watched me from the sink as I finished everything.
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Dec 29, 2009 21:20
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KenMornignstar posted:I have 3 of these little things, but the only pics I have on hand are of the fat one... her name is Tubby Lumpkins Your bunny is so awesome I wish mine would do that. Nope, mine just beeline for the food bowls. Always. 
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Dec 29, 2009 22:05
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My friend just rescued a bunny from a really crappy living situation. Her nails were literally never trimmed (they were about an inch or more longer than the quick and curled), she never had anything but food pellets to eat (questionable quality as well), barely ever any water, no human contact and she lived outside even in the winter (in Mass). Anyways, Marmalade is living with me now and I just love her to bits! She's getting fresh veggies, fresh water and good quality pellets. I have a couple questions, though. She doesn't seem to like the fresh veggies, timothy hay or even treats. She scarfs down food pellets, though. Does she just need time to get used to the healthier food or what? Anything I can do to get her to eat the fresh food? Should I just let her keep eating just the food pellets? She's also uninterested in sea grass mats, chew blocks and shredding cardboard. Could she have dental problems causing her to want nothing but the food pellets? My other question is regarding potty training. She has a corner hut to feel safe and secure in with a nice blanket to lay on. However, she prefers to lay down and hang out in her corner potty  When I take her out to play I make sure to put soiled carefresh and poops in her potty so she will get the hint, but she doesn't. I've tried moving the potty to the corners she goes to the bathroom in instead and she'll just switch up where she goes potty. Any helpful hints to get this potty training to work? Do you think because its only been a week she just needs more time?Pics of the little sweetie. Click for big:  Click here for the full 1243x1050 image.  Click here for the full 798x1200 image. edit: Not sure on her age, but she is an adult if that helps any
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Dec 30, 2009 18:00
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majour333 posted:Marmalade Great job on taking her in, she sure is lovely! 1. With regard to the litterbox - offer a SECOND litter box. Most rabbits prefer one to pee in and one to poo/sleep in; or one to pee/poo in and another to sleep in. Even if they never USE the second box, it helps them get the idea. I have several pairs who have perfect litterbox skills as long as there are two boxes, and one box is totally unused. The minute I remove the unused box, they start using the floor. Additionally, most rabbits do NOT use corner boxes well. I prefer rubbermaid containers, but you can certainly use square cat litter boxes, if those are cheaper in your area. She may need one box in every corner to start, and then you can gradually take some out as she gets the idea. I got an 8 year old boy who had been in a wire hutch all his life - he literally had about six litterboxes when we started off. It took about 6 months to fully litter train him, even after the neuter. 2. Your concerns about her health are well-founded. Get her to a vet ASAP. She needs to be spayed - intact females have a VERY high incidence of ovarian and uterine cancer after just 3 years. And yes, on a crappy pellet diet, her molars were not getting the appropriate wear from the hay, so she could potentially have points or spurs that make eating hay painful. Just make SURE the vet you select can do a molar exam/trim and doesn't just look at the incisors! 3. The transition to hay does come with time, but it's important to persist until she's clearly on the better diet. I took in a 7 year old rex, Max, who was in the exact same situation. My first issue was getting her to eat hay, I figured I'd worry about veggies after that. I offered her hay in mangers over her main litterboxes, loose hay in all her litterboxes, and wadded in a paper bag with a few pellets mixed in. Some of the hay was long strand, some I cut into 1" pieces with scissors. I put the short stuff in her pellet bowl, both mixed with pellets and by itself. I also let her have alfalfa hay, which is bad long-term for kidney/bladder problems, but is fine to use as a transition food - most newly rescued rabbits who won't touch timothy hay still know that alfalfa is the bomb.  Once I got her on hay, I got her to eat veggies by focusing on stemmy herbs like parsley and cilantro, and mixing them with the hay. I'd also cut up pepper and carrot and dill into tiny chunks and mix them in her pellet bowl. I also had to severely restrict her pellets - she looked like a basketball with legs. When Marmalade's pellet bowl goes empty is when she's most likely to start on the hay, so don't give her more than she can eat in, oh, 4 hours. Feed her pellets only twice a day and she'll have plenty of time to browse on the hay without starving. Overall it sounds like you really did your homework, which is nearly the most heartwarming part of her whole story. I think she'll be fine, just be diligent about vet visits and the diet conversion.
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Dec 30, 2009 19:23
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alucinor posted:great tips Thank you so much!! You have no idea how much all of this helps! I'll be putting all of the info to use. Marmalade thanks you
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Dec 30, 2009 20:04
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Just got our two pain in the asses back from the boarder, turns out they had a really good time and had a lot of fun exploring their two separate enclosures, houses, etc. I wasn't so worried after we had no calls 2 days in, and surprisingly they remembered their normal home and adjusted within minutes of us bringing them back to the apartment. If anyone else in the Chicagoland area needs a boarder then I've got a great contact for you!
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Dec 30, 2009 22:43
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Pig Boots posted:It's generally recommended that you wait until they're 6 months old to spay/neuter, since surgery is risky for babies. You technically can do it a couple of months before (as soon as sexual maturity/descent of testicles happens), but it's best to wait. I would get them sexed, separate them if they turn out boy/girl, and re-bond after they've healed up from their surgeries. You can always re-bond them, but you can't get them back if surgery proves to be too much on their young bodies. Alright I figured I read the wrong information since 6 weeks since painfully early! Places recommended vaccinations for "all" rabbits, I have no plans on taking them outside as I do not have a yard for them to play in, I live in south Orange County, CA so I figured the places I read that in were rubbish? Right now they're both coming up to me immediately with no shyness when it's pellet time (I only let them have pellets out of my hand) and thus far it seems to be working in getting them more used to me to the point of even putting paws on me! However I'm still worried about picking them up, Rabbits for Dummies recommended grabbing their scruff first, putting a hand under the butt, lifting them that way and then as soon as the back feet are supported, switch the first hand to under their ribs, supporting their front feet. I cannot find ANY scruff on my buns and I don't want to go about pulling on anything, and the way my sister was told by the breeder's brother that they picked them up from (who apparently never handled or touched the bunnies themselves, thanks for the uphill battle guy!) was to put a hand on the back and then use the other hand to go underneath to cradle their front paws, then use the back hand to support their back feet. I know most rabbits aren't really cool with getting picked up in the first place but I have been kicked to hell using the breeder's brother's method trying to take them out to transfer them to another box so I can clean their cage, never mind thinking in the future to clipping claws and grooming. My wrists look like they belong to an emo kid at the moment. Is there any less traumatic way to pick them up in the meantime to give them the least amount of stress when I have to take care of necessary things? :/ Two nights ago I took them out to clean again since they have been changing up their mind about using the litterboxes and as soon as they were against my chest they calmed down, but today they were still spazzing out and clawing.
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Dec 31, 2009 00:24
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Eeeeeeeeee they're sharing a box! Click here for the full 700x525 image. Before you all laugh at me: this is huge. They're actually quasi cuddling. This is after A YEAR AND A HALF together. Although now they're back in separate boxes. *sigh* Maybe I should take away one of the boxes and force them to share. Thoughts? edit: As always, apologies for crappy cell phone pictures. I should get myself a real camera one of these days.
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Dec 31, 2009 00:36
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angelicism posted:Eeeeeeeeee they're sharing a box! Yay, congrats! This prompted me to take a photos of my trio (feel free to laugh at their stoner eyes and messy carpet):  (Grey lop and the brown guy in the background are the ones who fight) My New Year's resolution was to get them all bonded and living in the same cage together. We got back from Christmas visiting, unpacked the bunnies and for fun I made somewhere new for them to hide while I set their cage up. They've been sleeping in there together for several hours now and the males are getting along perfectly; no fighting, nipping, chasing or anything. I have NO idea what prompted them to be buddies all of a sudden... Hey, if this works I may be able to say I completed my resolution before the new year even starts. 
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Dec 31, 2009 00:56
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Bagleworm posted:...unpacked the bunnies... This made me laugh. Because I have a tendency to say things like "*packs up the bunnies*" or "I'm going to pack up the bunnies and move to X", and the mental image I always get is tossing them into, say, hatboxes and whisking them off. So the reverse image was equally amusing.
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Dec 31, 2009 01:58
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angelicism posted:This made me laugh.
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Dec 31, 2009 02:08
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Kerfuffle posted:Off topic terribly but this is really adorable I'm going to write it down somewhere to keep in mind for a children's story. Dibs on an autographed copy!
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Dec 31, 2009 02:54
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Ragnarok Plus posted:Alright I figured I read the wrong information since 6 weeks since painfully early! Places recommended vaccinations for "all" rabbits, I have no plans on taking them outside as I do not have a yard for them to play in, I live in south Orange County, CA so I figured the places I read that in were rubbish? Here in NY, there are no required vaccinations for rabbits...maybe it's different in CA? I would find a rabbit vet (try the lists here: http://rabbit.org/vets/vets.html )and ask. Ragnarok Plus posted:Right now they're both coming up to me immediately with no shyness when it's pellet time (I only let them have pellets out of my hand) and thus far it seems to be working in getting them more used to me to the point of even putting paws on me! However I'm still worried about picking them up, Rabbits for Dummies recommended grabbing their scruff first, putting a hand under the butt, lifting them that way and then as soon as the back feet are supported, switch the first hand to under their ribs, supporting their front feet. I've never grabbed my rabbits' scruff areas. I've always put one hand under the front end and the other hand around the butt and then lifted to my chest (or lifted into a sort of football hold if it's a bigger rabbit). You might have better luck keeping them calm if you get them into a "presentation smile" prior to picking them up (pet the bunny's head until he/she gets all dopey and has his/her butt up and head on the ground). Then as soon as you get the bun to your chest, you can try holding securely while rubbing the head a bit until you set them back down.
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Dec 31, 2009 05:12
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My rabbit will fight for dear life whenever he's picked up, and even though I try to leave him be I sometimes do need to pick him up for something. I think what I do is shove an arm under his front paws, sort of in his armpits, then lift him up a little and grab his rear paws with my other hand. This seems to be best for minimal bloodshed in his case. It sounds like some kind of wrestling move but I assure you it's reasonably gentle. The real trick is catching him in the first place. His telepathic powers warn him whenever I'm thinking about picking him up.
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Dec 31, 2009 12:15
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I use one hand to hold the shoulder that's farthest away from me (so they can't run forward/sideways away), and then slip my other hand under their front paws and armpit. Then I use the hand that had their shoulder and scoop under their bum and lift, so their back legs are wedged between my forearm and torso. They usually bury their face in the crook of my arm and look absolutely pathetic.
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Dec 31, 2009 17:04
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Interesting -- I pick up both my buns by the scruff. Zen I can even hold her like that for a few moments, if I just need to lift her up to sweep under her, say. She'll just look at me reproachfully. Frith starts squirming immediately but even when they squirm it's not a huge deal once I give them butt support. Zen is actually very tolerant of physical 'abuse'.  I'll nudge her around when I'm cleaning and she'll just continue lying there and watching.
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Dec 31, 2009 17:33
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I'm always paranoid about scruffing rabbits since mine will kick like mules. I have a horrible mental image of them kicking so hard they snap a vertebrae or something(I read about it on rabbit.org and have been scarred for life). I personally go with two hands behind the front legs/around the stomach and switch one hand to support the butt once I've gotten a handle on them. Murphy is really the only one who hates to be handled, Debbie rather enjoys sitting on my lap and eating holes into my shirts.
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Dec 31, 2009 17:40
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Happy new year, bunny thread! Here's a picture of worlds colliding:
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Dec 31, 2009 22:50
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Yay bunny pictures! I'll throw some in, too! These are JustFaye and my bunnies, Godewyn (holland lop/mini rex), and Eoywn (Lionhead).  Eowyn playin in some hay!  How'd I get all buried like this?  Two buns eatin some hay!  Two buns eatin some pellets!  
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Jan 1, 2010 03:38
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GrAviTy84 posted:
Eowyn looks like she (?) has kitty ears. Unrelated, you must have a fantastic camera/eye for dramatic lighting
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Jan 1, 2010 03:43
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GrAviTy84 posted:Yeah. Wuddup? I'm just... chillaxin', yo. All s/he needs is a piece of straw in his/her mouth.
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Jan 1, 2010 08:32
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Jan 1, 2010 18:41
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Dr. Octagon posted:Happy new year, bunny thread! Here's a picture of worlds colliding: This made my wife very nervous until she saw the rubberband on the claw.
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Jan 1, 2010 20:44
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Bagleworm posted:Eowyn looks like she (?) has kitty ears. Thanks! It's a fairly nice camera on avg, but it's still enthusiast/consumer level. For those that care, it's a Nikon D60, I think I shot these with the kit lens (18-55mm VR) and my new (woo hoo Christmas present!) SB-600, bounced. Eowyn (name from LOTR) is a girl and her husbun, Godewyn, is a boy. We (JustFaye) and I) are especially happy to be celebrating a New Year with him as he had a close call with GI stasis.(you can read about it a few pages back in JustFaye's post) Dr. Octagon posted:Happy new year, bunny thread! Here's a picture of worlds colliding: pseudonordic posted:This made my wife very nervous until she saw the rubberband on the claw. It probably knows to not fear em, theyz vegetariunz:  It's probably more worried about the person behind the camera and the "jacuzzi" it's got waiting for it. 
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Jan 1, 2010 21:50
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angelicism posted:Interesting -- I pick up both my buns by the scruff. Wow, my rabbits hate being picked up in general (we pretty much only ever pick them up for toenail trimming or vet visits), I don't even want to TRY scruffing them. When we do it's it's more of a "secure the front half, support the back half" kind of deal, and they put up with it okay but by no means do they enjoy the process.
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Jan 3, 2010 12:32
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rabbitmonger posted:Wow, my rabbits hate being picked up in general (we pretty much only ever pick them up for toenail trimming or vet visits), I don't even want to TRY scruffing them. When we do it's it's more of a "secure the front half, support the back half" kind of deal, and they put up with it okay but by no means do they enjoy the process. Zen is eternally tolerant, and is super needy (omgpetmepetmepetmepetmeeeeeeeeeee). She puts up with my other incredibly silly thing: New friend comes over Me, holding Zen: "Want to play pirates?" Friend, confused: "Uh... what's that?" Me, deposits Zen onto their shoulder: "You're a pirate! She's your parrot!" Friend: "..." Zen: "..." (Trust me, it looks incredibly cute. I'll have to dig up pictures. My roomie has a few, I think -- I do this a lot.)
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Jan 3, 2010 13:33
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Grats on the progress angelicism. I know you've had them for a long time, but patience pays off! I would let them be together when they want and apart when they want, rushing things could lead to fighting. Even my two will fight if they don't have enough personal space or if they run out of food, and these are also the two who love each other all day long otherwise. Rabbits are fickle creatures
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Jan 4, 2010 03:15
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Bunway Airlines posted:Grats on the progress angelicism. I know you've had them for a long time, but patience pays off! I would let them be together when they want and apart when they want, rushing things could lead to fighting. Even my two will fight if they don't have enough personal space or if they run out of food, and these are also the two who love each other all day long otherwise. Rabbits are fickle creatures How would you suggest "letting them be together when they want and apart when they want"? The way I have things now is still separate but touching pens that they swap once a week or so, and then playtime almost-every-day (sometimes mommy is tiiiiiiiiiired ;_;) in my room or on my couch with me while I watch TV. I don't leave their pen door open when they have date time in my room because a) Frith can't seem to find his way back (it's in the living room, maybe 5-10 feet away) although Zen can, and b) Zen sometimes goes back into the wrong one. I've found it really funny that the buns won't jump off a place if they don't know what's on the floor. The couch is maybe a foot off the ground but they never leave it. It's perfect; I just put a litter box in the corner and watch TV as they sit around with me. Currently Frith is trying to take a nap on my bed while Zen keeps trying to dig into the sheets near him. D'aww. edit: I think I need a second litter box for my room. Maybe that'll cut down on some of the territorial peeing. On my (used-to-be) white carpet. 
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Jan 4, 2010 05:27
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Oh, I think I forgot to post these! A few weeks ago we got several inches of snow and I had nothing to do on a Saturday afternoon so I thought I'd see how the kids would feel about a snow day. Frith was a little skeptical for a while but he eventually came out. When I dumped him out of the bag and left him to fend for himself.  Click here for the full 604x453 image.  Click here for the full 604x453 image.  Click here for the full 604x453 image.  Click here for the full 604x453 image.  Click here for the full 604x453 image.  Click here for the full 604x453 image.  Click here for the full 604x453 image.  Click here for the full 453x604 image.  Click here for the full 453x604 image.  Click here for the full 453x604 image.  Click here for the full 453x604 image.  Click here for the full 453x604 image.  Click here for the full 453x604 image. And then I got too cold to keep holding my iphone with ungloved hands to take pictures. In the end, they were having lots of fun, running around, digging in the snow, etc and the limiting factor was just me being too loving cold to stay out longer. Next time we get another pile of snow I'll take them out again.
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Jan 4, 2010 05:45
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My bun had a little accident. He tried to jump off the bed to either the floor or his open cage door which is on the floor, which was much too close for him to jump safely. I was sitting there and tried to catch him and put him on the floor. He hopped away and sat holding one of his front feet off the ground, and spent a good amount of time licking it. I guess he was hurt somehow, but was hopping around a little later and seems fine today. I squeezed his toes and he didn't flinch in pain or anything, not sure if there is anything else to look for. I don't know why he does these jumps, I put a box in the way to discourage this because there is no room for him to land there without him hitting his head on the cage. He has a perfectly good step down 2 feet away that he uses most of the time. He wasn't scared or anything, but it worries me because he is an old man at 13 now. Then again this is the same rabbit that jumped 10 feet or so off the deck because he was scared of a chair moving. On a happy note, bunnies in deep snow is hilarious. Mine uses his face as a plow. Edit: What kind of cloth is safe for rabbits to play with? His favorite toy is a piece of scrap cloth he just rearranges but I don't know what its made of and its fraying. I can't think its good for him to digest much of whatever it is. CampingCarl fucked around with this message at 16:29 on Jan 4, 2010 |
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Jan 4, 2010 16:26
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I did a routine trim yesterday, and there wasn't a single claw that I could safely trim on Debbie without hitting a quick. The problem is that she has such dainty little barbie doll feet and her nails are starting to get too long - enough to worry about them catching and breaking off if they snag the carpet or something. I looked online but of course every site says not to cut it, it'll obviously be painful. My cousin, who was a vet tech, said just to cut it  I believe I read that quicks recede after nail trimming, but if I can't even trim the nail, they'll never recede(if this is even 100% true). Any ideas other than putting her under and just chopping them?
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Jan 4, 2010 23:15
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angelicism posted:adorable snow buns SO CUTE!!! I love your white one who was in the purse! Also wanted to update on Marmalade. She's such a freaking awesome little girl! She's finally potty trained. I'm thrilled. It was incredibly quick! Also, she has started eating her leafy veggies and hay! She's still going to get checked out by the vet, but as of now, I think she might be OK teeth-wise. She'll be getting spayed in the near future, too. I had no idea what incredible loves bunnies are. I'm so glad I've found out!
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Jan 5, 2010 03:40
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Welp, thanks to this topic and a ton of research, my girlfriend has decided she is getting a bunny (I believe she has read every page). I hope you are all proud of yourselves. 
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Jan 5, 2010 23:27
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As long as she's read every page I'm sure it'll be FINE. Good luck!
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Jan 5, 2010 23:57
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angelicism posted:How would you suggest "letting them be together when they want and apart when they want"? The way I have things now is still separate but touching pens that they swap once a week or so, and then playtime almost-every-day (sometimes mommy is tiiiiiiiiiired ;_;) in my room or on my couch with me while I watch TV. I don't leave their pen door open when they have date time in my room because a) Frith can't seem to find his way back (it's in the living room, maybe 5-10 feet away) although Zen can, and b) Zen sometimes goes back into the wrong one. I think your set up is fine for now. I don't think I would brave an overnight just yet; I would want to see some snuggling and grooming when they're out together. As long as no fights break out, they should fall more in love with each other and things will continue smoothly. If you do attempt an overnight, I would make one big cage and have LOTS of food, toys and interesting things to do so that they don't get bored and go after one another. You should be sleeping very close by in case a tussle does break out.
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Jan 6, 2010 07:52
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My rabbit keeps peeing on the carpet even though there is a litter box there. He will pee in the litter box at times, but also around it. He isn't neutered yet, would this be a factor? Previously he didn't pee in that area at all, he did elsewhere and became litter trained so there was no problem but he seems to be charting out some new territory.
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Jan 7, 2010 01:57
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Ghost of Castro posted:My rabbit keeps peeing on the carpet even though there is a litter box there. He will pee in the litter box at times, but also around it. He isn't neutered yet, would this be a factor? Previously he didn't pee in that area at all, he did elsewhere and became litter trained so there was no problem but he seems to be charting out some new territory. Not to be rude, but if you read the thread you would find out that yes, it probably is related to the fact that he is not neutered.
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Jan 7, 2010 02:04
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Bunway Airlines posted:Not to be rude, but if you read the thread you would find out that yes, it probably is related to the fact that he is not neutered. Maybe someone should write up a real-deal OP with all the basic information like: Basic at home health check up stuff, what to expect when having a rabbit as a pet, rabbit resources and links, diy rabbit toy ideas, why you should take your rabbit to a rabbit vet, what to do if the rabbit's not eating, things you shouldn't do like: "ZOMG I want 73h Rabbitz cuz it's EastAR" or "I've been feeding my rabbits a steady diet of nuts and seeds along with carrots and apples." I know people who don't read the thread are just as likely to not read the OP, but it should cut em back a bit.
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Jan 7, 2010 02:22
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Bunway Airlines posted:Not to be rude, but if you read the thread you would find out that yes, it probably is related to the fact that he is not neutered. He is litter trained and just recently decided that this litter box wasn't his bag anymore. So, to elaborate on my previous reply, I was wondering if it was just the non-neutering or something else that could be causing it? Sorry for the confusion, I did know that not being neutered causes this just didn't phrase my reply well at all.
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Jan 7, 2010 03:47
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