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Foaming Chicken posted:Lewis is sneezing again Okay... chilling out after biting a hole in my curtains. Note how he only gnaws on that willow tube thing in symmetric circles.
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Apr 6, 2008 12:36
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girlscoutdropout posted:You haven't smelled sugar glider pee then...whew. It's bad, and they pee on EVERYTHING. 
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Apr 6, 2008 16:21
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Doodles posted:Don't tell me that this thread is becoming a pissing match. Haha clever.
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Apr 7, 2008 07:45
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Well, we've had Knowles about 3 weeks now and it's gone okay. He was really skiddish when we got him, but we slowly made small steps, but he occasionally backtracks a little here and there... nothing major. About a week ago we let someone come over and feed them since we were out of town, and they both acted a little strange but it wore off after about a day. Out of nowhere, 2 days ago, Knowles COMPLETELY backslid to the point he was at when we got him. He won't even come near us, he goes WAY out of his way to avoid us. Last night we put him in the kitchen which usually forces him to deal with us and he starts being a regular bunny, but this time he literally sat with his head under the edge of the cabinets the entire time. Tonight during playtime he completely avoided us but got to the point where we could pet him... until he bit my girlfriend. I've never really seen a bunny bite defensively, but this is the second time he's done it, he left a bruise on her. Any ideas? He's frustrating the hell out of me.
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Apr 8, 2008 06:23
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I've been trying to figure out how to cut my rabbits nails for some time now.. she freaks out every time I even try to touch her feet. She doesn't really like to be picked up, but loves it when we sit and pet her.. Any tips for doing this? I've seen the stuff on trancing, but since she freaks out if I even attempt to pick her up, it's a bit hard to do. Also, she's seems to be scratching herself more then usual.. I thought it might be fleas but I can't see how, as she never goes outside and we don't have any other pets. Any ideas?
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Apr 9, 2008 23:00
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devicenull posted:I've been trying to figure out how to cut my rabbits nails for some time now.. she freaks out every time I even try to touch her feet. She doesn't really like to be picked up, but loves it when we sit and pet her.. I was just taught a new way to cut nails from my bunny's vet...I'll do my best to explain. 1. Sit on the couch or bed with the bunny. 2. Sit with the bunny facing away from you. 3. Slide a hand underneath the bunny's chest and lean her up where it looks like she's sitting on her butt and her back is leaning up against you. 4. You can clip the front nails like this. 5. To cut the back toes, slowly wiggle one foot out from underneath them and it'll prop up on her "heel" (totally looks like they're doing the hokey-pokey). 6. Cut nails and slide the foot back under, do the same for the other. This worked great for my Lucy who will be tranced, but she hates being picked up - and i have a hard time doing it. I also learned a rule of thumb for cutting nails (especially black nails) - when cutting, apply a bit of pressure and if the bunny (or i guess any animal) doesn't pull away, go ahead and clip. Supposedly if you're over a vein the animal will pull away if they feel that pressure (I know I would!) I hope that helps. Sorry I don't have the best explanation. For the scratching - if not fleas, maybe dry skin? Edit: To keep nails filed, you can build fun ramps covered in sandpaper or buy some pet steps and put sand paper on them. I plan on buying two sets of pet steps and putting them back to back to make it 3 steps up and 3 steps down. I know my buns would love that and less nail trimming - the better. girlscoutdropout fucked around with this message at 02:29 on Apr 10, 2008 |
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Apr 10, 2008 02:26
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girlscoutdropout posted:I was just taught a new way to cut nails from my bunny's vet...I'll do my best to explain. Actually that sounds pretty similar to the way I was able to do it the first time.. I'll have to give it a shot again while distracting her with food (Apparently food > running away) I'm not sure what to do if it's dry skin.. though we are getting out of winter so I may take care of itself. Is there any simple way to check for fleas? I just remembered that for a very brief time we had a kitten in the house that had fleas (only for a few hours) The sandpaper ramps are a pretty good idea.. we only started having problems with her nails when we put carpet in her entire cage (before it was plywood/concrete/carpet).
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Apr 10, 2008 03:58
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girlscoutdropout posted:I was just taught a new way to cut nails from my bunny's vet...I'll do my best to explain. This is how I've always been doing it and neither rabbit has ever had issues. Good bunnies I suppose  I have a table just below chest height that I sometimes use as well. I can stand up and use the tabletop to balance instead of my chest and thigh, and it deters the rabbits from scrambling loose since neither wants to fall a good four feet to the floor. Honestly, after the first few times you shouldn't have any issues with your rabbits relaxing for a trim.That sandpaper idea is great too. I always wondered if it was safe for rabbits, as I know I can use inserts on my Wodent Wheel for the hamsters.
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Apr 10, 2008 07:45
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Windy posted:That sandpaper idea is great too. I always wondered if it was safe for rabbits, as I know I can use inserts on my Wodent Wheel for the hamsters. That's what my friend's bunny vet suggested for her. As long as it's something the rabbit has the option to get on and is not forced (I don't think they would climb on something that would hurt their feet on purpose). I use the inserts for my Wodent Wheel for my gliders. It's great.
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Apr 10, 2008 13:20
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Windy posted:That sandpaper idea is great too. I always wondered if it was safe for rabbits, as I know I can use inserts on my Wodent Wheel for the hamsters. I use large open pens rather than cages with ramps, so instead of sandpaper I use paving stones - the square cement ones. I put the water and food bowls on them, and/or put a couple courses in front of the litterbox. There's plenty of opportunity for the bunnies to step on them and wear their nails down, there's plenty of room to avoid them if they want, they never need cleaning apart from an occasional rinse, and the bunnies love to lie on the cool stone during the summer when the house is warmer.
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Apr 10, 2008 15:04
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alucinor posted:I use large open pens rather than cages with ramps, so instead of sandpaper I use paving stones - the square cement ones. I put the water and food bowls on them, and/or put a couple courses in front of the litterbox. There's plenty of opportunity for the bunnies to step on them and wear their nails down, there's plenty of room to avoid them if they want, they never need cleaning apart from an occasional rinse, and the bunnies love to lie on the cool stone during the summer when the house is warmer. That's a very good idea. I was planning on getting a ceramic tile square for each of them so they can cool down this summer. P.S. This page needs pictures.  The bunnies' new set up in the new house (the chair and trashcan are being used to keep them from moving the pen until I get cinder blocks.   
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Apr 11, 2008 06:27
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Buster dropped in to say hi, Sleeping bunny!  
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Apr 11, 2008 15:01
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Bagleworm posted:Awww! Resting bunnies are almost more adorable than baby bunnies. 
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Apr 11, 2008 16:48
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your rabbits dont jump out of the topless cage? sleeping bunny's are cute.
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Apr 11, 2008 17:01
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Windy posted:Awww! Resting bunnies are almost more adorable than baby bunnies. That bunny has the exact same colouring as Nobbs, except the fur is shorter and much less shaggy-looking. I see a lot of Nobbers-twins, now that I'm thinking about it.
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Apr 11, 2008 17:47
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SpaceMonkey posted:your rabbits dont jump out of the topless cage? Well they never did until I moved. Lucy doesn't jump over, but she climbs the side of the cage (watched her do it) that's why the top part is covered to prevent that
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Apr 11, 2008 23:26
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Hi all. I'm thinking about adopting a 3 month old bunny that turned up in our local animal shelter. I have a lot of experience with chinchillas, but have never owned a bunny. I currently have a very very patient and mellow 14 year old cat and a very curious (but able to listen and follow directions) 2 year old human. Anyone have any experience with toddlers and bunnies? I have no yard, but I have a fenced in (very sturdy 6 foot high fencing) roof deck. Any advice? Can anyone point me towards some resources to help this decision along?
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Apr 12, 2008 00:04
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https://www.rabbit.org And read this entire thread. As a general rule, young children and rabbits do not mix. This is why you get floods of them in shelters after Easter because the kid gets bitten, the rabbit gets grumpy, etc. However, you can teach kids to be very gentle will small animals. Rabbits do not like to be picked up, thrown, smashed, hugged or dragged. Children need to learn that all you can do with bunnies really is pet them gentle and watch them. If you're willing to constantly monitor your child while the rabbit is out, knock yourself out. Just don't underestimate how hard they can bite, I have permanent scars on my hands from some real grouches at the shelter. Also, 3 months is young for a rabbit. Make sure you get males and females fixed by the time they're about 6 months or so otherwise you get territory marking, spraying, etc. Also, since rabbits are exotics, you have to take them to an exotic vet, which tend to be more pricy. I've heard anywhere from $100 to $500 to get a rabbit spayed; for males its an easier procedure. Rabbits also go through a sort of "terrible twos stage from about 8 months to 2 years or so. Mine really mellowed out once he hit 2 years. Before then, he didn't want to snuggle, be picked up, follow directions, not dig, not chew or be pleasant most of the time  During these months I made sure that he knew that I was boss so that it wasn't completely out of hand. They chew on everything. When they're loose running around you have to bunny proof the entire area, but be prepared to still loose some cords, etc. Mine stopped digging and chewing everything at 2 years of age. Cats and rabbits can be best friends and have great relationships. Since you cat is old, I would just carefully introduce the two to one another. Cats can do serious damage to a rabbit very quickly. Until you know the cat is fine with the rabbit, I would make sure the rabbit is in a place the cat can't access. Rabbits are really skittish sometimes and just the sight of a preditor or threat can make them have a heart attack (although this isn't really common) Anyway, this thread and rabbit.org should talk about everything in more detail. Rabbits are awesome creatures if you take the time to understand them and their needs. They're very different from a dog or cat so be prepared for a different experience. Good luck
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Apr 12, 2008 01:40
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corporatewh0re posted:Hi all. I'm thinking about adopting a 3 month old bunny that turned up in our local animal shelter. I have a lot of experience with chinchillas, but have never owned a bunny. I currently have a very very patient and mellow 14 year old cat and a very curious (but able to listen and follow directions) 2 year old human. Anyone have any experience with toddlers and bunnies? I have no yard, but I have a fenced in (very sturdy 6 foot high fencing) roof deck. Any advice? Can anyone point me towards some resources to help this decision along? Yeah, kids and bunnies are usually an awful mix because kids want to pick up their pets and you just shouldn't with rabbits. 1) They really don't like it. 2) They can easily be injured due to their fragile, curved spine. I've been told at 4 months bunnies go through puberty which means spraying - everywhere. I fostered 2 4-5 month old rabbits and I vow to never do it again. I was still finding pee over a year later in places I didnt even think they went. I had a chinchilla for 10 years and rabbits are nothing like them. I wouldn't worry about the cat, cats and rabbits generally get along. I would just never leave them alone if you leave the house. I have a cat and he has no interest in the bunnies. You can easily make a pen (like the pens I use in the picture above) for cheap to use as an outside pen (and inside if you want). Rabbits should live inside as a general rule. Feel free to ask any questions!
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Apr 12, 2008 02:13
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I'd recommend not getting a bunny if your two year old has any chance of getting near the bunny unsupervised. My younger brother almost ripped the leg off of my first rabbit because my parents him near the rabbit unsupervised, and he ended up with a useless leg anyway 
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Apr 12, 2008 02:51
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girlscoutdropout posted:1) They really don't like it. 2) They can easily be injured due to their fragile, curved spine. 3) Depending on the rabbit, they may suddenly kick and scratch, which actually hurts a LOT. It's like being punched in the gut and then scratched by a cat. We're not trying to scare you off, we're just making sure you know exactly what you're getting into, and trying to prevent surprises. Rabbits seem to have personalities similar to those of cats, more than anything else. They like to chill, and they'll randomly show affection, and the love being fed, but they have their own schedules and get angry when you try to force unwanted attention on them. This seems to be one of the big reasons they don't get along with children. (My experience with rabbits and kids is this: I brought my calmer, more introverted rabbit home for Christmas, and my two-and-a-half-year-old sister was obsessed. But not in a good way, because she wanted to play with the bunny NOW, and she wanted the bunny to do what SHE wanted it to do, and why was the bunny hiding from her and not doing what she SAID!? She actually tried to grab him, and nearly hit him before she was removed from the room. Of course, her only contact with animals was a laid-back dog and a cat who runs and hides when she comes near, so children who have had contact with small animals before will probably act better.)
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Apr 12, 2008 03:00
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Last night I gave the bunnies a thick paper bag from groceries. This morning I was woken by the tremendous noise Mocha was making as he destroyed it. Bunnies are cute.
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Apr 15, 2008 14:07
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I am tired and resting on my dewlap, why must you take pictures of me human? I vacuumed yesterday don't worry.
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Apr 16, 2008 04:34
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Baitu posted:Last night I gave the bunnies a thick paper bag from groceries. This morning I was woken by the tremendous noise Mocha was making as he destroyed it. Bunnies are cute. Ahh yes. The kids are getting some packing paper tonight - let the crinkling and shredding commence!
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Apr 16, 2008 06:17
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Deceptor101 posted:I am tired and resting on my dewlap, why must you take pictures of me human? How very trusting of you to just let them near that wire over there...
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Apr 16, 2008 09:08
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Actually, from the camera angle it looks bad, but it's physically impossible for them to get to, don't worry, I know. I've watched them try lol.
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Apr 17, 2008 07:23
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Deceptor101 posted:Actually, from the camera angle it looks bad, but it's physically impossible for them to get to, don't worry, I know. I've watched them try lol. Speaking of rabbits trying to get into trouble, We haven't let Buster out in the living room recently, because last week she got under my computer desk and then nipped the wireless router's powercord. Yeah, knocking out internet on four college kids, WHILE they were streaming a movie to the TV, wasn't a smart move, Buster. (Luckily we had an engineering buddy over, so he was able to properly splice the wire back together.) Last night I spent about ten minutes blocking everything off with hanging blankets and strips of carpet. When she saw that she couldn't get back there, she got SO angry. She was clawing at the carpet, pushing at the corners, and then finally just grabbed it in her teeth and tried to pull the whole thing down. Crazy rabbit. She eventually did get back there, but I saw her go in and pushed her out again. I don't know what to do, really. Her main play area is also the only place in the house we can keep our three computers, TV, sewing machines and Xbox. I've looked everywhere for some sort of flexible, hard tubing, can't find any. She can get past any sort of barrier. Stupid rabbits and their urge to chew cords. Edit: Oh yeah, I bought some tiles, like someone else advised, and they really like them. Buster will just flop over onto them, and Nobbers was scared at first, but now doesn't mind. After a bit of time I'm going to check for a noticiable difference in ther nail length. It also makes it easier to clean the mess Nobbs makes when he kicks litter out of his box, (He seems to now prefer to pee on bare plastic?) Bagleworm fucked around with this message at 17:19 on Apr 17, 2008 |
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Apr 17, 2008 17:16
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Bagleworm posted:hanging blankets and strips of carpet HAHAHA. That's a freakin' invitation to play. I can hardly imagine something more alluring to rabbit exploration and teeth. 1. Wrap all cords in this stuff. The wider diameter makes the cords less attractive to chew on. Order it online or go to Walmart, Best Buy, or Radio Shack. 2. Get more grids and block off the area right under the desk, next to the wall, where most of the wires go. If you have cords running off the desk in other directions, you need to neaten that up anyhow, see the advice given in this thread. A 1 grid by 3 grid should do it. Add a top and run the wires through the holes if she looks like she wants to jump into the containment area. Put a cinderbrick in front of it if she tries to schootch it out of the way.
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Apr 17, 2008 18:55
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Bagleworm posted:I've looked everywhere for some sort of flexible, hard tubing, can't find any. You should be able to find something appropriate at any store that sells cable management supplies, like Office Depot. Ikea has some for really cheap, if you live near one of their stores. Another thing you can try is getting some large diameter airline tubing from a pet store and cut it down one side, and slip the cord in there.
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Apr 17, 2008 18:58
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Here is one of my two bunnies, Chives. And here here is a youtube video of him eating a green bean: http://youtube.com/watch?v=dlzd_5nuvR4
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Apr 17, 2008 19:21
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Wow, it took me like two weeks to get though this entire thread..holy crap. My girlfriend and I are thinking about getting 2 buns from heartland humane society in corvallis, OR. We'll be moving soon so it'd happen after the move.
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Apr 17, 2008 20:55
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Neu posted:Wow, it took me like two weeks to get though this entire thread..holy crap. well if you just read this whole thread, you're off to a great start!
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Apr 18, 2008 00:17
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Bagleworm posted:Speaking of rabbits trying to get into trouble, Story time... I was getting sick of Billy jumping on my bed because I really didn't appreciate finding stray poops in there and there were some electric wires on the far end that I didn't want him getting to. So I took a couple of very large pieces of cardboard and wedged them between the mattress and the outside of the bed to create a makeshift barrier. It actually worked quite well because the cardboard was too high up for him to tear down or gnaw his way through. But boy was he pissed off that he couldn't get on my bed anymore. And now he HAD to get on my bed. I don't think I've ever seen such steely resolve in a tiny little rabbit. For the first few days I heard the occasional WHUMP of him jumping at the cardboard and failing to get past it. Then one day, angry as ever, he jumped... and made it. That cardboard barrier was almost five foot high. To be honest I was pretty impressed. Unfortunately for him he jumped so hard he bounced right off my pillow and into my nightstand. I had to reach in and untangle his stunned rear end from the wires of my alarm clock before dragging him out by his feet. So much for the cardboard barrier.
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Apr 18, 2008 09:52
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DS at Night posted:Unfortunately for him he jumped so hard he bounced right off my pillow and into my nightstand. How did that affect his resolve to get on the bed? A couple of the times my crazy buns have gotten where they shouldn't be, they've taken spills, and it seems to diminish their interest in the forbidden area. Like the dwarf bunny who decided to jump up on the kitchen island. Once she realized she could do it, it was impossible to keep her down - until she took the jump at the end of a speed run, and slid right across the island and off the other side. Never got up there again.
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Apr 18, 2008 14:45
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DS at Night posted:Story time... In our old house we had a section we barried off in a similar way so Milly could play for hours without us constantly watching. We would occasionally hear her slam into the side and a few times, manage to get her front paws on the top edge and try to boost herself over before falling. We always just let her go and put her back in when she actually managed to get out and she eventually quit. It seems like, with most bunnies, if they want to get somewhere, there's not much you can do except take whatever measures to prevent it and hope they get bored or something deters them. More recently with Knowles he decided he liked to be under the futon. While he didn't hurt anything, he would get under there and stay for HOURS at a time and we had no way of getting him out because of where it was sitting. We ended up just completely filling the area underneath with blanket and pillows and telling him no when he got near. Seconding the bad experience thing though, Milly started climbing on her cage to get over one of our bunny barriers... but when she realized there was basically nothing to walk on up there it scared the poo poo out of her and stopped her from doing it.
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Apr 18, 2008 16:52
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The negative experience didn't seem to affect him much actually. I'm not even sure a lot of things even register as a negative experience with him. For example, he semi-frequently jumps on my lap when I'm sitting at the computer even if it means he slams his head against the underside of the desk. He's got a hard head on him. He managed to jump on my bed a few more times but I think he did take care to jump from a different angle. Still it's a moot point since I have a really high bed now. 
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Apr 18, 2008 19:05
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alucinor posted:How did that affect his resolve to get on the bed? A couple of the times my crazy buns have gotten where they shouldn't be, they've taken spills, and it seems to diminish their interest in the forbidden area. Like the dwarf bunny who decided to jump up on the kitchen island. Once she realized she could do it, it was impossible to keep her down - until she took the jump at the end of a speed run, and slid right across the island and off the other side. Never got up there again. Holy crap I laughed out loud at this mental image and I'm still giggling, it sounds so cute! I'm usually really good with cables but the other night I a) left Zen's pen open and b) had my ipod charger danging off a table within bunny reach. Boo. Need a new ipod/iphone charger now.
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Apr 18, 2008 23:56
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Milly will sometimes get really excited and run around so fast she can't stop before she slams into things. Usually she'll just jump right back up and do it again a few minutes later.
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Apr 19, 2008 09:11
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GoodApollo posted:Milly will sometimes get really excited and run around so fast she can't stop before she slams into things. Usually she'll just jump right back up and do it again a few minutes later. Imagine adding 2 cats into that scenario, it gets crazy. My favorite is when Creme runs around the couch and then flops over belly up on the carpet for a few minutes and then gets up and does a few more laps and flops over again.
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Apr 19, 2008 16:09
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GoodApollo posted:Milly will sometimes get really excited and run around so fast she can't stop before she slams into things. Usually she'll just jump right back up and do it again a few minutes later. My Debbie doesn't do this so much but Murphy will haul rear end down the staircase and occasionally slam into the wall on the bottom. He seems to always forget that the last three stairs turn before descending into the livingroom. It's funny as hell, but I feel so bad after hearing the loud "thuwump" after the patter down the stairs.
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Apr 20, 2008 06:51
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