|
I can't believe your vet bills are so cheap. I need a vet who's a friend and can help me out! I haven't heard from the shelter yet about Ben, but I put him on my lap last night and pet him for a while. He was a bit jumpy, but didn't squirm or try to escape. Generally when I put him down, he runs into the cage. This time, he actually walked after me a bit, almost to say, "don't leave me." I feel so bad for the guy, they always seemed to be so close. I'll spend lots more time with him tonight. If I do give him back to the rescue, would it be better to do it in a while? He's not going to be bonding with anyone else soon, and I don't want him to feel like he just lost his entire world in a couple days.
|
#
¿
Sep 11, 2012 02:16
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 14, 2024 02:28 |
|
|
It wasn't $1800 all at once. I think it was ~$700 for the first day, with the blockage removal and all that, and then the subsequent life support for 3 days, taking her from the night vet to the day vet back and forth. On the third day's morning it was still unsure if her kidneys were going to start back up, thankfully they did. Don't tell me how cheap it probably have been this time, god knows I have enough "what ifs" already running through my head  . Ben has never been big on toys, and Annie stopped playing with toys once Ben came around, but if I don't hear from the shelter I'm definitely going to be getting some. He's responding really well to all the attention I've been giving him, which of course is making me more attached .
|
|
#
¿
Sep 11, 2012 21:02
|
|
|
Thanks, I feel awful about Annie, but at least her part is over. Ben's is just beginning, and save a bunny hasn't called me back yet. It's a lot of cage for one bun.  I put some of their old toys back in there, and I'll get some more today. We'll see what he goes for. Although, now I know it was Annie ignoring the litter boxes. Ben has been perfect. (yes I know it's a lot of litter boxes, that's where they like to pee....)
|
|
#
¿
Sep 12, 2012 17:03
|
|
|
So the rescue finally called me back, and I'm taking Ben in today to see if he's ready for a new buddy! I clipped his nails a few days ago, and brushed him today to pretty him up. I'd officially be fostering the other rabbit, not adopting him. So when Ben's uh, time is up, the bunny goes back to the rescue. Ben could have 5 years though. We'll see how it goes. I know I'm going to get some guilt/judgement on how I handled Annie. She even said on the phone "You had the money for a vacation, but not for vet bills?" It's hard to explain that my life has other things in it to someone who's dedicated their entire life to rabbits as pets. I'll update tonight though!
|
|
#
¿
Oct 7, 2012 20:38
|
|
|
Serella posted:I hope you find a good buddy for Ben. Thanks for the kind words, and.... I did! First a couple pics of funny bunnies: This is an enormous Flemish Giant, who weighs 11 lbs:  And this guy with the longest ears ever named Dobby:  He really liked to hump things, like everything. He had a stuffed bunny who he would work off his energy on. He'd only been fixed a couple weeks. All the while, after a couple not so great meets, Ben meets this lady named Liberty:  They hit it off really well, so a few hours of supervised bonding later and she's coming home! She even got relaxed in the carrier:  And relaxed in their neutral space very quickly!:   I'm changing her name to Arya, I wasn't a big fan of Liberty. Ben's being a little pushing demanding grooming, but he's only mounted her twice, and she's put up with it well. I've also learned Ben is quite fat, so he's cut off from cranberries. He should only be *slighty* larger than she is... All in all a good day  !
|
|
#
¿
Oct 8, 2012 04:56
|
|
|
I have to keep them separated when they're unsupervised, as he is a bit pushy with her sometimes, but it's going really well. That's the HUGE bonus to taking him to a rescue that knows about bonding rabbits. He literally goes speed dating and can go through all the various personalities until you find one that goes really well. There were a couple that really DIDN'T go well and I'm glad they weren't the only options. The owner is a little over-opinionated, but really knowledgeable and just wants the best for the bunnies. She also softened up on me once we talked things over and she saw how much I know about bunnies. I do need to learn how to give fluids through the uh, back-end. Home treatments can help me out if I get into a situation like I did with Annie again. Thankfully also she didn't focus on all the things I did wrong there. All in all it was a great experience.
|
|
#
¿
Oct 8, 2012 07:48
|
|
|
So I'd been holding off cutting Arya's nails, hoping she'd get a bit more socialized before I had to traumatize her. Then when we finally got down to it, she was having none of the bun-rito. She's already quite a spaz when it comes to human contact thanks to her previous owners, so I was nervous about how it would go. Then I tried trancing her and she tranced amazingly! (I was playing with her paw to demonstrate her utter calmness) When we started her head was up, as as time passed it slowwwwly slipped farther and farther down until I was really supporting it with my knees. It was adorable, especially because she's usually so jumpy.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 14, 2013 19:31
|
|
|
This is something everyone needs to see: It loops so perfectly!
|
|
#
¿
Mar 27, 2013 06:04
|
|
|
Having options for bunny bonding is pretty key as far as I'm concerned. The two bondings I've done have been dead easy, as the rabbits went through speed dating at a shelter, and found a perfect match. Ben and Arya were living together back in Ben's old cage within a week and a half, and I probably could have gotten away with it sooner. Matching personalities is really important, and if you just grab a bun off craigslist you wont really have that option. How far is the drive? Past 2-3 hours I've heard is tough on buns, but still, it might be worth it, as I've heard some bonding processes can take months! Here's a question I have for the rest of you: Girlfriend and I are moving into a new place, which I intend on being bun-proof so that they can free-roam all the time. It's my biggest regret about my current place, and I feel it really makes the rabbits less social, even if their cage is huge. That's no issue, I've bun-proofed things before. My real issue is the gf really wants to get a dog (I do too). From what I've heard, your only real chance is to start with a puppy, and hammer it into the dog while it matures. I know you also want to aim for a breed that is less hunting-oriented right? Is this a pipe dream or can I make this work. Perhaps having the buns free-roam only when I get home would be better? Right now free-roam is more a priority than the dog, as Arya is the least social rabbit ever and is sassy about it. If I try and pet her, she runs to the other corner, and thumps. I seriously have to socialize her.....
|
|
#
¿
Apr 14, 2013 22:40
|
|
|
Ok, need some help on this one guys. I was brushing Arya the other day and tranced her to check out her nails. Lo and behold I find this (linked for huge maybe grossness) around her genitals. I had picked her up from the litterbox, so I gave it a day to see if she'd just not cleaned it yet. Cleaned the litterbox and today it's still the same. When I got her she'd just finished up a treatment for bunny Syphilis, looks like it might have come back? I'm at work+school all hours today, but I'll call the vet too and get their opinion. I should be able to get some time to take her in tomorrow. I checked Ben for comparison, and even with his weight problem he's clean as a whistle down there.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 24, 2013 16:19
|
|
|
Is it related to head tilt? Arya definitely doesn't have that, and seems fine otherwise. My theory is swollen genitals are causing her to pee sideways, hitting fur it normally wouldn't, and according to the vet notes from her intake form at the adoption place, the syphilis causes swollen genitals. I have an appt at the vet tomorrow at 4:30. Only issue is i'm away from them thursday-sunday, so if it needs to be medication, I'd have to start the regimen when I get back. She's such a spaz I barely trust myself to hold her, the person feeding them would never be able to pick her up .
|
|
#
¿
Jun 24, 2013 19:35
|
|
|
Bloodnose posted:On the other hand, I killed my first rabbit in about a month. Don't phrase it this way. From the sound of things it was nothing you did. Rabbits are fragile creatures who can break their own back, and can have medical problems pop up and kill them in hours. It happens. Don't worry about the hay. Unless it was poisoned, the negative effects of feeding an adult bun Alfafa take a while to build up. You don't want to feed it unless you have to, but it takes maybe a month or something before they'll start developing kidney stones and whatnot. I'll agree with everyone here that you need to go to a shelter. They'll help you pick one with a better temperament who can be your buddy. Some rabbits are just lovers, and some aren't. The one's that aren't of course are perfect matches for speed dating (That's how I got my grumpy dungeon troll Arya )Hekk, that cage is a good start, but if situations change and the rabbit doesn't have much free roam, it'll be cramped. Third level is good, but some rabbits won't really use it. They like horizontal space where they can sprint about. You could enlarge the door if you find the bunny not using the house, but if it's just slightly too small, let them enlarge it. It'll give the bun a project. All my buns have enlarged the holes on their boxes until they were happy (shorter project with a cardboard house).
|
|
#
¿
Jul 3, 2013 08:22
|
|
|
So sorry to hear about george, you did the right thing putting him back in the cage. Its huge for their grieving. Still wait at least week or so before testing a new bun, but if you do speed dating it will be obvious whether the bun is ready or not. I just towed my race car 13 hours from home and my girlfriend calls me "hey Ben won't open his left eye and when I open it its really red" crap. So she's going to send me a pic of how it looks in the morning, he may have just poked himself on some hay. Arya has apparently been spending a lot of time cleaning it, so that's good. So stressed because I can't do anything so far away.
|
|
#
¿
Jul 19, 2013 10:07
|
|
|
Any of you guys have any place for bulk hay that has decent shipping rates to the west coast? Kleenmama hasn't had any 2nd cut timothy in a while, and each box of 3rd cut I've gotten has been worse and worse. My rabbits love the really stemmy 2nd cut, and the 3rd just doesn't interest them. I can get 33-36 lbs for about the same from american pet diner, and it looks like Drs. Foster % Smith have free shipping, but only Oxbow hay, which I've heard not great things about. Although one of the main complaints is the dust, and I've been getting a TON of dust in my Kleenmama shipments. Anywhere else I can look? It should be noted my buns don't like bluegrass, just the stemmy Timothy. E: Gonna try Drs. Foster and Smith, they have a sale on their brand of hay that'll be smaller, less messy packages, and great prices on treats. Deceptor101 fucked around with this message at 04:23 on Aug 8, 2013 |
|
#
¿
Aug 8, 2013 03:33
|
|
|
Sorry to hear about everyone's loss. I've been out of the thread for a while, but if it makes you all feel any better, I made the heartwarming choice this time when Arya stopped eating a few weeks ago. The vet was impressed with how feisty she was, and as they gave her back to me they said "You can keep the collar, she uh, ate some of it" As I've been kicking myself all year for making the financial choice to not save Annie last year, I knew I had to take Arya in. I caught it earlier so she bounced back, and it "only" cost $1200 all told. I couldn't go through Ben being alone again.  E: going off my post history, I've had Ben for over 6 years now. That puts him at at least 7 or 8. What an old-timer!
|
|
#
¿
Nov 27, 2013 08:13
|
|
|
This is an unpleasant question, that perhaps Alucinor will be the best for answering, but maybe others will have a good idea. I've been less and less involved with my buns in the last few months, and I really think I'm not giving them the attention they deserve. They get food and water and veggies and the occasional treat, but almost no attention, and i don't brush them or trim their nails nearly as much as I should. I really don't like the idea of sending them back to a rescue, ideally I'd like to find someone who wants a pair of pre-bonded, pre-box trained rabbits. It's a hard think to think about, but at this point, I feel like I'm just not giving them the care they deserve, and they're just making my house messy and dusty and covered in hay. Not to mention the rescue lady LOVES guilt trips, and I feel bad enough about this that taking them back to her and listening to her speech would be awful. I'm in the SF Bay Area. Anyone know anybody interested in bunnies? I'd happy donate all my cube cage stuff, litterboxes etc.
|
|
#
¿
May 1, 2014 06:29
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 14, 2024 02:28 |
|
|
alucinor posted:My attitude has changed a lot over the last 10 years; I can see both sides of the argument now...
|
|
#
¿
May 4, 2014 18:40
|
|