Discussion Topic
advice on rabbits please
Posted on 07/12/08, 11:43 am
Hello all of you I am expecting to become a parent of rabbits that was probably going to end up at the shelter and i simply could not let that happen. So of course I agreed to care for them and maybe find a good home for one or two (there are 3 of them, i heard they like to live in pairs so I may keep at least 2) I have done a lot of web searching but I want advice from those of you who have first hand experience with your little rabbit friends. Just anything you can tell me would be helpful. Thank you all in advance for your time and advice. ((HUGGSSS))
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Reply #1 07/14/08 7:16am
Hiya, they can be house trained and use a cat litter box!!! I would just make sure their eyes are always clear and that their nails and teeth are trimmed on a regular basis. Good luck. Hugs -
Reply #2 07/14/08 8:39pm
Thank you, I fell in love with them when he got here we found a home for one of them. I fell in love with them at first sight. They are such cute animals, i've never had a rabbit before so this is a whole new exciting experience for me. Thank you again for your help i didn't know that they could be house trained, thats a big help thank you so much. ((HUGGSSS)) -
Reply #3 07/15/08 1:41pm
I had one that I kept in the house. Just be careful because they do love to chew and gnaw. Wires, drywall, etc. They also do not tolerate extreme heat very well so watch if you are keeping them outside. They really are sweet and docile creatures. Enjoy your bunnies! -
Reply #4 07/19/08 11:00am
i lovvvve rabbits. if they could purr they would be my favorite animal. indoor or outdoor. if indoor they can be litter trained, they do chew, so if you have things that you do not want chewed like wire cords. use a spray called bitter apple on it or there is a wire cover you can buy through revivalanimal.com it is a great catalog that can also be sent to the house and they have information and products on all animals.
extreme temperatures will kill them. they are ground dwellers and underground the temperature is always even and always on the cool side (40 to 60 degrees i think). rabbits cannot sweat so extreme heat will kill them. extreme cold will also kill them. we had a hutch and i trained my rabbit as a kid to stay in the yard. i used a harness and a leash so she would learn her boundaries. recently i rescued two rabbits. the males MUST BE FIXED or they can be nippy. the females are not usually fixed because it is major surgery for them. i had both microchipped. they got along great with each other and with the cats. lovvvvved each other. the yard was not complete without them. the female was well-behaved and even came when i called her. she enjoyed her cage which was a huge dog cage with a plastic bottom and a litter pan with newspaper in it not litter (the rabbits choice) i changed out the newspaper daily. very easy as they are vegetarians and their poo is clean too and acts as fabulous fertilizer for your garden. everything about rabbits is GREEN. they love grass clippings, branches from trees, cabbage leaves, carrots, strawberries with the stalks, any fresh left over vegetables that normally gets thrown out, they eat. they also love bread. and as a staple you must buy rabbit pellats and timothy hay. the female would go into her cage via a wood plank stairway thing, not at all steep (they have soft ribs, so a fall or too much of a squeeze in the chest can kill them)(that is why they are picked up by the scruff of the neck while also holding them under their back legs). they are very cuddly and will snuggle under your chin and neck. the female would go in and out of the cage and hang out in there especially at night. safer i think. it also had a wood enclosed area in it so she had a safe place from possible predators...i tried to lock everything in at night and because they need consistent temperature i had the cages in the back of the garage where it is always pretty cool/warm depending on whether it is summer or winter and the garage door was always open. the male liked to be out more and would stay out and not come when called unless he had been out for two days straight, then he would decide the cage might be an okay thing. however, the rescuer who adopted them after me, prefers the male, so it could have been an individual thing.
when i was a kid, the hutch we had, my father built it and it was outside under a tree. in all extreme weather i brought her inside and she lived in our basement in an enclosed area in the cold of winter and in the very hot of summer. about half the year she lived indoors. she lived to be seven and died while i was in europe. i am still suspicious of this as i have heard that rabbits can live ten years just like a cat. best of luck. rabbits are the best pet...oh yeah no dogs of course, some people claim a very small dog may be okay...but i never take chances like that. dogs kill rabbits -
Reply #5 07/19/08 11:08am
Thanks so much that is very helpful, my little girl is loving it here and we all love her, well I keep the dogs away from her for obvious reasons and we're working on the litter training. She has so far been one of the greatest pets i've owned. Thank you all so much -
Reply #6 07/19/08 11:31am
I have a litter trained pet rabbit. She is kept in a large cage, and the litter box is in the cage too. She's too old now for me to let run around the house anymore (because she pees on the carpet) but she used to. We could let her out for a couple of hours, and she would run around, checking things out. She would jump up on my lap if I was sitting there - or onto my hubby's lap for some petting. Now, we have a blanket for her on the porch, and we take her out there for a couple of hours a day to play and get some exercise. (We used to have a couple of pet rats, and one of them - Gingie - just loved Hunny Bunny... she became a little Houdini and would escape every night from her cage to go and visit my bunny. Every morning, I would find her on top of the rabbit cage. It was strange, because I could never figure out how she got out of her own cage, and neither could the other rat, and she never bothered to go inside the rabbit's cage. But, I could sit with the two of them together - they would cuddle. So cute. Anyway, Hunny Bunny didn't have a chewing problem - but that was unusual - they do indeed like to chew on things, and the suggestions from 79pounds are great ones. They can be taught tricks - mine gives kisses for cookies. They also all have their own little quirks. For example, I can't give mine carrots at all because they give her diarrhea. Other vegetables I can only give her in small amounts on occasion, or the same thing will happen. The things easiest on her stomach are clover and dandelions. Another thing that female bunnies are susceptible to are vaginal infections, so be careful with them. Vaginal infections are the only reason my rabbit has ever needed to see a vet, and she's had four infections. Yup they're great - when she was younger, I used to take her in the car with me - she loved it, and people in other cars, when we were stopped at lights or something, would see her and think it was just the funniest thing - her standing on her hind legs, looking at them through the passenger window. I would also put her in a big wicker bag, and take her with me to the bank, or just for a walk in the neighbourhood - people got to know her at the book store, and Liquidation World, and places like that. The possibilities are endless! Have fun, and good luck! -
Reply #7 07/19/08 11:32am
Oh, and they can get along with other animals too - my Father-in-Law's dog Maggie and my bunny are the best of friends! -
Reply #8 07/19/08 1:01pm
I've had other people tell me that they get along well with other animals too but i'm trying to get them used to one another gradually because my youngest pup is very hyper and loves to nip and i'm afraid that she might hurt my little bunny and the older one loves other animals but just needs time to accept them as part of the family. Hopefully though they will all soon be friends.
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