Please HELP me! **New Bunny**

Please Help!

My bunny fits in my hand...How old might it be?

What is best to feed my bunny?

The formula I made is 1 egg yolk, water, evaporated milk, and karo syrup...is that good?

Is grass OK for my bunny to eat?

Can you give a bunny a bath? Well not a bath but how can I clean it?

Should I hold my bunny alot?

My bunny ate part of a tee shirt... is he ok?

Wow, lots of questions. I'm not sure how old itis, when Megan was 6 weeks old she could fit in my hand, but I stillthink she's overly small. Pellets and Timothy Hay and fresh water are amust. I'm pretty sure grass is a big no-no. Rabbits don't need to bebathed or cleaned, they're like cats, they do it all themselves. Holdyour bunny as much as you want, the more you hold it, the more it willget used to you. I made that mistake with Megan when she was little andnow she's not really the being held type. As for the t shirt thing...Idont know...Megan's swallowed carpet, strings, and wallpaper before,and she's still alive and hasn't been sick. I just wouldn't make the tshirt a part of its balanced diet...

Someone with better expertise will give you way better answers then me!

Hi Leslie,

1) Can you post a picture of your little one so that we can see how small/big he is in your hand?

2) A good quality pellet food such as Purina Rabbit Chow, Heinold, BlueSeal, or Nutreena would be an example of such food. Pelletshave everything as far as nutrition that a rabbit needs, if it's a goodpellet. Brands that have colorful shapes of fruit and tend tolook more like cereal is not an example of good pellets.They're pleasing to our eyes, but usually filled with sugar that isvery bad for your rabbit.

3) It's most advised to be sure to give your rabbit good pellet food,timothy hay for added fiber to help the digestive system remainfunctioning properly and removing furballs, and of course, a freshsupply of water at all times.

4) It's okay if your rabbit grazes on the grass as long as it's not treated with pesticides.

5) It's commonly recommended not to give your bunny a bath because therabbit cleans itself and doesn't need it; also don't really want tointerfere with the oils in the fur. See the following articleabout bathing a bunny.http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/buttbath.html

6) Since the bunny is small, I would get it used to be held.

7) As to the tee-shirt question, is the bunny still pooping normally and eating well?

Welcome to the board!

-Carolyn

Bumping this thread. Leslie's having some problemswith her rabbit, she's not sure she wants it, its a wild rabbit, andshes currently keeping it in a rubbermaid container.

NO! Thats way wrong! I do know I want it I justcant get it EVERYTHING right now! This is my first rabbit and I amdoing the best I can but if I can't please you thats just too bad!

By no means am I trying to get you in trouble, butyou said in your PM to me that you didn't want it and that your motherwouldn't let you keep it. I'm just trying to help you and your bunny.Sorry if that's a problem for you.



I'm starting our PM conversation in this thread so others can help.



Leslie writes:

No I really do want it and I love it to death but I just dont have thetime and money right now to get a cage. I put a cantainer lid out for adrink durring the day but i think its too little to really drink out ofit...he really just steps in it!

Hi Leslie,

If this rabbit is a wild rabbit,?it's illegal to keep it in your carein the USA.? I know you mentioned that your boyfriend found it andcaught it.? Wild rabbits don't always do well in a domesticatedenvironment.? If it was found in the wild and is wild, I would urge youto release it back into the wild.? I'm not saying that all wild rabbitsdon't do well, it's just best to get a domesticated one if you have thespace, money, and ability to properly take care of it.? If you foundand it's domesticated, bring it no-kill shelter; if it's wild, go to awildlife rehabber in your area.

A rubbermaid container is not for rabbits.? I thought you mentionedyour boyfriend had a cage, get it and use it.? Your little one needsto? have a proper cage if you were to even think of keeping it.

If you truly love the rabbit the way you do, you'll give it the bestlife it can have, put it back where you found it.? Wait until you'rebetter able to take care of a rabbit and the time is right.? If youdon't have the money to provide it with what it needs, then youshouldn't have it now.? Besides, your subjecting it to an earlier deaththan it would normally have as well as many sicknesses it could developby not having the proper care.

-Carolyn

?

Leslie,

Regardless of whether or not you wish to keep the rabbit, please linktohttp://www.wildliferescueleague.org/report/nova_rabbit.htmlforsome excellent information of how to deal with it goingforward. It's life probably does hang in the balance becausecottontails can be notoriously difficult to raise.

Please take a look at the above site for help

Buck

Yes we did catch the bunny. Yes it was wild, andeven though I dont have everything right now I can get it and soon. Iam taking very good care of the bunny. While I am at school my dadcomes in and plays with it and feeds it with the bottle Ibought.Today my grandma bought pellets and tomorrow I amgoing to see if the bunny will eat them. I think it may be too youngthough.I got an account here because I love this bunny andwant to give it a good life. I had questions I needed answers to andnow that I have them I am ready to take care of my bunny.Wehave had a bunny before when I was still in elementary and I loved itto death. That rabbit died and I know that I can take such good care ofmy bunny that it will live a long healthy life.I have takenhim to the vet and even though no vets in my area know ANYTHING aboutrabbits he checjed my bunny out and said everything looked ok. Thatswhere I bought the bottle and directions for the formula I am feedingit. So thanx for your concern but I am going to keep Bunny Bunny andraise him. He is getting very comfortable with me and I will doeverything I can for him.

I really hate to burst your bubble about this rabbit.

First-It is against the law in the US to keep a wild bunny unless you are a wildlife rehabber.

Second, whoever you took the bunny to is not a reputable vet as heshould have turned it over to a wild life rehabber, so now he hasbroken the law as well.

Third, the formula is not correct. To raisedomestic kits you need kitten formula and add heavy cream toit. Rabbit milk is very rich, wild kits need an entirelydifferent formula, made specifically for them, which wild liferehabbers have.

Fourth- wild rabbits do not do well in captivity. It is verystressful for them and that stress will eventually kill them.Very few will last more than 4 weeks in captivity. If thiskit has its eyes open and is all furred out it is more than likely onits own already and needs to be put back where it was found so long asit is a safe place.

Wild rabbits are weaned between two and three weeks of age and arefully capable of caring for themselves. unlike domestic rabbits who areusually weaned at six weeks. By trying to keep thisrabbit you are setting yourself up for a large disappointment, as itwill more than likely die. Put it back where it belongs andgive it a chance to live its life as it was intended to do.

If you are really interested in having a bunny, find a good breeder andbuy one. Get all the things you need before getting thebunny. Bunny's make great pets but like any pet they needyour time to care for them properly and and need you lovingattention. I hope you will see reason and make the rightdecision about this poor wild one. Donna

Leslie,

If you refuse to follow the solid advice that has been given you, youwill surely be the cause of the death of this poor rabbit.

I truly hope you do the right thing.

It's selfish to hold onto a rabbit that shouldn't be in captivity andyou can not take proper care of, don't you think?

-Carolyn

Leslie, everyone in here is right. I know this ishard for you, we all get attached to things, but you have to think ofthe well-being of your rabbit. Taking a wild rabbit in, is no differentthen taking in a wild bear cub. Both are illegal, and won't survivewith you. You're setting yourself up for even more disapointment if youkeep it. IF you let it go now it still has a chance, if you keep it,surely BunnyBunnt won't make it very long.

If you wanna feel like you're saving something, by all means, when youhave the money and a proper cage, go to a local shelter and rescue apoor bunny that someone left there because they didn't want it. Aboutthis time of year, the Shelters are full of "Easter" bunnies peopledecided they didn't want. Or, theres lots of other animals out theretoo. Hamsters are a lot easier to take care of than a rabbit. Theydon't need really any attention. They even clean their own cage! Maybeyou should think about that when you've got the time and money.

Anyway, you really need to think about what everyone has said in here.We're not giving you anything but expert advise from our hearts toensure that BunnyBunny lives. You need to realize that either way,you're not going to have him. If you let him go, he'll be a happyrabbit out in the wild and will probably see his family and rabbitfriends, or you can keep him and he'll be sad and eventually die.

This is a hard truth for you I'm sure, but only you can make thisdecision. You can either save BunnyBunnyor let him die in your care.

Fine I'll put Bunny Bunny back. I got kicked outof my house for him yesterday and had to stay with a friend. He wasworth it to me but whatever. When I do get a bunny I wont be comminghere again for help.

That's a shame, Leslie, because we certainly love our rabbits and know what's best for them to lead a happy and healthy life.

"Don't bite the hand that feeds you." You asked a questionand you should be prepared for the answer, whether it's desirable toyou or not. We're just trying to help you and therabbit.

I hope your truthful in your decision to put the rabbit back, butjudging from your last sentence, I don't think you are.

Oh Well. We can only do the best we can and the rest is up to you.

-Carolyn


P.S. I'd like to Thank the posters that were compassionate enough tospeak up for an animal that couldn't speak up for itself.Unfortunately not everyone will appreciate what we have to say, butit's the truth and I applaud everyone for trying so hard to save thiswild rabbit.

Yeah Leslie you have a good heart to put hte bunny back where he will grow up. I hope some day you will have a bunny to love you

Leslie, I hope you realize that everyone in hereis rabbit savvy, we have everyone from lifelong breeders, to assistantvets, or newbies like me who just want to see the wellbeing of anyanimal. I hope that you do put him back like you said. Or if you dokeep him, that you buy a cage, water bottle, proper food and shavings.If you do keep him and don't provide him with anything, then I can onlyhope he doesn't die in any kind of painful way...

well like carolyn, i hope you reallymeant that about putting him back. i also hope that when you do get abunny, you will come here-this forum is bursting with info. and despiteyour first impression, everyone is very friendly and helpful. we areanimal lovers, wild rabbits are not pets and should not be held incaptivity. it sucks to have to give something you love up, but in thiscase its the only thing to do.

mblm...im sure you meant "doesnt die in any kind of painful way" right? lol...

Oh dear!! I didn't even noticed I put that! Of course I mean DOESN'T lol. Sheesh, thanks for pointing that out, I fixed it!