bunny couldn't drink for 24 hours

HI

I just adopted my rabbit yesterday and bought her a new water bottle. Today I noticed the water was the same level as yesterday even though she has been trying to drink from it. So I rubbed my finger on it to simulate her drinking and noticed my finger was still dry. I squeezed it a little in her cage, and when she saw the water she ran over and was gulping the water as I squeezed the bottle. I switched the bottle now, but will she be ok? She seems to be eating and looks normal but I'm still worried that she didn't drink for 24 hours.

Thanks for any and all help!

You'll need to keep a close eye on her for the next couple days, and make sure she keeps eating and pooping. Having no water may cause her gut to slow down. If it slows down too much a blockage can occur, and this will make a rabbit sick and stop eating which requires immediate vet attention. So as long as she continues eating, drinking, and pooping, she should be fine.

A better alternative to a water bottle, is using a water dish. Rabbits tend to drink better from one. So if this would work, you may want to consider using one for your bun instead of a bottle. The downside is you have to make sure to fill and clean out more frequently. If you continue to use a bottle instead, it is a good idea to check the nozzle twice a day to ensure water is coming out ok.

Thank you! I will definitely watch her. I would give her a bowl but she runs around the cage so fast I'm worried she'll knock it over.

If you get a heavy ceramic bowl from any pet shop, it's unlikely your bun will be able to knock it over or throw it around. There are also types of bowls that can be fastened to cage bars. I'm very pro-bowl. Working a bottle mechanism is tiring and not for all bunnies, and you definitely want to make water access as easy as possible. A dehydrated bun can get all sorts of nasty gut and bladder problems, and we all know how expensive bunnies are at the vets.

If you wedge it into a corner that would help with her knocking in or stepping in it when she's running about. Although my baby bun kept putting both her front feet right into the water each time she drank from it silly girl!

I have found that my bunnies really get on with Kaytee glass water bottles, they can be a little pricier than plastic ones but the flow is really good and they seem to get a more reasonable amount of water out with very little effort. I hate watching rabbits working their little bums off just to get the tiniest bit of water out of a bottle. You just have to make sure you don't over fill the Kaytee ones or they will leak.