New Cage + Bonding questions

[littlemisslacie]

So my bf andI were having troubles catching Lacie to put her back into her cage. So we decided to try to build an NIC cage. Because we're expecting to adopt another rabbit after she is spayed (its going to be a lonnggg 3 months!), we wanted to make a big one.

The problem now is that she won't jump to each level. She triedabout three timesand im not sure what happened but she didn't make the jump and fell down. She jumps up onto our couch and other things so I know she can jump. We made the cage yesterday morning and she hasn't switched levels since then. We placed her on the top one.

Will it just take time? or do you think the jumps are too high for her? Should we make the cage smaller?



I also have a few other questions. Because we want to adopt another bunny, when do you think the best time for that would be? And are we best to get another female or a neutered male? Lacie seems pretty passive, I dont think she would be the dominant one at all.
Also when should we look to adopt? Is it okay to get a neutered male now? or do we have to wait till a certain ammount of time after her surgery? Shes 3 mon ths old now so we will probly get it done around August.

Thank you!!
Lyss and Lacie.

This is a picture of ournew NICcage and our old one with a ramp that we built. And a pic of lacie too

 

[ohsnapitscharity]

nice cage sorry i cant offer anymore advice

 

[Amy27]

The same thing happened to me when I built a NIC cage. I would try to offer her something on the floor to make the jump smaller. Like a stool or a box. I also wonder if it is wide enough that she has enough room to jump up there. My rabbit started getting up there a few times so I knew she could but she didn't really seem to like it so I took the levels down and made it wider and put some cottontail cottages in there and she loves it now. It just might be finding your buns preference. I love the first picture of her. She looks so relaxed. And I think your cage looks good. I can tell you guys put a lot of work into it. Good luck.

 

[littlemisslacie]

thanks guys!

maybe if she doesnt move around some more by tmrw we can rearrange it

 

[SweetSassy]

I would just give her time. put some treats(Veggies) on the higher levels. try to tempt her up with the treats. thats what I did. The cage looks great. :biggrin2:

 

[SweetSassy]

And......Your bunny is gorgeous!! Very Cute!! PS) I would put a box on the floor so she could jump up to the next level. She may not be comfortable jumping to each level, just give her some help.

April

 

[Amy27]

Lyss,
I don't know how long you have had her cage like that but it took my bun about 2 weeks before she started to venture to another level. Or I should say it took about 2 weeks until I saw her get up there.

I didn't mean to ignore your bonding question before. I got onto the cage and forgot about it. I have heard that male/female bonding is easier. You could get a bun now and keep them separate. What I would do is when you are ready to bond them is then take Lacie to pick her friend. Hopefully then bonding will go easier once you get home. Are you planning to get the bun through a rescue? I think most will allow you to bring Lacie to pick her mate. You can call or look online and see what their protocol is. If you google bonding rabbits there are some good sites with some great information. I have used a lot of them. The House Rabbit Society has one on their site I believe. There is also some great advice in the library.

Also if you are interested in seeing other NIC cages I know there is a photo thread of them. If you need help finding any of this let me know and I can help.