New To Bunny Ownership - and the forum!

[MyBunnyTotoro]

[align=center]Hello everyone;

I just received my first Bunny about 10 days ago and have fallen in love! I have always wanted a rabbit, although college and work did not previously allow me to make time for one. My name is Celeste and my bunny’s current name is Totoro. We previously thought it was a male, but after a vet visit we found out she is a little girl. While I have done research, I’d love to hear what you all think about her current setup!

She is currently eating Oxbow Pellets for Young Rabbits, Oxbow Timothy Hay, and very small amounts of collard greens. She is approximately 6 weeks old.

Her home is an X-pen with two litter boxes (both halves of a dog kennel) filled with Equine Fresh for bedding, although she is not a super huge fan, an Oxbow Hiding Hut, a few toys, and a food and water bowl.

She appears healthy and alert; the vet says we will be able to spay around 4-6 months of age. Yay! We will be getting more interactive toys and chewing toys soon! Any toy recommendations?

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[RosyRabbits]

Aw! She's adorable! She's like a little white ball of fluff ^w^

Welcome to the forum. I'm new here myself, everyone has been really nice so far and gave me good advice.

 

[sleepmask4life]

Great pictures, good luck with your new bunny!

I find that the best toys are of the homemade variety. My bunnies love empty food boxes, like cereal boxes and cookie / cracker boxes (without the plastic bag of course). Also empty cardboard toilet paper rolls or paper towel rolls make awesome toys, you can stuff them with hay. My bunnies toss them around like crazy. Also, if I leave a large paper grocery bag on the floor that is opened, they love to hop in it and try to dig out the bottom. Another great digging toy is give your bunny a phone book, minus the front and back covers. Bunnies love to dig and they will dig through the pages non-stop, just be prepared for a mess of paper which she may turn into a nest like my bunny likes to do. Phone books are great because they use soy based ink that is not toxic to animals. Also give your bunny some wood to chew if you can, as long as it's not been chemically treated. I have a fireplace and in the winter, my bunnies love to eat my firewood, which is better than eating the furniture!

 

[Kipcha]

Great start for the little one! She's super cute and looks like a real sweetheart!

I would recommend not giving any veggies whatsoever, especially to a 6 week old bunny. Generally they're at least 4 months before you start giving veggies as it can cause digestive upset.

I would also recommend laying something down on the hardwood, at least until she's older. Bunny limbs are still growing rapidly at that age and the hardwood floor could cause her legs to splay (Here's an example video, as you can see splay legged rabbits legs are permanently out to the side - [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qttZbsGs8r4[/ame] ), it's more common then you would think. Just lay some blankets down or something so her legs aren't fighting to stay together.

For toys, something all of my crew seem to LOVE are the willow branch balls and willow barbells you can get in some stores. Some of them have nuts inside so it would be a good idea to remove those before your bun gets to it, but mine love to roll them around and tear them apart. They also like the small cat balls with bells inside. Jabberwocky's favorite toy is actually just a small blanket. He'll pick it up and run around with it for hours. Some of them also like those wire balls you can hang and stuff with hay, I generally stuff them with "treat hay" (Oxbow's Botanical, Meadow Grass, Orchard Grass, etc.) and they go nuts for them. We also got these little balls from Blue Eyed Bunny, they are woven sea grass and very popular with my buns.

Also, is she 6 weeks now or 6 weeks when you got her 10 days ago? 4 1/2 weeks would have been way too young for her to be taken from Mom, although I would worry about it too much right now since what is done is done, but just make sure to watch out for any signs of stress (Runny nose, crusty eyes, diarrhea, etc.) and if you see any, react quickly. She seems to be healthy now though, so I'm sure she'll be okay.

Overall, you've done an awesome job and given her a great start in life!

 

[fuzz16]

she is so cute and what a great idea using each side of the kennel for a liter box! is she using it well?

 

[melbaby80]

Lionheads are the best. I have one too. You are off to an amazing start. I started giving my buns greens once a day at 8 weeks and never had a problem. Some people don't do it all, but my angora breeder did. I guess it all depends on the bunny. My bunnies love toliet paper rolls, paper towel rolls, empty boxes, torn up paper bags, but recently I bought them actual bunny toys and they love them to my surprise.

By the way your lionhead is ADORABLE!! :biggrin:

 

[MyBunnyTotoro]

Thank you everyone for the welcome!

I find that the best toys are of the homemade variety. My bunnies love empty food boxes, like cereal boxes and cookie / cracker boxes (without the plastic bag of course). Also empty cardboard toilet paper rolls or paper towel rolls make awesome toys, you can stuff them with hay. My bunnies toss them around like crazy.

Thank you for the recommendations! I went to Petsmart today about bought a few cat toys, along with some bunny chews. I already put some empty paper towel rolls in her x-pen, but will definitely make sure to get her some cereal boxes and paper grocery bags to play with.

Also, is she 6 weeks now or 6 weeks when you got her 10 days ago? 4 1/2 weeks would have been way too young for her to be taken from Mom, although I would worry about it too much right now since what is done is done, but just make sure to watch out for any signs of stress (Runny nose, crusty eyes, diarrhea, etc.) and if you see any, react quickly. She seems to be healthy now though, so I'm sure she'll be okay.

Thank you for all of the recommendations. My whole place is hardwood or tile, so while I can cover her enclosure with fabric it is not possible with the whole living area; What do you think I should do since she is getting (almost complete) full range of the living area when I am home?

She is indeed 6 weeks old. I previously worked at a vet office (stopped working there about 8 months ago) and either they (or one of the employees) had someone surrender two 2ish-week old bunnies that were sick and they didn't want to pay to treat (or couldn't afford to treat?). The bunnies had conjunctivitis and discharge from their nose, and were put on medication for 14 days. During the treatment, one of my old co-workers (who also happens to be my best friend) called me and asked me if I was interested in giving one of them a home once they were weaned from formula and I said, "yes!" One of the doctors that helped care for the babies took the other one. Here is a picture - you can slightly see the conjunctivitis in this photo:

After I brought her home I took her to an exotic vet since the vet I worked at didn't actually officially see exotics (cats & dogs only) to make sure she was doing okay and to discuss future neuter information (now spay. . . >.<). They told me everything looked great and you couldn't even tell she was sick before other than the fact that she is slightly small for her age. They also told me "he" was a she; my vet clinic thought she was a little boy, but said it was hard to tell when they first got them.

she is so cute and what a great idea using each side of the kennel for a liter box! is she using it well?

Thanks! She is using it 90% for urine, and about 75% for fecal matter. I think part of the reason for the urination issues is her dislike of the Equine Fresh Litter. Before I started putting that in her box she was at 99.9%, but since I added it she hasn't been as great. I may reduce it and add hay on top, but I haven't decided yet.

 

[SOOOSKA]

Oh my what a sweet bunny.

When I got my first bunny many years ago, I had hardwood floors in my apartment. Poor Buttercup (RIP)was having a tough time getting around. I just went out and bought a couple of runners and a nice area rug that he could run on and relax on. Not suren if that's an option for you but I must say he was glad I bought them.

Looking forward to more pictures and stories of Totoro.

Susan

 

[HEM]

Welcome to RO Celest and Tortoro

Very cute

 

[Pet_Bunny]

Welcome to the forum Celeste! :welcome1

That is a great start for your new bunny. It's great you did some research and joined this forum. This is how I got started with rabbits. My first bunny was from a vet who was looking for a new home. This was my first forum too.

About the litter box, there are people who use a plastic screen over top of the litter to keep things neat and tidy.

Looking to see more pictures and stories about Totoro too.

 

[Samara]

Your set up looks great! Sounds like you're starting off great

Welcome to the forum! Glad to have you guys!

The usual standard is not to give veggies till 4 months of age or so, but my Matthias has had veggies since 6 weeks in small amounts and has done very well. Just watch little To like a hawk for any signs of distress or loose stool!

 

[Nancy McClelland]

:inlove:

 

[MyBunnyTotoro]

Thank you all for the welcomes. The bunny seems to be adjusting great and is getting better every day with pooping only inside the litter box. This morning, I woke up to only 5 poop pellets outside of the litter boxes, and no potty accidents. Throughout the day I think there have been a total of 4-6 pellets outside of the litter box, which is quite good for her! She is becoming more and more trusting every day with hands and has been getting at least 3 hours free-roam around the kitchen/living/dining area a day (not allowed in the bedrooms).

I also changed around her enclosure a little bit. She still has two litter boxes, but I removed the hay rack and added a Rollin' The Hay Ball instead to allow her more room inside that litter box. She is now using that one more regularly, and the ball keeps her hay much cleaner (she could jump in the hay rack before and would poop in it). I changed the litter to a small layer of Equine Fresh and then a small amount of hay and her litter habits have improved since then. I've been trying to change things around and see how she likes it best, since it seemed she did the best with going to the bathroom the first couple days I had her when there was only hay in the litter box and then got worse when I changed things around.

I have yet to add mats to her enclosure though, but hopefully will find a material soon that I like. I have been looking for a rubberish material that would be safe if she chewed on it and good for her to walk on, but wouldn't entice her to pee on it.

 

[dimples1967]

Awwww!!! Bunny love!! My vet said alfalfa hay then to start off with parsley and cilantro. I use carefresh and then put hay over it.. Good you ate keeping her confined as she's getting potty trained. I didn't do that and am now breaking bad habits. :biggrin::confused2

 

[MyBunnyTotoro]

She is actually doing great about not pooping around the house. The only issue I'm having is her pooping inside of her enclosure (outside of the litter box). Every day is seems to be getting better though.

 

[ZRabbits]

Welcome to RO!

Sweet bunny. Love the set up. As you learn from your rabbit and others on the forum, you will change things that best suits you and your bunny.

Bunnies make great companions!

K

 

[MyBunnyTotoro]

Here is her current enclosure with some new additions:

It contains: two litter boxes with one containing her food bowl and the other containing a Rollin' In The Hay ball; two ikea racks to hold her current toys and one to hold extras and treats/towels/misc; one Timothy Hay Hiding Hut; one Timothy Hay Woven Mat; little bunny/cat/small animal toys; and a floor mat.

I went to Petco today and found a machine washable kitty litter mat, measuring 24 x 36 inches. She seems to really like it and has been hopping around it like a mad woman. I plan on getting a couple more for the hardwood areas she is around free roam in.

 

[audrinasmommy88]

OH MY!!! cuteness overload!

 

[1357rabbitlover]

WOW, what a great setup! and what a good idea of using that clothes rack thing to hang toys onto, i've never known what to hang my bunnies toys onto.. i think im gonna steal your idea lol

 

[Kipcha]

Sorry I haven't checked back on this thread but wow, what a pampered bunny! That is a fantastic set-up!

One lucky little bunny, that's for sure!