She's clearly bored, but she doesn't play with toys!

[philososaurus]

My rabbit likes boxes to eat, pillows to dig at, and walls to chew on.

I have straw balls, like 12 wooden sticks of various kinds (applewood, bright colors, small, long, skinny, thick, even ones that LOOK like the wood that she likes to eat around my room)... none of it really seems to interest her.

She likes to play with paper; normally just moving it around (like she does with the sticks if she touches them at all), but I feel like I shouldn't ENCOURAGE her to eat it.

I think the chewing on the walls is a boredom thing. I feel like, through other observations as well, that she's bored.

She used to have a playmate and doesn't now (sigh) and I don't think I'm ready to get another one.

Still, I can't find ANY toys that seem to suit her.

She does enjoy the straw huts and houses and mats, but they aren't really TOYS, just more points of interest for her.

What do you think?

 

[tamsin]

I think toys is maybe the wrong word for bunnies. Like you've notice they are more interested in activities like chewing.

I would try a selection of cardboard boxes as she said she likes the hut. Big boxes can have window/doors for her to adult (chew) and long boxes to make tunnels. If your feeling creative, join them together to make a warren system.

With the pieces of wood. Try stringing them up so they hang in her way, like branches on a tree, that way she can chew her way through them.

Looking for food is the main activity wild rabbits do and there are lots of creative ways you can use it to make activities. One toy I do recommend is a treat ball for pellets, you put them inside and as they roll it around they fall out. Hanging food up, hiding in, under, or on top of things. Make a lucky dip box filled with hay and hidden food. Put food in to small boxes she has to chew into.. that sort of thing so every meal time is like a treasure hunt.

If you can get a branch from an apple tree (people will prune in the autumn) she'll probably like that better than the commercial sticks you buy.

Tam

 

[philososaurus]

Thanks SO MUCH for all the great tips! I don't have too much room now to make a little maze-y thing, but I can definitely make some activities for her.

Seriously! What great ideas! I appreciate it.

 

[luvthempigs]

Phone books are a great toy for rabbits.

 

[tamsin]

No problem Have fun trying them out!

 

[AquaticRex]

my bunny goes nuts over spoons. that and try tieing string to the roof of the cage and letting it dangle. Dante has an obsession with those lol, try even tieing a spoon on the end of the string or anything else. i use 100% natural items so as he doesn't get sick (nothing dyed or was made using grease or anything like that)

 

[Stone_family3]

Belldandy loves paper bags. So when I go grocery shopping I always use a few paper bags so she can have an activity. She also loves the cardboard containers that soda comes in.

 

[Rabbit Hero]

I've recently discovered that Shino loves Ribbon. I get a nice long length of it and I dangle a bit in front of his face. He grabs a hold of it and just RUNS around the apartment. I'm careful not to let him eat it but he could run with that ribbon for hours.