How do rabbits cope with change and moving house?

[BunnyGabriel]

I’m moving to a new flat in two weeks time. I was just wondering if rabbits cope well with change and new environment
Is there anything I can do to make the move easier for him?

Any help would be greatly appreciated, thank you 

[Elrohwen]

It really depends on the rabbits. I have taken one of mine to quite a few places (parents’ house, friends’ houses) and he immediately lays down in the middle of the floor and relaxes. My other bun is more nervous, but even she has settled down within a couple days in a new place. Unless your rabbits are very anxious types, I bet they’ll be just fine.

The best thing you can do is set up their cage/habitat as close to the way you had it in their old home and I bet they’ll hardly notice. They might even like having a new place to explore.

[BinkyBunny]

Elrohwen is absolutely right. It’s amazing how differently rabbits can react. When we moved, within a few days my bunny Rucy wanted to go off and explore (I didn’t allow too much right away as I didn’t want their litter box habits to go out the window. And with my bunny Jack, it took him almost a month to feel fully comfortable. It took him days just to leave his pen and hang out a few feet away.

I think the best thing you can do is exactly what Elrohwen advised about keeping his habitat set-up as close to how it was before. That will definitely offer comfort.

Good luck with your move and keep us updated on how it goes.

[BunnyGabriel]

I’m so sorry for the late reply. I didn’t get an email telling me anyone replied.

At Christmas time I went away and he was left with a lady who boarded animals, He didn’t seem too distressed there and enjoyed exploring, but when we brought him back home he stopped eating for a day (although the vet told me it was because he was bonded to me and my leaving upset him)
So I’m pretty concerned about him feeling becoming stressed to that level again.
I think I’ll lay down some unwashed sheets and towels that he’s slept on, over the room he’ll be kept in so there will smells from the old house.

Bunnys litter skills are perfect at the minute, have you any more tips to make sure he stays that way?

Thank you so much for your help. Hopefully everything goes okay, I’ll post back here after the move and let you know how he is

[BunnyGabriel]

I’m so sorry for the late reply. I didn’t get an email telling me anyone replied.

At Christmas time I went away and he was left with a lady who boarded animals, He didn’t seem too distressed there and enjoyed exploring, but when we brought him back home he stopped eating for a day (although the vet told me it was because he was bonded to me and my leaving upset him)
So I’m pretty concerned about him becoming stressed to that level again.
I think I’ll lay down some unwashed sheets and towels that he’s slept on, over the room he’ll be kept in so there will smells from the old house.

Bunnys litter skills are perfect at the minute, have you any more tips to make sure he stays that way?

Thank you so much for your help. Hopefully everything goes okay, I’ll post back here after the move and let you know how he is

[Sam and Lady's Human]

We just moved in August, it was quite a big move but they did fine no stress shown at all

[Deleted User]

I second BB and Elrohwen. It really depends on the bun. My foster Ian took to his new home with us really well. He was up and binkying five minutes after we took him out of his carrier. My little girl Skipper didn’t fair as well. She’s not big on change and it took her a while (a couple of weeks) before she settled in and wanted to search her surroundings. So it honestly just depends. You just want to make sure that you have familiar things with your bun. For instance, we have stuffies and blankies that are uniquely Skipper’s and Ian’s. So when we moved we made sure to have the blanket and stuffs with Skipper. When we brought Ian home with us from the rescue we made sure to lay out his blanket and put it in his cardboard box so that he felt like he had a secure place to go.

[LindsBeck]

My bunny lives inbetween two places for the most part and he’s never had a problem with the changes.  He remembers each place each time too… He’s even used to the car now… he obviously doesn’t like being in the car that much, but after a while he chills out.  For the most part I think rabbits are pretty laid back and adapt very well to changes.  As long as the rabbit is being looked after and cared for he or she will be happy wherever they go.  

[BunnyGabriel]

Hello everyone, thank you all for your replies. Sorry I’ve not updated you sooner, I’ve only just got internet access.

Bunny is absolutely in love with the new place, I don’t know why I was so worried. For the first night he was a bit wary, and slowly hopping about but by day 2 he was confident and had a blast climbing on all the boxes we hadn’t unpacked yet.
I’m slowly introducing him to all the rooms, and he only has one left to explore.

I’ve never seen him so happy and he’s been binkying all the time, and there’s been no problems with his toilet trainings. Thank you again for your advice

[Author]

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