To add another bun or not?

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BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

This topic has 8sd replies, 5 voices, and was last updated 12 years, 8 months ago by Valkyrie.

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- 08/06/2013 at 11:34 AM
  Baxter n Boos Mom
  Participant
  394 posts
  So – my brother recently visited our cousin – who’s family just got an adorable new puppy. But he felt bad for their bun – who is neglected. She spends most of her day in a cage in the basement by herself – and is let out maybe 1 hour per day. He also said the basement smells like a zoo – which you all know should not be the case if you are properly caring for your bun.
  
  Well – the questions is: Can a bunny be happy living in a cage by herself most of every day - with little interaction with family?
  
  If the answer is No, then should I take the chance of offending my cousin and her family – by offering to take their bun off their hands? Even my husband who insists NO MORE BUNNIES! said we should rescue this little girl.
  
  She’s an in tact bunny – so we’d also have to have her spayed before starting the bonding process.
  
  Our condo is too small for her to live separate from the boys forever, so they will have to co-exist at some point.
  
  I do believe Baxter will eventually accept her…but I know it will probably take months to get him to that point. Boo is so passive – I dont foresee any issues with him accepting her.
  
  From what I understand – at one point, my cousin adopted 2 more bunnies – and Trixie was very aggressive toward the other girl bun – but adored the boy bun. So coming into our house – she won’t be defending what was already her territory, and may just love our boys from the start. (wishful thinking?)
  
  So – if she can be happy in her current situation – I guess I should just leave things be. What are your thoughts?
- 08/06/2013 at 2:53 PM
  flemish giant
  Participant
  176 posts
  I definetly think she won’t be happy. Rabbits either need a rabbit friend or a lot of interaction from their people. Plus then need exercise and lots of care. If it stinks they probably aren’t cleaning its cage. I would take her. If in a few months the rabbit doesn’t work maybe you could adopt her into a new home that will give her the proper care
- 08/07/2013 at 8:31 AM
  Baxter n Boos Mom
  Participant
  394 posts
  Thanks FM for your response. Yeah I didn’t see how she could be happy….but I didn’t want to jump to conclusions.
  
  She’s a cuddly bun when it comes to my cousin, and 1 of her daughters….but has bitten the rest of the family. That would be a change for me – because my buns do not bite. But I also know, if we were to rescue this little girl – unless she’s an absolute nightmare with our boys – we will not be able to give her up.
- 08/07/2013 at 9:48 AM
  MoveDiagonally
  Participant
  2361 posts
  If you have the space , money, time, and desire then I would offer to take her in. Rabbits do need companionship either human or bunny and her current situation sounds less than ideal
  
  Pros: Helping a bunny in need, getting another rabbit.
  
  Cons: She’ll need to be housed separately for at least a little while. There is always a chance that they will not bond or that she will effect/break the bond of your boys.
- 08/07/2013 at 12:38 PM
  NuggetBuns
  Participant
  348 posts
  You should take her out of the situation she’s in right now. She shouldn’t be living in the basement alone, she should be in a room where she can see her family and be let out more than 1 hour a day. I agree with MD though, there is a chance that she might not bond well with your boys or she might bond well with one and the other might get jealous. Just some things to prepare for.
- 08/07/2013 at 4:18 PM
  Baxter n Boos Mom
  Participant
  394 posts
  Thank you all for your input. I called my cousin just now, and offered to take in her bun, and bring home a girlfriend for my boys 🙂 But she said her daughter could not part with Trixie because she loves her too much. I do believe her daughter loves her bun – but she’s just not educated on how to care for her.
  
  So I told my cousin about Binky Bunny – and stressed the importance of getting Trixie spayed; using litter instead of bedding (which may be why it smells so bad even with daily cleaning) using the Xpen instead of the cage; and I also explained that after she’s spayed – they should be able introduce her slowly to their new puppy.
  
  I’m actually kind of disappointed we’re not bringing her home. If things don’t improve, I’ll offer again sometime down the line.
- 08/07/2013 at 6:09 PM
  Valkyrie
  Participant
  185 posts
  How old is the daughter? Maybe you could offer to bring her to your house and show her how you care for your buns?
  
  I just want to point out that if the puppy isn’t used to Trixie it might be better to keep her housed in the cage and only put in an x-pen when someone is in the same room. Dogs have a way of getting into things you don’t expect them to. When I was 15 I left my bun in the outdoor locked and secure hutch for 10 minutes. In those 10 minutes my dog (who had never bothered with this when I had outdoor bunnies) tore the door right off the hinges and he died of a heart attack being chased. I came home to my shepherd guarding his body and the responsible dog hiding. (My mom has never forgiven herself because I wanted to bring him in the house before we ran to the gas station but she made me leave him.) A basement door is nothing in comparison and Bear was only about a 40 lbs dog. And if there are kids in the house they could not shut the door properly so even a small dog could sneak down and do a lot of damage. And from experience I would say to introduce the bunny and puppy ASAP, don’t wait until she is spayed. The younger they are the easier they become friends. Bonding a rabbit and another species isn’t the same as two rabbits so there are different rules. I would be happy to provide some tips if you aren’t experienced with it yourself.
- 08/07/2013 at 7:46 PM
  Baxter n Boos Mom
  Participant
  394 posts
  Trixie belongs to her 19 year old daughter. The youngest child is a responsible HS student…so I think they can be trusted to keep the basement door properly closed when not home.
  
  I would love to bring them over to show them how to care for buns – but they live in a different country. We would have driven 10 hours each way to rescue this bun 🙂
  
  And they have tried to introduce the bun to their puppy – but they feared that the bun was being too aggressive. The puppy is just curious and stares….but the bun was very tense and they were too scared that she might attack. That’s why I thought it might be better to resume the intros after she was spayed….but I have no experience in this area – as I only have buns. So do you think they should still start the intros? And if so – how would you go about it.
  
  Thanks for your help!
- 08/08/2013 at 1:16 AM
  Valkyrie
  Participant
  185 posts
  If it is the bun being aggressive, then you are right to hold off full bonding until she is spayed. But I would still make sure they interact through the cage every day to start the foundation that neither is to be feared and so the puppy sees the bun as part of the family and not an outdoor critter or intruder.
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