Advice for leaving rabbit with family temporarily

[Maisy]

Hi, in this post there will be talk about mental health/treatment stuff so TW regarding that.

My single bunny Gus is free roaming in my room and super cuddly and affectionate so I spend a good few hours a day snuggling with him.  Since I am a minor, I will be involuntarily admitted to a treatment center (I can’t really disclose what) but it will be anywhere from around 1 to 3 months.  My family will be taking good care of him as far as all of his physical and emotional needs.  However, we have a really close bond and I am concerned he will hold a grudge against me for being away/forget me.  I will try my best to have him stay with me once I drop down to lower levels of treatment or simply get home as soon as possible.  For parts I will be in the hospital or facilities that have strict no animal policies, so he couldn’t come there, but lower levels could be apartments or Ronald Mcdonald housing.  I was wondering if anyone had advice as far as taking ESAS with you or if anyone had been away from there bunny for an extended period of time?  He also can jump over the xpen we have so if anyone had any ideas about how to house him somewhere it would be greatly appreciated.  Thank you so much for any insight on the situation as I am very anxious about leaving him for such a long period of time.

[LittleLionMan]

Hi there! First of all, im sorry you’re being involuntarily admitted. I don’t know your struggles but I was in a similar position when I was a teen. I hope you know your family has the best of intentions and want you to be health and happy! I don’t have experience with service animals or being away from my bun for an extended period of time, but I did have a hedgehog during my stay. I made sure everyone knew how to care for him, that they took pics for me, and I left clothing with my smell on it. When I have people bunny sit for me me I pretty much do the same. List of emergency contacts, signs of illness/when to go to the vet, what kind of food and how much (even write out times of day)…basically I outline every possible detail of care. You could also do the clothing trick if you want do your bun ha your smell, and can “talk” to them on the phone so they hear your voice. If you know when you’re going, maybe start having your family start performing daily bun tasks with you? I’m not sure if you’ll be allowed electronics, but maybe you could also get a pet cam? I have a Wyze cam which was like $30 and I love it!

In terms of keeping your bun in a pen, I *think* they sell x-pen tops (admittedly I’ve never successfully purchased one)? When I was in a pinch once i used chicken wire. The edges are quite pokey and sharp so its probs better to just use NIC grids, a sheet, or mesh fabric material if you can’t get an x-pen lid.

at the end of the day, YOU matter most. As the saying goes, you can’t pour from an empty cup. You have to take care of yourself in order to take care of other beings. Be well, good luck, and kick that demons ass!

[Maisy]

Thank you so much for your reply, it really means a lot to me.  I’m sorry you were in a similar position as a teen-I know it sucks.  I will be allowed to facetime home a half hour every day so I’m glad I’ll be able to see him, and can bring a bunch of pictures of him. I’ve gone on a few weekend trips where they took care of him so they know most of his needs but I’m working on making some detailed instructions to make sure everything goes smoothly.  I see my doctor soon so I’m gonna ask them about the ESA part and how that could work once I drop down, and then I could try out different methods to keep him from escaping.  Thank you, I know I need to go and ultimately it will be better for him if I am more stable.  Still difficult to contemplate leaving him, though, but it won’t be a forever thing.

Really appreciate the reply and suggestions, it helps to know that others have gone through similar things and that it will get better. <3

[DanaNM]

I’m sorry you are going through a hard time!

I haven’t gone through a situation like that exactly, but I have spent long stretches of time away from my buns when I’ve lived abroad for work. I was away for 10 months at one point, and I can tell you my bun at the time did not hold a grudge or anything like that!

I also adopted Bertha, one of my past buns, from a friend who could no longer keep her due to some serious life upheaval. My friend (her previous owner) would visit and pet sit usually once a year, and I could tell Bertha recognized her and was happy to see her. She was very happy with us too, so it wasn’t like she was depressed.

So I think that as long as your family can provide good care, your bun will be just fine while you’re away and will be happy to see you when you return.

As for housing and the escaping issue, I really like NIC cube grids. You can use them to make a roof for an x-pen, or you can build a NIC cube condo as an alternative housing. Or you could even use them to build up the x-pen fence to be taller so he can’t jump over.

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[Maisy]

Thank you, hopefully things will be better after treatment.

It is very relieving to hear that he shouldn’t have any sort of grudge/forget me.  It’s also really cool that your bun was able to recognize her old owner after years as I didn’t know they could do that.

We found some NIC grids on amazon so I will order them once I talk with my doctor.

Thank you so much for replying as it really helped ease my mind as far as him missing me or holding a grudge.  My little sister is very close with him as well so I know she will spend lots of time with him and my parents will be doing the actual care.  I was honestly just really worried about him forgetting me or being angry as I’ve never left him for any length of time.  I’m really glad he won’t be dramatically affected by it and things will go back to normal when I’m home.  But really, thank you so much and I am very grateful for your reply.

[DanaNM]

You’re welcome! 🙂

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

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