Brand New to Bunny owning!

[PeachyCream]

Hello my name is Jessica, and I have loved rabbits for a very long time. I’m 19 and I live with my ex (who is also my best friend) and his parents (they’re away during the week so I’m staying here until I go to University in Sep. 2014). They decided that I might feel less insecure about myself and less likely to get depressed if I had something to take care of. We have a cat already but, you know cats, they just go about doing their thing. Here’s a picture of her

This is MaggieShe’s a skittish yet very sweet middle-aged cat who was born sterile and although she’s an outdoor cat she’s only killed 1 bird since I’ve lived with her.

Anyways so I guess the woman who owns the house planned on getting me a rabbit to take care of a little while back but apparently a breeder was giving some away for free (I think because the males were fighting) so I was taken to meet the bunnies and pick one out. I ended up choosing a male lop of some sort… He’s a little smaller than the cat so I think he’s too small to be a French Lop and too big to be a Holland Lop. Apparently he’s around 6 or so years old but the breeder said he should live to be between 10-15. This was just this afternoon… I’m really excited but nervous because this is the first bunny I’ve owned but so far it seems that he’s really well behaved. We have a cage for him which we keep outside and move inside during the evening. (we’ll eventually have 2 separate ones custom built)

The lady said his name was Barney but I don’t really like that name so I’ll probaby change it.

Now what’s so unique about this little guy is that he’s almost completely blind. But it doesn’t stop him from being curious! I noticed he was lying in his litter pan for a long time so brought him in to play around the living room. He loved to sniff everything and I’m so relieved to say that Maggie doesn’t seem to have any interest in bothering him! Actually she seems a little scared of him xD He also tries to dig into the sofa. But he seems quite friendly… Only one day and already he lies beside me and nudges up against me and bows his head when I pet him (which could either be a sign of respect or just a thing rabbits do..)  Here are a few pictures of him!

I found out that he likes to eat lettuce, and he likes to be on furniture with people. He’s actually beside me on the settee right now! Anyways that was long. I hope to learn a lot from you guys!

 

[LittlePuffyTail]

Big Welcome to you, Maggie and “Barney”. Barney is beautiful…very unique colours.

Do the people you got him from know the cause of his blindness? We have several members here with blind bunny experience.

Bunnies are wonderful, sweet little buddies and I’m sure you and Barney are going to be very happy together.

BB is the best place for new bunny owners. Feel free to ask any questions you may have.

**I deleted your double thread.

[PeachyCream]

Thanks… I’m not sure how he’s blind… I think the breeder mentioned him being born with it… He seems to be able to see things from around an inch away and closer but no further than that so I suppose he’s just very near-sighted?

[MoveDiagonally]

Welcome to BB!

He’s very cute.

Can I ask why you keep him outside during the day? Since he’s mostly blind it would probably be better for him to have a consistent permanent place to live indoors. Constant moving him in and out could also be extra stressful to him because of his lack of vision (it’s stressful for all rabbits in general).

[PeachyCream]

He’s used to it as far as I know. The breeder who he lived with for quite some time had him outside a lot of the time and would bring him inside during the day.. So I bring him outside to hop around and stuff… But he’s out of his cage a lot with me, he seems to prefer it around other people…. so I’m always with him except during the night time… Also because even though the cat has been good so far, we have no idea what she’d do if he was inside allowed to roam free all the time… If we can get them to get along then perhaps we’ll make it so that he’s inside most of the time.

So far he seems happy

[MoveDiagonally]

I am definitely partial to 100% inside living for rabbits. I think most people here would encourage you to bring him in full time as this place is pretty house rabbit centered. If you haven’t checked out the Housing section it could give you some nice ideas for an inside habitat:
https://binkybunny.com/BUNNYINFO/GreatHabitats/tabid/229/Default.aspx

There are a lot of indoor living options for rabbits and it does prevent them from being exposed to predators and extreme weather. There are many members here that have cats and bunnies so you can set up his living space so the cat can’t “get to” him when you’re not around.

Only you can decide what is best for this adorable fellow in the end. I just figured I’d toss some info and the link to the habitat gallery because you’re new to rabbit servitude and I remember being superised at all the options when I adopted my first rabbit.  

[PeachyCream]

What I am thinking is once we have another custom cage made that it will only be his outdoor playpen for nice weather.. My goal is to make it so that he sleeps inside and has free roam of the house but I’ll take him out sometimes to play outside. I know he was mostly an outdoor rabbit when the breeder owned him so I’ll probably make the transition gradual so as not to stress him out so much… But I have found myself feeling nervous about him being out on his own… Other cats in the neighbourhood visit our yard sometimes and although I’ve been told there aren’t any coyotes, I have no idea what kind of predator might be lurking around my poor bunny :/

We have a vet living close to us and she says that if there’s anything I need to ask her she’d be willing to answer questions and tell us if he’s acting abnormally.

[Hazel]

Posted By PeachyCream on 05/27/2013 06:25 PM
I know he was mostly an outdoor rabbit when the breeder owned him so I’ll probably make the transition gradual so as not to stress him out so much…

Breeders have their bunnies mostly outside simply because they have a lot of them, and having them in the house wouldn’t be practical. I think he would actually be less stressed if you had him indoors full time, it would make him feel more secure about his new territory and help him settle in, moving him back and forth could be confusing for him. Also, changing the climate he’s exposed to every day could possibly cause health issues.

Posted By PeachyCream on 05/27/2013 06:25 PM
But I have found myself feeling nervous about him being out on his own… Other cats in the neighbourhood visit our yard sometimes and although I’ve been told there aren’t any coyotes, I have no idea what kind of predator might be lurking around my poor bunny :/

That’s something you’re right to be concerned about. Even if his cage is predator proof, just having an animal sneak around him, maybe trying to break in, could cause him to die of fright. Then there’s of course parasites that he’s exposed to outside.

I guess it’s obvious that I’m in favor of making him an inside bunny.

Welcome to the forum, your bunny is adorable! I hope to see a lot more pictures of him soon!

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