Bunny Blues?

[MimzMum]

I was wondering if any of you ever see your bun as somewhat melancholy or ‘glum’ from time to time?

 

Mimzy, as of late, just seems to be more quiet and reserved, almost to the point that, to me, he seems verging on being depressed. I have taken him to the vet recently and she did not seem to think he was ill or anything, in fact she watched him jump from my attempt to place him back in his carrier and start investigating the floor of the exam room. So he can definitely be balky about stuff…downright stubborn in fact. (I personally don’t know an animal in the world who likes to be carted around in those little pet carriers, with the possible exception of bunnytowne’s Cotton, who is quite the world traveler and social butterfly.)

But for the most part lately, he just seems ‘down’ or I’d rather say ‘reserved’. Almost introspective, if a bun could be that. Then he’ll have those moments where he seems all perky again as usual and then he gears back down just as fast. I also notice, although we have some lovely cuddle sessions in the evenings, he doesn’t like me to put him on his back for a trance anymore, and last night, he pretty much just wanted to put his head on my tummy and have me pet him. Every once in awhile he’d take a patrol around the bed to see what may have changed in the last five minutes, then he’d come back and ask for more head pets. Sadly I had to put him back in his pen a bit earlier than usual, because my allergies began raging, but he wasn’t even really startled by my sneezing, which I found odd.

Now this may not seem unusual to anyone else, but sometimes he worries me with this attitude (or rabbittude) to the point of me thinking he may be feeling unwell or trying to tell me something I am not picking up like I should be. Then again, I suppose he could just be mellowing under the influence of lots of extra time spent with me to the point where he feels less inclined to ‘startle’, like Pip will do if you’re holding her. (She also seems to have changed a bit, and is definitely more friendly and less disapproving than usual.)

Does anyone else have this issue with two semi-bonded buns? Or ANYbun, for that matter? Am I just chasing shadows? Perhaps all the recent heat in my area has taken some of the spunk out of my bun temporarily? (Today it is rainy and pukey looking outside, and I wonder if he seems to be sad because of that?) Also, can diet changes cause bunnies to mope? (We’ve been trying to get them to eat more timothy and less wheat lately.) Pip seems to be doing fine with the change, but Mimzy seems to be more picky and less interested in his hay, (but not his treats, unfortunately.) He voids normally, no sign of straining and lots of nice, normal poops and pee.

I guess, I’ve always known he was a more ‘mellow’ bun than Pippi, but sometimes I think mellow can be taken to extremes. I’d like to see him DO a little more, but even in the xpen, he’s the one who tends to stay put in one place, usually under the tent, and Pip is the explorer and periscoper.

Am I overreacting? Is my bun just laid back? If so, is there some way to encourage him to be more of a participant in life rather than just an observer? I guess that’s my real question.

[Scarlet_Rose]

I saw this and thought about Bonsai. Whenever the weather is going to be snowy and cold he does this “woe-is-me” flop in the litterbox and props his head up on the side of it as if he has no energy to hold it up of his own accord. We talked briefly about this a while ago and I do think rabbits have a sort of seasonal affective disorder that us humans get too. My vet actually beleives this is the case with Bonsai. When I first adopted my two, there were two separate times I rushed him to the vet thinking he was going into stasis on me and the vet and I put our heads together and surmised that he was just a sensitive rabbit to his surroundings and mostly the weather.

Mimz – How much sunlight do you have now? It might be that no sense of day and night is throwing your guys’ clock off too. Try putting a sheet over the cage to enforce that it is night-time and take it off for day-time.

[MimzMum]

Oh gosh, Scarlet, I’ll bet that’s it! I just noticed today that Mimzy was lying under his ‘ramp’ almost as if he were trying to hide from the light when I opened the curtain this morning. He’s been doing that lately and also turning his face away from the front of the pen during the day…we’ve got a little under 23 hours of daylight here now, so that’s probably what’s bothering him!
Phew! I thought this was going to be a major run through of all his eating, eliminating and breathing habits again! I’m sure this is what it is. And even Pip, who was used to having the light on all the time with my daughter, well she doesn’t hide so much from the sun, but you can tell the two of them have to really work to adjust their eyes when I pull the curtain up.
I do have a shade on the window, but the light gets through in small amounts anyway…and I guess I could turn their little nightlight off for the summer. Plus I’m not getting up regularly on schedule right now either, the sunlight really messes me up, just like the 24 hr darkness does at winter solstice.
Poor buns! I’ll have to get them back on a routine again! *sigh*

[Scarlet_Rose]

I’m so glad I could help! I’m sure you know and will do this but definately still keep an eye on them to make sure there is nothing else that may be causing this and keep us updated.

[osprey]

My crew here has been very sedate the last few days too.  We’ve had several days of almost 100 degree weather, and even when I let them out to run around at night, they only want to find a comfortable place to flop.  They don’t start running around until about 10 PM when it finally cools off.

[ScooterandAnnette]

I sometimes wonder about how the pets react to various things. Like… do they get headaches? I can’t imagine that they don’t, but how do you know when a pet has a headache? Maybe that’s why they’re a little grumpier from time to time.

– Annette

[Gravehearted]

Bunnies sure can get the blues You might also think about changing things a lil bit for him. Trying something silly like scattering his pellets all about the living room so he has to run around to find them. Or some new toys, shake up the routine a bit

[Beka27]

so does he not have any contact with Pip anymore? i wonder if he could be lonely a little bit too, on top of other things…

[MimzMum]

Thanks for all the suggestions everybun ^_^
Hehehe…’find the pellets’…lolz. I think in Mimzy’s case that’ll probably just make him more cranky though…he likes his pellets in one place. But it’s a thought. Pip already plays this game, only *I’m* the one who has to find them after she’s scattered them hither and yon!

Mimzy was really sweet last night, I brought him out for his special ‘Mummy only’ cuddle time and he paraded around the bed, sniffing everything and getting up on his hind toes to check out the wall of plush. (I had some laundry folded on one end he also found very interesting and kept going back to.) I was worried he was going to break his feet, he’d balance for a few seconds and then the toes would fold backwards from the effort. I was watching Soundstage with him and Bon Jovi was on, his little ears perked up an I could swear I saw his head bobbing! My bunneh is a rocker! ^_^

But he finally found the one spot where the cat had been sitting earlier and decided it was HIS spot. He curled up into bun loaf position and bent his head towards me for pets for almost an hour. He was just being so loving, but it was very warm and muggy last night, so he was huffing and puffing quite a bit. I had the fan on and the window open, but this heat just sticks to you, it’s almost like living back East.

I also think I have figured out what his little mouth movements are, but I think I’m crazy for thinking this…here’s my theory: Cats do that paw thing when they’re comfortable, right? The one where they knead you like a loaf of bread and poke you with their needles? And of course, cats purr, (bunnies do to, but differently), so you know they are content, even if YOU feel like their personal pincushion.
Anyway, having been a mom for about 19 years, you’d think I would’ve recognized these motions Mimzy does with his mouth…it’s mostly when he’s resting his head on my stomach, but I’d SWEAR he is making NURSING MOTIONS. 0_0; Is this possible? I know bunny kits drink mother’s milk for a little while after birth, but would a bunny associate a human’s care with how he felt with his mum when he was newborn and then make those same motions with his mouth? I can’t think of anything else it could be, as his teeth are in fine shape. And there’s no noise when he does this. Just the mouth and lips moving…I don’t see the tongue, so he’s not licking his lips either.

It was so cute. I was so touched. Since it’s been a LONG time since I nursed a baby of course, but that’s a really tender moment between a mother and child.

And yes, Mimzy does still spend time with Pip, not for a bit now since I thought he’d had pasturella, but that’s been cleared up so I can have them together again. But with this heat/humidity, yes they both tend to just want to curl up somewhere cool and flop. I’m sure all the wild bunnies must be gone to ground in this oppressive weather, I know sometimes I only want to dig down in the permafrost and cool off too!

They do both seem to get ‘back to normal’ once it’s cooled down significantly and darker out. But the dark doesn’t last long, so I’m trying to keep the window shade down for a decent amount of time each night. I’ve been getting some rotten sleep lately too, so they have been trying unsuccessfully to wake me at what would be about dawn in the lower latitudes, but I cant’ really come to my senses much before 11 AM for the last few weeks. >_<

On a side note, my little wandering boy cat (the one the hubby lost a few weeks ago) came into the room and stayed all night for the first time in almost a year. (He’s been somewhat afraid of the bunnies, they must look like really big mice to him and he’s just not sure about them.) When I was under chemotherapy, he would sleep on my pillow with his head on my shoulder because I was in bed all the time. He also doesn’t like the door shut on him, and I have to close it to keep light out of the bunny room, but he actually came in and slept on my pillow again for the first time in a long time. (Of course he kept getting up and walking over my head to sleep on my hip about every couple of hours when he wanted to shift position, so that would wake me up.) It was great to have him back there again, I think he’s been kind of jealous of Mimzy for awhile now, but that was a big step for him. ^_^
The other cat tried to come in too, until she realized he was there, which caused her to promptly huff and stalk out. lolz…she’s so uppity! She’s the one I have to watch the bunnies around, she thinks they’re toys and likes to poke them in the rump when she thinks I’m not looking! Mimzy is definitely edgy around her.

[HippityHopMom]

I have been a bun mom for about 5 mo’s now …. so I am still learning a great deal.   I was happy to see this posting today …. as my bun has been quiet and hiding more the last couple of days.  She has also selected a new spot to sleep.    It has been raining on and off the past couple of days here   (North GA) …. so I am assuming the gray days and rain have her feeling a little gloom. …. the same way it makes me feel.    I have set out a Dr. Foster and Smith magazine for her to read and snuggle up with !    (ha ha).

 My husband and I both had a headache yesterday  ( sinus problems – the rain bothers both of us).     I was wondering if the rain was bothering Bonnie Lee too in that way.   It is clearing up this morning and  she is moving around a little more today.

Also,  I realized today she appears to be shedding again.   I noted during her  big spring shedding, she seemed less active.    Our Akita does not feel well when she blows her coat …. so I was suspecting my bun was not feeling well in the spring when she did a big shedding.    I was surprised how much she shed too ! ….. she  looked like she was blowing her coat like our Akita does.   And this went on for weeks.  Her coat was rough  and scruffy looking.   I had rabbit hair  everywhere.   I finally began limiting which rooms she was allowed to roam in during her shedding period so I did not have to clean so much area.

Another mood thing I have noted with my bun …. is she does not care to be pettedin the mornings.   She wants to be left alone … she is less active in the mornings and likes to nap in her cat tent nibbling on hay and sleeping for long periods.  Around 2pm she comes to the kitchen letting me know she is ready for her greens.      She does not like to be petted  when she is eating.    In the evening hours and late at night …. she is a snuggle bunny as far as wanting attention.   Late in the day is  when she loves to
be loved on and petted.     I read the buns are more active around 10pm and this is true with Bonnie Lee.   She likes to explore late at night and she will come to me and sit  to be petted.   She loves head rubs and her cheeks rubbed.   She does not care for me stroking her back, but I will brush her often and she likes this at times.

Oooops …I just saw a brown and white dash go by my feet and I looked at my clock on my computer …. it is 2:16 pm …..  ha ha … Bonnie Lee is heading to the kitchen now for her greens !      Well I better go now and feed my pretty little girl.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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