Does my bunny feel neglected?

[Chubbychipmunk]

Hi everyone! I’ve been reading this forum for a while but this is my first post. I have a 5 yr old neutered boy bunny named Tofu. Since he was a year old, he had been living with my senior shih tzu and they mostly just ignored each other and he stayed his normal, happy, sassy self. My shih tzu passed away last summer and Tofu didn’t react much to it at all. However, I recently got a new Maltese puppy and Tofu seems to have gotten a lot more sedentary and…lonely? Bored? I’m not sure…I work from home and his cage door is open all the time except when I go to bed. He used to spend a good amount of time exploring and playing or just chilling outside of his cage. Now he seems to spend 95% of time inside :'( I do think my pup is already super gentle and calm for his age, but he likes to paw at Tofu in a playful way which alarms Tofu, and he just hops back in his cage and stays there I feel like I do try to spend as much time with him as possible but as you can imagine, having a puppy is like having a baby and they just take a lot of time and energy…

Tofu is eating and drinking completely normally so I’m not worried about that, actually I’m hesitant to give him more treats cuz he’s always such a piggy

Is Tofu depressed?? Is there anything I can do to make him feel better? I really hope this is a phase and that they’ll both grow out of it and learn how to live together in peace I just ordered a ton of toys for him and the maze from here. Thoughts?? Thanks so much everyone!

[jerseygirl]

It could be the level of energy the puppy has compared to your senior dog has ledft Tofu feeling somewhat wary. Have you had a day where you can observe Tofu just on his own? ie. puppy is completely away in other part of the home?
Ive not had personal experience with puppies and rabbits, so I hope some other members chime in that have.
Any tips here? http://rabbit.org/rabbits-and-dogs/

It would be worthwhile to closely observe how well Tofu is moving around also. My lop lost *some* vision quite quickly around age 5 or 6 and I noted a change in his behaviour. Onset of other things like arthritis appear quite sudden. So a day where you could just observe him without puppy about may help rule out other potential reasons for the change in him.

[Daisy]

I think your bunny might miss a goal, challenge or reason to leave his cage (“meh been there,done that”).

Maybe order some interactive games you can play with him. I own this one by Trixie: https://www.google.nl/search?q=trixie+dog+activity+flip+board&rlz=1C1GCEA_enNL791NL793&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjKps7C2tLbAhXSYlAKHWaEDO8Q_AUIDCgD&biw=1600&bih=718 (this is a Google search going to images of the one I have, in case you’re wondering where this link leads you to)

I struggled to interact with my bunnies because they are not very people oriented and will usually mind their own business. This toy allows me to play with them. You put treats under slidey buttons that they have to push or dig open, little doors with a leverage that they have to push/dig at and objects that they can flip over. It’s heavy enough that they don’t flip the entire thing over. I put treats in there and help them solve the puzzles. I will point at the places that still have a treat so they know they need to look there if they stop looking for it and I will show them how to open it if they have issues getting it to open (sliding the slides a little back and forth, opening the door a little or poking at the flippable object).

There are lots of toys like this! It challenges them and gives him a goal. Treat balls are also very nice for this I find, they will spend ages rolling, digging and flipping it around to get all treats out. Maybe also try hiding treats around the room and learn him he should look for them? I would lure him with treats and then hide some treats as he’s close and watches you, then see if he goes and gets it.

[kurottabun]

Hmm. I’m not sure if his behaviour indicates boredom or loneliness. You mentioned that the puppy paws at Tofu – for a puppy that may be playing but for a rabbit it may be an indication that it’s going to be eaten D:

It could be that Tofu is viewing his cage as a safe place, away from “predators”. Puppies (especially small breeds) do have a high energy level so it could be scaring him.

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