Got a webcam and confirmed my suspicions…

[emmabunny]

We have had our 4 month old bunny, Emma, for 1.5 months. She is free range in our living room (she never leaves the carpeted areas- she could technically visit other rooms like the kitchen but will not do it because of the slippery hardwood floors). Emma is friendly and loves people (old and new). She will run up to you (even if you don’t have food haha) and when we are home, she is pretty relaxed and loves to explore and flop with her legs out (lambchop style) on the floor. She will have her moments every now and then when she gets scared and thumps.

She eats and poops/pees regularly in her litter box – BUT ONLY when we are around. When we are sleeping in the bedroom at night (midnight to 7:30AM) and away during the day on weekdays (9AM to 6PM), Emma hardly eats or poops. She will stay in one area of the rug that she likes. She will maybe visit her litter box once (if at all) and will nibble at her food once or twice. This is a constant concern for me, because this is a total of about 17 hours a day that she is barely eating or pooping. I recently got a webcam to see what she does when we’re out, and saw that she seems very nervous about eating food (like she has to watch out for something) and hardly lies down the floor. She rests sitting up (instead of lying down) and will nervously approach her hiding spot (under couch) once in a while, if she doesn’t go hide under the couch altogether. It makes me sad to see my bunny this way when we’re not around. She is not like this on weekends when we are at home.

I am definitely going to get her a friend a couple of months after she is spayed (she’s due to be spayed end of April). I am just very concerned for her for the time being.  

I have two questions about this: 

1.) Does anyone else have a bunny like this, who is nervous about being alone and will hardly eat or poop when people are away? What can we do till we get her a friend, to help her feel more comfortable? We keep the tv on for her most of the time when we are away, but so far haven’t seen a big difference between having the tv on and having it off. She does not like radio.

2.) Emma seems to be scared of her litterbox sometimes (though she will always use her litterbox for her business). Even when we are at home, she approaches her litterbox very cautiously and will run out of it quickly when she is done. I tried putting a second litter box in the area that she likes to hang out at (since yesterday)- but so far she is not interested in going in that “new” box. Is there something I can do to make her more comfortable with her litterbox?  

[Gina.Jenny]

have you got an old teddy or similar that she could have as a companion, that smells of you? that might help her feel a bit more secure when you’re not around? Or an old blanket of yours?

[Bam]

My bunnies often won’t eat until I come back home. My Bam mostly rests in meatloaf position, like a duck. But I don’t think they’re afraid. They are clearly glad when I return home though.

As GJ says, a teddy or even better a stuffie bunny might help. Many bunnies will take on a stuffie bun as a friend and groom it and hang out with it. You should choose one for small children, one that has embroidered nose and eyes.

[emmabunny]

Gina.Jenny and bam – thank you for the tip! I will definitely get a stuffed bunny for her – maybe I’ll wrap it with one of my husband’s old t-shirts.. he is her favorite!

[Bam]

Naaw, that sounds really cute =)

[jerseygirl]

Maybe you could try confine her more when you’re not at home? Perhaps the whole living room is overwhelming when she’s by herself.

My single bunny often doesn’t touch his hay pile while I’m at work. He tends to take up sentinel position up on top of the bed. Once I’m home and in room, he tucks right into his hay.

[cinnybun2015]

My bun doesn’t play with his toilet paper rolls while I’m away, and when I’m home, he immediately starts to binky and shred his cardboard box. I like Jerseygirl’s idea. If I were a rabbit, I would definitely feel scared with a whole empty space and no loving human in it!! Hopefully the teddy bear idea works!

[Author]

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