Hello from an unexpected bunny owner

[asha24]

Hello everyone. I found a bunny in a parking lot 2 days ago. I sat down and after a couple minutes he stopped running around and came up to me to be picked up. I then went around and asked if anyone knew who he belonged to. No luck. So I tucked him in my lap where he promptly pooed on me and took him home.

He is ridiculously friendly and super curious about everything. He is also scruffy, dirty, skinny, covered in mats, and possibly bruised? I’ve never owned a bunny before and really don’t know what is normal for one and what isn’t.  I’m pretty sure he is a netherland dwarf or a netherland dwarf mix. He is definitely a he (the testicles gave it away). Not sure how old he is but he is young and about a pound or less. Found a bunny vet and his appt is set for saturday. Oh and I have dogs- they are not happy about this situation. The bunny could care less about the dogs though lol.  

Things I would like to know-

Can I bathe this guy? pretty please? I keep getting mixed messages on this subject. He’s a little dirty from running around goodness knows how long and he is stained yellow.

How much is he suppose to be eating? I bought him timothy hay and rabbit pellets. He doesn’t seem to care much for the hay but he gobbles up the pellets. He knows exactly where the bag is and will demand to be fed by nosing the bag and then looking at me like “cmon feed me.”

Is jumping down from high places ok? He is currently on my bed and I didn’t put him up here. He has decided that he loves the fan and spends the evenings on my bed sprawled out directly next to the fan. He jumps up and down on his own. 

And lastly- housing. What kind of cage size does he need? Best kind? He is currently running free in my bedroom and I have a huge cardboard box lined with newspaper that holds his waterbowl, hay, and pellets set on the floor. He goes to the potty in the box.

THANK YOU! – From Asha and the yet un-named bunny

 

[asha24]

This is him =)

[longhairmike]

awww lucky,, all i ever find in parking lots are stupid flyers under my windshield wipers..

a vet will usually clean him up as they do the exam. plus you can get a better confirmation on his age and gender.

most likely he’s an easter present dump-off, and probably still young that unlimited pellets wont hurt, but you still want to keep a big pile of hay right in front of his bed. maybe move the pellets across the room so they’re 2nd choice.

[Beka27]

I would not bathe him. The staining is staining, so that won’t go away with a bath. It will take 2-3 months for the stained fur to shed out. If he will let you brush him, I would do that first and see how that works to get him cleaned up. As a last resort, you can give a bath.

I’m wondering if he’s a jersey wooly. I see he has longer fur.

As far as housing, my suggestion would be a dog exercise pen.  There’s little point in getting a petstore cage that will just have to be replaced within the next several months.

[Huckleberry]

Wow! You found a treasure in that parking lot! Congrats!
It seems like he is in good hands! You are asking all the right questions and you found a really good site to get them answered!
I would wait to bathe him too. If you are concerned about bruises then I assume he is acting like he something hurts or is tender to the touch? If he is not used to baths, which Im gonna guess he isnt, then he may jump around a lot. A rabbit can kick their back legs hard enough that, when in the right position, they can break their backs. I have had several vets tell me that giving a rabbit a bath is dangerous because they run such a high risk of being easily injured. You might be able to get a warm wet washcloth and try to loosen some of the dirt that way.
You will get a lot of advice on Saturday from your vet! Is the vet a rabbit specialist (aka small animal or exotic or zoological specialist)?

I am so happy you picked him up and are taking care of him!
Welcome, Asha and Parking Lot Bunny!!!!

[Sarita]

What a lucky bun to have found you! I agree with Beka about the exercise pen and no bathing.

Please let us know what the vet says.

[LBJ10]

How adorable! I agree, he looks like he might have Jersey Wooly in him. Those short ears and wire-y hair give it away.

[brittbritt]

How blessed this little boy found you and took to you right away. Thank you so much for caring enough to save him from being outdoors and neglected. I can tell from you posts you care for him alot already and seem like a good person to take him in.

[melbunny]

Aw…. what a lucky boy to have found you. ^^

[kralspace]

How wonderful you found him! I have a Parking Lot Breed bunny too. Last May 31 some neighborhood kids found a little bunny hiding under cars downtown (we’re not a big town) in 100+ heat and brought him to me. I was afraid he’d had a heatstroke and bathed him down with a wet cloth and set up a cage in the coolest room. He was so exhausted, he just took a long drink of water and fell over in his food plate and slept for nearly 3 days in front of the air conditioner. His stains grew out in a couple of months and he’s a huge hunk of a bunny now. (DammitCharlie)

Good luck and it sounds like it was meant to be for you both! He just looks sooooo very happy to have been rescued and will be beautiful before you know it.

[asha24]

Aha! Thank you for telling me he is a Jersey Wooley (I didn’t know about that breed when I started looking for what he might be). Does that mean he’ll grow up to have that lovely puff ball look??? (squeals in delight) As far as cleaning I’ll see what the vet recommends and find a bunny brush asap.

In answer to Huckleberry- Yes the vet is a specialist who does bunnies. It took a little bit of searching to find a vet in Hawaii that would see a bunny but I found one. I think there are only 3 on the island.

It’s going to be a toss up to see who adores this guy more- me or my 12 yr old sister. She is currently cleaning out her bedroom so the bunny can spend time with her too. ^_^ I did a craigslist search and there are a bunch of free baby bunnies looking for homes. If bunnies are all as awesome as this guy then maybe I can adopt one for my sister too.

[Monkeybun]

Congrats on the find!

You’ll want to get him a litterbox soon too, a good sized cat litter box is the best to get. Corner boxes suck. Pile in the hay, he’ll learn to eat while he goes… thats what they all do

You’ll want to get him neutered too, ask the vet when that can happen

[kralspace]

I swear he’s colored like a collie, I think of Lassie when I look at the photo. Can’t wait to see what he looks like after he recovers.

[BrattyBuns]

bewarned they are horribly bratty pets that you simply cannot stay mad at. give them an inch and they take a mile or more. or maybe thats just my bunny oh well I wouldnt have it anyother way.

[lashkay]

Congratulations on your finding each other! He sounds and looks like a sweetie and you sound like a great bunny mom already. If you get a good large enough corner litterbox they can be wonderful. Sorry, Monkeybun, you and others have had bad experiences with yours, but my buns use their large highbacked corner boxes devotedly without a problem for several years now. I bought 2 that lock on to my bunnies’ x-pens large enough from the start that they used them as babies continuing into their mature years. My buns are both small lionheads and if yours is a jersey wooly, I understand they can grow quite large. My first bunny had a rectangular cat litterbox for 7 years. I’m not putting rectangular cat boxes down, which obviously can work well too and some rabbit-owners prefer.

[lwayne]

I bet you his fur will soften up in a month or two. Once he realizes he’s in a happy safe place, he’ll spend all his time grooming himself (of course some brushing and lots of pets & love will help). When my bunny Leo came home from the rescue his fur was really greasy and coarse (like a dog), within a month he was almost as soft as my rex!

[LBJ10]

Posted By asha24 on 05/27/2011 01:12 PM
Aha! Thank you for telling me he is a Jersey Wooley (I didn’t know about that breed when I started looking for what he might be). Does that mean he’ll grow up to have that lovely puff ball look??? (squeals in delight) As far as cleaning I’ll see what the vet recommends and find a bunny brush asap.

You should post some more pictures of him. But from what I can tell from the picture you posted, his fur looks very much like my Wooly’s when he was a baby. The fur will fill out when their adult coat comes in. Some Jersey Woolies have a puff-ball appearance and some are not quite as fluffy. Here’s Wooly just so you can see. He’s not incredibly fluffy. Some other members have some really fluffy ones! LOL

 

[Huckleberry]

LOL BrattyBuns, you sure hit the nail on the head. Beware of the adorable charm of a bunny.
One member on here got sprayed recently by hers and still couldn’t stay mad at him!
Mine has decided I get to look like a bum all the time, she has chewed a hole in EVERY piece of clothing I own and has done the same to my boyfriend’s. She loves shoes too, so my laces get replaced frequently.
They are adorable and wonderful but its like having a toddler, they are into EVERYTHING and like to give it all their own personal touch (meaning destruction).
You’re about to experience true bliss. Bunnies are wonderful, spirited, crazy little monsters and its all you can do not to smoosh your face into them every second of the day.

[jerseygirl]

Welcome and thank you for taking this little bun in. He’s a cutie!

I agree with the consensus not to bath him. If he had grease or poop stuck all over, then a partial bath would help. But if it’s just some dirt and staining, it will brush out or eventually grow out. Bathing a rabbit with this longish fur could lead to more matting.  You could try rubbing some corn starch into the stained areas and then brushing it out. Works ok on feet. It might not remove stains but can help freshen things up.

Get the vet to cut the matts out. Matts close to the skin can be painful and this might be what you’ve observed in him seeming bruised – if he’s sensitive if you pat him in certain spots.

Good luck with the vet visit!

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Welcome!! My goodness what a sweet story!! THank you thank you for rescuing him

I will disagree with the no bathing thing. I would bathe at this point-he looks like he’s in rough shape. Staining is staining but he’s filthy. Dirt and goodnes knows what is not going to be good for his skin. Also rabbits groom like cats-and you don’t want him ingesting whatever is in his fur-could be road oil and dirt who knows? Don’t work at the matts-since you are seeing a vet the vet can help you with them. It’s tricky as all get out-and their skin is stretchy like a cat so a small nick could be a huge wound.

It’s spring now unless your in the southern hemisphere- it’s warm out and he’s inside. I would bathe and make sure to really rinse well, go slow. Make sure the water is very warm (like doesn’t make your skin red, but they are warmer then us internally so it must be warm so they don’t get chilled). Use dog shampoo if you can’t get bunny shampoo but do not use people shampoo. Then to dry, wrap bunny in a burrito towel to towel dry and repeat using 3-4 towels to really get the water out. Let bunny go and relax. Then towel dry again and keep an eye to make sure he doen’t get cold. If he appears cold (shivering or drawn up in a small ball)-put him in a towel and have a cuddle under a blanky.

Keep us posted!! Congrats!!

[jerseygirl]

Haha, maybe we’re all a bit nervous when it comes to bathing. In general rabbits don’t need bathing as a maintenance thing but there are some circumstances where they need one. Assess just how dirty the bun is. Does he have yellow staining all over or just his feet. It’s not unusal for them to get yellowed feet.
KokaneeandKahlua has a long hair rabbit (and likely dealt with others) so she knows how to go about it regarding matts & bathing.

[angie-la]

what a heartwarming story! I’m so glad you found him and he’s in good hands. is he grooming himself? my bun was stuck in a small cage and sat in his own filth so his feet were stained yellow.. I tried to wash them but he wouldn’t let me anywhere near him, and eventually just got the stains out himself haha. I think if he keeps grooming himself he should shape up fairly quickly.

[Huckleberry]

how did the vet visit go?

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