Hi, new and have some questions

[Isabelle88]

First off hello everyone, so happy to have found this website, I posted on petshub then found you guys and this seems much better, I have been searching for a place like this, you’ll understand why soon

This might be long…

I have had a male rabbit named Dude for the last 6 yrs, he was a year old when we got him. He is perfect and so easy to take care of, a bit of a attitude but I love him to death.

In March we, my and my mom, visited a petsupermarket and they had bunnies, we kind of lost our mind but in a good way. Long story short, my one male rabbit has turned into 8 rabbits, I know it sounds like alot but let me assure you they are so well taken care of, they all have their own cage, live inside and have their own room dedicated to them.

Now with the new bunnies I have been reading and learning alot more but I still have some questions. Two of the rabbits are female and we are working toward getting them fixed, what is the going price for that? The vet here in town we take Dude to for his nails told us its about 250 each rabbit but at the same time I am so scared they might die.

Feeding them, every time I think i have this right I read something new. Right now everyone eats pellets with a veggie dry mix inside and tons of timothy hay, what else should I be giving them? I havent tried fresh veggies or fruit because I am so unsure of whats right and wrong and how much to give.

About the bunnies, I have Dude the oldest and then there is Julie, Twiggy, Phoebo and Shadow who we bought in March 09, then there is Spot and Briskey who we got in May and last in June we got Bugs. Julie and Briskey are the girls, Briskey is a small white blue eyed pretty girl and Julie is black with a white under belly and tan highlights. I can post pics and probably will in another post, I am nuts for my rabbits, they are the center of attention.

Also how is a rabbit trained to go in a litter box? My bunnies are each so different and a little crazy, not sure I can get them to do anything. Also last question, is it safe to put rabbit vitamins in their water or would that be giving them too much of something?

[KytKattin]

Wow, that is quite a bunch! For litter training; that is going to be very difficult with as many unaltered rabbits as you have. The girls will probably be the first and easiest to do when you get them spayed. After that I would strongly recommend getting all the boys fixed (one at a time, of course!). This will greatly help with not only their litter habits, but will improve their health and personalities as you have removed that urge to reproduce. Also, getting your females spayed, while not without risks, will actually give them a much better chance of living past the age of 4 as I think there’s a 80% chance of them developing uterine cancer by the age of 3 if unspayed.

The cost of spaying/neutering can vary greatly due to location. Try calling around to different vets and asking for a price quote. The House Rabbit Society website has a good list of vets, so that is a good place to start. Also try contacting a local rescue and ask where they have their rabbits done.

As for diet, most people on this forum would probably agree that for rabbits over a year a good quality timothy pellet in limited amounts, a set amount for veggies (there are recommendations based on size) with unlimited timothy hay is a good diet. The veggie dry mix is probably not what your bunnies actually need, as those veggies are probably not the leafy greens that bunnies do need. For bunnies under a year; unlimited timothy pellets and hay with added alfalfa is often an excellent diet. Veggies need to be slowly introduced to them as they have very fragile digestive systems. The vitamins aren’t really needed at all, and will probably do more harm than good if your rabbits are on a diets similar to the one recommended. If they are getting a good quality pellet and a variety of greens then that should be more than enough.

[jerseygirl]

Hi Isabelle, welcome to Binky Bunny! Well is is a requirement that you post picture of your bunnies so…just kidding! But we do love pics and look forward to when you can post some. Anyway, glad you found this site too.

When I first read your post I thought you meant you got one more rabbit and that Dude (lol) and this one proceeded to produce more bun buns! I now see each was acquired individually. You and your Mum really did go nuts! A good kind of nuts though – I can tell you’re a complete bunny slave.

Now to your questions… Neutering/Spaying (or speutering as it’s known about here)
It really depends on where you go but first and foremost is to go to a vet that is knowledgable on rabbits and has performed this surgery routinely. $250 is in normal range – it can be maybe $180-$300 plus, yet someone here posted here about getting it done through a rabbit association before (I think) for something like $60! If you’re happy to post the region you live in, other members may be able to direct you to a reputable vet. Your concerns for them are completely normal and surgery for animals and people can be risky – however, leaving them unfixed has it’s risks too.

I would suggest you look under the Bunny Info tab top of page for diet and litter training tips. This site promotes House Rabbit Society guidelines. With pellet mixes, they are often unhealthy and the rabbits tend to pick out the good bits and leave the stuff they really need. A high fiber plain timothy based pellet would be better. You’ll find a list of recommemed veggies under the diet info. It’s also ways best to introduce new foods slowly to rabbits. With the right balance of hay, pellets and veggies, you really shouldn’t need to add vitimin supplement to their water. I think when changing their water regularly, most of it would go to waste anyway. Rabbits actually produce most of their vital nutriants themselves in the cecum contents which they reingest.
On the litter training, I think you’ll find things improve if you go ahead and have them fixed, but you can certainly encourage them now. Again, read the Training tips under Bunny Info and please ask more questions if you need. That’s what these forums are for… that and waxing on and on about our bunloves!

Looking forward to meeting 8 more bunnies! Yippee!

[jerseygirl]

Sorry Kytkattin! We posted same time so sorry if I’ve repeated your advice.

[KytKattin]

Naw, your stuff is more organized anyways Jerseygirl!

[jerseygirl]

Haha! I actually thought yours filled in some stuff I missed…so there you go!

[Isabelle88]

I posted a picture thread in the lounge, thanks for all the info, so the babies, 7 of them, i should give alfalfa, i wasnt sure because I was giving it to Dude for years when i should have been and that freaked me out when i learned so Ive been staying away from it.

As for getting them fixed I want to do the girls first because of the risks and then the boys and one day pair them off to have a roommate, when they were babies two lives together and they were so sweet, I miss that.

I had a hamster, i know much smaller but she had uterus trouble and went in for surgery and died so I’m extra scared of my rabbits going in.

About the food, my rabbits are so spoiled, the mix I was using comes with vita bites and they just love to eat those first then the pellets, should I take it away or is it ok? And about the water, my mom found water vitamins for rabbits and thought well it has to be good for them but i havent found nothing online to say yes or no either way.

I had many pets at one time (guinea pigs and hamsters) so having 8 rabbits is new but not taking care of many animals and they died so now i’m trying very hard to get it right.

And I realized I worded that wrong, lol, No Dude has never had any babies, we found him by mistake at a pet store, the owner had to sell him so we took him and hes always been alone.

[jerseygirl]

Sorry to hear about your hamster
What are the pellets in the mix, are they alfalfa based or timothy hay? You could start by taking out some of the vitabites etc. For the young ones, alfalfa based pellets or even timothy based pellets and alfalfa hay. The alfalfa is good for growing bunnies because of the higher protein, but it’s a bit rich for adult bunnies and should only really be given as a treat. ALOT of the stuff marketed for rabbits in the pet store is really not necessary and sometimes just fattening. I personally wouldn’t bother with vitamin drops. A good quality pellet, hay and variety of veggies should cover their nutritional needs.

[Quantum]

Wow, that’s quite a warren you have there, Isabelle! Everybody here knows my story, but I’ll bore them with it one more time for you. Our last bun, Quantum, was a rescue–someone dumped her on our property. She was a maniac for pets, a terribly sweet girl and we loved her an awful lot. According to our vet, she was about 5 years old and we only got to have her for 7 months. Her previous owner had not had her spayed and she’d developed numerous tumors, probably radiating out from her ovaries (again according to our vet) and, at that point, there was nothing to be done except to make what remained of her life happy. Due to pressure on her nerves from the tumors, she lost the use of her right hind leg. Then her bladder and bowel control went and when she lost the use of the left hind leg and was hurting most of the time, it was time for her to go.

Please, please, do not put your rabbits or yourself through something like that. Yes, surgery can be scary, but the risk of surgery weighed against the risk of cancer? Surgery should win out. If someone else had thought the same way, we’d still have our butterfly-nosed baby and be able to enjoy her company for years to come instead of having a handful of pictures and memories.

[Elrohwen]

Welcome, Isabelle!

I have a suggestion to make to help you out with litter training. I noticed in your pics that all of your bunnies have litter throught the bottom of their cages. If you remove that litter, and just put litter in a box in the corner they use the most, I think many of them will litter train themselves. Having too much litter can actually confuse them because they think they’re living in one giant litter box 😉 I put a fleece blanket down to cover the rest of the cage, but Otto just pushes it aside and sleeps on the plastic floor anyway.

Litter training should make your cleaning up sooo much easier. I have one gerbil cage with shavings and I *hate* dumping it out and cleaning it. For my bun, I change his litter box twice a week and sweep up the hay, fur, etc and change his blanket once a week and he’s good to go. So much easier!

I agree with the others that you should transition them to a plain pellet food and give fresh veggies. The info tab on the top of Binky Bunny has great diet information. It sounds like you’re already doing a good job with the hay.

I would also avoid vitamins unless recommended by a vet for a specific problem. A good pellet and veggies should give them everything they need.

I agree about getting the girls spayed as well. Besides the things the others have mentioned, it should make litter training much easier since your buns won’t be trying to mark their territory against other unaltered buns.

[KytKattin]

I also want to throw out there that if you get the girls spayed as soon as the vet is comfortable then your life will be much easier in not having to worry about any accidental litters. I doubt you want 8 more in a month! Rabbits are also really are a fair amount bigger and more commonly operated on than hamsters. Most people would not have done what you did for your hamster when they can get a new one for a few dollars. While this is true for some(most?) people and rabbits, spaying and neutering has become a requirement in most house rabbit people’s minds for scent purposes alone, thus why it is rather commonly done. Also important is to keep your girls in your most secure cages right now. As your bunnies get older the males will be more driven to jump out to find the females!

Do you know what brand of food your are feeding? A no frou-frou pellet only that is timothy based is absolutely the best for rabbits over a year. As I mentioned, there is still some debate about having alfalfa pellets or hay or both for rabbits under a year. One option would be a mix of everything! I don’t know if you are in the states, but if you are the food here that is regarded as being the best is Oxbow. Kaytee also has a pellet only timothy food, which is a good deal less expensive since you do have so many. I bought a 50lb bag of Oxbow and it cost me $50, whereas a 50lb bag of Kaytee would probably only cost me $25. The mix foods are sold to be appealing to not only the human buying them, but are often full of sweet junk that rabbits love to eat. Some can even be harmful or deadly if they include things like sunflower seeds with shells!

After everyone is spuetered you may be able to bond them into trios or more, so don’t rule out that idea! Under the BunnyInfo link at the top check out cool habitats. With a little imagination I’m sure you could have your bunny room looking pretty spiffy with everyone (or pair or trio or more) having nice big spaces. Best of all is that those habitats tend to be much cheaper than those small Superpet cages with only a fraction of the size for moving around!

[KatnipCrzy]

Everyone has addressed most of your questions- but I would like to add something about the rabbit vitamins to be added to the water.  Most vitamins I have noticed are rabbit/guinea pig and hamster/gerbil- and rabbits and guinea pigs have completely different nutritional needs- just like hamsters and gerbils do- and they are even from different areas- desert, forest, etc.  The manufacturers “group” them by size- which is insane and does not make any sense if you think about it!  Rabbits are more likely to drink water if there are not vitamins added- and they do need a fair amount of water to digest and keep moving all the fiber they ingest with hay.

Since you have so many bunnies have you tried buying hay by the bale?  (good quality grass hay- that horse owners buy) and have you tried woodstove pellets or horse bedding pellets as litter?  Those are 2 huge money savers right there!

I would start introducing some fresh veggies or herbs- try offering one new veggie or herb and see how they do with it.  Bunnies will often ignore something new like that so it can take days of offering before they will try a nibble.

[Sarita]

I think those water vitamins will also alter the taste of the water and discourage them from drinking it as Katnip said. It sure doesn’t smell good which would be a deterrent for me.

[KatnipCrzy]

clicker- I removed the url from your last post- I am not sure what you intended by including it.

If you want to see if your vet is reliable you can check the status of their veterinary license-  this info is available thru the Freedom of Information act in the US.  If they have any action filed against their license (not lawsuits- but any fines, probation, complaints file with the state against their medical license) it is public information.  And that info does not “go away”, it is listed under their name- the only possibility might be if they were working in a different state and had violations there.

Every state should have a website where you can verify anyone that has a state license-doctor, vet, daycare, pharmacist, etc.

[RabbitPam]

Hi, Isabelle,
Sorry to take so long to say Welcome – I am online more on the weekends. Welcome Warren!

Everyone has pretty much given the facts – I do agree with Elrowhen about only having the litter in the litter pans. My bunnies were litter trained immediately – their choice, so if it’s clear that it’s litter, and it smells like them (put poops and urine soaked bits of litter in the pan for the bunny to recognize as their own. They will continue to go there.) they’ll get trained well before the speuter.

Some vets have been known to give a discount rate on multiple procedures. You can tell whatever vet you decide to use that you have 8, and eventually all will need to be done, so they may make a special arrangement for you.

Finally, go to the House Rabbit Society’s page, http://www.rabbit.org to see a list of recommended rabbit vets. They are according to location so it’s easy to search for your area.

[Deb'sBuns]

Welcome and yes try buying hay by the bale. That’s how I get it and I like it better. I was getting bermuda grass and now I have orchard for them. 5 rabbits and 4 guinea pigs.

[Beka27]

Welcome here! You have definitely come to the right place for bunny info. Also check out the House Rabbit Society website if you have not already: rabbit.org

[MooBunnay]

Welcome! I also have 8 bunnies, most of mine were “foster” bunnies but I finally realized I am no good at adopting them out so I just volunteer at a rabbit rescue now

I think most of your original questions have been answered… one thing I notice about having 8 bunnies is sometimes the cost can get a bit high, so I ditto the advice Katnip gave. The first thing I did to cut down on cost was purchased baled hay from a feed store – is that where you get yours? One bale of the good horse quality timothy hay is only about $30, and lasts me about 2 months. In addition, to cut down on the cost of litter I purchase also use the horse stall pelleted bedding, it is sometimes called “Lone Star” or “Equine Fresh” and they sell it at places like Tractor Supply. It is also compostable so you can throw it into the compost pile and then use it to grow your own veggies, which is the third thing I do to cut down on cost, I grow some of my own veg. I found that the easiest things to grow are parsley, cilantro, and lettuce. Lastly, with 8 bunnies you also need to be prepared for unexpected medical expenses. We opted to get pet insurance for our oldest bunny, and in addition $100 in savings for their “medical fund” each month. Fortunately we haven’t had to use much of it yet, but it really reduces the stress of a medical emergency when you don’t have to worry about having enough money to cover it. For spay/neuters, I would recommend calling a local rescue and finding out where they get their bunnies done, they usually can find the best prices and safest vets.

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