Mixed Feelings About Vet Advice???

[Grace]

I went to the vet the other day for a general check up and for excess urination for my holland lop I adopted a month ago. Because she is young and hasn’t been held by the breeder, she is extremely skittish still. When we entered the vet office, she picked up my flailing and thrashing bunny and was doing her examination. I asked her if Panko (my holland lop) is more scared than the average bunny and she said absolutely. It’s because she hasn’t been handled. So she told me to pick her up every day and to not give her anything delicious until after she has been held so that we can do a lot of positive reinforcement. We’ve been trying to do that but Panko has been getting more and more terrified of us. I’m losing her trust. She is thrashing, kicking, and thumping her feet. We can’t even pick her up properly. I don’t know if I should do this. What do you guys think??

ALSO: My bunny is peeing every hour! I’m dumping out her litter box every single day. It is soaked. Is this normal??? I gave a urine sample to the vet but they have not called me about it yet. 

[Luna]

I don’t have an answer regarding her peeing, but as to the vet’s advice, I strongly disagree. Buns by nature don’t like being picked up. While there are buns who will let their humans pick them up, and some have been trained to allow it, such training should be attempted only once you and your bun are bonded. Even once bonded, training your bun to allow her being picked up might not be the best. I think it all depends on the bun whether it should be done or not, or whether it will work. In this case, I wouldn’t try picking up Panko, and I think you are right in that she will just become more and more fearful if you continue.

[Bam]

Can you make an estimate of how much water she’s consuming per day? Excessive drinking can be a sign of many, many things, but it’s good to make an estimate of her water consumption.

I agree with Luna about not picking her up. The method might work on some buns, but you’ll have to judge by the bun’s response and your bun doesn’t seem to respond favorably. Very young buns can be ok with being picked up, but after puberty, the majority won’t want to be picked up.

[Grace]

I would say that she drinks about a full bottle (16 oz) a day. It’s a lot of water, I believe. She is pooping regularly and eats her hay/veggies/pellets but it’s just she is drinking and peeing so much ):

I agree with you guys. I felt uncomfortable about the idea. The only thing I’m worried about is how on earth am I going to be able to hold her to clip her nails and do other necessary things in the future?? We can NEVER get to hold her, since she bolts or kicks/thrashes like crazy once we try to pick her up (and yes, we’ve watched many videos on how to hold a bunny correctly)

[Bam]

That really is a lot of water. It needs to be looked into.

Buns hate being picked up, but they can become ok with being held. The only way is of course to get her used to it, but the process is slow and with most buns, I think it needs to be slow.

[Luna]

Posted By bam on 6/12/2017 12:44 PM

That really is a lot of water. It needs to be looked into.

Buns hate being picked up, but they can become ok with being held. The only way is of course to get her used to it, but the process is slow and with most buns, I think it needs to be slow.

Uh oh, Luna drinks about 12-16 oz. a day (closer to 12). I didn’t realize that was a lot! Now my mind is all over the place lol.

[12345ABCDE]

It seems like a lot of vets (and other people that don’t know bunnies) suggest doing that – my vet did in fact but it’s not something I felt comfortable with. In an ideal world I’d love to be able to pick up the two terrors (Peanut and Buttercup) but I don’t feel like the process that would lead to that point are safe – I.e. Every time you pick up a bunny that thrashes, there’s a risk that they could break a leg or even worse. Not to mention it could make them very fearful and lose trust completely. I’d rather just train them to get into their carrier on their own for emergencies. 

[Wick & Fable]

For the water/pee, dental issues come to mind. Wick went on a pee spree and water drinking spree when his teeth started to bother him. He drank an extraordinary amount of water and pee’d a lot because of it. After his molars were grinded down in an operation, he was back to being normal.

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[LBJ10]

Getting them used to being picked up can be achieved with that method. But I agree with the others, some rabbits just do not do well with it. However, I was able to do this with Leopold and he does now tolerate being held for things. He certainly isn’t happy about it, but he doesn’t panic/thrash/kick when he is picked up. Now, any time he’s picked up, the little turd is literally looking for his treat. So your vet didn’t necessarily give you incorrect advice, it was just incorrect advice for your particular bunny (i.e. not all solutions are appropriate for all rabbits). I think you will need to look for alternative approaches such as getting her used to getting inside her carrier whenever you need to pick her up. This way you can transport her to wherever you need to go without actually picking her up. For things like nail trims, people like to put their bunny on top of a washing machine or other “strange” surface.

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