Need help with my bun!!!!

[sarah]

I live in a one bedroom apartment, while going to school.  Everything is in the same room.  So my bun sleeps in the same room with me.  He keeps scratching at night on his cage, keeping me up.  He gets plenty of exercise during the day.  He is usually lose 6 hrs, and he has all kinds of toys and chew things to keep his mind busy, but doesnt hardly ever use them. I have tried all different kinds of toys, and chew things as well. 

 

Any ideas on how to keep him quiet at night?  I might have to get rid of him if he keeps this up because it is gradually taking a toll on me, not getting any sleep.

 

Thanks so much!

-Sarah

[kimberleyanddarren]

how about hiding some tasty but helthy treats inside something like those treat balls that way he will be interested in the food because it contains a treat, giving him extra space so that he can run about abit and is there a reason that you couldnt leave him loose at night? because that would definatly help obviously if you have wires about and such this is a no no but if possible this should help! a large run would be an alternative or how about more padding on the floor of the hutch so that the digging isnt as loud? just a few suggestions hope it helps!

[sarah]

what would you put on the bottom of the hutch to make the digging not so loud? He LOVES to chews cords. He has ruined about 100 dollars worth of stuff already. lol. I tried using the bitter apple spray with no avail

[Scarlet_Rose]

Let me just start by saying getting rid of him because he makes noise is neither fair to the animal or helps you be a responsible pet owner.  We really like people to come here before getting a rabbit so they know what they are getting into.  Unfortunately a lot of people think that because bunnies don’t bark or meow like a dog or cat, that they don’t make any other noises.  There are steps that can be taken to make peace at night. Do you cover the cage to enforce that it is bed time?  Have you tried to put the cage in the bathroom and shut the door? How much time do you spend with the animal?  I can’t imagine it is much because you are in classes.  Rabbtis are very social animals and it could be because he does not have all that much interaction timie with you, he is craving attention when you are trying to sleep because you are there.  Is he neutered?  If not, getting him netutered will help settle him down as well.  One of our members HJSoulma is a college student as well and the bunny is in the room with them.  I will see if they can visit this discussion to give you more tips & hints.

[sarah]

Im thinking I need to invest into some earplugs! lol =)

[sarah]

I have to defend myself on being a responsible pet owner…

I have owned buns for years. I have never had a problem before with the level of noise. He is just diff. than other buns. Please do not attack me, till you know the whole story.   If I am not in class, I am with him.  Simple as that. =)  I do keep the cage covered at night as well.  My bathroom does not shield noise  

If I wasnt a responsible pet owner, do you think I would be posting on a forum? A irresponsible pet owner wouldn’t even deal with the problem, and just get rid of the animal. 

Thanks!
-Sarah

[Scarlet_Rose]

98% of the time bitter apple spray does not work on rabbits in fact they LOVE the taste of it.  You need to check out the BUNNY PROOFING section.  I use lemon oil as a deterrent and another was is to use perfume.  Cords are a prime target for rabbits, so purchasing cord covers is ESSENTIAL.  Not only does it save your electrical items, it also prevents your rabbit from being electrocuted.  Remeber that bunnies explore by chewing.  Cord covers, moving furniture and providing something in lieu of a cord to chew works well.  You say you’ve tried everything as far as chew toys and amusements are concerned, but what TYPES of chew toys and amusements have you given him?  Bunnies find hours of enjoyment with just a plain paper bag, sea grass mat, untreated willow baskets, toilet paper tubes etc. Also, for general info, take a look at our BUNNY INFO section.

[babybunsmum]

i recently bought a remnant piece of fleece from a fabric store for under $10 that i could cut into 4 pieces for my buns cages.  they love to ‘dig’ on them & rearrange them & it doesn’t make much noise.  the only thing is you’ll have to have a few so you can launder them (incase theyget peed on).  i like fleece because they don’t have stringy bits if bun wants to chew on them. 

another suggestion… turn on an air filter or fan (as long as it’s not pointed at bun) for some ‘white noise’ which may help drown out any busy bun noises that happen.

good luck!

[Scarlet_Rose]

Sarah, I am not attacking you.  Please do not take it that way.  When you speak about getting rid of your rabbit because he makes noise does not make it sound terribly responsible and my interest is in protecting the rabbit and not being given away or tossed into a shelter.

What kind of cage does he have?  What is he digging in? I am very glad you spend time with your fella, is he fixed though?  Is he litterbox trained or is the bottom of the cage lined with bedding?

[sarah]

He is fixed.  He is litter boxed trained, he also has a pretty large cage.  I have actually tried the whole fleece thing.  He liked it for a short while, but then he got bored with it.  He doesnt like the grass mats, keys, willow balls, chew sticks, etc.  I have tried them all and he wont even play with them.  The only toy I have ever found that he likes is an old phone book! lol.  I thought he would like plastic bags too, because they are similiar but I tried that too with no avail.  lol.  silly bun!  One day I will figure him out!

[sarah]

Heres the bad little boy…lol.  He is a double mane lionhead.   And is about 4 lbs of pure trouble! lol

 

[Tami]

Hi there Sarah :o)

Boy, do I know about bunny noise at night !  LMAO !  I mentioned this same problem in one of the topics I started concerning my contrary English Angora bunn, Frosty.

Sheesh !  That boy kept us up for two nights in a row, thumping, running around in his cage, tipping his bowls, doing popcorn binks & landing as hard as he could on the cage floor…..anything and everything to keep us up.  Both hubby and I had dark circles under our eyes for two days because of this animated character, LOL !

We finally got it stopped by putting an old sheet over him……just over the sides, though……we left the front open so as not to get too hot for him.  The back of his cage is against a wall and we have a big piece of cardboard (the cardboard box that his cage came in….we just opened it up and flattened it out) behind his cage to protect our knotty pine walls from any ‘accidents’.  It worked like a charm and we are so thrilled that we can actually sleep through the night now without any “tantrums” (Frosty actually woke us up @ 2 am, thumping like no tomorrow, to let us know that he was out of pellets and he wanted them NOW !  He’s a spoiled brat !  Of course we had to obey *blushing*).

I hope you’re able to find a simple solution for your bunn !

Good luck :o)

 

[Scarlet_Rose]

Oh we have a tough one to amuse.   Plastic bags are not safe for a rabbit, especially if they are chewed and ingested, they can and will cause a blockage and would cause GI stasis.  Have you tried spritzing a tiny bit of apple juice on the willow to get him to chew it?  Have his teeth been checked? Is he eating his hay?  Phone books are great,  Have you tried a cardboard box or large paper grocery bag?  A fun thing to do is take a lunch sack and stuff it with hay, stick a few treats in there and poke a few holes in it and fold down the top.  Although this will not be good for night time play, it may help with day time boredom.  Many rabbits like a dig & chew towel.  Even hanging one up to nose around and bite on is well loved by most resistant bunny toyers.

[sarah]

Thanks Tami!

[sarah]

I only used paper bags when I tried to get him to play with them…never plastic. He thought he was above paper bags…lol. He eats his hay fine, and his teeth are fine as well. I will try the thing with apple juice…THANKS!

[sarah]

OOPS…I have no idea why I typed plastic bags…lol. blonde moment!

[Scarlet_Rose]

Oh OK whew! No worries.

[Gravehearted]

what a cute lil fluffball of a bunny 🙂 hmm – well he sure sounds like a challenge since he seems to think most toys are totally unexcited. I was also relieved to hear you were meaning paper bags since the idea of plastic bags made me nervous too.

It sounds like it really might be worth investing in some ear plugs while trying to figure out a solution to get him a bit quieter at night. It sounds like the sheet over the bed doesn’t help either. You might also try adding something on top of the flooring since he keeps digging at it – like maybe a carpet remnant or you could try a big piece of coroplast (which is somewhat like corrogated plastic cardboard).

I’d also recommend cord covers – we’ve gotten pretty crafty with coming up with ways for the cords to not be on the floor at all. You can tack them up with cord holders (dollar tree has them) or wind them under furniture. I think bunnies look at cords like tasty vines and have a hard time resisting them. We have an x-pen that winds around our whole entertainment center to protect all the electronics.

[MooBunnay]

My bunnies also like to do the bunny 500’s at night – but I found that after awhile they adjusted to my schedule. How long have you had your bunny? It might be a matter of just having to wait for him to get more adjusted to your schedule. I have also found that if I feed my bunnies their 1/4 cup pellets later at night they are less likely to dig in their litter box because I think that they are full from the pellets, so not as much in the mood to forage in their box.

[Holly]

This is odd, but Holly likes it. I”ve taken an old sash from a robe I don’t use anymore and I attatched it to a paper towel cardboard roll. Then I would move the sash and she’d play and chase with the roll. I’ve also unattached the sash and let her just play with it and the roll separately.

[JK]

Hate to say it but I am thoroughly convinced that bunnies do not sleep at night! I hear Edson drinking water all night and in the morning the water is completely gone and most of his hay. He sleeps hours during the day so I know he’s awake at night! Not sure if all buns are awake all night or not. I’d actually love to put a night camera in his room to see what the heck he does. I think ear plugs are a great idea for you! Oh and your little trouble maker is adorable – he does not look real at all!

[DawnT]

Hi

 

I went to home depot and purchased wire covers they work great and you can cut them to the size you want.  The biggest wire I have covered is a tv cable.  They are also in expensive. 

[bunnytowne]

what a beautiful furball mine is supposed to look like that but his hair hasn’t come back in yet. he used to look like that. I had a doe a long time ago who made noise all nite digging oh how she loved to dig. finally I just removed the stuff she dug in including the litter box she never used it anyway and it quited down considerably. my son was the c omplainer for I sleep thru eveything. my meds sure help with that. she sure was noisy tho. well I hope the noise all nite will stop for you.

[RabbitPam]

Do bunnies calm down with soft music the way some other animals do?
I’m wondering if you could play a radio with easy listening type music very softly in your room during the night. You would probably sleep well, and it may soothe him a bit.

He’s so cute. I agree that he’s not into your routine yet, but will be eventually.

[sarah]

Thanks guys for the compliments! I think he is a cutie too! lol. I have had him for about 6 months. I leave the TV on for him during the day so he has something to listen to. I think he likes it! lol. I need to get one of those calming ocean sounds cds for night time! lollol!! Maybe that will calm him down. =)

[sarah]

I also tried pine shavings to quuiet his movements. Now he looks like a huge pile of shavings! I dont know what I was thinking! lol. I guess you live and learn!

[Gravehearted]

maybe the ocean cd will help.

i know a lot of pet stores sell pine chips, but they can cause liver damage in rabbits. aspen shavings are safe – so are things like yesterdays news, aspen supreme, carefresh and wood stove pellets.

[sarah]

I thought it was Cedar shavings that cause liver damage.

[kimberleyanddarren]

he is very cute! i think the only way to stop him digging really is to let him out at night.. even if you just section the room off with those cheap boards from a hardware shop or some wire fencing which you can roll up and store away during the day that way you can stop him getting into the areas where there are wires and it wil give him plenty of space to avoid digging… i would dig if i was in a tiny cage for perhaps 10hrs with not much to do really.. its just in his nature.. make sure you unplug everything and lift the wires to a bunny safe height and those which cant be moved co-ordined(sp) off and let him have free reign you will most likely find all he wants is to lie with you in bed

[Beka27]

i agree with kimberleyanddarren… is there a way you can set-up an x-pen or a NIC cube enclosure at night (and maybe when you’re away in class as well) so he has a little bit of room to run around?  ever since i made my rabbit an enclosure attached to her cage, she’s been even happier because i don’t need to be home or awake for her to be able to get some exercise.  i would consider doing that, it may help with the noise immediately.

[notjulesverne]

Oh he is so cute…he looks a lot like mine Sorry you’re having issues. Piccolino is usually pretty good about going to bed, once in a while I’ll get startled by something he does as I’m drifting off to sleep, but then I sleep like a brick. I would try the ear plug thing, they are pretty comfortable and maybe giving him a little more space would help, if possible.

[sarah]

Wow! They could be almost twins! lol

[sarah]

Ehhh. I’m on a mac and it wont let me edit it correctly. ****almost be

[notjulesverne]

Maybe they are! or part of quadruplets He was in with 3 others that looked like yours, but Picco was the only one that had brown on him…

Where are you from, I got mine in San Jose (Campbell), but I don’t where you live, so… I think they’re abut the same age, too.

[Scarlet_Rose]

Hi sarah! Both pine and cedar shavings emit phenols that can cause kidney & liver damage. You can use aspen shavings or a bunny-safe litter like Yesterday’s News, Carefresh, Aspen Supreme or wood stove pellets.  The wood stove pellets are processed to where the phenols are not present and do not pose a threat.

[kimberleyanddarren]

my bunny is always covered in hay and stuff its kinda cute but he doesnt mind sitting on my lap whilst i pull the loose stuff out so its all good!

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