New Bunny Problems. HELP!

[Peri and Poe]

Hi everyone. It has been a long time since I last posted on this forum. Since that time, sadly our bunny Peri has passed away after years of health issues. We decided to rehome an adult female rabbit (Pandora) as Poe (our neutered male rabbit) seemed quite lonely.

Pandora’s previous owner told us she is healthy and very friendly (when we met her, she was very cuddly), unfortunately she was not spayed but we arranged to get her spayed in 10 days’ time.

We placed her x pen near his, side by side. Poe straightaway was very curious and generally displayed very positive behaviour, she was not really interested in him but wasn’t showing any negative behaviour initially, she even flopped on the first day.

Our main issues are:

• She barely eats her hay which is a problem cos she looks quite overweight. She’ll eat pellets and vegetables (still fairly picky), we’ve given her different variety but she is still fussy.
• We don’t know if this is related to the hay eating since it was straightaway after bringing her home but her poops are really small. The first few hours she didn’t poop at all but even though they are gradually getting bigger, 2 days in and they are just about half the size of Poe’s.
• She produces a LOT of cecotropes.
• She digs a LOT.
• She keeps spraying urine around the room/ x pen. Her owner said she was litter trained so I feel like this is more likely territorial than health. Is there anything we can do to reduce this behaviour?
• She has also gotten slightly aggressive, lunging for hands, biting me on one occasion.

I would appreciate help with any of the issues above. I would like to know if any of this would be a reason to see the vet (I am trying to see if I can get an earlier appointment). I don’t know how many of these behaviours are linked to being rehomed or unspayed or being near Poe. It’s been very frustrating but we want to give her a good home and eventhough, she can be aggressive at times, she is also very sweet.

[LBJ10]

Some of the “problem behaviors” will probably be toned down once she is spayed. As for the poops and cecotropes, this could be due to her diet and lack of hay. How much does she get for pellets and veggies? Most bunnies will show interest in hay if their pellets are reduced. You can also entice her with dried herbs, etc. as a hay topper.

[Peri and Poe]

Thank you for your response. I just talked to her previous owners and found out her diet was quite poor before. She would only pick at her hay and would eat a diet consisting of mainly pellets and veg. I am buying more varieties of hay, hopefully there might be one she is enthusisastic for. I will try to reduce her pellets, but I do feel a little anxious as this is one of the only things she eats and because our last rabbit was prone to digestive upsets and would completely stop eating. Its’ also hard to say no to her cute face.

At the moment, I have her cages side by side to Poe’s. Do you think it would be good to separate them a little more? Unfortunately, I can only keep them in the same room at the moment but the room is quite large so we can space them apart. Sorry for all the questions, this is my first time rehoming an adult rabbit so a lot of her behaviour is new to me.

[DanaNM]

Sorry for your loss of Peri 🙁

I think since she’s not spayed yet, I would separate them. It should help a lot with the spraying, digging, and aggression. At this point pre-bonding isn’t too important because she will smell differently once she’s spayed.

As for the hay, it can be tricky to know if the bun is selective because they’ve been given too many pellets, or due to dental issues. I think since she’s brand new to you it would be good to have her teeth checked before trying to really reduce her pellet intake. The vet may be able to take a good look at them (and even do the filing if needed) while she is under for her spay. Not sure if they would want to do a pre-appointment before that, but I would discuss it with them.

Maybe you could offer her some hay cubes in the meantime? They don’t have the same chewing motion as loose hay, but more fiber than pellets. I think that the small poops and excess cecotropes are linked to the lack of hay. If she’s overweight she may also have trouble reaching her cecals.

. . . 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.  

[Cinnimon&Ollie]

Sorry for your loss. Losing a pet is really hard. I wouldn’t be able to live without my bunnies. I think that the teeth check would be a good idea. In the meantime I know they make hay pellets. They are just hay but in pellet form. It would give your bunny some hay but they chew hay and pellets differently so it wouldn’t wear down the teeth they chew hay with. Tractor supply has timothy or orchard hay pellets.

[Peri and Poe]

Thank you both for your responses. It has been very difficult for our family without Peri, she had so much personality and will be missed.

We went on a hay run today and picked up more varieties of hay (I dont know where I’m going to store them all now), we bought some timothy hay cubes but I think the winner is probably the Oxbow Orchard hay (we put it in toilet rolls and mcdonalds cup holders, which I think Pandora finds more interesting). She still does not eat it as much as she should but its nice seeing her wanting to try new hay and being less fussy.

I think the hay pellets are a great idea. Although, in the long run, it would be better for her teeth to eat hay, I think I would just want her to be healthy enough now for her spay and potentially a dental.

We are going to have a talk with the vets soon, to ask how to go about helping her lose weight or if they think she has any health issues that need to be addressed first.

On a big plus note, the cecotropes and the pee has stopped :), I think it helped moving her away from Poe for now. I think the cecotropes might have been linked to the stress of being rehomed/ car ride.

I really appreciate all the advice and support of everyone. It has been so helpful and reassuring.

 

[DanaNM]

Glad she is doing better! Buns can certainly be particular about their hay. Mine are used to getting hay from a bale, and whenever I’ve had to buy bagged pet store hay they turn their little noses up at it!

With proper diet and exercise she will get to a healthy weight naturally. Usually the recommendation is to reduce or eliminate pellets, but that’s as long as the bun eats enough hay and has healthy teeth, so your vet can advise on that. I think what you are doing now sounds great. 🙂

And you are right, soft poops can be a stress response, so it could have been linked to moving to a new home.

. . . 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.  

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