Newbie here! Just saying hello!

[Impede]

Hi! My name – or at least the one I go by on the internet – is Impede, and I’m kind of a brand spankin’ new bunny owner. I say “kind of” because I owned a Dutch rabbit back when I was a kid, but I barely remember anything about her, so I’m practically starting from scratch.  Plus, I now know so much more about bunnies than I did then, a lot of that thanks to this site, which I’ve been a consistent viewer of, but never got around to making an account.

 

Well, yesterday (10/24/2014) I got my first bunny after so many weeks of prepping for the little guy! He is a six week old broken castor Mini Rex (kinda young, and the only reason I was okay with taking him in at such an age was because he was about to be a snake’s dinner), and he is a complete sweetheart! He was terribly shy and under-socialized, but has warmed up so darn quickly! He was thumping and hiding anytime I walked by him, but now he is oh so willing to climb over me, lick me, nudge me, and things of that nature. I let him on my bed and gave him some freedom just by doing my own thing while sitting on the bed, which was getting ob the laptop, ha-ha. Within minutes, he was too curious to resist coming up and seeing what I was doing. I gave him a quick pet, and continued with my business. He still wasn’t content, so he scooted around behind my laptop and kept peeking over at me. Well, an hour went by of him just checking me out and sniffing around before he decided he had some energy to get out! This little boy (who is named Caspian, by the way) was hopping everywhere on the bed, and just until a few minutes ago, I couldn’t get the silly booger to stop hopping across the keyboard! He seems a lot happier now, and I’m falling head over heels for him! He now is just sitting beside of me, grooming himself. What a cutie! I’m excited to see how much more he opens up!

 

Now, in regards to his housing, he has a whole bunny room to himself, with a dog cage setup as his “home base”. He is on paper pellet litter, but from what I can tell, he hasn’t bothered using it, ha-ha. We’ll get there! I’ve potty trained rats, so hopefully he’s not too different from them. He gets yummy pellets, and a never ending supply of hay. I’m waiting a little bit for him to get completely adjusted to his new diet before I introduce fruits and veggies, but I’m going to be grocery shopping for him in the next few days!

 

I’m sorry for the long post, but I actually have a few questions that I hope are okay to ask in this post. First, are bunnies usually not heavy eaters when they get home? He’s eaten a chunk of his hay and some pellets, has pooped and peed just fine, but I’m not quite sure if he’s getting enough. Second, what is the recommended age to get him neutered? I have my bunny vet picked out already, but I’m honestly wanting advice from actual rabbit owners out there.

Thank you, everyone, who has stuck around to read this! I’m excited to join in on more of the community’s threads, and fully intend on getting some pictures up of my little guy! So far, the only one is of him in my profile from when he was at his old home.

[Clare - Ivy - Bailey -toffee]

Hi welcome 6 weeks old that’s Young to be away from mummy ! How is he doing where are you from ? Glad you saved him from a snakes dinner lucky little man

[MK]

Welcome! What a lucky save!

[Impede]

He’s doing wonderful, actually! Such a nosy little boy! I’m not too sure how accurate his age is in relation to his size, because he’s a good handful, but then again, I don’t have much experience around younger bunnies. I’m in Oklahoma, and in an area where many, many people breed rabbits, rats, chickens, etc. to feed to the all-too-common pet Burmese Pythons.

Caspian so far just seems interested in pellets, but it may be because he was on an only-pellet diet before, but has taken nibbles of his hay. He’s getting less and less shy by the minute it seems, because he’s all too eager to jump around on my hands as I’m trying to type, he keeps trying to nibble at my shirt, etc. He’s definitely a comedian! Right now, he’s trying to burrow under the blanket with me – he’s so snuggly too!

[Sindri]

Welcome. Male rabbits can be neutered around 4 months. I would take him into the vet to have a first check up and talk with the vet. They will tell you in more definite detail. As for his eating if he is only 6 weeks old he might not be a big eater. Like mentioned above rabbits usually aren’t taken away from their mom’s until 8 weeks. They can also be very picky eater as I know from experience. As for veggies and fruits wait until he is at least 3 months before starting those items.
Right now he should have unlimited hay as you mentioned and most will say unlimited pellets as well.
It sounds like he is off to a good start!

[JackRabbit]

Welcome! Ditto what Sindriona said. I do want to warn you that he may decide to pee on your bed (and you!), especially as his hormones start to kick in.

[kirstyol]

Bramble was six weeks old when we got him, I was told by the vet to hold off on the veggies for a while and just stick to pellets and hay then slowly introduce veggies after he was over the 12 week mark. Bramble didn’t eat too much either, I guess because he was so small maybe? He is now six months old and just like any other bunny, he doesn’t seem to have suffered any from being away from his mum a little early, if anything I think he bonded with us better because he was still looking for a caregiver.

[LittlePuffyTail]

Welcome to you both!!!! Would love to see pics! I adore Mini-Rexs!!!!

[LongEaredLions]

Welcome! Caspian sounds like a darling, I would love to see piccies!

[Author]

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