Please help

[Whobott]

Ok so I just brought my bun home today he got back at around 11:00 its bee np retry ho there so I have been using frozen water bottles and a fan to cool him off. He has eaten a few greens and a little hay and a little bit of pellets. As far as I know he hasn’t drank anything yet. He has pooped once in his litter box and two little poops where he was laying. I havnt seen him sleep at all either. His water bottle is at the top of his ramp and he doesn’t want to go up it he stops at the top and slides down. He has been out for floor time quite a bit I just leave his cage door open for him and hide comes out fora bit. Should I be worried about Anya of Thisbe Javier and how. Can I help him adjust to his new home. (I don’t know what they fed him at the shelter so that could be a problem) oh yeah also I put a water do she at the bottom where he hangs out and i try holding the bottle for hi m to use but he won’t. Please help!!!

[Mocha]

None of this sounds like anything you should be really worried about. I asked a question on here once saying that my rabbits barely drink any water. Your rabbit should drink what it needs. It’s good that he’s eaten. Rabbits get most of their water from the veggies they eat. Pellets aren’t neccessary for rabbits to have, so don’t be worried if he isn’t eating them.

Rabbits should poop a lot (I have two bunnies, and in all they poop about 100+ a day)

Is she spayed? Try providing her with water from a bowl. Rabbits tend to drink more water from them.

If she had not eaten or pooped in 24 hours, go to a vet immedietly!

[Whobott]

He ate very little and pooped very little so I’ll update tomorrow.

[Whobott]

Also he likes to stay in one spot all the time and not move. He keeps moving things in his cage so now he has like no room he can’t stretch out at all. I try to move I t and give him room but he doesn’t like that he just moves it back.

[Mocha]

I wouldn’t move his stuff. He will just continue moving it where he wants to. I changed the flooring in my rabbits house once and they absolutely hated it and stayed at the top of there hidey house all week. What flooring are you using? My rabbits really like fleece. Please update on how much he decides to eat.

[MoveDiagonally]

All of this sounds really normal for a brand new bunny. Just give him some quiet time to settle in and feel safe. Don’t mess with him or his cage unless necessary (cleaning, etc…) just let him get a feel for his new home.

[Whobott]

Ok btw we have vinyl tiles in his cage they are textured so he has more traction but he still seemed to slip so i put a square of carpet we cut out from a previous project and it has a rubber bottom so it doesnt slide he also has a pillow case. Another qustion he seems so be grooming himself alot and i lnow hes gloing through a shed right now. Should ibrush him ot let him settle in more? Im going to give him his veggies soon so ill update. One last thing i left for a couple hpurs last noght for an award thing and when i came back there was a bit of hay in his water dish does that mean he dranks some? (Its not near his hay enough for it to have fell in) and thanks so much for the help and reassurance!!!

[Whobott]

He seems to be gobbling down his veggies pretty good. I’m feeding him dandelion greens and green leaf lettuce

[LongEaredLions]

If he doesn’t seem to mind grooming, I would go for it. Otherwise, no.
Glad he likes his veg. I think we need pictures….

[Linette]

Rabbits are active in the morning and evening and can sleep for many hours during the day. Sometimes people who haven’t had rabbits think that lethargy is a sign or illness, but it is normal rabbit behavior.

Rabbits also like to “do housekeeping”, arrange things in their cage or even the room they run about it, and they can get irritated and miffed if we change their arrangement up! Indeed it is good to give a rabbit things to arrange and busy themselves with, a busy rabbit is less likely to get into mischief.

As long as you are providing the right amount of healthy food, and clean water the rabbit is most likely fine. They all seem to have different water needs. Some drink tons, others much less so. If the litter is getting dirty and wet…bunny is probably drinking enough.

I drink WAY more water etc than my BF and we are both fine, just different metabolisms I guess!

Sometimes we can worry when our bun does not seem to be eating, drinking, pooping, or playing in the same way another person’s bun is, but they each have their own way, and there is quite a range of behavior and eating/pooping habits that are still considered healthy and normal.

The thing is to learn YOUR rabbits patterns and if there is a deviance from that, keep a close eye on things. A sudden change can be an indicator that something is amiss.

It’s great that you are here learning and checking in! Your rabbit has a very conscientious and caring keeper!

[Whobott]

Thanks so much! I just want him to be happy and healthy so I’ve Ben stressing a lot probably way too much. Thanks so much for the help! By the way. He seems to not eat his hay. I don’t think he likes the hay rack but he won’t eat piles on the floor either. At the shelter he only had a tiny pile on the floor. How do I get him to eat his hay? Also right now I feed him 3 small leaves of green leaf lettuce and 3 large dandelion greens. Is he getting too much too little or not the right veggies? Thanks so much I can’t thank you enough guys! One last thing, I try to brush him and gently pull out the lose dead hairs since he’s shedding right now but he hates his sides and anywhere NEAR his butt. So I can’t groom any of those areas, should he be ok?

[Mocha]

You sound like a great bunny owner
I have the same probably with hay and my rabbits, but I can’t buy a different type. I reccomend that you buy a different type of hay for him and get it from a farm. I buy timothy hay in bales. Some types of hay’s that my rabbits absolutely love that you should try are oat hay and orchard grass.

How old is he? Rabbits can only take a certain amount of veggies so you can experament with that. The house rabbit society says that each 5 pounds of rabbit should eat a minimum of 3 cups of veggies each day. You can slowly introduce new veggies to him. My bunnies don’t usually eat in front of me, but in the morning, there cilantro, parsley, dandelion, and collard greens are all gone I would limit the amount of dandelion greens you give him.

My rabbits also hate when I pluck near there butt. They’ll jump of the table i’m grooming them on or bolt out of the room. You can dampen your hand and pet him around those areas. You can also gently cover his eyes and brush those areas. To much fur ingestsion can cause hairballs. Hay helps ingested fur move through the gut, so that’s why it’s really important. I use a furminator and a slicker brush on my buns. (I brush them once a week when not shedding and twice a day when shedding.)

Hope I helped!

[MK]

What you are talking about is plucking (pulling loose fur, it works very well). Whether he likes it or not, he has to be brushed, especially during a molt (heavy shed) You don’t want him to get a hairball, because as rabbits can’t cough them up, they have to be removed and that is both expensive and stressful for both of you. Hope you have lots of fun with your new guy!

[Whobott]

He’s around ten months old possibly older? He won’t even let me pet there. Since I just got him he absolutely HATES being touched. I let him sniff my hand and normally he will just ignore me but every so often he will put his head under my hand and let me pet him. Bt he darts away when I touch anywhere within three inches of Isis butt. He also hates his sides touched. I havnt handles him much anyway since he just got here but I’m hoping tomorrow I might start? How would I introduce him to getting handled. At the shelter he actualy seemed to like being held. Thanks so much fr the help you all have helped me above and beyond! Thank you!!!,

[LongEaredLions]

Before you even think of trying to pick him up, make sure he is comfortable being pet. Give him treats, stroke his head, then give another treat. Move down his body a bit each day, but keep him comfortable. And remember to use healthy treats.

[JackRabbit]

Kieko will let us do anything to her; our other two not so much. They only want to be touched when its their idea. However, put a salad in front of them and we can groom them however we need. At first we had to play a little game — move away from the brush, the salad gets moved away. They figured it out very fast. I can even gently grab a handful of bunny butt fur and gently run my fingers through it to get out loose fur now. My husband and I each brush a bunny during salad time. They even get excited now when they see me coming with the brushes!

[Whobott]

Ok cool thanks I’ll try some treats and stuff. I use craisons. So he’s been eaten all his greens and eating some hay and drinking his water had cecotropes but he hasn’t pooed all yesterday afternoon and all night last night. I did clean his litter box should I not have?oh yeah also we are going to get him a vet check up ASAP but we can’t call until Tuesday because none are open.

[LongEaredLions]

Is he acting normally? Does he seem to be in any pain?

[Whobott]

He seems to be acting fine I just can’t tell if his teeth grinding is in pain or purring. He is pretty courious he’s eating his hay nicely he eats all of his greens. Won’t eat his pellets but I heard they don’t need them. I keep them avAilable anyway. Tomorrow we are going to call some vets to see who can give him a checkup thanks for the help!!

[Author]

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