Very Confused New Bunny Friend

[RainyInferno]

Okay, Long story short, about 3 months ago, my fiance and I pulled up in our driveway, and we got out of the car and heard this awful screaming. (Hearing a bunny scream is one of the most heart killing sounds in the whole world)

We were trying to see where it came from, and in the common area there were two cats attacking a small rabbit (who, is now named Lola 🙂 )

So we shooed the cats away and brought the rabbit to the vet. The vet gave her a shot and everything and she healed up fine.

and no, she wasn’t a wild bunny. Some idiot was trying to breed rabbits a couple of houses down and Lola chewed out the screen I guess and got out. 

My question is, I really don’t understand her. We got everything she needed, the bunny food, the hay, I bought a couple decent rabbit books.

When she was younger she didn’t mind being picked up and now she kinda freaks out when you pick her up? I know they don’t like to be so far off the ground, is there a way that she wouldn’t mind being picked up?

Also, how do you know if they are actually happy? She binkies alot, and doesn’t go into any negative positions.
 
I guess what I’m trying to say is she doesn’t really interact with us alot when she’s out of her cage. She used to come over and hop on us and give us kisses, and now she’s all ‘psht, I’m doing my own thing’

Is this normal?

I’m asking alot I know, but if I upload a picture (it’s a picture off my webcam… so it’s not the best.) would anybody know what kind of bunny she is?

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[BinkyBunny]

OH my, she is adorable! Wow, what a scary story and how heartbreaking, but at the same time, how incredible that she had you to save her and now care for her.

How old do you think she is? if she is around 5 months, then she could be going through sexual maturity which can make her a bit more difficult. If this is the case, are you planning on spaying her?

She seems happy though! Binkies are a wonderful sign.

Maybe you can also bribe her a bit. Have some of her favorite greens or healthy treats with you, and so when she comes close, you can offer her some. Who says you can buy your friends with parsley? No, actually, this will just help her associate you with something good. If she has started to object to being picked up, and you pick her up, she may have begun to mistrust you. Gain back her trust before you start picking her up again.

She may never enjoy being picked up. I only pick up mine now when they have to go through their monthly maintenance.  (or I will pick up Rucy now and then to put her in the litterbox)

[Beka27]

welcome here. she is very cute! thank goodness you were able to get to her and she’s okay now! that’s so sad she had to go thru that!

most bunnies don’t love being picked up. that’s not very uncommon. some will tolerate it, some of them will outright refuse. if she was very young when you got her, which is likely if that guy was breeding, that is probably why she allowed it at first. like BB said, if she’s reaching puberty, that can account for the bad or difficult behavior.

did your vet give you info about spaying when you went? you can also go on House Rabbit Society and look up different articles related to that topic. (i’d post a link but my computer is acting up HORRIBLY!)

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Welcome and thanks for saving a bunny!!!

She *looks* like a hotot to me (they have bunny eyeliner). She’s very adorable!

She’s likely going through puberty, and needs to be spayed. If you have any questions on finding a vet, or why it should be done etc. etc. Just ask-we love helping out!!

This is an amazing site that decodes ‘bunny speak’ incredibly well and is also funny!! It’s worth the read for sure! http://language.rabbitspeak.com/rabbittalk.html

Most bunnies don’t enjoy being picked up, but with daily positive handling, they can get very comfortable being held and cuddled. Always make sure handling her is a positive experience by giving her treats during or after. If you keep at it, I’m sure she’ll come around! Good luck!

[bunnytowne]

when she matures at about 1 yr 1 1/2 yr she will be calmer and more settled. she is a hotot if she stays small under 6 lbs looks like if she gets bigger she would be an american spot. really hard to tell til she grows up tho. at 6 mos they are at about their full size and weight pretty much at 1 yr they have filled out and done growing I believe. awe lucky little girl. yes those bunny screams oh my gosh. very disturbing

[RainyInferno]

Thanks, I’m looking into the vets in my area for somebody that can spay her. There was one place that said they could do it, but they really only specialize in dogs and cats. I thought she was a hottot from looking at pictures online, but from what I’ve seen most don’t have black ears??? And she has little cute black spots about her.

Also, silly question but would the vet be able to tell me exactly how old she is? When we found her, the vet we brought her to said that she was anywhere between 2-4 months, and that was 3 months ago so I’m thinking 5-7 months but I’m not so sure…?

[Beka27]

you definitely want someone who specializes in rabbits.  they are such delicate creatures and they’re very different from a cat or dog.  here’s a link to the HRS Florida vets page….  http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/vets.html   hopefully this will help you.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

I think your vet should be able to *guess* the age based on their teeth (are they all fully erupted, what the wear patterns are) it’s just a guess, but an educated good one at that !!

[Beka27]

as far as the age, as long as you have a general idea, that is very helpful. some folks who adopt end up having no idea how old their buns are, just a general (young, middle, senior) adult estimate. like my new bun, he’s about 3 according to the rescue, but i’ll never know for sure. my Meadow was younger when i got her, so i have a better estimate with her.

[KatnipCrzy]

K&K- I am pretty sure that bunny teeth are not a way to be able to accurately age a rabbit- as they are constantly growing.  And overgrowth would be more of an indication of poor dental conformation or maybe rabbit not chewing for some reason(health, habit or environmental)  as opposed to age of rabbit.  Same with excessive wear (if that is possible in rabbits).

Dogs and cats though- have baby teeth that they lose and get adult teeth that then show wear and disease that can be related to an age.  So that makes it possible in dogs and cats.

[BinkyBunny]

It’s true in general, that rabbit teeth can offer a very vague age. Wear and discoloration even in a healthy rabbit’s teeth do help a vet tell the difference between and 6 months and a six year old, but narrowing it down to whether a bunny is a 2, 3,or 4 year, etc etc, is very difficult, and then once a rabbit reaches the older stages where you can see by the teeth must be older than 5 or 6, it’s then still difficult to narrow down 7, 8, 9 and up even for the most experienced rabbit savvy vets. Usually they’ll give an estimate which includes a couple of year span. Like probably older than 5, but not yet 9, or probably between 3- 5 years. Or less than 3 years.

From your pictures, if I am interpreting correctly, your bunny definitely still looks young – like 5 months as you have said.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

It’s hard to accurately guess age by anything for sure, but horses also have continuously growing teeth and that is how you age them.

Tooth eruption can also help to guess age, but like BB said basically you want to know if they are young, middle, senior, this is especially important for tailoring vet care and diet!

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