Bunny questions!

[mk94]

Hello all! Since we lost our little chincher last fall, the house has been feeling a bit empty. So... my husband decided it was time to get a new baby. He had been wanting a little bunny for quite some time. Well, we brought our new bunny home today and now I'm left with a bunch of questions. I'm hoping someone here knows something about rabbits.

First off, he seems rather restless. We just brought him home this afternoon. I wanted to leave him alone in his cage for the night so that he could get used to his new surroundings. Well... he's been bouncing off the cage walls, scratching and digging, and all sorts of other stuff. I am actually surprised he is this rambunctious considering we JUST brought him home. Would this be considered normal? I'm just worried that maybe he's stressed and he has a funny way of showing it.

Next, litter training. Is it possible to get him to use a box if the bottom level of the cage has a drop pan as well? Everything I've read says to place the litter box in the corner that the rabbit seems to favor as a toilet. But he's been pooing and peeing all over his cage. Does anyone have any tips? We are hoping that at some point he will be well trained enough to allow him to come out of his cage during the day. We're going to bunny proof a room for him.

Also, he's chewing on his Yesterday's News litter at the moment. Should we be worried? I was told that it was safe, but I don't know.

Finally, he is a boy so I was wondering if we needed to have him neutered. The lady we got him from said that it doesn't really make much of a difference either way in regards to spraying. And since he's by himself, she thought it wouldn't be necessary. What do you all think?

 

[tkc1038]

Not a bunny expert, but I would put a little bit of his poo in the litter pan that may get to know thats where he goes. He will eventually pick a spot he prefers on his own anyway but this might get him on the road . As far as his bouncing off the walls well he might want some playtime, let him tell you if thats okay with him. As far as neutering unless you bring a female in it shouldnt make a big difference, males tend to be more laidback where females tend to be a bit more territorial and grumpy from my expierence. Yesterday news is paper so if you dont want him chewing it get it out of there. I use Aspen bedding for all my chewers so I worry. BTW Congradulations on your Bunny

 

[mk94]

Thanks!
Yeah, about the litter box. I was putting his poos in there last night, but when I checked on him this morning he was actually sleeping in his litter box. Apparently that is more comfortable than the bed we got for him. We have the pelleted aspen litter inside the drop pan, so maybe we'll just use that in his box. The problem with the aspen is that it has a very strong smell to it. The kind we got is supposed to be organic, so maybe that has something to do with it. Anyway, the entire room that he's in smells like aspen.

 

[minrex]

I would get him neutered. In my experience, neutering does make a big difference in eliminating unwanted behaviors, such as spraying and humping. I once had a Dutch buck that was a terror in that he wanted to mount anything and everything, all the time. He also was an extremely accurate sprayer, and could hit me from 6 feet away. (For the record, at the time, I had no other rabbits.) Once I got him neutered, he completely stopped spraying and he also lost interest in humping. He became a wonderful pet when he wasn't constantly under the influence of his raging hormones. What breed is your rabbit? The statement that "males are more laid-back than females" largely depends on the breed of rabbit. For example, in the lop breeds, males TEND to be more laid-back than females, in general. On the other hand, Dutch bucks (like the one I just described) are often horny little balls of testosterone, while the does are more relaxed and easy-going. Regardless of his breed, I would recommend having him "fixed".

How old is your bunny? Bouncing off the walls is normal, especially for young rabbits, which can be full of energy. You could try letting him out for a short period of time, with access to his open cage so that he can go back in if he wants. Make sure that he's closely supervised, of course. Put a few of his droppings in the litter box to help him understand that it's a "toilet" area. It shouldn't matter if the floor of his cage is wire, with a dropping pan underneath. If he's very young, you may have to "retrain" him to his litter box once he hits puberty, as many rabbits will kind of forget how to use the litter box once those adult hormones hit.

Congrats on the new bunny!

 

[mk94]

He's a 9 week old Holland Lop. He's pretty young yet, so maybe he's just not used to the idea of having a single area to use as a toilet. It just seems like he poos where ever he is eating. Like when he's sitting at his food bowl, he has this whole munching and pooing thing going on simultaneously.
As far as the fixing thing goes, should we wait to see how he is when he reaches maturity? Or should we just go ahead and do it sooner?
And what about our dog? We're trying to figure out how to introduce them. She absolutely LOVED the chinchillas. And the chinchillas never really minded her. They would go right up to her and sniff her. But I'm not really sure how a bunny would react to her... she can come on a little strong at times.

 

[Ash]

What kind of dog is she? Some rabbits do great with dogs, our rabbit used to play with our dogs, groom the dog, etc when we had one at the farm, and I'm pretty sure she was a Holland lop as well, but I'm not positive. I know she was a lop of some sort.

Along with his poos, I'd put some soiled bedding in the litter pan, also. And if I recall correctly, it's normal for them to sleep in their soiled bedding. Many will also make beds out of hay if they can, and nibble on it while they "use" it.

 

[mapache315]

I fill my bunny litter boxes with hay and they seem to get the idea. I have an unneutered male right now (about 6 months), and he's "getting there" with the training. I still keep shavings over half of his cage though. They do like to sleep in their boxes though! I don't use a lot of shavings in his box right now so that it's easier to clean every other day and stays fresh.

 

[mk94]

She's a dachshund. And whenever the chinchillas were out playing, she would run right up to them and stick her nose all over them. I'm just not sure how the bunny would react to her enthusiasm.

 

[minrex]

I'd be careful with a dachshund. They are hounds and have been bred for centuries to hunt. Even if a dog doesn't mean a rabbit any harm, the rabbit often doesn't know this and can be hurt or even die just from the stress of being near a predator.

Also, be aware that a rabbit cannot really control when and where he poops. Some seem to be able to control it more than others, but they really have very little rectal control compared to an animal like a dog or cat, and even if they're litter trained, they will often leave droppings behind as they move around. They can't help it. Fortunately, rabbit poop is extremely easy to clean up.

 

[mk94]

We allowed her to come into the room while he was safely inside his cage. She was VERY excited and she ran right up to the cage and let out a little howl. We told her no and escorted her out of the room until she calmed down. Then we let her back in and she went over to the cage and watched him quietly after that. Our bunny didn't seem to be bothered too much (he even came up to sniff her through the cage), but I don't think it would be a good idea to have him out of the cage with her in the room. It's like he knows that he's safe inside the cage, but I'm afraid that he would be scared of her if he was outside of his little safety bubble. I'm thinking that we should wait until he is bigger and then we can reassess things then.