Any rabbit owners? Need a little advice.

jamesmorris86

jamesmorris86

jamesmorris86

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About 5 months ago me and my girlfriend got ourselves a mini lop buck (Loki). He's a happy little guy who has settled in well.

2 weeks ago we picked up a mini lop doe (Poppy) so he can have some company while we are at work. They are currently on different floors of the house and haven't seen each other yet.

Poppy is very very nervous. We have been trying to spend as much time in the smaller room she is in, just letting her get used to us. We aren't really trying to stroke her or pick her up as she is so nervous I thought that may just make it worse.

So I guess my question is, do I just keep doing what I'm doing? Just sitting and talking with her and hope she eventually gains a little confidence.

She hasn't been spayed yet as I thought trying to bring her to the vet while she is still so unsure of us could be a little traumatic and I wanted her to really settle in first. Would there be any problem letting Loki up to her room while she is in her hutch so start getting used to each other? Or should I wait until she has been spayed before introductions?

Thanks for any help.
 
Get her spayed now!

Introduce them in a neutral space

Make sure there are places for her to hide with escape routes. Have lots of treats handy.
 
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We have a single lion head rabbit, Cola (narky little bugger and blind in one eye). He plays with the two cockers we have but we decided against a second rabbit as apparently they can fight and not get on once they have lived alone for any amount of time.
 
My partner has 2 rabbits, had the male first then bought the female about 18 months later.

They're both house rabbits and they now live in the extension/conservatory but when we were bonding them the female lived in her own run in the kitchen, we let the male in so they had time in the same room to smell each other etc but were still seperated.

Once she was spayed we put them together in a much smaller run with a toy and some food so they could bond. They'd be together for maybe half hour an evening, obviously supervised incase one of them decided to have a go at the other. The aim is to get them to a stage where they're grooming each other, or the male is grooming the female.

They took a while to bond but they live happily together now.

Edit; the male is a lion head and the female a lion head/lop eared cross.
 
Malevolence said:
No advice other than...


TAKE! You take her to the vets, not bring her to the vets.
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Thank you for the helpful advice. My bunny is feeling much better now.

I will try some treats as we sit with her. She has had all of her injections while at the breeders but I will make an appointment next week to see about getting her spayed.
 
jamesmorris86 said:
Thank you for the helpful advice. My bunny is feeling much better now.

I will try some treats as we sit with her. She has had all of her injections while at the breeders but I will make an appointment next week to see about getting her spayed.
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Lying down can be better. Brings you down to her level and stops you seeming like a big scary thing. Might also be worth maybe having some of your recently worn clothes near her cage/hutch or on top, just so she can really get used to your scent. Obv no sudden movements or loud noises around her. Don't approach her, have treats in an open hand and see if she approaches you. Once she's confident doing that then start grooming her etc.
 
We've had shy, very timid rabbits that would hide a lot.

Contrary to common advice we picked ours up regularly and handled them a lot, about a week after settling in. The first week involved tempting them out with treats to assosfiate us with positivity.

When they were chilled and enjoyed cuddles they were given treats, if they were still distressed after a short time to adjust they were put down.

Introducing rabbits can be a bigger by the way. Do it as soon as possible before she feels very territorial. Separate them if they fight.

We've owned 6 very happy, potty trained indoor rabbits. 2 pairs lived together, but the two very, very bossy girls would not share their space with anyone. The mistake we made with them is waiting until they were too old before bonding.

I'm sorry to go off topic. But can I enquiry as to the diet and treats they are being fed?
 
Dis86 said:
Lying down can be better. Brings you down to her level and stops you seeming like a big scary thing. Might also be worth maybe having some of your recently worn clothes near her cage/hutch or on top, just so she can really get used to your scent. Obv no sudden movements or loud noises around her. Don't approach her, have treats in an open hand and see if she approaches you. Once she's confident doing that then start grooming her etc.
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This is good advice.

Diddums said:
They're great with some thyme and garlic.
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I've had a lot of 'jokes' like this as a rabbit owner. Oddly I've not once been amused by them.
 
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