Bunny owners.......info needed

[Husky_mom]

I´ve had rabbits before, but it´s been an awful while now..........and apparently I might be getting one!!......hopefully the idea pull through and gets accoplished ;)

so I wanted to know from our PT bunny owners any advice you can give.....

where I live you can find mostly only new zealand, some dwarfs (not sure which kind), some lops, and some giants (flanders, I guess flemish in english)

there are also not many rabbit-specialized stores, but just basics.....which will do fine, they even have a bunch of stuff you couldn´t find when i had my rabbits a way back.......

which breed do you think would be more suit for me, I want a rabbit that doesn´t gets spooked to easily and that it´s not aggressive, a rabbit that might like to cuddle and be nice to small kids (obviously under supervision)
one that is small-medium sized..........so giants are out (although i love them)

also one that won´tmind being handled........and also more willingly to use a leash....(I know taining is involved but one that has more predisposition to it)

also some food suggestions would be nice, I just now know carrots are not nice in big quantities.......also some tips as what foods to avoid would be awesome and well appreciated.

I won´t be getting the rabbit as of right now, but would like to know a few more things for when the day comes not be caught off guard.......

thanks, any further questions I´ll be adding later

[Kalei]

Hello! It's so great to hear that you may be getting a rabbit! I love rabbits so much, one of my favorite animals. I'll try to help you as best as I can. For small-medium sized holdable rabbit, I would get a smaller breed anywhere between a mini rex (which I find are very good with handling, I had one before that would even let you hold her up while she floated on her back in the bathtub water lol) or a mixed dwarf. Netherlands are very small and cute but I've seen some that can nip or not like being held.

Most rabbits though are skittish at first, ecspecially if you get one that hasn't been around humans much. It would be best to find one that has been around people and been handled before. The longer you have your rabbit and gain its trust though handling it, the better it will be with letting you hold it. So far my rabbit has never once tried to bite me (she is a dwarf/rex mix) and she lets me hold her very well. Some rabbits just have a personality that they don't like to cuddle. And then some do:) It really depends on how much time you spend with it.

Yes, Bunnies love carrots and carrots can be good for them, but only in small quantities. If they are fed too much carrot, their poo can turn to diarrhea which is very bad for bunnies to get. Ecspecially slowly introduce carrots if they rabbit is still a baby between 4-6 months. Rabbits also should always have hay available to them, the best kind of hay for them is a mixture of Timothy and Alfalfa hay (aka Farm hay:)) and rabbits can also have pellets too, although pellets are not needed. My rabbit loves pellets and I give her a good brand called Martin (which also is suppose to reduce the smell of their urine). Rabbits can eat alot of vegetables, but not in major quantities, for instance green veggies should be fed in little amounts or else they will get diarrhea because they have such sensitive stomachs. I can't really think of any veggies not to feed rabbits at the moment. Buttercup will be good at that one:)

Dont' feed a rabbit milk (lol I will say that much about what not to feed)

Well that's all I can think of right now. Also once the rabbit is between 5-6 months it is best to get it spayed/neutered. Rabbits gets cancer once they get a certain age because of their urinary track which is why alot of rabbits die at the ages of 2-5, which most bunnies can live to be 10-15 if they are spayed/neutered and well looked after:)

Well I hope I helped you! And if you get a bunny you should so show us some pictures! Rabbits are too cute! Best of luck with your bunny!:D

[Husky_mom]

thanks for the info......

alfalfa is the same for horses??......and timothy I never heard of, but maybe is just the translation :P.......I saw some in the internet at petsmart......sooo
which brand is good and how many does it lasts?. how much do you give the rabbit at once? how many times a day?......

I thought about buying it from there maybe so I need to know which one is good and durability so I can bring home plenty to last.......alfalfa i can find here.......

I´ve seen also some pelleted food but brandless, so not sure what it has on it....

[Kalei]

No problem!:) Yeah Alfalfa is the same as horse use. I use the exact same hay for my rabbit that my friend's horse eats, which is mostly alfalfa, yeah timothy isn't usually a brand, how I could describe it is ..Straw! Timothy hay is the harder straw type hay and alfalfa is the softer greener hay. I honestly don't use a brand name hay for my rabbit, I just use what the horse eats which is a mixture between straw and alfalfa, its what just comes right out of a farm field:)

For pellets, Martin is a very good brand name. I'm not sure what pet stores you have by you, but I always find it in a Pet's Unlimited and Shu-Gain.

For my rabbit with hay I always have hay available for her. Whenever she is finished some hay, I make sure to put a bunch for in. For pellets I fill a bowl the size of a small soup bowl up in the morning and by the afternoon she has it finished. I leave it empty again until night time, and then by the morning it usually is gone. That way she isn't getting too much fat (pellets carry more fat, where hay does not) but still getting the nutrients and fat she needs out of the pellets.

I always find brandless pellets in grocery stores, and I bought it but didn't feed her as much of it, if you have the brandless, only feed a small bowl a day and that's it. The most of rabbits nutrients and food comes from hay. The hay I bought before was brand name called Timothy Hay specifically. So see if you can find that. I hope you all the good luck with your bunny and getting food, sounds like you don't have too many brand name products down in your stores. Hopefully you'll find some, or find the Martin brand of pellets.

:) Keep us updated!

[Karen]

Go to http://rabbit.org - it has all the information you'll need about food, training, etc. Leash-training, being held - that has a lot to do with training. I started the day we got Miss Hoppy, and picked her up and held her nearly every day when she was little. Paul did not. To this day, when I am holding her, she's fine and calm, when he's holding her, she's anxious and waiting for it to be over.

It is important that your bunny be spayed or neutered, both for behavioral and for health reasons.

Miss Hoppy does not eat pellets. Ever. At all. Does not regard them as food. So she lives on greens (parsley, dandelion, dill, etc.) and hay - timothy hay. "Timothy" is not a brand, it is a specific kind of hay. Baby bunnies need alfalfa hay, which has more calcium, but once full grown, the extra calcium in alfalfa isn't needed, and can cause problems. She gets carrots, but sparingly, as they are fattening, and of course gets treats and her three raisins every night.


We didn't have access to a harness and leash when she was little, so that's a no-go with her. She's too concerned that that thing is mussing up her fur, so doesn't hop around. At all. Even if I tug. So she gets to hop around outdoors only under supervision, but never on a leash.

[Husky_mom]

thanks again, and thanks for the link......:)

just the other day I saw a cute bunny.....(not that hard huh?) well this one was different, he was more of an upright bunny (which i looked for and looks like a brittania petite, but not sure he was, same silver martin colored) very cute and curious and standing tall, I thought it was a mix with a hare because most every other bunny was more bunny looking, more puff ball, you know....... and he was so cute but I still need to know more adn get him his habitat and food and all........(I´ve had before but it never hurts to know more)

as I read somewhere a while ago "I don´t study to know more, I study to ignore less"

[buttercup132]

which breed do you think would be more suit for me, I want a rabbit that doesn´t gets spooked to easily and that it´s not aggressive, a rabbit that might like to cuddle and be nice to small kids (obviously under supervision)
one that is small-medium sized..........so giants are out (although i love them)



It's not usually a certain breed that isn't skittesh or anything just some need to be worked with more then others. If you don't want a agressive bunny, socialize socialize socialize! And get that bunny fixed once it's old enough. Stay away from any dwarfs as they are deffinatly moody rabbits even when fixed and are not a good bunny to have with kids. I would go with a Lop if I were you they are usually always so sweet and love to be cuddled although don't be surprised if it dosen't as most bunnies don't especially right away. A Lop also fits your size description so long as you stick with the smaller breeds of them like Holland Lops.



also one that won't mind being handled........and also more willingly to use a leash....(I know taining is involved but one that has more predisposition to it)


Again no breed will do this it all takes traning and your bunny trusting you. Start by just putting the harness on the bunny and let him/her hop around with it on. I can give you sites on leash training or you can look back on my posts.



also some food suggestions would be nice, I just now know carrots are not nice in big quantities.......also some tips as what foods to avoid would be awesome and well appreciated.

No veggies until bunny is 6 months as their mune system is not yet developed enough for such watery foods. When bunny is 6 months slowly introduce veggies starting with dark greens (they are best for them) I would again recomend going back to look for old threads because there are a few about what veggies to feed and not feed. Fruits are ok but shouldn't be givin in big quantities. As for general food as a baby until about 4 months bunny should be getting Alfalfa hay , after that switch to Timothy hay (It's like puppy and kitten food if you feed a adult dog or cat baby food they will get fat, same applies for rabbits) They need hay available 24/7. Pellets make sure they are Timothy hay pellets (even as a baby as long as it has alfalfa loose hay ) Once they can have veggies I always recomend no pellets as they were made to feed meat rabbits etc because obviously they arent going to get fresh veggies and hay for those bunnies. When you get bunny ask the pet store or breeder who ever for some of their food that they are eating and change them over to the brand of pellets you have.

Here's some past threads on bunnies

http://petoftheday.com/talk/showthread.php?t=118303

http://petoftheday.com/talk/showthread.php?t=118364

Here's a leash training site

http://www.rabbitagility.com/trainingarticles.php

Any other questions feel free to pm me:)

[Suki Wingy]

I didn't read everyone else's posts but I will say, looks like you don't want a dwarf! In all my expreience, they're more skiddish and don't like to be held by kids, or anyone that's not really calm. Oslo likes to sit on my shoulders though.

[Husky_mom]

Thanks you both!!......

actually I know not all bunnies can be generalized.......in the past whe I was a kid me and my cousin bought rabbits same place same breed.......mine has just too adrorable.......and hers.........well.......got very very aggressive........but I think it´s just like dogs........training and socialization......(which i intend to do ;))

I love lops.........I´ve always wanted one......

about kid handling bunny......I won´t leave unattended cause I know how kids pick up bunnies/kitties/puppies.......that´s why I also "trained" my kid to not be one of those that chokes them or picks the by the tail/ears......

most bunnies are on pellets were you buy them....so I switch to alfalfa from that day or still give pellets while introducing it and then make a full switch......

I can´t wait to get my bunny!!!!........

ooh one other thing, I´ve seen they use water dishes but I wnat to get a water bottle, do they need to get used to that and how can I make the change more easily (I don´t wanna make him think he has no water source)

[Marigold2]

I just adopted another bunny from a resuce group. I didn't care what kind, I just wanted to give a bun a home and a friend for Benny. I find the best place for rabbit info is the house rabbit society. They have a website. Also they should have timothey hay, not alfalfa as it is too rich for their system. Good luck.

[buttercup132]

I just adopted another bunny from a resuce group. I didn't care what kind, I just wanted to give a bun a home and a friend for Benny. I find the best place for rabbit info is the house rabbit society. They have a website. Also they should have timothey hay, not alfalfa as it is too rich for their system. Good luck.Actually as babies they need it and the houserabbitsociety has been posted already.;) (I added the wink it looked rude without it lol)

[Suki Wingy]

most buns won't swich to bottles at all. Oslo wouldn't.