(Julian) Having to do some re-modling and going threw the chewing stage, need advice

[Aspen and Misty]

Well that bad old Julian boy is up to it again .He has chewed another hole in my closet carpet (2 hols in all). So, we are goign to be pulling that section of the capet up (hopefully). I don't want it to get into his little tummy wommy and make it upset. I'll be watchign him carefully this week to make sure it all passes ok and doesn't get bunched up and cause problems. I've een keepign the doors shut to the closet, I honestly have no idea how they got open, I didn't even go in my closet this mornign cause my clothes were in the dryer.

And we are now entering the Chewing stage I think. We've been giving him boxes and the chew sticks from the pet stores. He also has a Big wood pile to climb on and chew on and good things like that. is there anything else you think we need to do. As you can see he has already destroyed some of my carpet, and was chewing on my air conditioning cord. All the cords in my room are hiddin. Anuthing else we can do??


Ash

[wolfsoul]

I know how you feel Frisco chewed up all my good stuff I have blankets on the walls in my room, and he chewed huge holes through my horse one (which was better than him chewing through my wolf ones atleast )
So I give the rats rawhide chips every day. They are neat little things, actually meant for small dogs, but are quite small.

Sounds like you have everything covered!

You naughty boy Julian! You stop chewing your mommy's precious belongings!

[CathyBogart]

I went through this with my second rabbit. It sounds like you've got all the important stuff covered, so just keep up the good work!

[Daisylover]

What kind of "chew sticks from the pet store"? Please tell me you are not giving him the small rawhide ones meant for dogs. Those can make him very ill.

I'm sure you know that a rabbits teeth grow continually and the way they keep them trimmed down is by chewing. He can have unfinished blocks of wood or very heavy cardboard (make sure he doesn't swallow the cardboard-----have you seen the critter castle at www.bunnyluv.com? It's adorable!)

As far as your carpeting goes keeping the closet doors closed will help but if he decides to go after carpeting in another area of the room or house (usually in a corner) I have a trick for you.... Have your dad get a good sized piece of medium to heavy-weight plywood (2ftx 2ft?) and heavy duty staple a scrap piece of carpeting to it and lay it over the spot where Julian wants to dig or chew. Then when company comes you can whip it out of sight until they leave.

Another trouble spot is door molding. I tacked up a piece of scrap carpeting or a thin furring strip over the existing molding. That way the bunny can't get at the original wood.

And you are quite right, you do have to be very careful that the rabbit doesn't ingest the carpet fibers. You are doing the right thing by keeping a very close eye on him. If he starts not acting like himself, especially if he quits eating and doesn't move and/or, stays hunched up, get him to a vet immediately. That's a sign of gut stasis which can quickly kill a rabbit if left untreated.

Hope this info helps. Give Julian a high five for being such a charmer.

[Aspen and Misty]

Originally posted by Daisylover
What kind of "chew sticks from the pet store"? Please tell me you are not giving him the small rawhide ones meant for dogs. Those can make him very ill.

No. They are bird toys. They are all wood exept the clip that attaches to the cage.

Thanx for the idea about the carpet thing! And the door way thing!

I saw the castle thing. Good thing Julian isn't out here, he would be ordering it!

Ash

[Daisylover]

I forgot to tell you how to protect bunnies from chewing electrical cords.... you don't want to lose your airconditioning, computer, telephone or lamp cords! Also, it is possible for a bunny to get severe burns on his mouth or even be killed by chewing the cords so it is very important that all electrical cords be out of reach or bunny-proofed.

Two things you can do...1. measure all of you eletrical cords for their length from the base of the appliance to the outlet... go to the hardware store to the plumbing section and buy the correct length of clear or reinforced (with fibers) tubing. Have your dad cut along one edge with an exacto knife, then tuck the cords inside the tubing
2. you can buy hollow molding also in the hardware store that will cover the cords running from the wall to the outlet. Unfortunately this way leaves the length of cord between the base of the appliance and the wall exposed so it is not ideal.

The final thing is to make sure your bunnies have a lot of other things to chew on, toys to throw around.....when bunnies get bored then it is inevitiable that they get into all kinds of trouble.

[Aspen and Misty]

No need to worry. My room has been bunny proof since the day we got Julian. THe Airconditiong cord is usually ontop of the air conditoner and then tapped there. There was no way he could get to it. But I took the tap off the clean off the air conditioner and I put the cord back up there but forgot to tap it down. I never thought of the pip idea, althouhg it makes sense. All my cords are tapped to the walls and behind furniture so there is no way he could get to them, so no need to worry. As for thigns to chew on Julian has a large stack of wood in his room that he can Chew on and jump on and all that kind of good stuff He also has a set of car keys ment for babies, a mouse made for cats, and he has a Carrot thing that is made for bunnies. O and the bird toy which is attached to the side of the cage. he also gets a box or something fun like that to rip into shreds

Ash