Harpmom,
Sounds like you and Twinkle are doing much better, congratulations! Is it not possible to give him food and water when he is not in his cage? Bunnies should get 2-4 hours of exercise outside their cage twice a day. A cage is not a natural environment and young buns are full of excess energy. If you are worried about him eating the furniture or electrical cords, the House Rabbit Soc now recommends portable puppy pens for bunnies instead of cages. (HRS also has tips on bunny-proofing your house). The fences come in diff heights, are made of metal, collapsible and have 8 sections so they stand alone. The smallest one will give a bunny about 5-6 ft of room to run around in. They are also less expensive than the average cage. I haul the fence around and let the buns outside or take it if we go to Grandpa's. The fence are really nice to have. By placing the fence to the front of his cage you expand the amount of room he has so he can be out in a room without supervision.

One last thought...You think he's about 9 mo. old and that he has alfalfa breath. Is that hay or pellets? Not that it really matters I guess but once bunnies reach 1 year they should be weaned off anything with alfalfa in it. Alfalfa is very high in calcium. Adult bunnies have stopped growing and no longer need the calcium. The excess gets excreted in their urine, leaving a white patch in the middle of their pee. This is a warning sign often overlooked by many people. In time the excess calcium can form crystals in the bladder and eventually turn in to bladder stones, very painful for the bunny. You want to switch Twinkle over to timothy hay that is soft and green. See nutrition link in wwww.rabbit.org. If your local pet stores don't sell timmy hay you can look at www.oxbowhay.com or americapetdiner.com. Pet stores in Michigan seem to sell only one brand which my guys refuse to eat (it's packaged by a well-known company). As I said timothy hay should be green and soft....what the stores are carrying has some green but is mostly brown and brittle, thus no nutrients.

Keep in touch and send us pictures!