All About Your Bunny!

[Katmais_mommy]

How old was your bun when you first got him/her? Was he'she a rescue? Is ita purebred or a mix? Do you keep it inside or outside? Has he'she had any health problems/scares?I'd love to hear everyone's stories!



-Molly

 

[Korr_and_Sophie]

I currently have 3 bunnies, but have had 5 total. I will do a bit about each one.

Korr was my first rabbit. I got him from a pet store, so I don't know his exact age, but he was probably 2-3 months old. He is now about 4.5 years old. He is a mix (not sure what though). I keep all my buns inside. He has never had any health issues.

Sophie was my second rabbit. I adopted her from the Humane Society, as she was estimated to be about 4 or 5 years when I got her. She was dwarf Hotot, maybe mixed with something. She developed head tilt for the first time about 2 years ago and recovered from that. About a year later, she got it again and I decided to have her PTS as she was not getting better. I had her for about 3 years.

Penelope was my third rabbit. I got her from a breeder when she was about 6 months old. She is a Lionhead (probably purebred). She has a few GI issues, but nothing too major and is otherwise healthy. She is about 3 years old now.

Sean was my fourth rabbit. I also adopted him form the Humane Society. He was a Giant Angora. He was estimated to be 2 years old when I got him. I think that he has some dental problems that lead to a weepy eye. He passed away in July 2009. I don't know the exact cause, but it might have been a blockage or something complicated by the medications for his eye.

Lillian is my fifth rabbit. She is a purebred Giant Angora who I got from a breeder. She is healthy. Her birthday is June 10, 2008 and I got her in Aug 2009. I don't think she was bred, but she might be gone to a few shows.

All my rabbits, except Sophie, have done rabbit agility. Penelope seems to really like it and Korr is getting better. Lillian likes it, but prefers to cuddle and hang out at events.

 

[~*sAbRiNa*~]

Sabrina was 8 weeks old when I got her from her breeder. She is a purebred Holland Lop but pet quality. She lives in my apartment with me and has free run of part of it. Her only health scare *knock on wood* was after her spay she had a bit of stasis. She loves to get into trouble and I often come home to find her in weird places or her phone book all over the floor in millions of pieces. She is a pretty crazy bunny but I wouldn't have it any other way! :bunnydance:

 

[BlueCamasRabbitry]

I will just answer about my first rabbit, Magic. hehe.

He was about 10 months old when I got him, and I guess you could say I 'rescued' him from my friend who had about 6 or 7 rabbits in a dog kennel. He is a Dutch/Holland Lop mix, and he lives in his cage in a shed, so it's outside, but blocked from elements and predators.

In October of 2008 he came down with GI Stasis and I wasn't sure if he was going to pull through, but luckily I was able to nurse him back to health!!

He's going to be about six years old in June (made up birthday) and I just realized that on my website I put his birthday as June 2005, which means he would have been born AFTER I already owned him...haha. I need to update my site anyway, so guess I'd better fix that.

Emily

 

[Amy27]

I have two rabbits Chase who is a mini rex and Little Bunny who is a lionhead. I got them both when they were about 8-12 weeks old I think. It has been so long now. I have had them for about 5 years. They have always lived inside.

Little Bunny had some GI issues and some issues from the anesthetic they gave her when she was spayed. Other then that she has been healthy. Chase has had some GI issues and bladder stone/sludge issues.

They are both a joy to have. Even when they go the bathroom on the floor, eat my carpet, or cost me thousands of dollars in vet bills. I am thankful to have them in my life.

 

[elrohwen]

I have one bunny, a male holland lop. I got him at 8 weeks old from a breeder. He's almost 1 year old now, and neutered. He lives in our house and has free range during the day (though he prefers to stay in his large "play area" until the evening when he comes to visit us). He hasn't had any health issues, though his eating did slow down a lot while we were away for a weekend and a pet sitter was watching him - scared me quite a bit! He turned out to be ok and ate like a champ the second we got home.

 

[missyscove]

We have two bunners, Fiona & Timmy.

In 2006 I convinced my mom that we needed a rabbit and she agreed. My brother was going off to college and the only other pets we had at the time were our two golden retrievers who were 10 years old. She really liked Dutch rabbits, from seeing them at fairs, etc. so I went online to find one at a shelter near us as the shelter where I volunteered didn't have any at the time.
We picked up our Miss Fiona Whiskers and have been in love ever since.
Two months later we decided that Fiona needed a friend. We took her into the shelter where I volunteer (with special permission from the ACT's there who usually don't let outside animals in) and she picked out our Mr. Timothy HoppyToes.
Soon the two were bonded, but only for a few months until they had a pretty big fight where Fiona got pretty cut up (though I'm pretty sure she started it) and we had to split them up. Because I went off to college soon after and my mom isn't entirely comfortable with the bonding process because she's not comfortable splitting up the fights, they've been in separate cages ever since though occasionally they get closely supervised playtimes together.
As for the rest of your questions...
They're both from shelters, which I think is the best deal because for $25 (the prices have since gone up) each we got an already altered rabbit who was already full grown so we could see their personalities, size, etc. Fiona looks to be pure Dutch. This forum couldn't definitively answer my what breed is my bunny thread for Timmy. Thanks to the forumgoers I learned he's a fawn member of the "cute as heck" breed.
We keep our buns inside (it gets hot enough inside during the LA summers, we'd never keep them outside) with their own air conditioner. They each have a 2x2x3 NIC cage of their very own and get out time in our hallway.
Fiona has a pretty chronic upper respiratory issue. She sneezes a lot, but not usually with too much discharge. When we first got her we took her in and she got some antibiotics that lessened it but didn't fix it entirely. We brought her back again maybe a year later for the same thing and then I got a job there last summer and ended up taking her in once again. This time we tried some anti-allergy meds but they also didn't really change anything. I've never ever heard Timmy sneeze though, so we're not all that concerned about it because she's certainly leading an otherwise happy life.
Other than that, and the one time Fiona ripped her nail out, they've been pretty much the picture of bunny health.

 

[juliew19673]

Love this thread and the stories that came from it...

Have one bun - Baxter! that was rescued from a friends front yard and given to me by my "screechy best friend" (she couldn't keep him as she is a "true" rescuer and will take in a possom (or "Opposum" depending where you live) - she always has some "foster" animal, that usually ends up at my apartment eventually if we can't find "it" a home.

He was about 4 months old (now 2.5 years old - wow, time flys)when I got him and just skin and bones, but no health problems, and he's never had one (always worry of the horrid "GI statis") :shock:.. Think he's an English hot-tot/rex mix (very soft in spots, but has spots down his spine and hips)? But would pin him at "alley-bun" some mixed backyard breed.

He's love the love of my life - always say he's a "cat/dog"... So smart and so loving.. Best pet ever!

 

[tinybun43]

I'll bite :biggrin2:.

In chronological order..

I got my first bunny at a state fair. I managed to coerce my friends mother into letting me bring him home with me. My parent's weren't thrilled. Snugglebunny only lasted a week. Looking back on the entire situation, he was probably only 4 weeks old when I brought him home. The stress of the entire situation and general lack of bunny knowledge on my part was what probably did it.

Then along came Rascal. Rascal was a dutch/dwarf mix who was somebunny that I really loved. I got him from the local SPCA when he was about 6 months old. I trained him to do rabbit agility and we even had an audition for Pet Star on animal planet. Unfortunately Rascal picked up a respiratory infection and passed away. He was such a special little bugger, I'll never forget him.

I got Tiny when he was about 6 months old. I got him at through a rescue. When he was a baby (hence the name Tiny), he was found with multiple infections, abscesses, and an upper respiratory infection. At the rescue, he was bonded to another male bun who had similar problems. They said since they both weren't going to make it, why not give them a bit of comfort. Well, Tiny made it but unfortunately the other bun didn't. Tiny is currently 8ish years old and he has been with me through everything. He acts like a puppy and loves to cuddle. However, throughout his life, he has gotten pretty sick. He's stopped eating multiple times for one reason or another (critical care does wonders!). He also has chronic Snuffles (which I suspect he picked up as a baby at the shelter..). Last year through I had a huuuuuge scare. Tiny was diagnosed with kidney failure, and they didn't think he was going to make it. Fortunately with intensive treatments, he pulled through and he's happily hopping throughout the house!

I just got Bentley less then a week ago. I got him from the local SPCA. He was very anti-social and was overpowered by his hormonal brother! He clearly wasn't going to get adopted, so I haaad to take him home! For the ripe price of $5.25 I was able to adopt Bentley and the shelter even neutered him for free! So far he's thriving on proper care and exercise. While he's not the most socialized, every day he becomes more and more affectionate :bunnydance:. No problems as of yet (and I hope none develop!)

 

[RandomWiktor]

My current bunnies...

Brindam (mixed breed female, presently 7 y.o.) was a baby when I got her, probably only about 10 weeks old. She was a rescue; I was documenting conditions in an animal hoarder's barn and had photographed her a week before with her sibling and mother living in a dog crate full of feces and suffering from eye infections. When I went back to get more photos, she was in the kennel with the corpses of her mom and sibling, nearly dead herself from a URI and infected eyes, so I brought her home. She needed eye care for three months to clear things up, and has somewhat limited vision in one eye as a result. She has an ex-pen downstairs that she sleeps in and stays in when weather is poor. When weather is good, she has an outdoor pen so she can graze and get fresh air.

Wendy (mini lop female) is of an unknown age; we've had her about three years. She was trapped in a neighborhood after being spotted as a stray in the middle of winter. They brought her to us and we looked for her owner, but no one ever claimed her. So, we kept her. Like Brindam, she has an ex-pen downstairs that she sleeps in and stays in when weather is poor. When weather is good, she has an outdoor pen so she can graze and get fresh air.

 

[hartleybun]

roxy is a black otter standard rex doe who gives the impression of being very timid. she is currently planning world domination. she lives with her second husbun, hartleybun. he is also a black otter standard rex. his hobbies are eating, destroying anything made of cardboard, binkies and sunbathing.

these lovely lagomorphs have their own bunnery complete with own garden. at night they are locked in. as befits bunnies of their status they have their own security team - brandy and whiskey chocolate labrador.

:bunnydance:

 

[katt]

oh fun. . .

okay, well first there is winnie

i got winnie shortly after my very first rabbit trixie had died. trixie died about 2 weeks after i sold the last of my breeding stock (i was a breeder, got out keeping only her for a pet). i was so upset with losing all rabbits from my world that a local breeder (and very close friend) told me to come over a pick out a new bunny. the funny thing is that i had originally owned winnie's grandparents, sold them to this breeder. she is a black mini lop, purebred, out of champion lines (she isn't bad looking herself), i got her at about 7 or 8 weeks old, and she will be 5 this july. winnie has had 2 major life scares. first she ate a ton of dark chocolate one year, but lived thru that. then about a year ago i almost lost her when she ate a deadly toxic plant that a lady at work had givin me (i had not researched it yet, and she managed to get ahold of it even though i put it out of her reach), i remember even the vet not knowing what to do, after 24 hours of touch and go, and pushing liquids, ect she started to act normal. she lives in the house completely free range (she is currently taking over my bed as we speak)

then there is toulouse. a memeber of the board runs a rescue here in michigan, made a post about needing foster homes. my roommate and i decided we could do that and 24 hours after "fostering" toulouse, he was ours for good. he looks like a mini lop or holland lop (i would guess mini lop), and i would guess he is a few years old. he is really my roommate's rabbit, as he is completely devoted to her. and has always been a fully healthy little man! lives in her bedroom in the house.

and you can't forget chaucer. he was about 6 weeks old when i got him. he is a purebred siamese satin. his owners are breeder friends of mine. they got 2 unwanted show satins dropped on them, one was a boy, and the other a girl, and those 2 unwanted bunnies turned into 11 with a litter of 9! chaucer was destined to be dinner for the family, but instead i grabbed him up and took him home to be bonded with winnie (which hasn't happened yet). chaucer also lives in the house, although he isn't free range yet. he is a health little man except a little OCD about things and beyond attatched to me (to a bad point, even has to have a peice of my clothing to sleep with or he freaks out)

 

[Katmais_mommy]

I have one bunny, and his name is Katmai. He's named after Katmai National Park in Alaska. Katmai has one brother and one sister from the same two parents.

I got him from a breeder when he was 6 weeks old. He was about the size of a large hamster. He is a mini rex/Lionhead mix. I only know this because I've met his mom and dad.

I know a lot of people keep their buns indoors and frown upon outdoor rabbits, BUT my bunny is in heaven in his little hutch. It's wood with a small area wired floor. His hide box is wood and for the winter, I put a small dog bed in it and filled it with hay. His hutch is also "heated". It's not hot but somewhat warm/room temperature.

On November 1st, 2009, Katmai was deathly ill. I didn't think he'd make it through the night, really. We took him to the MSPCA Angell Medical Center in Boston. $500 later, I took Katmai home and waited for the bloodwork and x-ray results. An hour later, we were called back to pick up his anti-biotics.

That night, I put him in a cage and kept him downstairs to keep an eye on him. He was so weak that he could barely sit up. He just kept falling over.
I put him in my sister's bedroom. I was so distraught that I didn't want him in my bedroom in case I found him dead the next morning. That's how sick he was.

The vet said he was suffering from muscle waste. That means that instead of his body metabolizing his food, it metabolized his own muscles. He was so skeletal. He weighed almost a POUND. He was lethargic and not himself. Normally, he's playful and jumpy. But that day, if you held him, he would just dangle. I cried and cried the whole day.

Three weeks later, his weight increased after feeding him a fatty pellet diet and snack sticks.

Now, he's a healthy 3-4 lb bunny and happy as ever. He's my life and totally worth $500, $1000, or even an arm or a leg

 

[bengal77]

Lily is my first and only bunny (so far!). She is about a year old and I got her from a rabbit rescue. She and her sister Clover had been surrendered to a local kill shelter. Lily had sore hocks and Clover was underweight (Lily's such a hog) and their hutch was literally crumbling around them. She is a mixed breed but after some research and excellent opinions from people on RO I believe that she is a Himalayan/Lop mix. She is kept inside on top of tile in a C&C cage (cubes and coroplast). It is a 2x3x2 with a 3 panel ledge and a step instead of a ramp. I also have an 11 panel Marshall small animal playpen attached to her cage so that she can come and go and run around during the day/evening.

Lily did have a slight health scare. I just had her spayed one week ago and while the operation went well and she's recovered completely the vet did find a mass in her uterus. We are having it biopsied and they should be able to tell us if it was cancer or a cyst (due to her age it is probably a cyst that would have become cancerous if left untreated) and if it was intact or if it penetrated the uterine wall.

 

[Raspberry82]

I got Max when he was 6 months old. I found him through an ad on craigs list that listed a bunny "free to good home, cage and all accessories included." The family had got him for their 5 yr old daughter to play with and breed! And he was a bad biter because of her treatment. So I couldn't leave him with an ignorant family like that and took him home that day. They had called him Bella right before I got him, then changed it to Max, so I kept the name since he'd been through enough confusion . It's a good name. Lots of love and patience later he is now a super sweet snuggle bun that rarely ever bites anyone and even pesters me if I don't pick him up and hold him, lol. In the 5 yrs I've had him he's been completely healthy thank goodness! But he rarely gets sweet treats.

When Max was about 3.5 yrs old, I got a 2nd bunny as a 2 month old baby girl mini lop from a local breeder. She was such a little darling and so sweet and good. I bonded her with Max once she was fixed and healed. They adored each other and were inseparable once they finally bonded. Unfortunately, when she was 6 months old, a freak accident caused her to pass away.

I'm glad I took Max home that day, though. He was a handful and sometimes made me want to pull my hair out, lol.. but he's my heart bunny and I wouldn't give him up for anything!

 

[Rabbit Hero]

Shino is a one-year-old mini satin. I got him when he was about 3 months old. He was such a tiny little thing...

I hadn't planned on buying a rabbit the day I did. I was just at the pet store to pick up some supplies in my preparations for a rabbit. I had fully intended to adopt from a shelter or rescue. While I was there some of the associates where cleaning the rabbit cages. I was angry because one of the workers (a very young girl who knew next to nothing) was picking up the baby rabbits incorrectly (by the scruff of the neck, they were kicking pretty fiercely and I kept having visions of a bunch of babies with broken backs). So I stuck around to make sure they would all be okay. They let a few out to run around while they cleaned and there was Shino, running around like mad, so happy to have some freedom. He immediately went to the girls display case and tried to jump in. Once the workers got him out he took a look at me and hopped right over. I walked away and he followed. He gave my leg a kiss and I was hooked. I went home with him an hour later.

I keep Him indoors and he is a semi-free range rabbit. He has had pasteurella (probably from the pet shop) and what turned out to be gas. Aside from that he is a very healthy bunny.

He has changed my life.

 

[funnybunnymummy]

I got Gus almost 6 months ago from a neighbour whose five-year-old daughter had grown bored withhim. He'd been trying to get rid of him for a few months (had an ad up on Craigslist, etc.) andwas ready to drop Gus at the local animal shelter because the family was going to Disneyland in less than a week! :X

I felt really bad for poor Gus. He was living in adirty, wire-bottomed cage in their garage pretty much 24/7 because they had two large dogs and he had a habit of chewing on things. Plus, as I later found out, he wasn't being fed properly. Poor guy!

So I offered to bunny-sit while they were on vacation with the possibility of keeping him (mynine-year-oldson loves bunnies and had been bugging me forever toget one). Of course, in that week, I fell in love with the bunny and I had to keep him. Hubby wasn't too keen on the idea of having a rabbit, but eventually he caved and now Gus has a forever home. :biggrin2:

Overall, Gus has been a pretty healthy rabbit. He has had a few bouts of gas, which I've learned to treat at home. He also sprained his foot about a month ago while we were away on vacation. But otherwise, he seemed to be a happy, healthy bunny!

Rue

 

[The-Family-O]

Katmais_mommy wrote:

How old was your bun when you first got him/her? Was he'she a rescue? Is ita purebred or a mix? Do you keep it inside or outside? Has he'she had any health problems/scares?I'd love to hear everyone's stories!



-Molly

This looks like fun!

I'm a pretty new owner of rabbits, kinda. I owned 3 other rabbits years ago (like over 10 years lol). But theses are the ones I have now, including our one who just passed, and the one I'm adopting on Friday:

*Reeses was our first Bun. We adopted her a few days before the beginning of the year. She is a Red Satin, about 2 yrs old, and she is an inside only bun. She was actually suppose to be snake food, and I took her before she had to go for that fate. She was really skittish in the beginning, but is warming up nicely. She adores my husband more than me, but that is OK He claims he doesn't like the rabbits, but I have pictures that prove otherwise, and he whines if Reeses isn't out lol. She has just recently started to binky. A lot. And I love it so much.

*Oreo and Pepper Ann are both Lion Heads, and were also adopted. Oreo is 3 yrs old and Pepper Ann is 2 yrs old. They are also inside only bunnies at this point. Their owner gave them to me because she was moving across the country and felt is best they went to live with someone else instead of traumatizing them. Pepper Ann is a skittish, and she doesn't like being held. Unfortunately at least once a month I have to pick her up to do her nails. She has just recently started allowing me to pet her a little bit. So that is nice. Oreo is my little poofy baby. He's a bit of a pain to catch, but if you do get him, he doesn't mind being held at all. he has a poopy butt problem, but I think it's mostly because he's a bit fat and fluffy lol. They are both hilarious when they're out, because they will both do what I have been referring as the 'binky olympics'. It's almost as if they're in competition with each other. I will have to get video one day!!

*Fred the BunBun was our 4th baby. I believe he was about 2 yrs old, mini satin and he had been an indoor bun as well. Unfortunately he just passed this passed weekend due to an underlying infection from a neuter gone wrong, compounded by pneumonia. He was actually my son's rabbit and Jade took care of him very well. We joked that Fred was a time share bun, mainly because I took care of him, so he was partly mine. Fred was more like a dog than a rabbit. He was very cute and funny. I really miss him, and I'm not looking forward to having to tell my son about his friend's passing I've ordered 2 memory books, a cremation necklace and a cremains box with a white rabbit on it for him. I know it won't ease the pain but hopefully in time it will help... Binky Free baby, we miss you so much!!!:rainbow:ink iris:

*Zoe will probably be our last rabbit for awhile. I pick him up on Friday, but I had the pleasure of meeting him last week. He is 3, indoor bun, Mini Lop. he is SO cute. He is trained to sit, stay, come, up, down, etc. I can't wait to have him here, cause he has totally stolen my heart. I will have to post more on him after he arrives. I can't wait!

 

[Erins Rabbits]

I currently have 11 Himalayans, 1 mini lop, and 2 champagnes. All are purebred, all live outside.

The champagnes were my original show rabbits. The Mini lops were the first breed I thought I was serious about. And the Himalayans are my current and final. They'll always be a constant in my rabbitry, because I LOVE them. So much. I can list the personalities of each and every one of them too, so don't get the notion that breeders don't get to know their rabbit's personalities. I can tell you that Jack won't eat in the evening without being taken out and held. I can tell you Tori is food oriented. Elton is disabled, but has the biggest personality, so bold and always staring at you, as if calculating what you are doing.

I won't go into detail about every one of them, but I've found my himmies are very alike in personality, with little quirks.

 

[Cutie Bunny62]

When i got my bunny she was newborn. Her parents were my bunnies. I raised her and yesterday she turned 1 year old. Her parents were a chocolate and brown dutch and a black and white dutch. So shes a purebred. I keep her inside some of the time, but when the weather's good she get to go outside.:bunnydance: