Beach Bunnies

[Ape337]

ZRabbits wrote:

So sorry for the loss of your Rottie.  They are an excellent breed.  But then again, I'm prejudice to the working group.  The bigger, the stronger, the better. 

Thanks for sharing.

Love the pics of the bunnies.  Now I know what you mean by the fountain.

K

Thanks Karen, hubby and I were really not ready to lose him at 9.5 years old. My vet told me that Rotties are dying younger than mine now, usually to cancer. I hope to have another someday, when I have time again to train a puppy. He was such a friendly, loveable boy. My vet called him a big goof!

 

[Ape337]

Well, Humma and Faith had their first date today.....

Not bad, but not good either. Hubby and I put them in the bathroom together. It's a neutral place and with a lineolium floor we hoped that would throw them off a bit. We put them down at the same time and put a plate of greens in between them. They both ate merrily with each pausing a second to look toward the other and sniff.

The issue came when they were done eating. They both moved toward each other to take a closer look, and Humma chomped her face! Hubby immediately squirted him with the water bottle and they both froze for a few seconds. Faith didn't seem fazed by Humma's reaction. She approached him again and when he reached for her she flattened her chin on the floor and froze. Humma chomped again! Again the spray. They separated and ignored each other a minute or 2, then Faith went to find Humma again. Same result. She submitted, he chomped. He must not be biting hard bc I didn't see marks on her, but we were also very quick with the spray. He chomped her backside once too, then we decided to end the date. We gave both tasty hay for a minute, then separated them. The date was around 10 minutes.

Well, we will keep trying. I'm not experienced enough with rabbit bonding to now how bad this date was. They never actually fought so I think it's ok? I felt so sorry for Faith bc she was sooo submissive to Humma, and he chomped anyway....

 

[ZRabbits]

Poor Faith, what a sweetie. Maybe Humma is just a bit more nervous and is just telling her to back off? It's good it's just a warning and not a real bite? Like a warning nip you get from a scared or maybe a dominate bunny to back off? But after a while they kind of feel it's going to be alright?

Sorry, my first bonding experience was awful.

I would keep trying. Both of you are right there and the spray bottle seems to be working.

Faith is there for friendship. Maybe her sweet ways will in time sway Humma. Hoping it does.

BTW, love your set up. Truly impressive. Being noisy, I went to the Gallery (after reading another thread, lol) and looked you up. I love the set up for the plants as well. Sorry, laughed at the dirt digging.

K

 

[Ape337]

Haha! Trillian was a pistol! I kept trying to figure out how she managed to jump that wall hubby built. All the while she was opening the door and walking right in, smart bunny, dumb human!

Thanks @ the set up. I collect cacti and didn't want my buns to get pricked by thorns. The nastier members of my collection are well off the floor just in case anyone else gets in there.

IDK the cage just kept getting bigger! We were having so much fun building it. Funny part is, Humma has free run 24/7 so it didn't really need to be that big. But he likes jumping those levels, and he sleeps on the top shelf. Trillian used to sleep up there with him too, so maybe if Humma accepts Faith they will sleep there together.

You're not nosy, I poked through your blog :biggrin: that's what the online stuff is for right?

 

[Ape337]

Well, hubby and I have given up on trying to bond faith and Humma. They just don't like each other. It's ok they will just be kept apart. I only worry bc I know bunnies usually don't want to be alone. We'll see where that goes.

Humma has been getting introduced to the main part of the house. I trust him bc he doesn't chew hard wood like baseboards or hard toys so I wanted too see if he would have a go at the furniture. As I suspected he has no interest in furniture ( except sitting on it )! He has no taste for carpet either, except that it gives great traction for extra high speed racing, lol!! We are thrilled that he is able to come into the main areas of the house. My house is small, only 1 floor, 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and the hall, dining room, living room, and kitchen w/laundry room and pantry. Humma hates linoleum floors so he totally ignores the kitchen/laundry/pantry areas. I haven't let him in our bedroom yet, we will see. He is so fun, and is such a friendly, good natured rabbit. I just adore him!

Faith is a sweetie, but does chew everything so she can't be trusted yet. She's not a year old yet so she's still a baby. We taped the molding around the windows in her area bc she started munching. We used double sided tape, it's invisible, but it works!

I still feel sad that they are singles, but maybe in the future we can get them some partners.

 

[ZRabbits]

Sorry to hear Humma and Faith didn't bond. It happens.

Just curious though, why not have them bond to you and your husband. Kreacher and Dobby, who failed to bond together, are now very happy with their bonding time to me and my husband. They get all the affection they need from us. I don't know why it has to be another bunny. I thought the same, that two together wouldn't be lonely. We both work, we are not around ALL the time, but our bunnies are well adjusted and very content.

Just thinking out loud, sorry. lol

Wishing you luck finding bunny dates for Humma and Faith.

K

 

[Ape337]

Thanks Karen

I don't know, Humma had Trillian when I got him, but when she died he was really sad. He seemed to really perk up when Faith entered the house, but they just can't be together. Some of the info I've read suggests bunnies like a companion of their own kind. He's about 3.5 yrs old.. I feel a bond with Humma, he circles my feet, grooms me, and lets me give him a good scratching every day. I feel loved. I hope he knows it's mutual!

Faith is around 7-8 months old. She is still nervous around us since she was spayed in January. I don't really know what happened to her in her old house so she might have been traumatized. She was really affectionate before she was spayed but I think it was hormone driven behavoir. Hubby could hold her, she circled his feet grunting/honking, and she groomed him. Since her spay she refuses to be held and is jumpy and scary. She seems to be way less scared around me though. I feel like she will improve with time and maturity. I've read that rabbits don't really develop their personalities until after a year old, don't know if that's true or not. I don't think I would try bonding faith with another rabbit until she gets a bit older and more comfortable.

 

[ZRabbits]

Ape337 wrote:

Thanks Karen

I don't know, Humma had Trillian when I got him, but when she died he was really sad. He seemed to really perk up when Faith entered the house, but they just can't be together. Some of the info I've read suggests bunnies like a companion of their own kind. He's about 3.5 yrs old.. I feel a bond with Humma, he circles my feet, grooms me, and lets me give him a good scratching every day. I feel loved. I hope he knows it's mutual!

Faith is around 7-8 months old. She is still nervous around us since she was spayed in January. I don't really know what happened to her in her old house so she might have been traumatized. She was really affectionate before she was spayed but I think it was hormone driven behavoir. Hubby could hold her, she circled his feet grunting/honking, and she groomed him. Since her spay she refuses to be held and is jumpy and scary. She seems to be way less scared around me though. I feel like she will improve with time and maturity. I've read that rabbits don't really develop their personalities until after a year old, don't know if that's true or not. I don't think I would try bonding faith with another rabbit until she gets a bit older and more comfortable.

I have to agree with what you read about rabbits personalities really set in stone at 1 year old. Dobby and Kreacher next month will be 1 year old and just recently have matured and I can really see their different personalities shine through.

I think your wise to wait for Faith to hit that 1 year mark. Those teenage months, even though she's spayed still kind of linger. It did for my Dobby and Kreacher even after they were neutered at 4-1/2 months.

Lucky me though, get to go through the teenage months with Neville and Luna. Should be interesting. lol. But I had really good teachers with Dobby and Kreacher. And will be a little prepared. Also through Dobby and Kreacher, have found out how individual rabbits really are.

K

 

[Ape337]

Well I can't wait to see Faith's personality come out, she's already a sweet bunny.

And good luck with 2 teenagers at the same time! Whew!!

 

[Ape337]

Thought I'd update my little blog...

In late July we added Freckles to the household. He is one of the bunderground bunnies from Florida that were set to be euthanized due to space constraints. Fortunately everyone involved in the bunderground was able to transport these bunnies to their new owners and all were saved!
Freckles is probably the sweetest bunny I have ever met, and the most chronically ill bunny I've ever met. Idk what his life was like before, but I know he entered the shelter in mid-may 2012 and was neutered in late may. From there he was placed in a petco store in the adoption center. There was some sort of issue with petco so he was returned to the shelter at the exact same time that a bunch of other rabbits were coming in, hence the space issue.
Anyway he came to us around the 21st of July. Sweetest bunny evah! Extremely gentle and friendly, loves people, can be picked up, petted, and handled.
We've battled illness since he came to us, and still have no clear answers. Started with the typical small poos, and not eating cecotropes. Back and forth vet visits, then to a specialist in PA. She said he has cecal dysbiosis. She did attempt to fully explain the rabbit digestive tract to me and it's functioning, but it's rather complicated. I appreciated her attempt, but I would need to read it myself as I learn by seeing and writing.
Anyway after weeks of scares we are up to an elevated liver enzyme, weight loss, and anemia. Vet thinks might be a bleeding ulcer. So yesterday we started him on an antacid from the vet 2x a day. I've ordered some vitamins online for him as per vet request to boost his red blood count. He's still on a hay/critical care diet, no pellets, treats, or veggies. We've added alfalfa hay also to boost up his weight. He was only about 3.2 lbs to begin with, then dropped to 2.9 lbs in spite of no diet change. This morning we weighed him and he's back to 3 lbs thank goodness, and he is more active now. We're fighting like heck for this little guy for as long as he wants to. ray: