Bunny is bored? Pooping where he shouldn't? Becomes very "long"?

[kirbyultra]

I have a webcam on my bunny so I can monitor what he does while I'm at work. Some daysI have to work longer hours and I can't bare to not see him... but it seems like when I'm not home he just sits there. Sometimes he'll sleep in the top 2 levels of his 3-level condo. Sometimes he'll sleep in his favorite corner of his play pen.

He always has access to his play pen and we gave him a bunch of bunny safe toys. But he never really seemed interested in the toys. He really only munches on the busybunny tent we got him. When I come home it takes him a little while to warm up to me. He doesn't always want to play but he will come outside of his pen to hang out for short periods of time. If I sit at my computer [times are bad, I have to work a lot from home too... ] then he goes back into his play pen and sits there again. He often sits in the chicken hen stance (you know the one where he becomes a puddle of fluffy fat, legs tucked away!).

Is my bunny bored? Am I not giving him enough attention? There'll be days when I'll spend all night with him and he doesn't seem all too interested in me... He is a very sweet bunny though when he wants to be. And he's always excited when it's papaya tablet time or fresh lettuce feeding time. What should I do...?

When he comes out of his play pen he "investigates" the area daily. He stretches himself super long (almost twice his normal length) and peeks around with his head bobbing a bit. He isn't as comfy with my husband and I keep telling my hubby he has to try to hand feed him because that's when bunny is most willing to come over. Bunny'll streeeetch to grab a piece of lettuce and then pop his head back towards his hind legs to eat in safe distance. Do all bunnies do this sorta stretching? He also does a biiiig stretch after a nap, with his mouth wide open and front and hind legs stretched in all directions. Looks just like a big human morning yawn... Is this normal?!

Also, I've been finding that on some random days he'll just poop 1 or 2 poops in some place that he knows he shouldn't be pooping. I got him about 5 weeks ago and he's always been a really good with the litter box. What I did notice finally was that I vacuumed his condo & play pen yesterday and since then he's been laying a few poops here and there. Is he re-marking his territory after I vacuumed up his spaces? He doesn't ever pee outside of his pen at least. Just leaves me some cocoa puff surprises... :?

 

[pumpkinhead]

Is he neutered? The pooping-in-random-places behaviour can be a sign he's entering teenagerdom. Some bunnies spray urine - I know Toby never did this, but he DID start leaving a few pellets all around his enclosure, every day I would sweep them up and the next day they would be back - I think its a territory marking thing. He was neutered a week ago, and already he has stopped doing this. He now is back to leaving the neatest pile of bunny poop in his litter tray and none elsewhere.

Toby also stretches in the morning when I go in to see him and occasionally at other times, I think that's pretty normal.

The inactivity during the day - well, remember bunnies are prey animals, and like deer and many other prey animals they are most active at dusk and dawn. The rest of the day, in the wild, bunnies stay out of sight and (hopefully) out of mind of the more active predators. So although some bunnies are quite active, it's not alarming if he is more sedate during the day and at night.

If you're worried about him being bored, it might be worth considering adding another bunny (after he's neutered of course, if he's not already). Nothing provides more stimulation than having a friend to clown around with, and if your patient with the bonding process you can make two bunnies happy.

 

[Maureen Las]

Rabbits are generally more active when they have a companion rabbit.

If he is neutered you could consider getting him a companion.

Some rabbits are more active than others. for ex. a few of my singles are very sedentary most of the time and few others are always tearing up boxes, shredding paper or willow baskets etc.
I have noted that when I have bonded pairs they seem happiest.

Sounds like you are a great bunny parent so I would not be too concerned if he is quiet as you seem to be giving him every opportunity to bond with you.
You have not had him very long. 5 weeks is not a long time for a rabbit to adjust so you may also note changes in time. He may never have had as much room as he has now and needs to learn what to do with it.


http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=12433&forum_id=17

http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=33995&forum_id=17

http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=12051&forum_id=17

 

[kirbyultra]

Kirby is neutered. He is 2 years old and been with me for just the 5 weeks I mentioned. I only know that he was an outdoor rabbit which is probably why he's not used to the space, the constantly hovering human mommy, etc. I live in an apt in NYC, so I don't know if getting a bunny friend for Kirby will be a good idea -- does another bunny mean they will need more space? And if I get him a companion but they end up not getting along then I'll have to have 2 separate rabbit spaces right? :shock:Yikes...

I do want my sweet bunny to be happy though. I wish I knew better what conditions he lived in so I could understand him better. The rescue shelter I took him home from said he was skiddish and generally more careful than the average bunny. He races for the cage whenI sneak up on him by accident (now when I come home I call out his name from afar so he knows I am home...) or if my husband approaches, he will also bolt. I read some of the articles angieluv posted and I didn't realize that some bunnies were even more nervous than mine. Kirby will at least let me pet him endlessly. He just refuses to sit on my lap... I don't know if I'd consider him bonded with me yet. We share a few lovely moments a week together, but most of the time I feed him andpet him and he lets me pet him and that's the extent of our blossoming relationship. :biggrin2:

I can give him toilet paper rolls with hay.. seems like a lot of people have agreed that their bunnies like it. I just have one question... toilet paper rolls have a small layer of glue on it... do I need to remove the gluey layer?

 

[Maureen Las]

I think that he is getting enough attention. None of my rabbits will stay in my lap. I have 7 rabbits

if he was an outdoor rabbit he is still adapting..just give it time.

you're a good bunny owner; I can tell by the things that you say...

rabbits all have different personalities.

some of my paper towel rolls have glue and some don't; I don't use the ones with the glue....

depends on the brand

 

[Maureen Las]

if you scroll down the forum to the library you will find the area where i took those links..it was under bunny behavior and nutrition ..very good links in that library

 

[kherrmann3]

Being lazy during the day is just a bunny being, well, a bunny. As mentioned before, they are prey animals and tend to hunker-down during the day. My guy tends to poo in random places as well. Are they the dry, not-stinky kind? Those are marking pellets. That's him saying, "This area is mine". He could be doing it because he is mad, too. It's hard to tell why rabbits do certain things. You have to base the answer off of the context of when the incident occurred. Does that make sense?

 

[kirst3buns]

I have a mini-lop who is about 2 right now. She is almost never very active, at least compared to her bondmate. She spends a good deal of time stretched out on her top level of her condo, especially during the day. She is a bit more active in the evening and morning. She will play with some toys, especially her very loud plastic baby keys. But she isn't as active as my other guy.

She also has almost perfect litter box habits but everynow and then I find a stray larger poo. Sometimes I think they may have just stuck in her foot when she hopped out of her litter box but I'm not sure. Your rabbit sounds pretty normal. Some just have higher activity levels than others I think. My other one is always "on". I think I have opposites living together.

 

[kirbyultra]

angieluv wrote:

I think that he is getting enough attention. None of my rabbits will stay in my lap. I have 7 rabbits

if he was an outdoor rabbit he is still adapting..just give it time.

you're a good bunny owner; I can tell by the things that you say...

rabbits all have different personalities.

some of my paper towel rolls have glue and some don't; I don't use the ones with the glue....

depends on the brand

Thanks angieluv Every week something happens and it makes me feel like I'm a terrible bunny mom. The extra encouragement is uplifting

So none of your 7 bunnies sit on your lap? Hmm. Kirby sat on my lap on the first night. And also when I was getting to know him at the rabbit rescue... I thought maybe I'm not handling him right? I have read everything I could on how to properly handle a rabbit but he's just too quick. I can pick him up and hold him in the air (briefly) but as soon as his feet feel a surface (like my body!) he kicks and away he goes. Sigh. I suppose he just doesn't like to be held. Weep. At least he lets me pet him and shower his little head with kisses...:biggrin2:

 

[juliew19673]

 

[juliew19673]

Your Bunny sounds so funny!

My Baxter! I notice on weekend will just "lay about" when he gets more "run around time" as I'm there to supervise. But during the morning, mid-day he basically just hangs "somewhat" out of his Nic pen (that is HUGE) but doesn't really go outside (he has access to a patio that has another pen that is open for him to "sunbathe" in [it does have a shade cover] or just to be able to have an out door area to enjoy, but he really only seems to enjoy it at "twilight time")..

So I think you bun, is being a BUN and you just need to figure out his schedule.. Isn't it funny that buns seem so simple - but individually they seem to have very specific desires?

You'll get it all figured out soon enough, just enjoy the journey (as well as Post about it!)..

 

[gentle giants]

I think you and he are both doing jsut fine. Because he was an outdoor bunny, it sounds like he probably is not used to being around people very much. Since he has had two years to be an outside bunny, and only five weeks to be a house bunny, it will probably take some time for him to get used to his new people and place. A lot of bunnies never do like being held, and some jsut need to get used to it. Until he is more comfortable with you and your husband, I would wait on the picking up and holding.

 

[kirbyultra]

If I can't pick him up, should I take home somewhere to let someone else cut his nails? They are starting to get long...

 

[gentle giants]

It is possible to trim the nails without lifting him up, actually. I have had to do this with some of my abused rabbits that can't stand to be handled. With him on a flat surface ( the floor will work) lean your body over him and lift one paw at a time slightly off the floor, just far enough to where you can see his nails, and then trim them that way. If he wants to take off and run away, try crooking your elbow over his face so his eyes are covered. I hope that makes sense, I alway have a hard time explaining that one-I'll have to have someone take pics of me doing thatone of these days, LOL.

 

[kirbyultra]

Hmm.. covering his eyes... you might be onto something. Let me try this and see if it calms him down at all. Thanks!

 

[kherrmann3]

kirbyultra wrote:

So none of your 7 bunnies sit on your lap? Hmm. Kirby sat on my lap on the first night. And also when I was getting to know him at the rabbit rescue... I thought maybe I'm not handling him right? I have read everything I could on how to properly handle a rabbit but he's just too quick. I can pick him up and hold him in the air (briefly) but as soon as his feet feel a surface (like my body!) he kicks and away he goes. Sigh. I suppose he just doesn't like to be held. Weep. At least he lets me pet him and shower his little head with kisses...

Toby doesn't like to be held, either. He will hop up onto the bed when he wants attention. Just leave him alone and let him come to you for attention, not only are they more responsive to being pet/kissed, but it's so adorable when they try to get your attention!

 

[ec]

I think one of the keys (as others have said) is letting the bunny come to you, rather than trying to make them do what you want - their need to escape is hard-wired.

My bun is no-nonsense when it comes to letting me know that she wants/needs attention. She often does a surprise jump onto my lap (and laptop!) when she's craving attention. The thing is, she also wants to investigate what's going on, so if i allow her to do that, she'll stay with me for a while. if I try to get her to lie down, she'll usually hop away. It has to be her decision, not mine. (I think this is true of all buns, really.)

I think that having a bun seek affection and attention is one of the loveliest things ever, because it's such a sign of trust.

And hey, it sounds like you're doing the right stuff, kirbyultra!

 

[maherwoman]

Ya know what I think? Buy him some toys he can throw around! Here are some of my babies' favorites (all of which you can buy at Petco and most pet stores)...

The Nut Knot Nibbler.

The Wagonwheel type toys and balls that have slots in them that buns can grab and toss with.

And the Small Animal Kingdom Rabbit Maze Ball.

Out of all my buns, those three are the most popular.

And, by the way, I think it's really awesome that you've set up your webcam so you can spy on him during the day! Wish I could do that!!