Conan the Bunbarian & Xena Bunnier Princess

[Chrisdoc]

Haha, you´ll have a job claiming your spot back now.

I just love seeing them together, they´re almost conspiring now, you will definitely have to watch out.

 

[Troller]

Now I got the post bonding little issues to figure out. How to keep Xena from hogging all the fresh greens, or at least get Conan to be interested in them enough to eat them when I squirrel away some for him. Luckily for me them being the same size makes pellet distribution kind of easy.

 

[qtipthebun]

Say goodbye to your couch. Qtip is currently stretched out asleep on my--err, her couch. And she's only a minirex and is taking up a ridiculous amount of space. Wait until they start sleeping in the bed.

 

[Troller]

So its been a few quiet and wonderful days, and then of course my wild child struck. In the pet room there is a couch, on we're not that commited to but its anplace to sit and admire our wee ones. Well apparently Xena has burrowed a hole into its side and enjoys her little burrow...sigh. I noticed the damage yesterday, put a panel in front of it but she still managed to bypass it and get into her hole.

After nuch coaxing with treats I got her out but now I got a dilemna. My x pen panel is too short for one side and too long for two panels to be flush against the couch. NiC panels would be much the same as well. So now I got to wrack my head on a solution. Hell i'd let them have it, but I can't have them pee/poop and tear at the carpet but more importantly to have some safe spot against me

 

[JBun]

Our critters do find a way to get into trouble just when we think things are going so well

 

[PaGal]

I can't help it but find that just so funny. Could you post a pic. maybe we can help you come up with a solution.

 

[Troller]

Ill try to post a pic tomorrow while I'm cleaning. For now I tied the X Pen panel flush against the side of the couch using cord protector tube tied to the panel and the couch leg. If they're determined enough they could muscle the panel open but Xena is taking the other approach by chewing at the tube. No biggie, its a temporary measure until I figure something better out.

 

[Troller]

So my makeshift barrier to the inner recesses of the couch seemed to be working, only the fool I am I used the panel that actually had a door so Xena managed to open the door and almost got in but my wife spotted her and put a stop to it. Does Xena act contrite however, oh no she snorts and thumps in protest and chooses to sulk afterwards. Hilarious.

Bun are still bonded, though it looks like they have tiffs. Caught Xena lunging at Conan yerterday which took me by suprise but later sue was grooming him and they were lying together. She also chased him my wife reports and she says he took it very odd, like he himself was surprised. So I'm just chalking it up as a happy couple with occasional hiccups.

Here's the pics of my makeshift barrier by the by.

 

[Troller]

The hole

 

[Troller]

And the tie

 

[PaGal]

That is a tough one to figure out. Do they have somewhere in the room they can hide? Maybe a concrete form tunnel would help to distract her from the couch.

Do you have a piece of furniture or some such that you could place next to the couch that would block her from getting to it? Something heavy enough they could not push it away?

I have a wooden box that I placed over a section of carpet against the wall that Thumper would try digging and chewing.

 

[Troller]

The cage is in the room, plus there is at least two hidey places for the rabbits to be in if they should so choose. The issue really is that the buns will do what they're not supposed to and go where they're not supposed to because its the only things they're not allowed to do, if that makes sense. I can't block of the area either because the door is right there and the other side of the couch has a bookshelf blocking it so they won't dig there. So i'm stymied at the moment.

On another front, Xena truly is a lovable wild child. My wife adores her, but Xena has taken to chewing on her purses (my wife often leaves them on a chair with the strap dangling. Sometimes I'm able to catch it and move it but most times no), chewing on sole of her shoes, chewing on her pants and chewing on her toes. So much in fact Xena was doing it while she was wearing some of these articles and when my wife shoo'd her away she just binky'd all around her and tried again. It's funny how my wife loves her little trouble maker but gripes at me like I'm the cause. Oh well...


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[qtipthebun]

Any chance some of the bitter apple spray would work? Qtip loves it, but she's a weirdo. My dad uses hot sauce to deter his bun from chewing shoes.

 

[Troller]

I used soap on Conan for the curtains, it did seem to work but I haven't tried anything against Xena yet. I should start.

Here's my two trying to look all innocent.


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[PaGal]

If you are looking for a way to keep that there blocking the couch and want a better way to attach it then the cord protector, you could either buy some longer zip ties (they do sell them) or connect more than one zip tie together and go around the panel and the wood frame of the couch that is showing in the second pic. Or at least it looks possible to me from the pic.

Or you could place a piece of wood inside the hole in the couch to block access depending on what the couch is like underneath.

You could try a repellant of some sort. I know with Thumper nothing worked. He would still chew and I tried everything from bitter spray, to bar soap to extra hot sauce. he takes after his momma and likes spicy.

 

[Chrisdoc]

Have you thought of putting some plants in front of the gap you want to cover. I´m using them outside as it stops them chewing the wooden gate. I´ve bought basil and rosemary and they are now eating the plants instead of the gate. They do love eating the herbs directly from the plants and once they´ve eaten all the leaves, they do regrow and they can eat them again.

By the way, love the pics of the two lovebirds :love:

 

[Troller]

Plant won't work since there is no space. I tried to do a zip tie but it won't reach the couch leg and the only place I can do it is if I punch a whole in the fabric, something I can do but I'd just worry that they'd eventually chew the fabric and tear off the zip tie.

Now an odd thing came up yesterday. Here is a video the day before just hanging out having laying about eating. Well both of them were eating until Conan decided to just sit there and watch the video being taken.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RAsRjsgpWn4&feature=youtu.be

Yesterday I let them out the pet room where it looks like everything was normal. They come out, eat greens, hang out a bit and then get into a fight where they pull fur. They separated themselves eventually, or at my call, and have been standard bond since but I now have to watch out for flare ups. Oh well.

 

[Troller]

I had a truly gratifying pet moment today, but first let me set it up a little. My buns love my wife more, that's just the way it is and i accept that. They've been more timid around me ever since the bonding, and recently even more so because I had to do a few checks on them. I get it, I might be the guy who gives them food and treats but I'm also the guy who takes away their hard built hidey hole in the couch, rudely lifts them up to check on their health and chases them off of fun things or their house when its time to clean. I'm the bad guy while my wife is nothing but sunshine, pleasant talking, treat giving, pet happy heroine princess...

But today I come home and as I go to my bedroom Conan comes out to me. At first I think its because he wants to sneak into the no-bunny zone. I go to pet him, not intending to shoo him away just yet but i realize he's accepting my rubs. He lets me do it for a few moments, turns away to hop off and binkies away! Was this truly just a hi there you big lug glad to see you moment now back to my pellets moment i just had...I don't know but it really made my end of the day.


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[Chrisdoc]

I think he was really pleased to see and just wanted to make you feel good. I think they are quite timid creatures and mine particularly are very skittish, I think that´s a trait of the smaller buns but I think any sign of affection given from them makes me feel really good. Mine sometimes jump on the sofa when I´m working on the laptop or watching TV and just jump on me and then go. It´s not that much but always me feel so much better that they trust me enough to do that.

I did laugh at Conan in the video, they are a lovely couple.

 

[Troller]

So I've gone through four iterations of barriers to protect my pet room couch from these little destroyers, and all four have failed. It's amazing to me that they went from ignoring the couch for months to full on attacking it. Anyways I've finally folded and wrapped a NIC panel all along it. It's terribly hideous and my wife hates it but so far so good. Next step will be to try a microfiber cover (they fail trying to chew through it in the living room) and see what happens.


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