Few questions about bunnies

[frustratedlite]

might buy a rabbit soon... ive got some questions..
what (first)food should i give to the bunny when we go home?(sounds silly hehe)
can i just put the water in a (round-shaped)container? or the bunny may spill it?
should the cage be filled with hays?

i want the color of my bunny to be brown.. what other color can you recommend and why?

is it ok to leave the bunny on a cement floor? or shoudl they be in a carpet?

thanks for answering...

 

[polly]

You should give it the same food as it is already being given. Make sure you give it plenty of Hay as that is really important.

If you want to change the food you need to wean them over as they have very sensitive digestive systems.

The water needs to go in a ceramic bowl as anything light and they will flip it.

I would maybe give it a bit of carpet and have a hutch or build a NIC cage for it so it has a secure place to go if its scared.

There are many different colours of rabbits and they all have different personalities, as a pet i always pick the one that would stand out to me for its personality, but it is entirely your decision, if you go to the bunny blogs on here you will see all different types of rabbits, might give you an idea of what you like, there is also a bit in the info section with pictures of different breeds and what size they tend to get to.

Hope that helps

 

[frustratedlite]

thanks for answering.. it's a great help!

can i put the hay in a tray/container? or should i scatter it on the cage?
and also... won't the bunnies eat the newspapers/old phonebooks if i put it on their cage as their toy? hehe..

 

[TK Bunnies]

use hould us a heavy bowl hat's not to deep for there water, or a bottle. For food any heavy dish will do fine.

I don't pick rabbits for color. Any rabbit I pick has to have a specile attitude. It's got to have personality!! So you should chose your rabbit based on it's attitude, then you can llok at color.

My rabbits run freely around my room 24/7. My floor is carpet. I would say that carpet is better then cement or tile beacuse cement is a lot harder. But cement stays cool so it's a great place to for a bunny to lye in the summer when it's really warm. Since rabbits are sensitve to heat. And they slip alot on tile. Although you could give them alittle of every thing, but not all same. If you have a wood floor it'll be gone within a year, so I wouldn't try wood floors.

Oh once you get your new bun, make sure to post some pics of him!!

Hope was some help,

-TK

 

[TK Bunnies]

frustratedlite wrote:

thanks for answering.. it's a great help!

can i put the hay in a tray/container? or should i scatter it on the cage?
and also... won't the bunnies eat the newspapers/old phonebooks if i put it on their cage as their toy? hehe..

he he he he Oh they'll eat 'em!!!

One thing though, don't give your bun newspaper with colored print or pictures, some of the ink is bad for rabbits.

You could put your hay in a hay rack, but my rabbits just took the rack down and peed on it. :XI think you should try it, and if it doesn't work, then find anouther place to put it.

Make sure once you get him, to litter train him.

 

[Penna]

I have to give credit to you for looking for information before purchasing a rabbit.

I would stick to the brand that they give it wherever you purcahse your rabbit from. However, I use a brand called Kaytee from Pets Supplies Plus. It's around 29 cents on regular price per pound, but it does go on sale quite often for 16 cents a pound. So it is relativly cheap. But whatever brand you do buy, you just have to make sure it's fit for rabbits and has all the nutrients they need.

I personally like water bottles, but it really varies on the rabbit. Both of my buns LOVE water bowls, so they get both a water bottle and a water bowle. My Belle is really good about not knocking it over, but Maggie knocks it over constinently, so there are days when she only has a water bottle. Water bottles are great, but I think that rabbits get more water through water dishes. But that's just my opinion.

Rabbits need a very large supply of hay. To answer your questions in your other posts, I generally scatter hay in vaious plays of Maggie's cage, and in Belle's I have a Hay Rack.

For the bottom of Maggie's cage there's vinly flooring, which is pretty inexpensive, around ten dollars in the US.However for larger breeds it may be too slippery. I would suggest using a mix of both carpet and vinly flooring? As for Belle, her cage actually has bedding in it, but she'll be switching over to a NIC cage in the next few days even though she's only in there at night and has free run of the entire downstairs all day.

I would suggest building a NIC cage. They're VERY cheap, just as much as a regular cage would cost, and WAY bigger. Even if you don't have room for the cage to be very large, it can always be tall. That's what I did with Maggie's cage:

You can see a lot more pictures of similar cages here:

http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=15348&forum_id=21

Also, some rabbits will chew and digest the newspapers and phonebooks, and I don't think it's very safe. I suppose you just have to watch them to see how much they're digesting?

Here's a link toa list of really cool rabbit websites and different places here in the forum with awesome information about toys and whatnot:

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

I completely agree with TK, defintally littertrain your bun.

As for the color, it doesn't really affect their personalities, but I would suggest looking in to possibly adopting a rabbit from an animal shelter instead of buying one.

 

[frustratedlite]

thanks guys... weee..

so newspaper = no no.. but why is that i see newspapers in our member's photos of their bunnies?? hehe.. So, i will try water bowls first.. if not, then ill go for water bottles.. and btw, is it ok to have a plastic cage?

what can rabbits chew aside from woods?

sad to say, i cant build a NIC cage because my parents wont allow me...

we dont have a carpet here.. but can the door mats be an alternative??

how often do i need to change the hays?

 

[polly]

I have a couple of indoor cages that have plastic bottoms and then wire tops they are good for inddors.

Fresh hay everyday

Not sure about door mats the carpety ones should be ok but i wouldn't use a rough one.

I would never use newspaper in my rabbits hutches but then i was told all print was bad for them.

You can get lots of toys from petshops now for bunnies, but my bunnies favourite toy is a toilet roll tube filled with Hay and they can chew on it too. Also young branches from apple and pear trees and wood chews which you should be able to get in a petshop

 

[frustratedlite]

i think ill go with the toilet roll tube filled with hay since we have many toilet rolls here.. hehehe ill try to look for a (handy)cage... we dont have an apple and pear trees here.. :biggrin2:

 

[Penna]

Some rabbits won't chew on newspapers I suppose. But I still would just avoid it all together. That stinks that your parents won't let you build a NIC cage. Maybe talk to them about building aNIC cage like this one:

(Credits of the cage go to MsBinky) However this cage actually houses two rabbits, with two seperate cages, one on top another.

(Credits go to JadeIcing)


It is a bit small for a rabbit, but it is a lot better than a petstore cage. Talk to your parents about building a NIC cage that's taller. Just be careful, and if they say no accept it because we don't want them changing their mind about letting you get a bun.

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

polly wrote:

I would never use newspaper in my rabbits hutches but then i was told all print was bad for them.

Most newsprint is made with soy ink which is safe to ingest. However, if your rabbit is a big chewer then don't give them newpaper because the pigments used are not safe other than in small amounts.

I've used newpaper for years with no ill effects to any of my rabbits.

 

[frustratedlite]

my parents (add my brother) are not animal lovers.. thats why.. We have cats here but they want them to be disposed already.. coz they stinks... thats the main reason... well, do bunnies stinks also?? especially their feces? i mean is it strong that the whole place can smell? hehe how can we avoid it?

 

[~Bracon~]

Bunny poop dusnt smell that bad, no were near as bad as cat or dog poo. The cage might be a bit smelly sometimes thats why its a good idea to replace soiled bedding with fresh stuff. Compared to most animals I think rabbits are very clean.

 

[JadeIcing]

Well the cage by me was small for litter training purposes. Also do to your location somethings we use may not be available to you.

I think most covered the important points.

 

[undergunfire]

frustratedlite wrote:

my parents (add my brother) are not animal lovers.. thats why.. We have cats here but they want them to be disposed already.. coz they stinks... thats the main reason... well, do bunnies stinks also?? especially their feces? i mean is it strong that the whole place can smell? hehe how can we avoid it?

If your parents and your brother are not animal lovers and want to "dispose" of your cats, then maybe you should reconsider adding rabbits into your home :?. Rabbits CAN smell...if they aren't kept clean.

It truely will not work out, if the animals aren't getting respect.



Willyou be paying for the rabbit, the supplies, the food, ect? Do you or your family members have the $80 - $300 for the manditory spay/neuter of the rabbits? What happens if the bunny gets sick and needs to be rushed to the vet....will your family members rush you to the vet and/or pay for it?





I am not trying to pick on you. I am trying to look out for you and your future bunny. It will cause you and the bunny a lot of pain if your family members aren't supportive of your pet.

 

[Pipp]

I have bunnies who have chewed big chunks out of their hard plastic litter boxes :shock: so a plastic cage is definitely NOT a good idea.:biggrin2:

Newspaper is fine, mine all seem tohave a great time shredding it, it's one of their favourite pasttimes. Be prepared for a mess! I find that its easy to clean, though.

And agreed, they won't smell if the litter iskept clean. Actually, I'm not that great at contant cleaning, and I still don't thinkmine smell. (Well, only sometimes). I use wood pellets in the litter box (but not strong-smelling cedar or pine, they can be toxic).

Why not an NIC cage? They canbe built to take up less space.

Where do you buy rabbits in Singapore (out of curiosity?). Pet stores? Night markets? I think the local bunnies I've seen pics of are so cute!



sas

 

[undergunfire]

~Bracon~ wrote:

Compared to most animals I think rabbits are very clean.

Hahaha! You are right....SOME bunnies are very clean.

Did you see the mess Mallory and Madilyn made within about 24 hours AFTER I cleaned their cage ?

 

[frustratedlite]

undergunfire wrote:

frustratedlite wrote:

my parents (add my brother) are not animal lovers.. thats why.. We have cats here but they want them to be disposed already.. coz they stinks... thats the main reason... well, do bunnies stinks also?? especially their feces? i mean is it strong that the whole place can smell? hehe how can we avoid it?

If your parents and your brother are not animal lovers and want to "dispose" of your cats, then maybe you should reconsider adding rabbits into your home :?. Rabbits CAN smell...if they aren't kept clean.

It truely will not work out, if the animals aren't getting respect.



Willyou be paying for the rabbit, the supplies, the food, ect? Do you or your family members have the $80 - $300 for the manditory spay/neuter of the rabbits? What happens if the bunny gets sick and needs to be rushed to the vet....will your family members rush you to the vet and/or pay for it?





I am not trying to pick on you. I am trying to look out for you and your future bunny. It will cause you and the bunny a lot of pain if your family members aren't supportive of your pet.

Well said.. But i know, in time they would love the rabbit... :biggrin2::biggrin2::biggrin2: just like they loved our dog visitor... hehehe...

im really gonna prepare for this one.. so i guess there will be a delay in buying a bunny again..

 

[undergunfire]

im really gonna prepare for this one.. so i guess there will be a delay in buying a bunny again..

Did you have another bunny before? What happened to it?



I just want to be sure that your family is going to respect the rabbit . Rabbits can act very much like cats, in a sense. I hope that they won't want to "dispose" of the rabbit as well. They are very sensitive creatures that take a lot of work to care for.

Maybe before bringing a rabbit into the home, you could do yard/house work in/around the home to earn money to set aside incase of emergencies with the rabbit? It would also be wise to start saving now for a spay/neuter, if your parents will not pay for it.



I know that you are wanting to learn all that you can about rabbits before bringing one home (which I think is GREAT !), but I think you should print off some articles about rabbits for your family members to read....so they too, know what type of animal will be coming into the home . I know back when I had rabbits as a child, they didn't get all that they should have....due to family thinking they were "just rabbits".





If you would like us to gather some articles for you to print off and show your parents, then we could post some for you. Just let us know!

 

[frustratedlite]

as long as they are cute, they wont try to dispose it.. hope so.. hehe

what's spay/neuter? i read in the dictionary that it is to remove the ovary of an animal... for what?

my parents borrowed a bunny before.. when i was still a kid. i dont know for what... lolz.. But i wasnt so interested in that bunny because its not ours and its already big...

and oh, i still dont know where to find hays.. i dont think its available in our stores here.. hehe