To start off, I've had Luna for a little over a month now. She's a rescued rabbit, a friend found her supposedly abandoned in the street in her cage surrounded by stray cats, and I offered to take her in. I have no idea what breed she is (she is my icon, if anyone could tell me though!), what age, what background, whether she's spayed or not and I'm not even entirely sure of her ***. Despite her situation, she's been outwardly friendly from the get go. Never aggressive, never nudges or bites, just a few thumps and a couple of nips here and there. She's never been afraid of anyone.
Despite being a bit tight on money, I immediately went to the pet store to get everything she might need, mainly a new cage, which admittedly is probably not as big as it could for her, but it's bigger than her awful old one. Bunny-proofing is also a difficult process right now, and since I'm living with family with some that are afraid of physically contacting animals, she's mostly in her cage. The only area I could give her access to outside her cage is my room, which is small and has a lot of things in it that I'd rather she not damage so I try not to let her reach that. There's also my dad's room which is pretty spacious and she likes running around in it, but I don't get a whole lot of opportunities to let her run around there. I'm not in my room the whole time, but I try to let her out 2-4 hours a day, but it's been difficult lately. I'll get to that later.
As for her diet, I didn't do enough research admittedly and just bought whatever seemed appeal enough at first. (Here's a picture of what I got) After a couple of days though I got her hay and relegated that brand food as occasional treats. It lasted about a month, now I give her the occasional fresh veggie or fruit. I'm being sure I'm not overfeeding her on the treats however, and give her unlimited hay.
I think she quickly settled in in her new home. Immediately started binking and flopping, a looot, even in her cage. She also liked pets, and always follows me around, mostly to try to lick and chew on my clothes though. She seemed very content at first. She also knows where to do her business and rarely poops outside her cage. The past week though she seems a bit more...upset? Barely flopping anymore (just loafing instead), barely binking, and the past few days she doesn't seem to like pets anymore. She also always seems to be begging something out of me, even outside her cage, despite giving her food, attention and toys to chew on. One peculiar thing is how she acts when getting food now, especially treats. Like a bit more wild and frantic with how she takes it and eats it. I don't think she's that hungry or anything though, since she does eat her hay, and a lot of it, so I suspect she just wants a lot of treats? And that's what the begging is for? I will also add I noticed this behavior start when I was all out of the brand food from before, so maybe it's got something to do with it?
She's also been drinking a lot more water recently. Before she drank about 200ML a day, now she drinks about 350ML. Her ears usually are very cold now, too. I'm guessing it has to do with the temperature, since I live in the middle east so it's obviously very hot here, especially with summer coming up, but we also always have the AC on, so my concern actually if it's actually too cold for her, than hot. Also I've been finding it difficult to let her run around in my room the past few days, because she's getting past every barrier I think of putting up, which leads to her trying to destroy my stuff, with today being the one day where her outside time was cut very short. I'll have to figure something out, without needing to completely make over my room.
I haven't taken her to a vet yet but I plan to, college has just been keeping me busy. Despite the behavior change however, she still seems healthy, still eating and pooping normally, with mainly the amount of water she's drinking the past few days being a concern. I'm curious if she grew to dislike me, but she still follows me around (though again, to lick and chew my clothes). I'm guessing she's bored, and I'm planning on giving her a potential partner to bond with once I can afford it, in both money and space I can provide them. I'm not looking for her affection, I just want her to be happy.
Sorry if this seems like a lot, I'm just a bit overwhelmed, but I love her and want the best for her. Thanks in advance for any help or advice.
Despite being a bit tight on money, I immediately went to the pet store to get everything she might need, mainly a new cage, which admittedly is probably not as big as it could for her, but it's bigger than her awful old one. Bunny-proofing is also a difficult process right now, and since I'm living with family with some that are afraid of physically contacting animals, she's mostly in her cage. The only area I could give her access to outside her cage is my room, which is small and has a lot of things in it that I'd rather she not damage so I try not to let her reach that. There's also my dad's room which is pretty spacious and she likes running around in it, but I don't get a whole lot of opportunities to let her run around there. I'm not in my room the whole time, but I try to let her out 2-4 hours a day, but it's been difficult lately. I'll get to that later.
As for her diet, I didn't do enough research admittedly and just bought whatever seemed appeal enough at first. (Here's a picture of what I got) After a couple of days though I got her hay and relegated that brand food as occasional treats. It lasted about a month, now I give her the occasional fresh veggie or fruit. I'm being sure I'm not overfeeding her on the treats however, and give her unlimited hay.
I think she quickly settled in in her new home. Immediately started binking and flopping, a looot, even in her cage. She also liked pets, and always follows me around, mostly to try to lick and chew on my clothes though. She seemed very content at first. She also knows where to do her business and rarely poops outside her cage. The past week though she seems a bit more...upset? Barely flopping anymore (just loafing instead), barely binking, and the past few days she doesn't seem to like pets anymore. She also always seems to be begging something out of me, even outside her cage, despite giving her food, attention and toys to chew on. One peculiar thing is how she acts when getting food now, especially treats. Like a bit more wild and frantic with how she takes it and eats it. I don't think she's that hungry or anything though, since she does eat her hay, and a lot of it, so I suspect she just wants a lot of treats? And that's what the begging is for? I will also add I noticed this behavior start when I was all out of the brand food from before, so maybe it's got something to do with it?
She's also been drinking a lot more water recently. Before she drank about 200ML a day, now she drinks about 350ML. Her ears usually are very cold now, too. I'm guessing it has to do with the temperature, since I live in the middle east so it's obviously very hot here, especially with summer coming up, but we also always have the AC on, so my concern actually if it's actually too cold for her, than hot. Also I've been finding it difficult to let her run around in my room the past few days, because she's getting past every barrier I think of putting up, which leads to her trying to destroy my stuff, with today being the one day where her outside time was cut very short. I'll have to figure something out, without needing to completely make over my room.
I haven't taken her to a vet yet but I plan to, college has just been keeping me busy. Despite the behavior change however, she still seems healthy, still eating and pooping normally, with mainly the amount of water she's drinking the past few days being a concern. I'm curious if she grew to dislike me, but she still follows me around (though again, to lick and chew my clothes). I'm guessing she's bored, and I'm planning on giving her a potential partner to bond with once I can afford it, in both money and space I can provide them. I'm not looking for her affection, I just want her to be happy.
Sorry if this seems like a lot, I'm just a bit overwhelmed, but I love her and want the best for her. Thanks in advance for any help or advice.
Last edited:
. Also, yes, some rabbits like to nibble at clothes!
