Help! My bunny is being a brat!

[iZombies]

Okay, so I adopted a new bunny about a month ago and got a brand-new cage for her. She's around 5-6 months old and going through the end (hopefully) of her adolescent stage. The cage is awesome and I'm very pleased with the things that came with it, especially the water bottle. Or at least I had been till my bunny broke it.
I'm sure most of you have gone through the hassle of the leaking "Ball" water bottles they commonly sell at the pet stores. I hate these, so I was super excited when I received This new type of bottle with my bunnies new cage. It worked the entire month without leaking once!...that is...until my little spoiled brat broke it last night and it started to gush water no matter what I did. I ran out this morning and bought a new (and the last) one they had at the store and it worked fine. That is until a few hours later I noticed this one was leaking as well, in the same spot, after she had played with it :twitch:. I turned and twisted it and now its not leaking anymore but I'm worried about when I go to work, what if she makes it leak again and runs out of water for several hours until I get home? I want another solution to these stupid bottles but I'm afraid to put just a water bowl in there as she will probably spill it!
Is there anything I can do?

P.S.- I say she's a brat lovingly. I call her bunnicula when she's naughty.

 

[Pipp]

Hey, welcome to RO! :welcome1

I hate water bottles so I use a heavy stone dish with a smooth, wide edge and wide base that's really hard to throw.
Like this one...

For the bunnies used to bottles, I hang the bottle above the dish.

Hope this helps!


sas :bunnydance:

 

[iZombies]

Thank you

That seems like a good idea!
Do you know of any general places I could find these?

 

[Pipp]

I find quite a few at garage sales and thrift shops -- a lot of craft class leftovers, former ashtrays, etc..

I keep hitting dollar stores hoping for something usable, but they don't make 'em like they used to!


sas :goodluck

 

[iZombies]

Hmm, so ashtrays are acceptable as well?
That would make it a little easier to find.

 

[Pipp]

Yeah, as long as its heavy, the base and lip are wide and the cig holder indents aren't too deep, they work great!

You can also find some in pet stores, but they're a lot more money (and rarely heavy enough for the really boisterous bunnies).

Here's one, but I'm not sure how heavy it is (in comparison to how strong and determined your bunny is):

http://www.carolinapetsupply.com/ca...id=389&zenid=0b4d1ccbcc60b87883d67aa0d9e00f1e

As a rule they can't get a good enough grip on them to make them much fun so they give up quick.

sas

 

[Pipp]

Here's another one...

http://www.westcoastpetsupply.com/2/Ethical-Stoneware-Pet-Dish:-3-to-5-inch/

Remember... Fat lips, heavy bottoms! (Sounds like a few friends of mine).


sas :bunnydance:

 

[iZombies]

Ah, I have one of those but I'm worried she'll knock it over.
She's very playful and very strong! She can jerk things right out of both my mother's and my hands!
I'll try it and hope for the best I guess :nerves1

 

[Pipp]

I'd cruise the thrift shops first.

My bunnies will cover theirs with hay (and sometimes poop), but they get changed everyday anyway. There's as much of a chance of a wet cage with the bowl as those stupid bottles, IMO. But try both at once. Let the bowl catch any drips from the bottle.


sas :bunnydance:

 

[iZombies]

Oh! That brings up more questions, if you don't mind?

 

[Pipp]

And yeah, my dwarf can throw a big cereal bowl a good foot or two. But if they're thick, round and/or smooth enough, she can't get her teeth on it.

I have one similar to the first one I posted that irks her to no end. She gave up after the first day.


sas :bunnydance:

 

[Pipp]

iZombies wrote:

Oh! That brings up more questions, if you don't mind?

Nope, that's what we're here for.

Fire away!


sas :bunnydance:

 

[iZombies]

Thanks!

Okay, first since we're already on the topic; Does it hurt the bunny in any way to have her bedding wet? She never sleeps by her bedding and is usually on the other side of the cage but I just wanted to know if the bedding being wet could be harmful?

Second: since I already have a bearded dragon, I feed my rabbit organic romaine lettuce as the beardie can't eat normal iceberg lettuce. Is this acceptable?

Third: I'm trying to leash train her so we can go outside and for the first time today I put it on her and let her run around for a bit with it on. How long to you think it will be till she and I could feel comfortable going outside? I feel like she gets very stressed out when I place the harness on and when I take it off because she panted and made a strange noise, is there anything I could do to help her relax? I gave her some lettuce right afterward to apologize and let her rest for a bit, was that good enough?



Also, I just placed the bowl I have in there with water and I'm seeing what she's going to do with it. The place I adopted her from had a bowl in with her instead of a bottle so I'm pretty sure she knows to drink from both.

 

[Pipp]

Wet bedding isn't good, nope.

Romaine is way better than iceberg.

Do you have a stretchy lead for the harness? That helps a lot. Some of my bunnies llike running with the harness, some don't, so its an individual thing.

Hopefully the bowl thing will work!

(Is that everything? Sorry, had to go feed somebunny!)


sas :bunnydance:

 

[iZombies]

Yes I have a stretchy lead ^.^

She seems to just pass it by but I hope she knows to drink from it :nerves1
(its everything, Thanks!)

 

[Pipp]

iZombies wrote:

She seems to just pass it by but I hope she knows to drink from it :nerves1
(its everything, Thanks!)

No worries there, she knows. I have a couple of rabbits I've NEVER seen drink. I think its more noticeable with the bottle because they have to fiddle with it so much to get a decent swig.


sas :bunnydance: