I think my baby bunnies are STRESSED.

[CookieNCream]

Thanks!:mrsthumper:



They are really hungry right now (standing on their hind legs; I taught this yesterday morning with the old pellets and now whenever they want food they stand on their hind legs!)...but won't eat the new pellets!Do you really think I shouldn't give them the mini carrots?

My mom just got some banana. I might have to steal some for the bunnies...but can you feed them this when they are babies? If so, I'm going to have to pretend I'm eating it and smuggle some to Cookie&Cream.

 

[Haley]

They still wont touch the pellets? Are there poops in the litter box?

If there are poops, I would probably say just wait till tomorrow when you can get some different pellets and some hay. What kind of pellets are you giving them? Timothy pellets are the best. It shouldnt be anything with any colors/treats in them, those arent good for bunnies.

I would avoid the carrots. If there are no poops, maybe it would be good to give them a little bit of banana (and I mean very little, like1/4 inch slice or less). They just have to have something to eat or they'll go into GI stasis, but new veggies/fruits could give them diahrea and really hurt them if theyre this young.

 

[TinysMom]

Oh please don't give your bunnies carrots at this age. They look so young in the video you posted in the rabbitry section. Do you know how old they are?

If you knew personally their mama had carrots on a regular basis and they had them with her- it would be ok. But I tell folks to wait AT LEAST until the rabbits are three - six months before giving greens when I place rabbits in homes.

Why are you giving them new pellets? Are you unable to get the brand they're used to? Rabbit pellets should not be switched (especially at that young age) so abruptly. They need to have the old mixed with the new for several days...

Please let us know how they are continuing to do..

Peg

 

[CookieNCream]

Basically, when my mom bought them, the person who sold them gave her a big cup of pellets. After we were done with those we opened the new bag, not thinking, and foolishly so, that it wouldn't be a good idea.

I don't think my mom will approve of giving them new brand of pellets right now (stressed about $$$), but I WILL get some hay for them to eat.

So should I give them the banana?

 

[Haley]

Are there poops in the cage?

 

[CookieNCream]

Yeah, but I don't know if they are from today or yesterday.

But I did see three poops at the education center room that they occupied today. So yeah, they pooped.

 

[TinysMom]

Here is the problem - I'm guessing if they were bred on a farm or something - they've not had greens or fruits. I know I can't afford to feed my whole herd fresh fruits and greens (although they get it sometimes for treats).

Here is what I tell my new owners to be prepared to have on hand (and to call me if they have problems):

a. Hay
b. Oatmeal - the long cooking kind. In fact, when they get their bag of food from me - there is oatmeal mixed in with it. I always use oatmeal with all of my rabbits.
c. banana baby food
d. canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix- but pumpkin)
e. FLAVORED pedialyte (Walmart has their own brand that is under $3.00)

I would take some of the new pellets and some oatmeal (maybe 1/4oatmeal and 3/4 pellets) and mix it with a bit of the flavored pedialyte or banana baby food. Perhaps they can be enticed to eat the food if it has a flavor to it. If I used 1 tsp of pedialyte today - I'duse 3/4 tsp tomorrow and 1/2 tsp the day after - to wean them to the point of eating the food without the added flavoring.

If you absolutely wanted to give them treats...I'd use non-sugared cereals like maybe cheerios or something - and then only 2 or 3 AFTER they've eaten. I would not want to fill up their stomachs with cheerios.

The canned pumpkin is in case they start having diaherrea from the different water at your house or the different food - or if they goin to stasis. I'm fighting it right now with one rabbit and bless hisheart - today he ate about 1/3 cup of canned pumpkin mixed with pedialyte and has been having decent poops.

I take about 1 tablespoon of pumpkin and mix it up with 1 teaspoon(maybe 1 1/2 tsp) of the flavored pedialyte. I can syrgine it into them- but sometimes - once they realize they like it- I can put it in front of them and let them have it.

I hope this helps and doesn't confuse you too much - I'll try to check in here later to see if there are questions on my post..

Peg

 

[Haley]

Oh, and I merged this thread with your other one so people know the whole story about the food and everything. Hopes thats okay.

 

[naturestee]

And please don't feed them banana!It's really, really sugary and could easily cause diarrhea in a baby rabbit. Much worse than carrots. And Tinys mom is right, they look so young that you'll have to be careful about feeding them so you don't upset their stomachs.

As for hay, I'd recommend feeding timothy hay (or other grass hay) or both timothy and alfalfa. That way when they're older and shouldn't be eating alfalfa any more (makes them fat, it's best for baby rabbits only) they won't fuss about eating only timothy hay.

And do keep them at home and let them adjust to their new home. Education centers, pet stores, etc are very stressful for rabbits. The only reason you should take them out of your home for the next week or two is if they need vet care.

 

[CookieNCream]

Oh, I'm okay with merging =)



Good news! They ate some of the new pellets last night. I was reallyworried, so I put some food in my hand and put it into the cage. Cookie and Cream came and sniffed at it, and Cookie went away, but Cream started to eat. Then Cookie saw this and followed! Now, no more pellets left in their plate. YAY! :bunnydance:

I'm going to go to Petsmart today to get timothy hay. or should i get cubes? I'm still confused.

I'm also thinking of getting them this.What do you think?

Is there any other thing I should prepare? I didn't give them banana last night, and no carrots.

The two are active right now and alert (as they should be! *phew*), so I'm much less worried.

Thanks for all the help!

 

[TinysMom]

That toy would be great for them and I'm glad they ate. Just make sure they get the hay to help them in case the new food bothers them at all...

Things to look for are going to be:

sluggishness (hey - they will like to sleep 'cause they'll tire themselves out - but sluggishess is different - its sort of a "I just don't feel good..go away" type of thing

diaherrea

lack of poops



Peg

 

[CookieNCream]

TinysMom wrote:

Things to look for are going to be:

sluggishness (hey - they will like to sleep 'cause they'll tirethemselves out - but sluggishess is different - its sort of a "I justdon't feel good..go away" type of thing

Question! How many hours a day do bunnies usually sleep? In the weekdays I leave home at about 10:00 a.m. and come back pretty late this does mean they have more privacy, but they are stuck(?) in their cage the whole time.

 

[naturestee]

Rabbits are usually most active in the morning and evening, so it's okay if you're gone in the middle of th eday. They will play some, munch on hay, etc. as well as sleep during the day and night, so be sure to provide toys for them (checkout Bunny 101 for fun cheap ideas) and hay. Big cages help too, but that's not a concern at the moment because you just got them and it's too early to know how big they'll grow.

 

[CookieNCream]

i see! =) i'll go check out bunny 101 right now!

 

[Haley]

Thats great news that they ate!

That toy is fun for bunnies, mine have one Also, if they have any grass or straw mats, bunnies love those to chew on!

For hay and feeding info, check out this thread if you have time:http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=16340&forum_id=1It will explain the hay to you and what you should feed at what age(alfalfa v timothy). And with regards to the hay v cubes question,regular hay is best. It helps grind down their molar teeth, so get that if you can!

Good Luck! Youre doing great!

 

[CookieNCream]

they ate a lot today! and pooped a lot too!

we were cleaning the house today (vacumming and stuff) so we too the cage outside into the backyard. in the backyard my brother made a playpen with cardboard fences, and we put Cookie and Cream there. and they started eating those dry pine leavesand small bits ofdry leaves. is this okay? they did have some dry twigs before (cream loves those).

i still didn't get a chance to go the pet store. (with the housecleaning and play pen thing) i will be going in a few minutes to get them timothy hay.

the new pellet (which the bunniesdo eat now) is this.i read the back and it said something about alfalfa, so i want to get timothy hay.

thank you so much! i'm so glad i found this forum :thanks:



-edit-

btw, while the bunnies were playing in the pen, my brother and i cleaned up the cage a bit, picking up poop (there was a LOT more than i assumed because they had burried their poops). =)

 

[Spring]

That's fantastic to hear! My motto: pooping bunny = a happy bunny slave. Good appetite and lots of good poops is a wonderful thing! Maybe a bit of a pain to clean up, but hey!

It should befine for them to nibble on the leaves. Oh I've seen those pellets. Seem like a decent brand . I've found babies love to munch and play in hay, so when you do get it, it should be fun to watch them nose around it!

You are so welcome. If you ever think of a question, or are wondering about something, feel free to ask!

Also.. How are you liking the life of a bunny mommy? Aren't bunnies great? :wink

 

[NZminilops]

:goodjob Sounds like everything is going really well! Your bunnies are so little and cute, are you going to make any more you tube videos? I'd love to see them again.

It will be interesting to see how big they grow, and what sort of breed they might be.

 

[CookieNCream]

Thank you! They ate a lot today too,and I put a small cardboard box (used to store a camera) and Cookie and Cream love to hide in it!

The pet store was closed last night, so I went this morning. But they said that they are moving to a different location and therefore do not have much items in stock- they neither had the hay nor the nibbler! :X

I absolutely heart my bunnies! Last night our neighbors came to look at them. The lady was extremely worried about her black cat getting to them. :shock:

Sounds like Panther (the cat) has a history of eating bunnies:nonono:ughhh

From my other thread ('what breed are my babies?'), the best guess is that Cookie and Cream are Polish.

They are growing! I think they got a bit fat, too :tongutwo:. But they did get a lot of exercise yesterday!

My brother and I decided not to take them out of the cage for a week to stay away from giving them too much stress. We actually made a bet: the one to suggest taking them out first has to pay a dollar (hey, we are still kids with not much money). :bunny24

Thanks for all the help! For now they are eating lots of pellets and water, but hay might have to wait. :cry4:


-edit-

oh and letting everyone know that i DID take a LOT of videos/pictures but didnt have the time to upload them just yet. hopefully i can do so this week! ADORABLE pictures/vids!

 

[Spring]

I'll be waiting! I just can't get enough of these cuties!

It must be so hard restraining yourself from cuddling and picking up these guys! I'd be tempted to cuddle and hold Cookie and Cream all day!

Oh the cardboard box is good! It gives them some extra security too. I bet it's so fun watching them play together and running inside and outside of the box.

It sounds like they are adjusting very well. Maybe because of naughty Panther (he is outside, right?) not have the babies outside? Better to be safe than sorry!