My bunny's behavior

[Marikristine]

Hi! Lately, my bunny has been behaving differently. He used to sleep by 6 in the morning then be active at around 7 in the evening. Now, he sleeps at 1 in the afternoon then be active at 8 in the evening. He has become a little aggressive, he likes to nibble my father and brother's legs. I'd like to know your ideas about this because I am pretty worried there might be something wrong with him. Though, I'm thinking it might be because he has not been neutered yet due to community quarantine. Also, my mother told me he sneezed multiple times this evening. I'm scared he might have some respiratory problems. Has this happened to your baby buns too? Thank you

 

[Apollo’s Slave]

I wouldn't be too worried about a change in sleeping patterns, my rabbit used to be really really active really early in the morning, but after a few months, he started adjusting to my routine a little more. Rabbits usually do sleep during the day and are awake at dawn and dusk. How old is he? Aggression could be prone to him not being neutered and he has a lot of hormones. And as for him sneezing, rabbits usually sneeze when dust gets in their little noses but if he sneezes more than twice in a row, there may be a problem. My rabbit sneezes every-so-often when he gets dust in his nose due to dusty hay. If he has any discharge in his nose (whether it be clear or milky sort of looking), it maybe that he has snuffles. Runny Nose & Eyes and Sneezing in Rabbits

 

[Marikristine]

I wouldn't be too worried about a change in sleeping patterns, my rabbit used to be really really active really early in the morning, but after a few months, he started adjusting to my routine a little more. Rabbits usually do sleep during the day and are awake at dawn and dusk. How old is he? Aggression could be prone to him not being neutered and he has a lot of hormones. And as for him sneezing, rabbits usually sneeze when dust gets in their little noses but if he sneezes more than twice in a row, there may be a problem. My rabbit sneezes every-so-often when he gets dust in his nose due to dusty hay. If he has any discharge in his nose (whether it be clear or milky sort of looking), it maybe that he has snuffles. Runny Nose & Eyes and Sneezing in Rabbits

What do you do when hay is dusty?

 

[helena]

What do you do when hay is dusty?

I would take some sort of sifter and shake the hay really well to get all the dusty stuff out. If that doesn't do it, you could buy some different hay.

 

[helena]

Hi! Lately, my bunny has been behaving differently. He used to sleep by 6 in the morning then be active at around 7 in the evening. Now, he sleeps at 1 in the afternoon then be active at 8 in the evening. He has become a little aggressive, he likes to nibble my father and brother's legs. I'd like to know your ideas about this because I am pretty worried there might be something wrong with him. Though, I'm thinking it might be because he has not been neutered yet due to community quarantine. Also, my mother told me he sneezed multiple times this evening. I'm scared he might have some respiratory problems. Has this happened to your baby buns too? Thank you

It is pretty normal for my bun to be active at 8-9-10pm, His sneezing could be due to dusty hay, and his aggression towards people could just be that he isn't neutered. Don't be too worried unless you see him in pain or flinching when you pet certain places.

 

[Marikristine]

Thank you for your reponses It might be just the hay. I'll try to swift the Timothy Hay I bought him. However, one thing I notice is he cannot dead bunny flop for a long time. I don't know if its just the noise or the heat, he used to do it before. I wonder if this is a sign of stress or just he isn't neutered? Thank you

 

[JazzPizzazz]

Has he just reached maturity? It could be that he has just become sexually mature. After reaching that stage, an unaltered buck will be constantly looking for a mate; consequently more on edge (not relaxed enough to flop).

 

[Marikristine]

Has he just reached maturity? It could be that he has just become sexually mature. After reaching that stage, an unaltered buck will be constantly looking for a mate; consequently more on edge (not relaxed enough to flop).

That's possible. He's 3 months old, is that mature? Do I need him to be neutered immediately? I am worried because he's been constantly shaking and not sleeping at all. He'll rest for awhile then he'll run towards my father/anyone at home and bite them in the legs. haha

 

[Apollo’s Slave]

That's possible. He's 3 months old, is that mature? Do I need him to be neutered immediately? I am worried because he's been constantly shaking and not sleeping at all. He'll rest for awhile then he'll run towards my father/anyone at home and bite them in the legs. haha

Ah okay. Sounds like getting to the teenage stage. I’d get him neutered and see if that makes a difference. I’ve found Apollo will nap for about 6 minutes, wake up, do something and nap again.

 

[Marikristine]

Ah okay. Sounds like getting to the teenage stage. I’d get him neutered and see if that makes a difference. I’ve found Apollo will nap for about 6 minutes, wake up, do something and nap again.

yeah that's exactly what he's doing. He'll nap for a few minutes (he won't flop at all) then wakes up and run towards us and bite. That means he on the teenage stage? I thought the constant shaking was because of respiratory infection. I have him check by a vet thru online consult yesterday and vet's initial assessment was respiratory infection. I want him to be neutered ASAP so I know whats really happening but there some clinics are close due to CoViD.

 

[Jas]

Hi! Lately, my bunny has been behaving differently. He used to sleep by 6 in the morning then be active at around 7 in the evening. Now, he sleeps at 1 in the afternoon then be active at 8 in the evening. He has become a little aggressive, he likes to nibble my father and brother's legs. I'd like to know your ideas about this because I am pretty worried there might be something wrong with him. Though, I'm thinking it might be because he has not been neutered yet due to community quarantine. Also, my mother told me he sneezed multiple times this evening. I'm scared he might have some respiratory problems. Has this happened to your baby buns too? Thank you

HI
Well change in sleep patterns is normal for bunnies. Looks like you have a New Zealand White. I have 2 of them and must be 3 months now. They sleep during the day and I never monitored the timings. May be they are too disturbed during the whole day due to noise in household. Try to put them in their cage and cover it with a piece of cloth so that its dark inside. Put Hay, Water and greens for them to nibble on as per requirement. I use timothy hay from USA and it has no dust and never observed my bunnies sneeze. Bunnies have habit of nibbling and digging at rugs, woods, plastic and so on. That's quite normal for them. Check if you hay really has dust. You can put a little bit in water and observe how dirty water becomes. Rabbits feed on grasses in the wild and dust is part of that. I don't think dust would be the reason for the sneeze. Is your Rabbits area close to kitchen? Do you have your kitchen exhaust really working? May be its the kitchen cooking that may be causing the sneeze. Try to shift them to another room away from Kitchen. My bunnies love to hide and rest behind my crockery closet in the kitchen. Just check if there is something that triggers the sneeze e.g. what time of the day? What activities are on when they sneeze? Are they in dusty environment or are there trees with lot of pollen?

 

[Diane R]

Hi, I noticed you are in the Philippines. You might want to join the Rabbit Lovers Philippines FB group - for advice on local hay supplies, rabbit vets, etc.

 

[Cashew]

Hi! Lately, my bunny has been behaving differently. He used to sleep by 6 in the morning then be active at around 7 in the evening. Now, he sleeps at 1 in the afternoon then be active at 8 in the evening. He has become a little aggressive, he likes to nibble my father and brother's legs. I'd like to know your ideas about this because I am pretty worried there might be something wrong with him. Though, I'm thinking it might be because he has not been neutered yet due to community quarantine. Also, my mother told me he sneezed multiple times this evening. I'm scared he might have some respiratory problems. Has this happened to your baby buns too? Thank you

I too very recently was having a lot of behavioral issues due to hormones and our bunny being 4 months old and needing to be neutered he was getting out of hand.one night I stayed up all night reading everything I could get my hands on and I started using vinegar water 50/50 solution spring it on to the things that he was being so naughty about especially when he was digging to get out of its cage he was constantly digging ruining things.I'm glad to say the vinegar water is working perfectly and his behavior has straightened up quite a bit.
Do the covid-19 are not able to get him in to to have the procedure done just yet. Had trouble finding a doctor finally found are humane society and a couple other bunny societies in our area that have doctors that do the procedure I'm waiting to get in meanwhile the vinegar water is helping.

 

[thevanguard6]

Sounds like a teenager. Yep. If you can put up with the aggression for a while, you could put off the neutering for 2 to 6 months. It's well worth being patient with him. That breed of rabbit is especially wonderful when they get older (in fact, I have one right here who looks very much like your bunny; he's waiting for me to go over and visit with him).

Not sure about the sneezing though. Is it drafty where he is? Do you live in a cold climate? Dusty hay is a possibility... maybe.

 

[Marikristine]

HI
Well change in sleep patterns is normal for bunnies. Looks like you have a New Zealand White. I have 2 of them and must be 3 months now. They sleep during the day and I never monitored the timings. May be they are too disturbed during the whole day due to noise in household. Try to put them in their cage and cover it with a piece of cloth so that its dark inside. Put Hay, Water and greens for them to nibble on as per requirement. I use timothy hay from USA and it has no dust and never observed my bunnies sneeze. Bunnies have habit of nibbling and digging at rugs, woods, plastic and so on. That's quite normal for them. Check if you hay really has dust. You can put a little bit in water and observe how dirty water becomes. Rabbits feed on grasses in the wild and dust is part of that. I don't think dust would be the reason for the sneeze. Is your Rabbits area close to kitchen? Do you have your kitchen exhaust really working? May be its the kitchen cooking that may be causing the sneeze. Try to shift them to another room away from Kitchen. My bunnies love to hide and rest behind my crockery closet in the kitchen. Just check if there is something that triggers the sneeze e.g. what time of the day? What activities are on when they sneeze? Are they in dusty environment or are there trees with lot of pollen?

I was thinking of it too that he may stress or disturbed of the noise in the household but whenever he feels super sleepy, he goes inside the bathroom and stay there for the whole day. I have a cage I bought a month ago before the lockdown however he outgrew it already. I'll try your suggestion by putting water in it. Regarding the sneeze, I have already consulted a vet and prescribed antibiotics for 7 days. My vet's initial diagnosis is Respiratory Infection. Thank you

 

[Marikristine]

Hi, I noticed you are in the Philippines. You might want to join the Rabbit Lovers Philippines FB group - for advice on local hay supplies, rabbit vets, etc.

Hi! Yes, I already joined the group as well as the Philippine Rabbit's Association Thank you

 

[Marikristine]

I too very recently was having a lot of behavioral issues due to hormones and our bunny being 4 months old and needing to be neutered he was getting out of hand.one night I stayed up all night reading everything I could get my hands on and I started using vinegar water 50/50 solution spring it on to the things that he was being so naughty about especially when he was digging to get out of its cage he was constantly digging ruining things.I'm glad to say the vinegar water is working perfectly and his behavior has straightened up quite a bit.
Do the covid-19 are not able to get him in to to have the procedure done just yet. Had trouble finding a doctor finally found are humane society and a couple other bunny societies in our area that have doctors that do the procedure I'm waiting to get in meanwhile the vinegar water is helping.

Me too! I badly wanting to go to a vet to have him neuter but can't go because of the enhance community quarantine :/ I'll try the vinegar trick! Thank you

 

[Marikristine]

Sounds like a teenager. Yep. If you can put up with the aggression for a while, you could put off the neutering for 2 to 6 months. It's well worth being patient with him. That breed of rabbit is especially wonderful when they get older (in fact, I have one right here who looks very much like your bunny; he's waiting for me to go over and visit with him).

Not sure about the sneezing though. Is it drafty where he is? Do you live in a cold climate? Dusty hay is a possibility... maybe.

I badly wanting to bring him to the vet and have him neuter but due to lockdown I cant bring him yet. They really are sweet <3 I love sooooo much We live here in Philippines and its summer here so its pretty hot. It may be the dusty hay, I'll try to put water on his hay next time Thank you

 

[Marikristine]

By the way, some said Alfafa hay is great for young bunnies, is it true? Thank you

Thank you guys for all your help! <3

 

[Marikristine]

My bunny wants to say hi and thank you all for your responses! <3