New first time bun Mom

[Gigi34]

Firstly, Hello amazing bun parents or aunts, uncles, siblings, hell even friends . I’d love to introduce myself aswell as my new baby rabbit Penny. I’m Gia and I have recently brought home a baby rabbit. (Today is day 4) Before conducting my own research I opted for trusting my local pet shop. ( my mistakes ) I want to say had I known rabbits needed to be with their mothers up until 8 weeks like I have been reading on this awesome site, I would have waited to pick Penny up. That said I am now searching for help making sure she is fully safe and as comfortable as possible. Aka desperately trying to apologize for essentially kidnapping her .

About me - 22, married, no kids, works from home full time and lives alone. I spend my entire day with penny except for when I use the restroom ( which is located next to her “room” ).


Penny- 5 weeks when I got her on august 21st *allegedly*, “American giant blue rabbit”, free roam now. Poops out the coco balls regularly. I did see one of those “ berry poops “. She is on a pellet / Timothy hay diet. Which was recommend by the same pet store ( who I am very disappointed in but somehow weirdly grateful for ). I was given benebac however I misplaced it on day one and I called the pet store who told me it wasn’t necessary.

While I understand I haven’t really asked a formal question, I’m looking for as much tips as possible pretty much to make her life amazing and healthy. ALL SUGGESTIONS are welcomed. ( seriously if you guys hate her cage plssss tell me to get rid of it because I will! ) Just want the best for her ya know .

 

[Apollo’s Slave]

Welcome to the forum!

my main tips would be to learn as much as possible about rabbit diet and GI stasis. Having a good rabbit-savvy vet on hand is also a major must-do. x

 

[SirLawrence]

She appears quite happy with her new arrangement! ☺ ☺

I find this site to be quick and to-the-point about rabbit care: The Bunny Lady

You'll find that rabbits have more personality that you could ever imagine, and can be difficult at times, but are more than worth it!

Welcome to you and little Penny! She's adorable!

 

[Gigi34]

Welcome to the forum!

my main tips would be to learn as much as possible about rabbit diet and GI stasis. Having a good rabbit-savvy vet on hand is also a major must-do. x

Ahhh okay so I’ll continue binge reading literally every post on here lol. Noted! Rabbit savvy vet. Thank you!!! Major

 

[Gigi34]

Welcome to the forum!

my main tips would be to learn as much as possible about rabbit diet and GI stasis. Having a good rabbit-savvy vet on hand is also a major must-do. x

Ahhh okay so I’ll continue binge reading literally every post on here lol. Noted! Rabbit savvy vet. Thank you!!! Major

 

[Gigi34]

She appears quite happy with her new arrangement! ☺ ☺

I find this site to be quick and to-the-point about rabbit care: The Bunny Lady

You'll find that rabbits have more personality that you could ever imagine, and can be difficult at times, but are more than worth it!

Welcome to you and little Penny! She's adorable!

Thank you so so much for the tips and warm welcome . Will give it a look as well. Yes! Lol she has been bossing me around it is actually so wild lol.

Penny also says thanks

 

[JBun]

Congratulations and welcome to RO!

That cage is perfectly fine as a base, since you let her free roam. You just want to make sure to rabbit proof, especially wires. Some rabbits aren't big chewers and will leave things alone, others will try and chew everything in sight.

https://rabbitsindoors.weebly.com/bunny-proofing.html
https://bunnyproof.com/
The most important thing to be well versed in with rabbits is diet and GI stasis, as Apollo's Slave pointed out. GI stasis is the most common health issue with rabbits. Having a prematurely weaned bunny will also make her vulnerable to digestive illness developing. So it's very important to keep to a strict diet, minimize stress, and closely monitor her eating and pooping, for these next few weeks in particular.

https://rabbit.org/gastrointestinal-stasis-the-silent-killer-2/
https://rabbit.org/vet-listings/
Good quality grass hay(no mold, no noxious weeds) like timothy, is one of the best things for good digestive and dental health in rabbits, including baby rabbits. You'll see some sites recommend feeding alfalfa hay to baby rabbits, but I find it can just cause problems down the line. Like a rabbit getting picky and not wanting to switch to a grass hay when they are an adult, or creating bladder/kidney issues from the high calcium content, to being too rich of a diet and causing excess cecals to be left uneaten. It's fine as a limited treat for baby rabbits, but a grass hay like timothy should be the primary hay source.

You basically want to make sure she's eating at least a pile of grass hay the size of her body, per day. You also don't want to make any sudden food changes with baby rabbits so as to not upset their digestive microbial balance. If she didn't have veggies in her previous place, then it's best to wait until she's about 12 weeks old before gradually introducing those. For the first week, pellets(brand and type) should stay the same as what she had before(provided they aren't causing serious health issues), then a gradual transition to whatever good quality pellet you decide to feed, can be made over a couple of weeks time.

You'll find checking a rabbits poop, to become second nature and a daily occurrence. It's one of the primary ways to know if something is off with your rabbit, by changes in their poop.

https://bunssb.org/bunnies/guide-bunny-poops/
Those are the basics. I also went over a lot of this info and other first time rabbit owner info, in more detail in this thread(link below).

https://www.rabbitsonline.net/threads/first-time-bunny-owner-any-help-appreciated.102492/
https://rabbitsindoors.weebly.com/bringing-your-rabbit-home.html

 

[Gigi34]

Congratulations and welcome to RO!

That cage is perfectly fine as a base, since you let her free roam. You just want to make sure to rabbit proof, especially wires. Some rabbits aren't big chewers and will leave things alone, others will try and chew everything in sight.

https://rabbitsindoors.weebly.com/bunny-proofing.html
https://bunnyproof.com/
The most important thing to be well versed in with rabbits is diet and GI stasis, as Apollo's Slave pointed out. GI stasis is the most common health issue with rabbits. Having a prematurely weaned bunny will also make her vulnerable to digestive illness developing. So it's very important to keep to a strict diet, minimize stress, and closely monitor her eating and pooping, for these next few weeks in particular.

https://rabbit.org/gastrointestinal-stasis-the-silent-killer-2/
https://rabbit.org/vet-listings/
Good quality grass hay(no mold, no noxious weeds) like timothy, is one of the best things for good digestive and dental health in rabbits, including baby rabbits. You'll see some sites recommend feeding alfalfa hay to baby rabbits, but I find it can just cause problems down the line. Like a rabbit getting picky and not wanting to switch to a grass hay when they are an adult, or creating bladder/kidney issues from the high calcium content, to being too rich of a diet and causing excess cecals to be left uneaten. It's fine as a limited treat for baby rabbits, but a grass hay like timothy should be the primary hay source.

You basically want to make sure she's eating at least a pile of grass hay the size of her body, per day. You also don't want to make any sudden food changes with baby rabbits so as to not upset their digestive microbial balance. If she didn't have veggies in her previous place, then it's best to wait until she's about 12 weeks old before gradually introducing those. For the first week, pellets(brand and type) should stay the same as what she had before(provided they aren't causing serious health issues), then a gradual transition to whatever good quality pellet you decide to feed, can be made over a couple of weeks time.

You'll find checking a rabbits poop, to become second nature and a daily occurrence. It's one of the primary ways to know if something is off with your rabbit, by changes in their poop.

https://bunssb.org/bunnies/guide-bunny-poops/
Those are the basics. I also went over a lot of this info and other first time rabbit owner info, in more detail in this thread(link below).

https://www.rabbitsonline.net/threads/first-time-bunny-owner-any-help-appreciated.102492/
https://rabbitsindoors.weebly.com/bringing-your-rabbit-home.html

Wow this was more informative than you can imagine! Thank you very much I will continue to read each link you provided.

Yes I figured I’d watch her and see if she’s a chewer, so far she has sniffed every cord and keeps it moving. But she is a baby still so I’m assuming her personality will change, considering today she was able to explore my closets plus bathroom with no initial hesitation opposed to yesterday when I had them completely Closed not to stress her with too many choices. - indecisive libra lol. She also is super comfy with my younger siblings who have stopped by twice just to stare at her lol. Thank you again!

 

[Blue eyes]

As others have noted, the cage size isn't much of an issue with a free roam bun. It is just serving as a "home base."

That said, however, I would suggest deciding whether you want to litter train her to a specific box OR have the whole cage base be a litter box. Right now the cage setup will likely just confuse her since there is loose bedding over the whole cage floor.

In order to litter train, it is best to have one litter box with a safe litter and topped with hay. The rest of the cage floor should be solid floor (no loose bedding). This makes it clear where she should go potty.

The corner boxes are really too small and not shaped well for use as a litter box. It may work fine now since she is small, but I'd suggest using a rectangular, larger box.

This link shows how to setup up a litter box (safe litter choices, box size, etc).
https://rabbitsindoors.weebly.com/litter-training.html

 

[Gigi34]

As others have noted, the cage size isn't much of an issue with a free roam bun. It is just serving as a "home base."

That said, however, I would suggest deciding whether you want to litter train her to a specific box OR have the whole cage base be a litter box. Right now the cage setup will likely just confuse her since there is loose bedding over the whole cage floor.

In order to litter train, it is best to have one litter box with a safe litter and topped with hay. The rest of the cage floor should be solid floor (no loose bedding). This makes it clear where she should go potty.

The corner boxes are really too small and not shaped well for use as a litter box. It may work fine now since she is small, but I'd suggest using a rectangular, larger box.

This link shows how to setup up a litter box (safe litter choices, box size, etc).
https://rabbitsindoors.weebly.com/litter-training.html

Thank you, that makes a major difference. I figured I would just let her use the base as she pleases. She keeps her mess in her cage already so it seems to work for the both of us