New Fuzzy Lop Bunny

[krstnpace]

Hi everyone! I am new to the world of bunnies. I just got my first bunny today and he is absolutly adorable!!! He is in my lap right now. He is the sweetest thing ever!! He was an impulse buy I have to admit, but don't worry I am a responsible pet owner. I took the boys to the pet store Thursday "just to look" and thats when I saw him and his brother. I instantly fell in love and when I got homeI researched bunnies for 2 days. Then today we went and got him. I already love him!

I got his food, water thing, bedding, and chew things. His cage has to be in the den so we are going to order a wooden hutch so that his cage doesnt clash too much. AWWW he is asleep right now. He is so soft. Ok so I need yall to tell me the basics of whatI need to know. Of course the pet store people were not very helpful. They were just glad to get rid of one of their bunnies. He is a broken caramel color. He was smaller than his brother, a lot smaller. He is so curious and loves to be held.

I read a lot about bunnies in general the past few days. I know about how to hold them to support their fragile spines. I know about "Bunny proofing" your house. Cords are a very big hazard.

SO I have been pooped on a couple of times. When my bunny gets liter box trained will this eliminate these accidents? I am glad the poop was hard and solid though!

Ok thats all for now butI know that I will have more questions. I cant wait to hear back from all of you. Oh, my bunny is 10 weeks old. When are bunnies considered an adult? His name is going to be Loppy. HAHA how original, right? I think its cute though. Ok Bye!!


Oh one more thing. I bought him a brush because he has some little mats. Some behind his ears, or under his ears. Some around his tail area. None are really bad right now. I bought a bristle brush..I dont know what to call it, I think thats what they are called. I used to use one of those kind of brusheson my poodle whenI was a teenager. I have been brushing him off and on all night.I have managed to get some of them out. Any suggestions?

 

[Sweetie]

Welcome to the forum.

Sounds like you have a very cuddly bunny.

There are a lot of rabbit knowledgeable people on this forum. You will learn a lot.

 

[paul2641]

Well The first thing you have to remember is to keep on top of grooming a long haired bunny, they will matt like NO tomorrow! Oh make sure that the pellet food you are feeding him isn't a mix, Just try and get a plain brown pellet they are way more nutritious and stop selective feeding! Oh And I would advise that you don't use wood chips or anything like that, that can get caught in his fur as they are just terribly hard to get out of his fur, Try shredded paper black pieces, as If you use newspaper the die will rub off onto his fur! Anyway best of luck with you new boy, Oh and slowly introduce some greens but one at a time.

 

[CKGS]

Awww, lucky you. Fuzzy lops are absolutely precious! From what I have been told his coat will change as he gets older and won't be quite as 'fuzzy' so won't entangle with things qute as much as now. Every Fuzzy I have had the pleasure of meeting has been very outgoing and friendly. They are also listed in my magazine as one of the friendliest breeds of rabbits.
I would definetly get him accustomed to brushing now as this will make it easier as he gets older. Don't forget nail trimming too. I wrap mine in towels to cut the nails. The most important thing is to remember not to cut the quick, which is easy if he has light colored nails.
Good Luck with your new bundle of joy and enjoy him.

 

[krstnpace]

So yesterday I bought this bedding stuff that I now isnt going to work! Its called critter care and it got all caught in his fur, on his legs and belly. The pet store used cedar and there were some shavings caught in his fur but nothing like this. So when you say shredded black paper, what do you mean? Regular construction paper shreddings? We have alot of brushing to do today, but i dont want to do it and then put him back in his cage this evening and him get all matted again....Ill figure something out, even if I have to send my husband to walmart.

I think I do have a cuddly bunny. He acts like he likes snuggling in my lap.He's snifffing around my arm right now. I love the hairless neck. I read that thier skin is sensitive and I see how. The skin on his neck is so thin and soft looking.

I know how and when to cut dogs nails but when do you cut a bunnies nails..like when are they too long. his are clear so that will make it easy..I know about the quick.ouch!

The food....I think the kind I got yesterday is a mixed kind. It has some pellets but a whole lot of dried fruits and veggies. We are going to go to petsmart tomorrow and get some plain pelets..or I wonder if the feed store would be a better place, i dont know if they have stuff for rabbits though. We go there to get our potbelly pig food. Walmart hardly had anything for rabbits. They had the bsics and from what I now see those werent even good. Igave him some fresh parsely leaves yesterday and he ate them. I am think that the reason to introduce one veggie at a time because of allergies or anything like that? I have two boys so i know about eh one new food a week. He is hopping around the computer desk now.i am afraid he is going to poop on my papers. haha I love it when he stands up and when he cleans his face with his paws.

How big will he get? I read up to 4-6 pounds?

Ok Keep suggestions coming...I have already learned a few things.

 

[Jess4921]

Congrats on your new bunny!
When he is about 6 months old, you should really look in to getting him fixed. It will make litter box training a ton easier, and he will stop pooping on you and everywhere else!
Bedding like Carefresh would probably be alot easier to get out of his fur than anything else. Once he is litterbox trained, you dont need to give him any bedding, other than whats in his litterbox.
As for nails, you should probably clip them at least once a month. Its pretty easy to judge when they get a little long.
As for food, plain pellets are the best, and he should also get unlimited hay.
Good luck with your bunny!

 

[CKGS]

I have read around 4 pounds. They aren't very big rabbits. The bedding stuff I don't even mess with. ine are litter trained. I would get some litter (not cat litter) and put it in a litter box for your baby and start litter training. It is easy but some work is involved. When they go outside of the box pick up the poos and let tissue/toiletpaper/papertowels soak up the urine and put it box. They will soon learn to use it. I keep towels in my cages for them to lay on and wash them pretty often.

 

[slavetoabunny]

I had an American Fuzzy Lop foster for a while. Billy was the most loving boy ever. He would jump up in my lap and curl up on his side like a puppy. He was always following me around the house, and I worried about stepping on him.

Grooming is key. Fortunately, Billy didn't mind being groomed. I would groom at least three times a week. I started with a small pronged comb to work out the matts and finished with a finer one. It only took about 1/2 hour as long as you kept up with it. Pay special attention to under the chin, "arm pits", and the tail area. Denser matts are best clipped with small scissors. I think after a while both you and your bun will both enjoy your grooming sessions.

 

[paul2641]

slavetoabunny wrote:

I had an American Fuzzy Lop foster for a while. Billy was the most loving boy ever. He would jump up in my lap and curl up on his side like a puppy. He was always following me around the house, and I worried about stepping on him.

Grooming is key. Fortunately, Billy didn't mind being groomed. I would groom at least three times a week. I started with a small pronged comb to work out the matts and finished with a finer one. It only took about 1/2 hour as long as you kept up with it. Pay special attention to under the chin, "arm pits", and the tail area. Denser matts are best clipped with small scissors. I think after a while both you and your bun will both enjoy your grooming sessions.

Your so lucky, My little sky who is a teddy lionhead Is such a brazing brat I groom around 3 times weekly and she won't let me near her with a brush she is just too giddy! I can't even get near her chin she just wiggles, I spent about and hour getting pretty much nothing done, And she is a terror for getting into a mess!

 

[slavetoabunny]

Billy was an exceptional bunny.

 

[SweetSassy]

Your bunny needs to be on a Alfalfa based pellet since he's only 10 weeks old. Oxbow is one of the best. Petsmart sells Oxbow. Check and see if they have the Oxbow 15/23. It's alfalfa based for baby buns. They need that til their 6 months to a year. And Alfalfa Hay. No veggies til he's 3 months old. No fruit at all, to sugary.



I wouldn't use bedding inhis cage. If your gonna litter train your bunny, bedding will only confuse your bun and make it harder. Use cardboard or nothing in the bottom of your cage. I use cardboard for traction and the bunnies like to chew- and tear it up. I would use a cat litter box and some kind of litter. I use Oxbow Eco- Straw litter. Wheneverhe pee's or poo's outside the litter box soak it up with a paper towel and put it in box.

Good Luck with your new bunny. Would love to see pic's of him/her......April

 

[aurora369]

I also suggest getting rid of the bedding and investing in a litter box. I like to use compressed wood pellets for my bunnies litter boxes. I buy mine at the feed store, and the litter I buy is actually for horse stalls. It's the same stuff as Feline Pine or wood stove pellets.

I use a diluted vinegar (50/50 water/vinegar) in a spray bottle to clean cages. It helps to eliminate the urine smell outside of the litter box. When I'm litter training, I am misting and wiping up the cage 3 or more times day. Whenever there is a pee outside the litter box, it gets soaked with a tissue or a peice of paper towel, and place in the litter box. Then the spot gets misted and wiped clean.

The process of litter training can be very quick for some bunnies and very slow for some. Neutering normally always helps to reduce the urge to mark their territory with poops/pee.

As for food, I would check into what the feed store has to offer in terms of rabbit pellets, litter and hay. I buy all of my rabbit supplies from a feed store. I buy rabbit pellets in a 40 pound bag, hay by the bales and litter in the 40 pound bags as well. If you only have one rabbit, it may not be worth it to buy the large bag of food, but you can see if they have a smaller amount they can sell you.

He definetly needs some hay right now too. Since he is under 6 months, he should be getting unlimited pellets and unlimited hay. You can feed alfafa and a grass hay (timothy is the norm) until 6 months, after that cut out the alfafa and stick to grass hays.

Unfortunately, I have no advice with regards to grooming. All of my bunnies have rex fur (super short and very soft) except for Baxter my one mini-lop with "normal" fur.

Greens, if you want to start feeding them now, you will need to be very vigilant. The reason for waiting to feed veggies is because rabbits do not handle diet changes very well. If all he's ever gotten at the petstore was pellets, then it will be a big shock to his system to get greans all of a sudden. A sprig or two of parsely should be okay, but I wouldn't be making him any big salads yet.

When you start veggies, you need to introduce one at a time to allow his digestive system to aclimate to the new food. Once you have observed that he is eating that particular veggie with no runny poops or upset tummy, then you can increase the amount and then after a couple weeks start adding a new veggie. Eventually he will be eating a nice variety of greens.


--Dawn

 

[krstnpace]

Thanks aurora. That was very helpful. So i did away with the critter care soft begging stuff today since it was all tangled in his fur. Much better. i brushed him out and even got 90% of the mats and tangles out! I am very happy about that! Now he wont be getting stuff stuck in his fur too! So here is what I did...currently I made him a little box but I am going to go back to the pet store and get him one of those plastic corner littler boxes. We had a cardboard box about 10 inches by 10 inches. I cut the box so that it is about 4-5 inches tall and made it a little shorter in the middle of one side for easier access. I shredded about 10 pieces of construction paper. Placed it in the box. Then I place his pebbles in the box and when he puddled, I soaked it up with a peice of a paper towel and put that in the box. So far he hasnt used the box but its only been half a day and he is only 10 weeks old. I dont know what litter we will ultimatly use, i guess we will use trial and error.

I think i got a good rabbit! he is really sweet and loving, so far. He will lay in my lap or on my chest for as long as i want him too. i brushed him for over an hour today and he just sat there snuggled up to me closing his eyes. he did start wiggling around towards the end and wanting to explore..he even bit my finger for no reason. he had been nibbling on my shirt and blanket so either he was aggrovated with the grooming or he was nibbling my finger. is it normal for them to bite for no reason...i say no reason but he obviously had a reason.
ok thanks again...bye!!

 

[Numbat]

Congrats on your new bunny!

I think you've already got some helpful info but I just wanted add that a bunny's personality could totally change during adolescence (that's why getting him neutered is a good idea). Just want you to be prepared as I noticed that you mentioned he was a cuddly bunny so far. Hopefully he'll stay that way but rabbits are still great pets even without the cuddles.

Good luck with him and.. do you have any photos? :biggrin2:

 

[aurora369]

I find that when I'm litter training,it can seem like they are just not getting it. And all I am doing is wiping their cage 24/7. However, with the buns I have trained, it seems to happen in an epiphany. One day they just "get it" and start using the box. Others have different experiences, but that's how most of mine have gone.

I use dish bins from the dollar store for litter boxes, or small rubber maids. Something that they can jump into and is big enough to puta nice handful of hay at the front.

Bunnies often enjoy eating and pooping at the same time. Like reading a newspaper... So I normally have the hay rack only accessible from the litter box or just a handful of hay in the front.

You could also fashion a litter box so that it had a grid over the litter to keep the litter off of his fur. I know some members have made their own litter boxes with great success.

--Dawn

 

[krstnpace]

Wonderful ideas and info everyone!!! I really have learned a lot so far! Ok so my bunny is peeing in the litter box but will not poop in it. That little thing sure does eat and poop alot!! More than a newborn baby! haha
He is doing the peeing think really well. I am going to do the hay thing and see if I can get him to start pooping in it then. This is only day 2 so i am not expecting much. This is exactly how we trained our baby pig. SHe caught on very quick.
I will post some picture soon. I have taken some but they are still on my digital camera.

Thanks everyone!!!!!