New member from Arizona & needs help!

[Veggie Girl]

Hi my name is Sarah, and I came to this forum in hopes of learning as much as I can about taking PROPER care of rabbits. I told my mom that I would take Dexter (rabbit) to my house to take care of him. I currently can't take him in as I am getting rid of ringworm in my house. It's been about 3 months and is almost gone! I hope, I'm still waiting for it to show up in other spots on my pets. Long story short, when I was about 17 I convinced my mom into buying a bunny which she bought at a pet store. When I still lived at home I played with him all the time, but still didn't probably know everything I should have known. When I moved out my mom wanted to keep Dexter, so he's been living with her. I just feel bad because he doesn't really get any time out of the cage, and she tells me he's scared to come out and likes being in there. For me, that's just hard to believe. He is the sweetest guy ever, and loves attention, and while yes he may be nervous coming out of his cage at first I really think he would learn to like it again. I am a totally different person now than when I was at 17. I am now 21 and have my own house, and I just really want to make it up to him and give him a better life. I also went vegan about 1.5 years ago, I love animals so much. I get upset for convincing my mom to buy a pet and not really knowing what I was doing at the time. I was a very irresponsible child! He does have a decently large cage, but I do know he should be getting time out every day. Also he should be around 4-5 years old now, and he hasn't been neutered. I was thinking if it would be a good idea to get him neutered and possibly adopt a friend for him? Any help would be great.

Also I don't really know what breed he is, but he is smaller, probably about 2 lbs. and he has floppy ears. Is it safe to feed them fresh veggies or do you just buy a store brand food? I'm not sure what my mom is feeding him right now, but I do know she gives him lots of timothy hay. She also gives him yogurt drops sometimes as a snack, which he goes crazy for. I have a feeling those aren't the best things for him to be eating.

 

[RexLovables]

Hi and WELCOME
He sounds adorable. So first off, Will you be bringing him back into YOUR house? Tell your mom to let him out once and awhile, i don't think she would like to live in her bedroom 24 7, would she?
Almost EVERY rabbit loves to come and and have fun, they may seam scared to come out, but they usually arnt, thats just how they are.
Can you post a pic of your bunny and i can tell you what kinda breed he is
He can eat fresh veggies of certain sorts. Go to the diet section on the form, there is a newer thread about treats and stuff that will help you out a lot with what you can feed him. And there are also other threads about that sorta stuff.
Rabbits should have a unlimited amount of hay ALL the time. And timothy hay is VERY good for them.
Yogurt drops rabbits love, but they are a little high in fat, so be careful.
What sorta "snack" are you talking about?

Any questions, PM me and ill see if i can help :biggrin2:
make sure to post LOTS of pics!

 

[Veggie Girl]

Unfortunately I don't have any pics available right now. I only have a couple of him and they are older, but I don't have a scanner to upload them. I will be going to my parents house tomorrow and I will take pics. I won't be bringing him to my house for a couple of weeks, as I'm still waiting to see if the ringworm in my house is 100% gone before I bring in anymore pets. Also when I talked to my mom today, she seemed like she was changing her mind in letting me take him. It's obvious to me that she likes him and pets him everyday but she doesn't let him out! I have told her it is important to let him out to play but she still insists he doesn't want to.

 

[Wabbitdad12]

:helloand :welcome1to RabbitsOnline. I am glad you found the site. RO is a very active, friendly and helpful website devoted to rabbits and their slaves.

A good diet for a bun will consist of pellets, fresh veggies and hay. Yorgurt drops are ok for him as a treat, now if he was getting several a day that would be a different story. There's no problem in getting him neutered now, although you may want to wait about a month before you introduce any bunny friends. That will give him time to heal and for the hormones to get out of his system. Then you may want to do bunny play dates, its a lot easier bonding process if you let the bunny pick his friend.

Here are some good links to areas of the site you might find interesting, the Library section, full of good reference info, Bunny Blog, where you can keep everyone up to date on your bunny and your life as a bunny slave and if you bunny would like to ask questions of other buns the Bunny Chat is the spot to be. The regional forum is a good way to find a rabbit savvy vet or to post places where you get some of your supplies for your bun etc. For the lighter side and to give you a chuckle or two stop by the go to the Let Your Hare Down section for anything but bunny's.

Here is link to the rules of the site, light reading Rabbits Online Forum Rules.

If you would like to post pictures in your post this link How to put photo's in your posts will help explain that.

I hope I didn't overwhelm you with info. This is a wonderful site and I look forward to seeing pictures and reading some stories.

Dave

 

[RexLovables]

Huh..Well, i guess just wait till he gets to your house then he will need let out A LOT!
Are you going to let your mom keep him?

 

[Veggie Girl]

Well she is the one who originally said I could take him in, but if she decides to keep him I won't really have much choice. Technically it is her rabbit so not much I can do. I will keep convincing her to let him out more though.

 

[RexLovables]

Veggie Girl wrote:

Well she is the one who originally said I could take him in, but if she decides to keep him I won't really have much choice. Technically it is her rabbit so not much I can do. I will keep convincing her to let him out more though.

will you get a new bunny if she keeps him?

 

[Veggie Girl]

I might, but if I do I will be adopting this time around. I wouldn't buy from a pet store again. I am really partial to Dexter though, and hope my mom goes through with giving him to me. He is the friendliest bunny I've ever met, and runs over to be petted. He is just super sweet, and I'm not sure I could find another like him.

 

[Happi Bun]

Welcome to RO! :wave:

Kudos for wanting to give Dexter a better life. Exercise is a very important aspect of keeping a bunny happy mentally and healthy physically. I would really push the "out time" issue with your mother. Getting him neutered is a wonderful idea and is recommended even if you decide against bonding him. If you do decide to go the route of neutering him and finding a friend, I suggest going to a local rabbit rescue and talking to them about "Bunny Dating" once he is fully recovered.

Fresh veggies are excellent and it's highly recommended to provide them. I often feed my bun's Romaine Lettuce, Green & Red Leaf Lettuce and Parsley- Italian/Curly. Never feed iceberg lettuce. It's very important to introduce veggies one at a time and in small quantities until you know how they will affect your bun. Please make sure your mom is feeding a plain timothy based pellet. It's great she's feeding him timothy hay, it's an absolute must! Should be available at all times to keep the gut moving and prevent blockages.

Personally, I would stop with the yogurt treats. They are extremely high in fat, not to mention I've read it can upset their digestive tract. Small pieces of fruit is a great treat. I like to feed my bun's Vitakraft Nibble Rings as a treat.

Here is more info on neutering-
http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/spay-neuter.html

More info on a rabbit's diet-
http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/diet.html

In general I always suggest looking about the House Rabbit Society's website and reading up as much as you can.
Hope this all helps!

http://www.rabbit.org

 

[Veggie Girl]

Here are a couple pictures of Dexter:

 

[undergunfire]

Hello from Prescott Valley :biggrin2:!!! Where do you live? I am over on Manley Dr.!!!

Dexter is adorable! He looks like my Brody.

I'm also 21. We can meet up sometime and I can get you "learning the ropes" of buns in no time!

Chino Valley Animal Hospital neutered my boys for about $85, cheapest you will find around here. Dr. Batt at Thumb Butte Animal Hospital (on Gurley) is our bunny vet!

 

[Happi Bun]

:thudexter is so adorable!!! :hearts

I noticed that he is being fed a seed mix.
I highly recommend switching to a plain pellet without all the extra "junk", that's very bad for a bun.

 

[undergunfire]

Sarah, I sent you a PM with my phone number (I have texting) and how to contact me on facebook...so we can get to know each other, if you'd like . I'm really excited about having a bunny lover my age in my town!

 

[Fancy77]

HI and welcome to the forum. Dexter is so cute and fluffy.