Outdoor rabbit moved inside because of weather

[doodlebugger]

Our little Oliver was given to us by a family when the newness of having a pet rabbit wore off and they no longer wanted him. My dd is attempting to start a rabbitry for her FFA project, so we were happy to have him. When we got him, he was a grumpy little guy who didn't want anything to do with us. I assume he probably wasn't handled much, or improperly handled by kids. Either way, we took a lot of time and patience working with him, and had him coming to us and eating from our hands, etc. He was always an outdoor rabbit, but with the wind chill dropping the temps to zero or below, we got very concerned that he wouldn't be able to cope with the cold. He's never really used his little hidey house, and he always sat right next to the open side of the cage. Even when it snows or rains, he stays in that corner. :shock: When I went out to get him, he was not in the usual corner, but had moved back to the warmer corner, but his ears felt ice cold. That is one of the reasons we moved him inside. Now that he is inside, he's kind of sticking to one corner. I know it's all new to him....but I thought perhaps with us around more, he would be a little more curious or interactive. He has checked it out once or twice, but then goes back to the corner. I ended up putting a sheet across the back part of the temp cage to help give him some shelter. We have tried cardboard boxes and all he does is get mad and drag it out of the corner. We tried putting some hay in the corner, but he shoves it away or grabs it with his mouth and throws it to the side. :? He doesn't like to play with anything and he doesn't like to chew. The only thing we have found that he really loves is parsley. He will actually come to us and eat out of our hands for parsley. He just seems so quiet and grumpy all the time - like he is so offended or ticked off.

So, we brought him in this morning, and we set up a temporary cage using some linoleum scraps for the floor, and a couple of boards and a plastic folding table for walls. We put a crock with food and a crock with water (he's used to a bottle, but has been using a crock lately as a back up). He is not litter box trained......but he always uses the same corner, so we put a litter box lined with newspaper and hay in it. He immediately hopped in it, and checked it out, but I haven't seen poo or pee since we put him in the temp cage. He has drank water, and he did eventually eat a treat we left in the cage, but he hasn't touched the pellets. Do I need to be worried about the pee and poo not happening?

The other thing I keep hearing him do is dig at the floor. I've never seen him do this before, but I don't know what to do for him because I'm worried he is doing it because he doesn't feel safe. He can't hurt anything by digging....but I just want to be sure that he feels safe and secure.

Here's a picture of Oliver in the temp cage. What do you think?

 

[OneTwoThree]

Is he eating while inside? hay, pellets, greens anything? It might just be during his sleep time, bunnies are most active at dawn and dusk, even my Samson wont really eat or poop for several hours a day when she's resting. Is he hunched up or grinding his teeth?

 

[doodlebugger]

He's hunched up in a corner, and has been sleeping off and on - at one point he was half stretched out (he has never done a complete flop, just the back end - his head is always upright). He has not eaten anything at all (except a few pieces of hay that he was mad that I put in his corner). I suspected maybe it's just because it was his usual nap time. Since he's outside most of the day, we don't really know what he does because when we come to feed, water, and play with him, he becomes more active. He is not grinding his teeth. Doesn't really want to be touched though....he is moody like that, so it's not really a new thing.

 

[LakeCondo]

Did the cardboard box have 2 holes for him to get in & out of?

As he likes to dig, get another cardboard box & fill it with crumpled up old newspaper.

It's tempting to assume human emotions from our rabbits' actions, but their brains don't work the same way. He probably just needs more time to settle in.

 

[doodlebugger]

Thanks. Yes, the box had holes for him to get in and out of. He's not too fond of the litter box either - he has moved it a couple of times until he found the spot he really liked it in.

He finally peed and poo'd, but not in the litter box. I put the poo in the litter box in hopes he will consider going there the next time. I cleaned up the pee as best as I could. He is eating hay and pellets and drinking water now. Seems he just wanted to wait until everyone else went to bed. Thanks!

 

[missyscove]

I'm glad to see he his gut is moving.
If it works for you, try moving the litterbox to whatever corner he's peeing in; sometimes it's easiest to let them pick.

 

[Jacki-Small-Pet-Select]

Hi Doodlebugger

Oliver looks gorgeous, btw. Yes, it sounds like he's having settling in issues, that's for sure. Is his home inside reasonably private, so he doesn't feel threatened from anything?

As long as he's eating some hay, and peeing and pooing I wouldn't be too concerned. It's if he stops eating and drinking and there's not digestive output that you need to worry.

Good on you for taking on an unwanted bunny. It happens so often, people getting a new pet and then the novelty wears off after a few weeks or months.

You don't mention if he lives alone or with another friend. Rabbits really do benefit from company of their own kind. They're naturally a herd animal, and keeping them alone can cause extreme amounts of stress. Although care needs to be taken when introducing a companion animal, in most cases owners are amazed at the difference they see in their rabbits when they have a friend. If Oliver is kept alone, you might find that a buddy is just what he needs (although make sure he's neutered first).

Rescue centers and shelters are just crying out to find home for unwanted bunnies. Perhaps you could have a chat with one near you if you're in the position to have another rabbit. You'll be helping not only the rabbit you rescue, but the center, along with Oliver as well.

Oh - I'm running away with the idea that Oliver is an 'only' bunny. So if that's not the case, ignore all of that!

Here's hoping he starts to get more settled very soon. And I agree with the comment about moving the litter tray to where he's choosing to go to the bathroom.

Good luck, and keep us updated about his progress.

Kind regards,
Small Pet Select

 

[doodlebugger]

Oliver has always been an only bunny. We know nothing about giving him a "friend" - do you get another boy or a girl? The only thing is that we did want to breed him later on as part of my daughter's FFA project.

This morning, we noticed a lot more poo in one corner, but we have noticed pee in his litter box!! Yipee! :clapping: We don't mind cleaning up the poo....we just want him to pee in his litter box for sure. He seems to have adjusted just fine now. Hubby keeps saying he needs to go back out, but I really want to keep him inside now. I'm starting to really bond with him. :inlove: Guess we will see what happens!

 

[OneTwoThree]

Friends and mates are completely different. If you want to get him a friend, you'll need to neuter him and find a spayed/neutered partner to bond him with, which is a process. IMO you should only breed to better the species, so you'd want to buy a female with a good background and standard, and you wouldn't be able to keep them together at all, only once to breed and then separate again.

Just an odd question, you know he's not a Flemish giant right? You have that in your profile

Rabbits make great indoor pets

 

[doodlebugger]

LOL.....yes, I know he's not a Flemish Giant. He's a mini lop according to his papers. I just haven't changed my profile to include him yet. We have a Flemish Giant named Phoenix, but he has pretty much been an inside bunny since we got him (because he was sick when we got him and it was very hot outside). Dh knows that once we got our flemie inside, it was no turning back which is why he fought so hard about bringing our mini lop inside. Dh still keeps reminding us that when the temps warm up again, we are going to have to take him back out, but I have other plans. :wink

 

[doodlebugger]

Okay....so I have a new problem. We still have him inside....against hubby's wishes, but the weather has been strange going from the 50's down to below freezing at night, and then we had thunderstorms, etc. We just didn't want to put Oliver back until we knew he wouldn't have to come back in again due to weather. But, the guy still isn't improving with his behavior....he's still grumpy, and doesn't really want anything to do with anyone. We are trying to do the bonding stuff, but he seems scared or mad all the time. He bit me today. Broke my heart...hurt my feelings. I'm sure he did it because I was petting him and talking to him and he wasn't in the mood....or who knows what. Still he broke the skin and made me bleed. If dh knew this, he would go through the roof. Dd will just say I did something to aggravate him. I just don't know how to get through to this bun. Our flemish giant is so completely different - so relaxed, friendly, loveable, and now after this, I am starting to think he will never be friendly. Any advice?? He is still doing the digging thing - mainly it seems when he wants us to leave him alone.

 

[LakeCondo]

Perhaps he was pouting when you hadn't added him to your profile & now that you have, he'll be better.

Seriously, he's obviously has a different personality than your giant & perhaps had a bad experience before coming to you. But give it more time & if he has to become an outdoor rabbit next spring, get his hutch insulated by fall.

 

[Deif]

hiya i have 6 bunnies outside and i think your bunny looks lovely but sounds depressed i think he may need a friend he doesnt sound like he's happy but another boy would fight i've been there one of my boys (apple) got very depressed on his own, does he sit in the corner alot? or sit in his poo and pee alot? or agressive? xxx

 

[JimD]

How old is Oliver?

 

[doodlebugger]

Oliver is approximately a year and a month old. He does seem depressed, easily spooked at times (especially when he sees light/shadows). He sits in a corner a lot of the time, sometimes stretching out, but never have we ever seen a total bunny flop, and rarely a binky. Usually a binky is not a happy one, but more a "get out of my cage" scared kind of a hop. He just always seems mad or sad. He did circle my dd the other night like he was going to try and mount her....it was kind of weird. We've never seen him that animated. I had to wonder if he might be hormonal. We had intended on using him to breed, but now we are having second thoughts.

My dd rescued him as part of her FFA (Future Farmer's of America) project and she recently won a grant, and wants to use the rabbits as a way to educate others, but also wanted to be able to breed some rabbits to provide projects for other members of the local FFA and 4-H. She was also intending on showing him, but we can barely pick him up. :bawl:

Don't know what we will do, but we want to try and keep him and make him happy. My dd is planning on taking him to the vet in the next month or so, and we hope to get some answers as to if there is a health reason why he is so grumpy. We suspected that he could have sight or hearing issues as to why he is so skiddish.....guess we'll wait and see.

I just feel bad for the fella.

 

[Jacki-Small-Pet-Select]

Hi doodlebugger

It does sound as though he's having stress issues. I don't want to bang on about it, but can he see your other rabbit, or is he completely kept on his own? The kind of behavioral issues you're mentioning really can be brought on by being kept in solitary confinement (I'm not saying it's definitely this that's doing it, but very often it's the case).

If you do want to get him a friend then a neutered female would be the best bet.

Sounds great that you rescued Oliver - and great that you're daughter's won a FFA grant and wants to educate others. But will you really need to breed from him? There are so many unwanted rabbits in the world, and unless there's really good reason it's not advisable to add to their numbers (not saying that the babies would be unwanted by you, but every rabbit you breed means that there's a rabbit in a rescue center that doesn't get a home).

I don't mean to offend at all, but it's a bit of a passion of mine - and there's so many abandoned rabbits in the world that I do try to make sure that people are breeding for the right reasons.

Hope you manage to find out why Oliver is being so bad tempered. Perhaps you could speak with your vet about his behavior before you make any final decisions.

I wish you the best of luck with him.

Jacki - Small Pet Select

 

[LakeCondo]

My thoughts, too, Jacki. The best thing to educate people about pets is that they should first try a shelter before buying one elsewhere. Also, that hybrid pets [ie mutts] to live a little longer than pure-bred ones. [This might not apply to the 'designer' mixed breeds; cockapoos etc.]

 

[doodlebugger]

I understand the passion behind not wanting to breed rabbits, and our vet is the champion of encouraging spay and neuter of rabbits. But, I think the problem is not breeding, but irresponsible pet owners. I also think that every pet owner has a different degree to how they feel an animal should be treated. We personally believe a pet should be treated like a family member. We have not yet decided on breeding, but we have considered it. Also, you cannot show a neutered rabbit, so that would leave the rabbit solely as a pet and render my daughter's project useless. If she can't breed or show them, she can't make money and therefore doesn't have a business. I appreciate the comments about not breeding, but not every one feels the same. If you compare the rabbit we got when it was a baby to the rabbit we got at a year old, there are far more problems with the older rabbit than with the baby rabbit we have lovingly raised. I would not want to give a rabbit that has been rescued to a first time rabbit owner, nor would I want older children to try to raise them. First off, they won't have the time that a rescued rabbit needs to bond and break old habits. Second off, they will have to invest a lot of effort into rehabilitating the rabbit - and trust me, with little Oliver/Chester (see below for that explanation), we have learned that we can't just miss a day of interaction with him because it can set us back. It doesn't mean that we care any less for our rabbits because we are considering breeding. It just means that we will be extremely cautious about who will get to take one home, and my daughter will want to educate them, inspect the potential living quarters, and have them sign a contract that they understand the level of care. We are also not considering breeding all year round or anything. We are talking perhaps one litter a year for the next two years.

Oliver, we determined, did not like the new name my daughter gave him when we got him. His original name was Chester. We thought since the ending sounded the same he wouldn't notice, but after we read a book on bunny care, and a story about an owner who changed his rabbit's name and then changed it back and had amazing results....we went back to calling him Chester, and he has made some progress! We have a vet appointment, and we will get our vet's opinion as to what will be best for Chester. His happiness is the most important to us right now....outside of everything else. By the way, Chester is still inside!!! I think it will be permanent now. We get to spend a lot more time with him which is helping him break out of his shell. He's becoming more curious too.

 

[LakeCondo]

... you cannot show a neutered rabbit

If you compare the rabbit we got when it was a baby to the rabbit we got at a year old, there are far more problems with the older rabbit than with the baby rabbit we have lovingly raised. I would not want to give a rabbit that has been rescued to a first time rabbit owner, nor would I want older children to try to raise them. First off, they won't have the time that a rescued rabbit needs to bond and break old habits. Second off, they will have to invest a lot of effort into rehabilitating the rabbit ...

Is this true for different animals as well; cats, dogs, horses?

I guess it depends when a rescued animal comes from. The shelter I got Honey from does any rehabilitation & getting along with people needed. Further, every pet they have for adoption is already spayed or neutered. I've certainly been glad that I didn't have to go through this worrisome period. Further, the shelter has speed dating so that a compatible 2nd rabbit can be selected.

It isn't fair to paint all rescued rabbits with the same brush any more than it's fair to think of all breeders as bunny mills.

 

[doodlebugger]

You are right....it depends on where the rescued animal comes from. In my area, which is very rural, there are no good quality bunny rescues. Any bunnies that are rescued go to the local animal shelters. The nearest rescue that I know of is over an hour away. Our little Chester came from a home where a parent bought a rabbit for her young son (7 or 8 years old) to show at the fair. They barely handled Chester after a few months....the newness had wore off. This bun has never been to a vet. I can only speak from my experience. And you are right - every situation is different on both sides of the fence - both the breeder side and the rescued side. I know a lot of people in bigger cities who have had tremendous luck with rescued rabbits, but in my neck of the woods....there are none of these great rescue organizations....therefore, what people will end up with in my rural, low income area will not be ideal for a first timer. Just my opinion based on where I live and my personal experiences.