What do you use and swear by?

[PaaigeyBearr]

So I’ve been posting a lot on this website, but I do worry about my rabbits & want the best for them! & I love learning from all you guys! Anyways in a week for my birthday, I’ll roughly have 200 to spend on my rabbits. And I was wondering what type of products/toys/ideas you use for your rabbits and swear by! Id LOVE links/pictures if you can, if not no biggie!

1. Litter – I use fresh news for cats. I LOVE it. I feel like any litter for critters simply isn’t that good of qaulity OR qauntity. Pet Store recomended it. & I don’t know if anyone else does this, but I sprinkle genie pig food in the litter (They eat and poop at the sametime, right?) My rabbits love it, as long as there’s no little corn type things(I heard they can’t digest that), I feel like it’s pretty safe. Anyone do anything different that you swear by? ALSO; do you guys use a cat litter pan for outside the cages/condos/etc. I feel like the larger the box the more motivated my little lazy butts will be to get overthere for their business! (They are litter trained. Just a whole room was a big transaction for em)

2. Toys – I use cardboard rolls, boxes, etc. I’ve also taken little baby rattles (Courtesy of my four year old neice), They like the sound they make and toss them around. I loved the phone book idea someone else posted about! I’ve heard of most genie pig toys being safe and equally fun for rabbits. (Haven’t tried it). Anyone recommend something else or the genie toys?

3. Hay & treats – I use timothy hay, my local pet store isn’t huge on having any treats for rabbits /: I do give them fresh vegies (mostly lettuce, carrots, tomatoes) and such! My rabbits don’t like the salt lick things, maybe it’s the flavor, but they just won’t touch it. Anything you’d recommend?

4. Water bottle – I use the pet supplies plus one with the little ducky. It leaks a bit, anyone have something else? Anyone ever attach a water bottle to their gate in the doorway? Until I build some type of contraption for them, I feel bad seeing them climb in and out of their cages just for water. LOL.

5. I want to buy a play pen eventially, for MONITORED outside play, & also so my little fellas can chill in the livingroom/kitchen while the whole families in there. (My mom refuses for them to roam free anywhere else but their room/ she doesn’t believe they can be trully litter trained), but I won’t complain! It’s pretty fair that they have their own room already Recommended or non recommended pens?

 

WELL, I think I covered everything I wanted to. I’m SUPER open to suggestians and comments and such on what you guys think and do!

[Megabunny]

I had read that people could use pellet stove pellets for litter, so I did that for awhile because they were cheap. But when I was going to buy some from the feed store and they heard what I was going to use it for, they refused to sell to me, as they have chemicals embedded in them (which I’d wondered about anyway, but rabbit was doing fine) They use a pellet bedding (for horses) so I tried that and it seems OK for litter box. Don’t know if you’ll like it any better, but I seem to recall the newspaper pellets being expensive. But if you can afford them, go for it!

They sound like very lucky bunnies!

[Bam]

I have tied a water-bottle to a leg of the coffea-table so Bam can go there and drink because he doesn’t have a cage. But I also keep a water-bowl for him because he’s not good at drinking as much as he should.

What I swear by when it comes to bunnies is liquid simethicone and a syring to feed it with. I was taught this here on BB, always to keep a bottle of the stuff in the fridge. Excellent if bunny gets gas or related stomach-trouble.

Your rabbits seem very lucky, I agree with Megabunny!

[Sarita]

I would recommend that you put that $200 towards spaying and/or neutering your pair.

[PaaigeyBearr]

 

[Beka27]

Stop.

Copy and pasting the snippy response from your other thread is not going to get you very far here. We do not tolerate this kind of behavior on the forum. We are offering advice. If you would like advice on topics related to rabbit care, you’re in the right place. If not, you may prefer to go somewhere else.

[Nibbles123]

Sarita not to be rude because that is an AMAZING idea and should be done when ready, but i think your gonna need a little more money then that lol If your going to get it done properly by a rabbit vet it will cost more. I costs me $300 PER rabbit. yes sad but true.

Hmmm i swear by …..dried fruit LOL Weird right? my bunnies come when called ( thats weird too ) so every once and a while when i practice their “training” I give them healthy treats like dried mango .

Note that i also give them a salad filled with Cilontro,parsly.bok choy,spinach,basil , mint and small little pieces or strawberry or carrot every single day. The dried fruit should not and will not make up for their daily diet. Good luck new bunny mama

[PaaigeyBearr]

All that up there was just a big misunderstanding, no biggie.

& Nibbles, I’ve never tried giving my bunny any of those except carrots….
& I do the salad thing too! hahaha… I’ll line the bowl with lettuce, then I’ll put a layer of the food pellets from the petstore, then a layer of sunflower seeds (no shells) & on top will be sliced up carrots & two little slices of tomatoes. But they also have their other food bowl with just pellets and nothing else for the rest of the day.

[Emandme]

Things I swear by:

1. Yesterday’s news litter for cats – no problems ever with this stuff. Recommended by my vet. Fresh news that you have seems to be exactly the same thing. Easy peasy.

2. Toys: mine eat the toilet paper rolls, but I have a little bunny with two wooden carrots on it they throw and chew. A few small hard plastic cat balls with bells in them to throw. My buns don’t care for chewing on them, but other buns might, so be aware. A cat tunnel or three. And since Zinga is my digger, a diggy box for her to dig in.

3. I don’t use a water bottle. They have a bowl to drink from. IMHO – I don’t really like the bottles.

4. If you want a mobile portioned area, an x-pen (exercise pen) is a good option.

5. HAY! Lots of it. Mine like timothy and oat. I tried orchard when I just had Bunneh, I should try it again with both of them. They might like it. Hay is great for their GI tract and their teeth. Hay should be 85% of their daily diet.

[Deleted User]

Sorry, but I don’t think sunflower seeds (or other seeds or nuts) are something you want to be feeding your rabbits.

I’m presuming they also have access to their hay all day? I’m guessing you just didn’t mention that.

Rest of their salad sounds good, (expect you’ll add variety over time) but really think you need to replace the seeds.

[PaaigeyBearr]

I never really googled anything about the sunflower seeds, I guess I’ll do my research. My sisters fiance came home a couple years ago and gave my bunny Charlie(He passed away from loose dogs attacking him/: ) a bag of sunflower seeds & he loved it… so I guess I just assumed it was okay.
& yeah, they have the hay! Lol.

[Deleted User]

May I suggest you skip the Google search and read this article? http://rabbit.org/suggested-vegetables-and-fruits-for-a-rabbit-diet/ The article itself has excellent information and the lists of foods is an additional help. rabbit.org is a completely trustworthy source of information, … you can save yourself time and uncertainty and be confident they are eating well.

I’m just miserable to hear about your other poor rabbit! My rabbits haven’t (and don’t) go outside but for reasons of my own I really loathe dogs being off leash, even inside a business establishment they can pose a real threat! My sympathies on his loss, and the upset it must have caused to you.

[Bam]

You can give a few sunflower-seeds as treats, but if you give a lot it’s likely to result in poopy butt. Sunflowers are very rich, both in protein and fat and rabbits should eat very little fat and not a lot of protein. The same goes for nuts, almonds, peanuts, pumpkin kernels etc: Very small amounts are ok as treats, but not as a part of the regular diet. Bunnies love the stuff though, but you can’t trust them to decide what should be on the daily menu.

The link GreyDove gave you is very good.

[PaaigeyBearr]

Yeah, I’m reading it.. Thanks! I just didn’t know /: Glad I found out before it effected them in any harsh ways!

Oh & Charlie… he was a very good rabbit. Just summer came and I thought an outdoor hutch was okay for him in a neighborhood with no raccoon or such problems…The dogs never got a chance to touch him, he was just scared literally to death. To this day my niece will go outside with a carrot and go “I want Charlie to come home”. (We told her he ran away, she was too little to understand). But he’s the reason I have year round inside rabbots… I’d like to think he’s hopping around their room with them having fun.

[tanlover14]

Thought I would pop in on this thread – I have to say I agree with Sarita. Put the money towards vet visits and spays/neuters.

On the other hand, addressing the other questions I just had a few things to add:

– Pet stores treats are typically HORRIBLE for rabbits although Oxbow has a few treats for rabbits but none of mine will eat them. We use Nibble Rings and Craisins in my house! If you see yogurt drops, don’t get them. As for the sunflower seeds, horrible also. Make sure your pellet food doesn’t contain any dried fruit pieces or seeds of any kind either – just pellets. Fruit on the other hand is great for treats (be mindful of what you are giving though – fresh food or dried food – try to stay away from anything with a ton of sugar). A few of my buns like getting banana and strawberry also along with some small pieces of carrot (make sure you’re not giving too much) and other root vegetables. Root vegetables should be limited for sure. And lettuce – any lettuce is okay except for iceberg.

– If you can find a litter you like, I suggest keeping it! I use CareFresh myself but it’s rather expensive. It’s much easier to litter train with multiple boxes set throughout the room (especially in new areas). As they become more situated with the room and themselves you can begin taking a box away every so often. Just make sure it’s not one they use frequently.

– You can spice up your bunnys diet by trying other hays such as Orchard Grass or Oat Hay, a few favorites in my house! And those salt licks are completely useless. Don’t even bother giving your rabbits one.

– I used that same water bottle for awhile but when they were bonded we just purchased one of those large dog water feeders and it seems to work awesome for my crew of five. It’s too large for them to tip over and it’s lasts about 3 days before I have to clean and refill.

– Rather than a play pen I would buy an exercise pen. It’s great for taking places easily and is easily stored. If you plan on taking them outside, I would purchase one of the covers as bunnies are food for hawks and other animals.

[Gimli]

I’ll start off by saying that spaying/neutering is definitely a good idea. My local vet only charged $140, and she’s only ever had 1 complication in 25 years. I think the biggest factor for how much it costs is location.

1. Litter – I use Yesterdays News, which basically looks like the same litter you’re using. It’s pretty good about the smell, until it gets shaken up as we throw it away. That’s an awful smell, but I can deal with it once every day or two. I’ve just got a little tray from the dollar store, which is just big enough for Gimli. I just need to pick up a few stray poops whenever I change the litter. He trained himself the first week I brought him home, so I’m happy for that.

2. Toys – I use an old kleenex box for Gimli’s hay, and he likes dragging that around, and tearing it apart. I have some cords that are used to tie up stacks of boxes and newspapers. He pulled one out from the garbage one day, and loved it. I was a bit worried, but he has never been able to chew any of it off, so it just frays a bit. I hang them from the wall, and dangle them in his cage. He’s also stopped chewing on the cord from my window shades. Other than that, he just chews on some pine triangles. I just ordered a bunch of apple twigs, wicker barrel of hay cubes, some willow rings, grass mats, and a rolling rattle. I’ll see what he likes. I also saw the phone book thread, and I was planning on giving him the next one that got delivered here.

3. Hay & treats – I use timothy hay also, with an occasional small bag of alfalfa in between(lasts about 2 days). Gimli likes his salt lick, but I think I’ve read that it’s something that should be offered, but not worried about if they don’t use it. For treats, I’ve tried yogurt chips, but he didn’t like them that much. Mostly carrots or just a few pellets.(He loves them, but I only give him about 1/8 cup/day. They’re very fatty, so I give him extra greens) He also gets the occasional apple or pear slice, and I want to see if he likes blackberries or raspberries. My girlfriend works in a reptile lab, so they get a donation of all the day old fresh vegetables, which is WAY more than the lab can go through. He gets a great variety of every green I know is safe for him.

4. Water bottle – I’ve tried a few brands. Lixit is what He has no, and it works great. Putting a bottle on the door is an interesting idea. Gimli normally drinks a lot at once, so he won’t drink while he’s out of his cage, even if it’s offered to him.

5. I’ve always set up a dog/baby gate, but if you have a more open floorplan, that doesn’t always work. For outdoor play, he has a harness, with a simple paracord leash. He doesn’t like being held back by the leash, but he would spend most of his time in the pen looking out, and wanting to explore. I also know that he’s always got a close eye on him when he’s on a leash.

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