Normal behaviour?

[bashfulbunny]

I’ve had my bunny for just over a week now, and although he hates being picked up, Bashful will lick me, let me pet him til he falls asleep and hates when I do anything that doesn’t involve him! (I was trying to write earlier today and he jumped on my paper and licked and nudged my hand til I gave him attention!) He seems very happy, and has free access to my room in the morning and evening! But of a night time, I do put him back in his cage as I don’t like not being able to supervise him! As of recently, when I’d put him back in his cage, he would bite and shake it, which of course is a nightmare of a night time! I read about this online and it said that this is a sign of stress and boredom, and that he wants more things to do and more space! So I went out and bought lots of little chew toys and extras for inside his cage, and once I get paid next week, I will be buying some of those grid cubes to build an x pen that expands his cage just for the night time!

But tonight, instead of shaking and rattling his cage, Bashful is simply sitting there, and sometimes laying down or sleeping? he was playing with his new toys but now, nothing? Me, being a naturally worried person, am worrying that he’s not feeling himself as the night time is usually when bunnies are most active? I have noticed that over the last day he’s been eating less hay and has been more interested in the pellets, which I’ve tried to change by feeding less pellets and supplying more hay – but he’s still not eating as much as he used to, and his poops are fairly smaller and darker? (Poop talk, yuck!) Although his personality is still bubbly and active, I can’t help but panic! Is he okay?

[LizziAnn]

I worry about my buns a lot too. Some rabbits are fussy eaters and don’t eat a lot of hay, you may need to change the brand or where you get it.
My oldest bun Neji was fussy about his hay and didn’t eat much either. Ever since I switched his store bought hay to farm hay he can’t get enough and now produces healthier poops too.
just keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn’t fully stop eating but it sounds like he is very happy.

[kirstyol]

Changing the type of hay might encourage him to eat more of it, as for the shaking the cage, my Bramble does this too and I honestly think he just knows that that bit is the door and thinks if he shakes it enough it will open. We have just had Bramble neutered which I am hoping will solve the problem but if not I am considering buying a cage with plastic sides, I was against one of those at first because I was worried about the heat but the vet assures me that he will be fine as long as the room is not too hot. He isn’t in his cage much a bit like you I don’t like him out at night because I worry he would get into some sort of trouble but most of the time during the day he is either in his big playpen or free roaming depending on how much supervision we can give him at the time.

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