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BUNNY 911 – If your rabbit hasn’t eaten or pooped in 12-24 hours, call a vet immediately!  Don’t have a vet? Check out VET RESOURCES 

The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

Forum BEHAVIOR Baby bun questions!

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    • Dudleydoo
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        Hi, everyone!

        I want to say a massive thank you to everyone who dealt with my little panic frenzy, I feel a lot better now but I’m also keeping a close eye on my fluff ball. His name is Dudley, he’s a mini lop (he doesn’t look like it at all yet) and he’s only 5 weeks old. I know he is veeeeery young, so I have questions regarding the behaviour of baby bunnies. I’m sorry if I’m annoying, I didn’t seem to find exact answers to some of my doubts.

        1. He spends a lot of time napping/sleeping, is that normal? He eats his hay and pellets, he drinks his water, his poop is nice and squishy now (was a bit harder before), he comes out and hops around my room for a bit, chews on this and that, pees in the corners, then goes back to munch on some hay. He spent a big part of the day sleeping and at night he was incredibly calm too (also assumed he was sleeping, as he didn’t create a racket to come out). He was a lot more active a few days ago when he became my roommate, he always wanted to come out and now he seems a lot calmer/lazier. The cage would be open and he would sit there eating his hay. Could he be possibly bored already? I do have some toys for him (cat and bird toys), although he never showed interest in them but I plan on getting more. But I also read that babies need more sleep which seems logical to me. 

        2. Someone mentioned that as a baby that was weaned too early, he probably needs a lot of affection. But then someone else said that I shouldn’t pet him unless he decides it’s pet time (I only pet him when he seems calm and when he’s eating, I leave him alone when he’s playing because he runs away from pets then). Pets or no pets until he asks for it?!

        3. He pees outside the cage almost every time he’s out. Too young for litter training maybe, but I am still trying… and I wouldn’t be so mad if it was at least in the cage. Should I get him softer litter? A litter box outside the cage? Is he protesting, does he hate me because he still sees me as a stranger or he needs to smear his pee on every possible trace of human scent to establish his kingdom? He hides when he does it now, he doesn’t directly pee in front of me, ha! I keep cleaning that with vinegar like a maniac. The rest of the cage isn’t covered with anything soft, he usually poops on it. He poops all the time. Everywhere. But I read that’s harder to control.

        I’m obviously still a stranger but he doesn’t seem scared of me, he comes and sniffs me, places his little feet on me and sniffs, looks, investigates.   

        4. He sits/sleeps in his litter box all. the. time. Is that normal? I read that some buns do it, others don’t, some outgrow the habit but he does it all the time. Sometimes he stands on top of his shoe box house and stares in empty space, probably thinking about the meaning of rabbit life. Does he feel safer in his litter box and thus, prefers to spend most of his time in it? 

        5. Duddy is an independent bun who needs no owner. He’s mad I took away his yoga mat. It’s his now because he peed on it. He has already flopped twice in my presence, so I will still take that as a good sign!

        postimage


      • Mikey
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          1. He could be bored, but it sounds more like he is just a calm rabbit. With his age, it might also be that hes a little nervous alone in his new territory, yet. Some rabbits take a while to warm up to their new homes, fully

          2. Every bun is different. My Bombur hates pets but loved to be spoiled with attention when he was younger. My Blue is very independent but will crave attention now and then, and doesnt mind if you force the attention onto him anyway. My Badger doesnt seem to have a preference on attention at all; he always seems welcome to it but doesnt seem upset if you dont want to pet him, as long as you dont ignore him. You and your bunny will figure out what is best as you both learn more about one another

          3. Two litter boxes is usually best for a single bunny. If he is constantly going in one spot, put a little box there. Any stray poops around it, throw in. Any stray pee spots you can soak with a paper towel and put into the bottom of the litter box

          4. Litter boxes are soft and comfortable. You can try to get him a little bunny bed, but if he is anything like my litter sleeper he will turn the little bed into another litter box

          5. Ah the classic bunny butt! Such a cute pouty bun


        • kirstyol
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            Bunnies sleep/lie down a lot – I don’t think we ever seen Bramble sleeping when he was that young, but he definitely spent a lot of his time lying down looking like he might be sleeping unless you looked really closely. He was probably a lot more active when he first came home because everything was new to him and smelled different etc, he needed to check it all out. Sounds to me like he is starting to settle in, but maybe still a little cautious which is great really for how young he is and how long you have had him.

            I would just keep doing what you are doing really, if he wants to be petted he will let you but don’t force it on him. I always felt very lucky having Bramble so young because we could pick him up and cuddle him (only a little, he got upset after a few minutes) so he got used to humans. We spent a lot of time picking him up and putting him in his carrier just so he knew it was safe when that happened. Compared to Ron who we got as an adult, Bramble is so much easier to get in a carrier and I think that’s because he was used to it from a young age.

            I cant really advise much on litter training, I swear Bramble came littler trained out of the womb! He has literally only peed on the floor once in his whole life! Ron on the other hand – well that’s a different story but he was an adult when I got him. I would try a second box though for sure, especially if he always goes in the same spot, he is likely trying to tell you that is where the toilet is, whether you like it or not!

            A lot of rabbits lie down in the litter box, mine don’t tend to do this much but it seems that lots of buns like it.

            A stroppy bunny pose! Super cute, Bramble does a great stroppy bunny pose but Ron just thumps at us and hops off!


          • sarahthegemini
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              I can only answer one of your questions; the one about bunnies sitting in their litter trays – and the answer is yes, it’s normal! Both of my bunbuns have plenty of places they could lay but they just find their litter trays irresistible sometimes hehe. So long as you’re using something absorbant in the tray (carefresh for example) you haven’t got to worry about them lying in wet puddles, I’d let him get on with it. My bunnies used to lay in theirs A LOT, not so much anymore but still occasionally they’ll chill in their hutch litter tray and think about rabbity things!


            • Dudleydoo
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                Thanks everyone!

                Actually, ever since I posted this, his litter box habits have improved slightly. Also, he started licking my face and nose a lot (although only when he’s in his cage as I assume he feels safer), so that makes me very happy! He also grinds his teeth when I pet him.

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            Forum BEHAVIOR Baby bun questions!