My bunny seems to be a “loner?” Help?

[Katie]

Hi guys!   My internet wasn’t working for a little bit, so it’s been a few weeks since I’ve been on here.  I was all over the forum once I got back on though, lol.  So I think I have two questions here….  One, should I be worried about Sirius’s “loner” behavior?  Two, would she do Better with a friend???  

To start…  My little lady Sirius seems to be a bit of a loner…..  Anyone else have a loner for a rabbit?  Should I be worried?  Lol.  She doesn’t like to be held, (normal, I guess, as most rabbits hate it,) or sit on laps, and/or won’t even really come sit beside me on the couch or anything.  Whenever she is out of her cage (most of the day, she is litter trained well and like 80% free roam, except at night, and also unless I’m showering/not home,) she is usually playing, exploring the whole house, zooming and running up and down the hallway, or hopping all over the couch, up and down.  She has this one particular spot she likes to sit in at the front of the hallway, lol.  It’s not a corner, so idk why she likes it so much, but ah well.!  She isn’t scared of me really; I only “startle” her once in a while, when she’s “too busy” and thinks I’m going to interrupt her fun/exploring by picking her up. (I hope that makes sense, haha!)  But if she’s just sitting in her favorite spot in the hallway, she’ll let me walk by her without jumping.  She’ll let me sit beside her and pet her, too, and she enjoys it and chatters.  But she never really comes to find me by herself for pats though    For the very first time the other day, I was petting her, and she chewed at my shirt to get me to keep petting her, lol.  Also a little more recently, she will nibble at the bottoms of my pant legs SOMETIMES and then lets me pet her.  I gladly pet her, as I love when she lets me and am so scared she’s lonely and not getting enough attention ): She’s the only bunny here.  

She also sits in that spot in the hallway in her loaf form for HOURS….  Sometimes it worries me.  She’s not sleeping? Not that I have seen….  Like shouldn’t she have to pee or poop, ? since I thought bunnies did that often? Lol.  I’ve had her in this house since about August.  She’s not even a year old yet & she was spayed in September, if that helps.  Lionhead dwarf breed.

Would she do better with a friend?  Since she seems to be a loner, and seems to like being alone to explore (??? so it seems, unless I’m just doing something wrong I suppose, ): )  would she do well with a friend?  I totally have so many questions if I were to get her a friend, lol…  Like should I get another dwarf rabbit?  Or doesn’t the size matter?  I don’t want a bigger bunny to bully her.  Or if Sirius is a loner, even a little bit, and/or just towards me, would she be different with another rabbit?  or would she bully that other rabbit, even with training/bonding?

Thank you if you have any advice for me!  Sorry this seems a bit lengthy!  I am full of questions and concerns, haha.  

[Sirius&Luna]

I don’t think you can base how she would behave with another rabbit on how she behaves with you – my rabbits interact with each other in totally different ways to how they react to me. I wouldn’t call her a loner on what you’ve described.

Since you’re often home during the day, I think her loafing behaviour is probably normal. I work on weekdays, but every weekend I’m worried that the bunnies are snoozing/loafing too much, but it’s just because I’m seeing their day time activity which is different to the evening and morning activity that I normally see. I think bunnies do sleep in the loaf position, but they often don’t close their eyes. Is her nose twitching?

Since you are home a lot, I don’t think there’s an urgent need for a friend for her. But if you want to think about it, then I don’t see any reasons that she specifically wouldn’t like other rabbits in what you’ve described. My bunnies explore together. If one leaves the room the other one immediately follows in case they might be missing out on tasty treats somewhere

Perhaps you could try some bunny dates and see how she reacts to other rabbits.

Size doesn’t matter in bonding

[Wick & Fable]

Staying in the same spot for hours ie not uncommon if it’s the daytime hours. Wick moves and sleeps on my dresser every day from 8AMish to 3PM, like clockwork sometimes. He’ll Judy stay up there, regardless if I’m in the room, pulling out clothes, doing stuff in the kitchen, etc.. that’s his sleep time.

If outside a conventional daily snooze you find she is continually lethargic, you want to try stimulating her. Since she doesn’t have a rabbit companion, in a way you need to become one! I crawl around the floor with Wick, follow him, sit there and watch him eat, and try to emulate his behavior towards me so he feels comfortable. Killer on the knees honestly, but worth it.

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[Katie]

Thank you for your input!  I would love to get her a friend, but am a bit worried as to how she will react.  I don’t have a bunny rescue nearby unfortunately, so I couldn’t take her to do “speed dating” like I see a lot of people do.  So if I got another rabbit, and bonding didn’t work out, I couldn’t return the new rabbit ): Plus I would probably feel terrible doing so, haha.  I so badly would love to see her interact with a friend, but I’m so unsure about it.  

Of course I’d love to have another bunny for myself as well, but have to think of Sirius first.  I wish I had an affectionate bunny!  

Can rabbits sleep with their eyes open!?  Oh my goodness…  haha.  It would explain a lot, because I’ve NEVER seen Sirius with her eyes closed, Except when she was really, extremely tired after her spaying procedure.  

& Because as she’s loafing in her favorite spot there in the hallway, her eyes are open.  Her nose doesn’t twitch Too much…  Not the same as when she’s been running around.  I don’t think….  I’ll have to look and pay more attention next time.  

She usually sleeps/sits there late at night though; like 9pm-1am or so.  I’m usually up til 2am or even 3am some days.  She’s super active, zooming and exploring all hours during the daytime and when it’s light out, and always eager to eat when I first feed her during the day (11am or so) so I’m not worried about her being lethargic and/or sick.  

[Katie]

Wick, do you have a photo of that dresser snooze time!?  I’d love to see it!  It sounds so darling!  hahaha.  

[Wick & Fable]

Here’s a video of pre-snooze grooming. This is his nap starting around midnight though, not the morning.

http://www.instagram.com/p/BbGUMPzFf9R/?taken-by=wick_theboogeyman

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[Wick & Fable]

And yes, rabbits can sleep with their eyes open. It’s quite common.

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[Katie]

Oh my gosh!  I’ve read up so much on them; how did I never come across that fact!?  I feel ignorant.  Hahahaha.  Good to know though!  Wick is oh so cute, oh my gosh!  How did he figure out he could get up there and it would make for a good snooze spot?  He’s like a little cat.  Lol.

[OverthinkingBun]

Hi Katie, that fact snuck up on me too! I thought I had read all about rabbits, and wondered why my Polly Oliver never seemed to sleep, and would pass out on the ground with her eyes open I thought it was a bit creepy, really. Turns out that a still nose is a pretty good give away that they are asleep. And re: peeing and pooping, mine seems to not really poop much mid-day. Like, if I clean her litterbox right before work, when I get back in the evening, it is sometimes still clean. This used to worry me so much that I called the vet to bring her in for GI stasis one afternoon (because I forgot I had cleaned the box that morning, like a dummy). The office told me that they couldn’t see her then, and referred me to an emergency vet. Luckily, my bunny took that time of commotion to start pooping again. (she has never had stasis for real)

I’m telling you that story only in case it helps you feel more relaxed about your Sirius, as a new bunny owner, and that he sounds normal.

[Katie]

Hahaa thanks for the reassurance!

[Author]

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