Eating

[kirstie12]

I got a new rabbit yesterday who is around 10 weeks old to keep my current rabbit company who is only 9 weeks old. My first rabbit (Heidi 9 weeks old) is mad she loves to run around eat everything and explore, the newest rabbit milo (10 weeks old) has been hiding a lot and I haven’t seen her eating much (if anything) I have seen her drinking though. It is hard to tell whether she is passing stools as I have the two in the same pen. I also heard some loud gummy rumbling noises but again I am unsure which one of the rabbits this has came from. Heidi is eating, drinking and acting normal and I haven’t heard these noises from her before which makes me think it is the new one milo. I know she may be settling in still but I am quite worried. As my first ever rabbit recently passed very suddenly. Milo (the newest rabbit) keeps hiding into Heidi almost tucking herself into her when they are out of their private part of the cage. Has anyone experienced this before? Am I overreacting, or is there a real cause for concern?

Ps I had Heidi at the vet yesterday evening after we brought her home just for a check up to ensure we were buying a healthy rabbit and the vet didn’t see anything concerning after checking her over.

[Asriel and Bombur]

Some bunnies have a hard time adjusting to a new home. So just be sure to monitor him and make sure he is actually eating, drinking, and pooping. You can give some baby gas drops to be on the safe side though. Buns usually love the taste of them.

As a side note, please keep these two bunnies completely separate until both have been spayed and neutered. Bunnies have a complex bonding process that begins after both have been fixed. Your boy is hitting an age where he can impregnate your doe, and really young does that become pregnant don’t have a good chance at surviving. Also, hormonal bunnies (which they are approaching that age) will mainly only want to fight as the become territorial. So keep them separate, get both of them fixed, then you can read more on the bonding process.

[kirstie12]

Thanks for the advice,

however seeing as they were already in the same pen at the pet shop (not the same litter) and were only apart for a few days, we thought we could start the bonding process as soon as we got milo home. Milo is a female also so there will be no impregnating going on thankfully.

I kept them apart last night when I went to bed to see if Milo would eat some pellets without Heidi in her way. I’m not 100% sure if she at many but the bowl looked slightly less full.

Today has been a slight improvement in the eating side of things, Milo has been eating some spinach, and I believe a small amount of hay although still not eating the pellets. Any ideas on hiw I can get her to eat some more of the important stuff?

I’ve kept an extremely close eye on them both today and they have been cuddling etc all day. Milo seems to sit hunched all the time. Should I be concerned about Milo?

[tobyluv]

Very young rabbits can be housed together, but when they are 10 to 12 weeks old, they definitely need to be separated. It doesn’t matter if they are from the same litter or have been housed together for a few weeks. Once they hit a certain age, everything changes. Hormones come flooding in, and with them come territorial feelings and aggression, which leads to fighting. When rabbits fight, they can severely injure each other. It will be very dangerous for you to keep them together from now on, until they have been spayed and gone through a proper bonding procedure. Also, pet shop employees know very little about rabbits and they have often told people that they had 2 females or 2 males, then in a few weeks they were surprised by a litter of bunnies, sometimes getting a second litter if the rabbits were still together when the first litter was born, since rabbits can get pregnant immediately after giving birth.

Here is one good article on bonding: https://rabbit.org/faq-bonding-multiple-rabbits/. There is also a good article on bonding on the BB site, under BUNNY INFO.

Regarding feeding veggies, it’s best to wait until a rabbit is at least 12 weeks old before introducing any veggies. Spinach is a veggie that should be fed sparingly anyway. You can find lists of good greens on this site. Are you feeding Milo alfalfa hay? Most rabbits love that. If she doesn’t seem to care for it, try timothy or orchard grass or any other hays.  If she isn’t eating pellets, try another brand. 

The fact that she is sitting hunched is not good. That often indicates gas, which can be very painful and can lead to GI stasis. You can try infant simethicone drops if you suspect gas. That’s 1 ml per hour for 3 hours. There are also videos showing how to gently massage a rabbit’s belly to relieve gas. Getting a rabbit to move around also helps. If it’s not gas, perhaps Milo is just stressed by being in a new place or she could have some other health problem that would need to be checked out.

The fact that your rabbits are cuddling today doesn’t mean that they will be cuddling a few days from now. Everything can change when they hit puberty. You are really taking a chance by keeping them together.

[DanaNM]

I think the important thing here is to monitor Milo and make sure she’s OK.

So, even if the buns could be kept safely together for a couple more weeks, it would be best to separate them so you can monitor her poop (they would still probably like to be near each other though).

I believe greens are normally introduced at 12 or 16 weeks, so she might be too young for any greens at all, and the greens might have upset her tummy a bit. It is good that she is eating hay, as that is most important for her. Keep pushing hay as much as possible.

How is she doing today? If she is gassy you can give her tummy rubs. Pain can also cause rabbit’s temperature to fluctuate, and they can get a very low temp and go into shock. She may be cuddling into Heidi because she is cold. How do her ears feel? You can wrap a warm water bottle in a towel and give it to her so she can cuddle into it (your own body heat can also be great).

If she is still doing poorly she should be seen by a vet as soon as possible (it sounds like you already have one, so that’s good!).

Hope she is doing better though!

. . . 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.  

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