Hi I’m a first time bunny owner but have referenced these forums a few times since getting my bunny. Unfortunately the search function is not operational at the moment so I apologize if I am reposting old questions.
I adopted Hazel about 4 months ago from a breeder who was selling him as a meat breeder. I guess he wasn’t up to snuff for showing. At the time he was 1 1/2 years old and an intact male. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I took him home, as the breeder said he didn’t really have much human interaction at all since he was born.
Overall he has gone above and beyond all my expectations. He was litter-trained in a matter of days, and did not display any of the humping/spraying/or cage aggressive behaviors that I was expecting by adopting an un-neutered rabbit. Socializing him has taken a little longer but I let him set the pace for our relationship and he loves to come up for pats and is eager to learn little tricks like sitting up and doing circles for treats. Once he learned what toys were, he has a lot of fun throwing them around now! Overall, he’s a chill guy who is indifferent to the cats and seems to enjoy car rides.
He is a chewer and so far I haven’t trusted him with free roam of the place since he likes to get into mischief. His setup is a mastiff cage in my bedroom that’s about 6′ x 3.5′ x 5′. I have a playpen hooked to the cage with the same dimensions 6′ x 3.5′ that he has access to when I am home. I’m hoping that when I move into another place, I will be able to bunnify it and give him at least his own room. His litter box is an extra large cat box where I keep his pellet bowl and his hay bowl (he came from a pellet only diet but he eats at least as much hay as he does pellets).
Current Diet: Manna Pro Select Series Pellets
Oxbow Timothy Meadow Hay (only brand he will eat so far)
Mustard Greens/Turnip Greens/Collard Greens
Dried Apple Slices/Bunny Jam Cookies/baby carrots (sparingly)
Litter: Unscented and non-dyed shredded paper
Water: 20 oz water bottle (he likes to tip bowls)
Bed: Circle Tie blanket of fleece
Hideaway: Cardboard box on it’s side
Questions:
He also hates to be picked up in any capacity. He is fine once he gets in his carrier but refuses to hop into it under his own power. Any suggestions for getting him to go in by himself?
I’m open to any suggestions for his cage/playpen or dietary setup that can improve his happiness and quality of life. I tried to research as best I could.
Is it too late for neutering or is necessary that he be neutered? Since he’s an adult, I’m concerned that it will be very painful for him. He doesn’t really display any of the undesirable behaviors associated with intact males and it doesn’t seem that neutering males necessarily has the same health benefits as spaying females.