More advice needed.

Hello again. I have been reading the forum but have not posted for a while.
Some of you may remember that I was given a 2-3 week old baby rabbit back in September. She was found in a lane in my village. I called her Shadow.

Some kind people here gave me some good advice as I have no experience with rabbits at all.

It was my intention to rehome her once I was sure she was fit and well. However because she has to stay indoors until Spring as she has been raised in a centrally heated house and I am very fussy about the sort of home I would want for her, no home has turned up.

I am now leaning towards keeping her. I never was a 'rabbit person' but Shadow has changed that!:lol:

So............ I need more advice to make sure she has the best of everything.

Firstly, even though she has been hand reared she is not very tame yet. She is very happy for me to stroke her in the cage but panics when picked up and also seems to hate floor time!:? When I get her out she just hides away and seems happy to be back in the cage again.
I have gone back to taking her out each night and just cuddling her and giving her lap time. She seems happy with this but I feel she needs to have floor time. What can I do to make it a happier experience for her?

I have been advised not to try and find a Husbun for her until she has been spayed which will be another 2 months yet. Why is that? If the male was neutered does she need to wait? Is the bonding more likely to work if she has been spayed? I know because of the risk of cancer she should be spayed but it would be nice for her to have a mate before this.

Sorry for the long post and the questions. I am a complete novice and I do want to get it right.
I am sure I will have more questions.
Oh one more thing, she wakes up about 10.00pm and sleeps all day. Is this normal? When the Spring comes and she can go out in a run will it be ok to wake her up and put her out? I would want her in at night as my garden is not joined to my house and I would worry about her. I know at night we have foxes around.

Thanks,
Wend.

Hiya :wave:

Your bunny sounds adorable, cant give much advice i'm afraid as i'm a novice when it comes to bun buns but i know ours tend to be most active from about 1am til 7am and then sleep the majority of the day

A male must have been neutered for 6 weeks before pairing with an unspeyed female to make certain he is no longer fertile.

Bonding an adult male with an unspeyed female is risky because its more likely to result in a fight. The female may mount the male when her hormones set in and he can become displeased with this unwanted attention and retaliate or a fight for dominance can occur.

This means a happily bonded pair may have to be split and once split it is harder to rebond.

I do think she would benefit from a friend though, a tamer rabbit can help ressure a skittish rabbit and many people report positive behavioural changes in rabbits once bonded.

Rabbits are naturally more active at dawn and dusk, my house bunny spends all day asleep either in her basket or behind the settee and the runs riot at night!

Thank you for the replies. Now I understand the reasons behind waiting for her to be spayed.

I think I have a lot to learn!

Next question. How soon can I let her go out in the run? She is approx 4 months old now but has been indoors since about the age of 2 weeks.
Obviously if it was very cold or wet I would not put her out but if it is a mild day would it be ok for an hour or so?

Also does anyone know of any good rabbit rescues in Devon apart from the RSPCA and Bluecross? I am thinking ahead to when I can get her a friend and I would like her to come with me and have a say in it.

Thanks again,
Wend.

She will be fine in a run for an hour on a mild day. She will probably love it