inactive rabbit

Hi,

I have a house rabbit called Yoshi, he is a lop-ear he will be a year old in just over a week. He is housed in a Nero 3 indoor plastic Savic cage with a large run attached which is open in the morning and when I get home from work.

He was castrated in Feb/March and just after this he turned very naughty for about three weeks but has since calmed down. Now he is totally inactive, he will come out to eat his food or to scratch his cage (which he has only started to do after the op) but apart from that he just lies in his cage.

Prior to the op he was always out and about, jumping up on the bed, running over the settee and looking out the window, sitting under the coffee table. The only toy he will play with is his toy with treats in, I have tried several toys including cardboard boxes with newspaper but he does not play with any of them.

The vet has said he is healthy and has a nice coat and shape to him. I am at a loss what to do, whenever I do take him out of his cage for a hug he will sit for two - three mins then jump down straight back into his cage. I have sat outside the run with his treats he will come out for them but goes straight back in,I have even tried dropping the treats around the room. He seems to be happy as he flops over to his side to lie down an I read that this means he is happy

Any help you can provide will be gratefully received, I look forward to hearing from you.

It could just be that hes matured. Have you thought about getting him a friend? He might be a bit bored on his own? My bun Daniel doesnt do much moving around, think somebuns are just like that X

I would say that he is very bored and has therefore responded by switching his brain off and becoming totally inactve.

We took on a rescue bun that was like this at first and it took her several months to 'switch on' again!

Get him a friend and very big hutch and run!!

Hi

Hunny was like this until her husbun joined her. Now she's a bundle if mischief!

Could it be that your bun is lonely? I hope he picks up soon.

Carmen

:wave: my little monster was a bit listless for a while after neutering but soon picked up again. He still has periods of it now and I assume he's a bit bored... but I can't bunnyhop and wash my lop ears with him all the time! Maybe you could look at getting a ladyfriend for him?

I know there's a couple of buns on here that aren't keen on being outside their cage, I wonder if that's just part of his personality? I wonder if once he's out, shutting the door so he has no choice but to be out? with a few boxes to hide in?

sorry i can't be of more help. :wave:

ooh, I'll also say that mine also bacame listless when he had mites, if i hadn't gone searching for them (scaly skin like dandruff inbetween the shoulder blades), i used some spot on stuff and he was binkying again in two days!

Does he eat a lot of hay? A good toy for them is toilet roll middles or cardboard boxes with hay in - they get a lot of amusement from hay, and it's good for their tums at the same time - but you do need good quality hay or they aren't interested - try a riding stables or farm shops for nice stuff - that might perk him up a bit.

I would also say I have one of those cages as an emergency cage for a guinea pig - it's too small as a permanent home for a guinea pig, let alone a rabbit - he needs a MINIMUM of 2'x4' cage (120cm long) or a 90cm dog crate (which is wider than a cage of the same length) - you might find that roomier accomodation cheers him up a bit.

I imagine he can't move much all day if he's in the savic 3 - I've measured the base size (as opposed to the outer edges) and it is only 40cm wide - that's just over one foot wide :shock: They should be able to stretch out comfortably, and take 3 hops from one end to the other of their cage. If he isn't getting any exercise all day this will affect his health - his joints and his guts in particular, not to mention his mental health, so I would address this problem first as it's quite urgent IMO.

He has quite a big run attached to his cage, he does not like to eat hay I have tried at least five different varieties have even tried stuffing toilet rolls putting them in his litter tray but still no luck..

I know its not healthy that is why I am trying my best what to do to help him..

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oh, he's gorgeous!

Yeah he is, I wish I never had him castrated as I miss my hugs in the morning as he used to jump up on the bed for them.. I hate seeing him so quiet as he was never like it before, I even double checked with the vet that the op wouldn't change him as he was perfect.. (he still is just too quiet)

oh I see he has access to the run all day - I thought it was just when you were home sorry Bags of room in there for him - shame he doesn't eat hay Is it worth cutting back his dry food or doesn't he have much anyway? That can make them eat more hay, but I had a rabbit who just starved herself rather than eat hay - I ended up feeding her twice as much pellets as the other bunnies she was so stubborn :roll:

I've had 3 rabbits live indoors and they were all pretty lifeless - they just would sit in the same spot all day - Tia wouldn't even leave her crate for 2 weeks - but they all really came to life outside, even though they were still single - just loved it out there so maybe he's one of those types of buns?

kgattrell said:

Yeah he is, I wish I never had him castrated as I miss my hugs in the morning as he used to jump up on the bed for them.. I hate seeing him so quiet as he was never like it before, I even double checked with the vet that the op wouldn't change him as he was perfect.. (he still is just too quiet)

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aww, it must be horrible if he wasn't neutered through, you'd have all the humping, spraying, territorial and aggressive behaviour to deal with once he was older... i don't know what to suggest, i'm afraid, i'm not massively knowledgeable on the subject. I do hope he perks up.

does he like veg? dillion is very inactive and the only way i can get him to do anything is to hang his veg from the roof of his run so he has to reach up for it as he's bone idle to be honest has a huge run lots of toys and he just sits there

Yes, he does like his veg. I give him rocket, spinach, watercress, carrots, baby sweetcorn, grapes and sultanas every morning and night. He also has his pellets and hay whenever he wants. Ill try hanging his veg that sounds like something that will work as he loves his food. Thanks for the tip