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Abit more of advice before buying my baby buns

Hey everyone!!

So I decided what type of bun to get, I cant find any netherlands so I decided to go with mini lops, Im thinking of getting 2 so they arnt lonely. I found a bun family willing to sell me two however I dont want to buy a sick bun, what do you look for when actually picking your bun out? My friend said that buns smell... is this true?

I was thinking out buying like a large playpen for the garden during the day and another one with a roof for nights to put indoors and when it rains.
 
well yes buns smell to a certain degree as does any animal or human, my buns are extremely clean and if their bedding is changed regularly you should have no pee smell. you can't be garuantee if the bun is healthy or not, it could look fine and you get it home and it'll be sick. young buns are hard to look after (i've found this out myself) so be prepared for teenage tantrum times. have you consider adopting from a local rescue centre that already have bonded pairs this way you'll know their medical history. another thing you must be prepared to pay for vet bills down the lines so if you seriously can't afford them i'd think twice about getting your bun. they are not cheap pets. anyway lol so to ramble but best of luck in getting your new buns. ;) o yes their housing sounds deadon, remember the big the better.
 
Hiya :wave:

It is great that you are doing some reaserch before buying :)

Bunnies take far more care than most people realise and need far far more space.

Getting two is a great idea, bunnies need friends, but you have to be very careful about sexing/neutering to avoid unwanted babies.

Ok so first of are they going to live outdoors, if so you will need at least a 6ft hutch, with an attached secure run. This will cost around £200 I guess?

As for buying them, have you considered a rescue? You would get a pair who are already neutered and have been living together so won't fight, which can happen if you just put bunnies together.

Have a good look round this site and ask as many questions as you want to :D
 
I agree! I volunteer at my local rabbit rescue and they vaccinate and neuter all their rabbits and bond them with a suitable (usually opposite sex) mate. There are still young buns who are bonded etc..

It will be cheaper for you in the long run, the stress of neutering is removed (my bun due to be done this month and I am worried already!!) and you are helping by rescuing so another space is available at that rescue :)
 
The thing is, I did find a shelter with a neverland however they arnt sure how old he is and Im worried if I get him and then he ends up dying on my short after.... I think thats one thing thats holding me back on getting any pet, but I really want lil' buns :p
 
lil buns turn into big buns. at the end of the day if you get that neverland you'd be giving him a wonderful home even if its for a short time, he may not be as old as you think and rabbits do live a good 8-10 years. they resuce are always getting rabbits in and if the find a suitable pair for you you could adopt them. my rescue centre contacted me when they got a single male rabbit in. i know have wee ralph and despite his health problems i wouldn't give him up for the world. he's a wee fighter. just be prepared in your first year of owning them you'll spend roughly

2X mxyi jabs £50
2X VHD jabs £50
2x speys/neutures between £55-£100 (so for two your talking nearly £200)
Cage and Runs £200 (maybe more)
Food cost £300-£400
Fresh veg over the year £260

However the rescue pays of speying and vacc for their first year. i'd say i've spend well over a £1000 since owning my two which i got last may. plus i've had a few vet trips cost over £100.
 
The thing is, I did find a shelter with a neverland however they arnt sure how old he is and Im worried if I get him and then he ends up dying on my short after.... I think thats one thing thats holding me back on getting any pet, but I really want lil' buns :p

To be honest there are no certainty that a young rabbit will live longer, at least getting a rescue you know they will have had health checks etc.
 
There are buns of every shape, size and age in rescue. In fact I saw a very nice little netherland dwarf on the rabbitrehome site yesterday he was young too.
 
:wave: Whereabouts are you MzPinkLipGloss? Are you in the UK?

I would say that getting a pair of neutered bunnies from a rescue centre, you are actually far more likely to get healthy bunnies than if you buy babies :) The time that baby bunnies leave their mum is quite 'dangerous' for them, they are at risk of all sorts of problems and are probably more at risk of dying at this stage than any other! Plus of course when they are old enough you'd have to put them through an anaesthetic to get them neutered, whereas rescue buns would already be neutered.

Lots to think about, it's great you're doing your research first!
 
4 of my rescue bunnies were adopted as babies at 8 weeks old. Rescues often get whole litters in or does that give birth in rescue. It isn't hard to find baby rabbits in rescue if that's what you have set your heart on. :)

Vera
 
The thing is, I did find a shelter with a neverland however they arnt sure how old he is and Im worried if I get him and then he ends up dying on my short after.... I think thats one thing thats holding me back on getting any pet, but I really want lil' buns :p

Buns live a fairly long time, so death is unlikely if you get a healthy bun. Most buns in Rescue are less than 2 so have 6-13 years ahead of them.

If you get a Rescue, they will already be neutered/spayed & possibly vaccinated, so the risk is even smaller for yourself. Plus bun has got through the hormonal/destructive teenage phase, that you will discover as baby buns grow up.
 
Rescues often have their bunnies for a while and properly get to know them, so not only are they more aware of the bunny's health, they often spend a lot of time with the bunnies, meaning they are more used to being handled than pet shop buns, and the rescue will usually be able to tell you a bit about the buns personality as well.
 
Nethies are great bunnies. Fiesty little critters :lol: They definately have attitude, and I'm sure nethie owners on here will agree :lol:

If you get an 8 week old bunny from someone selling them which is usually around £15 - £20, then as said by others, you'll have to pay for the neutering/spaying and the first vaccinations and as the bunny grows, they might end up with problems with teeth etc which usually start as the bunny grows and heaven knows how much they'll cost. If you get a bunny from a rescue, say that's about 6 months - 1 year old then if bunny was gonna be having any misalined teeth, then they would've shown it by then, and usually the rescue neuter/spay and vaccinate the bunny, and you usually only end up donating £15 - £20 more than you would've spent buying the bunny, thus saving you money too :)
 
Must admit baby bunnies make me very nervous, I always panic that they aren't going to get through those first few critical weeks once you have brought them home :oops:

I personally would find a pair of young adult rescue bunnies much easier to look after :)
 
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