I want bunnies again, but...

I'll say in advance, this is one of those really pointless threads, but I just want to share what I'm thinking with bunny lovers!

I'm hoping to try to sell the house soon and move, and part of the criteria for the new house/garden will be somewhere to keep a couple of bunnies. :rabbit2: I never really had room in this house/garden for bunnies, but took some in as a sort of emergency, which is what started me off with bunnies. When they became house bunnies they just took over the house! :lol:

But, despite the fact it has been a long time now since my bunnies died (2008!), I have still never got over the stress and upset, and the fact that they were ill (to some degree) almost from the day I got them to the day I had to make the decision (separate occasions, but same condition/decision). They also became such high dependency for a long time, that they prevented any holidays, or long days out etc.

During the time of all the stress/upset I always said I'd never have bunnies again. I love bunnies, but I just don't know if I can cope with the stress of stasis etc. Was I just unlucky? Or are bunnies that incredibly fragile? I see so many threads on here about bunnies in stasis, and it brings all the stress and upset back. My OH feels exactly the same.

:? :? :?

if i was bunnyfree right now id deffo not go there again. im stuck in the cycle tho, i can never leave a human hating bunny single and when i adopt his new wife i will sign a form to say that bunny will never be single *sighs*

probably not the best person to post as i feel so raw today, but i think you are right to have doubts. im dreading a new bunny if im honest all i can see is a future of health issues.

in saying that Alvin just melted whats left of my heart by buzzing me

Thanks. That's actually really helpful to hear, because it kind of sums up how I felt at the time when I had the bunnies. In many ways I need to remember how that felt.

but then i think, that time spent with pearl was worth every second of this pain. not sure id take on a bunny that is stasis prone, but id take another pearl heart issues and all in a flash

infact i want her back, just not as poorly as she was yesterday.. ill miss my kitchen of meds and syringes

and they have cute faces too sorry :lol::lol:

When Peanut died, I swore i'd never get another bunny, that I would bond mine into a trio and then a twosome, and then just keep two, i didnt want four again.

Peanut cost so much money and so much heartache, i didnt see the point. We had three years together and 9 months of one of those years was pain. However, since he died i have been blissfully happy with my three.

Jelly has a no stress dental and aside from that they have been 100% fine. Domino and Pebbles have never even had to go to the vet for anything other than jabs in the three years ive had them.

But you dont see posts about how your bunny never has to go to the vet, thats pointless :lol:

I know exactly how you feel. When Dusty died (the last one) I felt absolutely bereft, and even missed the rounds of drugs and the worry! After a while I started to enjoy a bit more freedom though. I also can't imagine not having had them. I still want them back now. It's all so confusing. :?

I think the pro' outweigh the cons, they break your heart, ruin your home, poop everywhere,.............but you love them all the same.

My Ginger bun is the reason my hair is going grey at 21!! Pickles too, but with him it's due to naughtiness! That said, I don't think I could be without buns again. 'Never say never' I think is a good phrase here - fate has a way of deciding for you sometimes.

I'd never want to be without bunnies again. I've had loads of heartache. One thought that goes through my mind often though is what do I do when FHB retires? I need to know I have a very rabbit savvy vet within an hours journey, I've become totally dependant on believing that all I need to do is know there's something wrong and FHB will do the rest. I don't want the stress of wondering if my vet knows what they are doing etc.

I'd agree with what's been said earlier - they are worth all the heartbreak. That said, I'm coming up to the anniversary of losing Scrat and it's tearing me apart all over again

well if you keep them in mind when you move the option will always be there, i find when i have something or can get something easily its not as appealing as the cant have option. makes me want more

no guarentees i guess but if when you get your bunnies your ready with the syringes if they dont get ill whooop

I just think you were very unlucky with your girls.

IMO you should get another pair, but preferably unrelated rabbits, so even if one has a genetic disorder, the other should (hopefully) be okay.

GI problems are one of the worst types of illness to deal with in terms of the sheer pain and misery they cause for a rabbit (and owner too!), so I can equally understand if you don't want to go there again

I'm really sorry to hear you're in such a quandary.

I can understand how you feel too - I think you had such awful bad luck with Dusty and Clover being ill all the time, it's bound to have affected the way you think and feel about getting bunnies again. I very much doubt that if you got new rabbits they would need to intensity of care that Dusty and Clover did, but of course there are no guarantees with animals.

As you know, we were without bunnies for 3 months after we lost Rosie. I still miss Rosie dreadfully, and am welling up even typing this. Our new bunnies are such characters, and I did feel it was right for us to get more, but we thought long and hard before making the decision. There are pros and cons to having animals - I don't mean that to sound heartless, but it's the reality of owning pets.

Don't think it's a pointless thread at all though - it's helpful to hear how other people feel, especially if some have been through the same sort of experiences that you have.

XMissySJx said:

I think the pro' outweigh the cons, they break your heart, ruin your home, poop everywhere,.............but you love them all the same.

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I totally agree with this, My rabbit despite being vaccinated got myxis last year. I went out one morning to find her still acting the same but with lumps all over her eyes and nose. Obviously I took her to straight to the vets expecting them to just put her down, but they as she was vaccinated they gave her a chance and ... she survived! But for weeks I was worried sick about her, even now she has a mangled nose and runny eyes

BUT she is the most lovable bunny and LOVES life and I can't imagine life without her and her boybun

although hard getting any animal is hard, healthy or not as they do pass away long before we do, leaving a void the feeling something is missing.


As hard as it maybe we cannot predict how our pets will turn out, who knows you maybe jinxed with poorly buns with the next, but you know you wouldn't change them would you? although may fill you with dread, you are also prepared and know what its like, Or you could have really healthy buns but get more paniced because you may thing that one sneeze, or that one lil thing could mean something really bad when its not.


Ive made a bet with my mum as she asked me if i would get any more buns once mine had past, I said deffinatly, she thinks i should take a break like she will, her 2 cats are in there mid teens at mo have health issues and she swears she will have a break, this isa woman who has had animals in her life since she was born, now in her 60's, thats a long time with animals to then decide nope i want a break, Im betting she will last 6 months max without a pet

areia said:

this isa woman who has had animals in her life since she was born, now in her 60's, thats a long time with animals to then decide nope i want a break, Im betting she will last 6 months max without a pet

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my mom didnt last long neither, she still cant get a dog but she started crying at adverts with animals in, so most daytime tv stuff :shock:

the cats she adopted have filled the hole beautifully and she still looks longingly at dogs but shes stopped crying at the emptiness now.

i did a thread a few weeks ago and at that point i was convinced id never have other pets ever again, Alvin was in stasis again.. theres something really wrong about stasis that makes taking on another bunny very very scary indeed

Thanks for all the posts. I'm really grateful, and it does help, even just to know that people understand my mixed feelings. x

As much as losing them hurts, they are worth every single second in my view.
Squidgy was my heart bunny and I'm welling up now thinking about him, I feel like I lost a part of myself and I will miss him forever I think. BUT I had 8 wonderful years with him and I wouldn't have missed that for anything.
I think you were possibly slightly unlucky with Dusty and Clover. I don't want to jinx anything, but I've had very few problems with Salt and Pepper and none so far with Daisy-Boo and Pippin. I had 6 lovely years with Bobby before he developed his abcess.

I lost 2 rabbits last year and when my last one, Sooty, passed I decided I didn't want anymore.

I lasted about a week

The health issues are a big worry though and I now have a special needs rabbit that makes me cry everytime I look at him

I think once rabbits come into your heart they will be there forever

I think anyone who has lost a bun will say that they thought about not having another one.

It doesn't last long though. I have lost three girls in the past 18months. I have a very odd case, I lost one got one, I lost one and gained two then lost one and gained three.

After Cherry I don't think I can have another one the pain is just too much. I hated questioning myself, as to the right thing to do.

I am going to attempt to bond my 5 together, but I don't expect it to work, but I can be certain I will get a 3 and a 2

donnamt said:

my mom didnt last long neither, she still cant get a dog but she started crying at adverts with animals in, so most daytime tv stuff :shock:

the cats she adopted have filled the hole beautifully and she still looks longingly at dogs but shes stopped crying at the emptiness now.

i did a thread a few weeks ago and at that point i was convinced id never have other pets ever again, Alvin was in stasis again.. theres something really wrong about stasis that makes taking on another bunny very very scary indeed

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I will admit out of all types of animals ive had so far, ive never been more stressed and worried than i have with a rabbit, touch wood i do consider myself luckyish, myxi with one, and 2 with ongoing probs, only ever once had a mild stasis prob with one bun, but they are still happy buns and pretty much easy going health wise

I look longingly at cats but my OH really doesnt like them at all,