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Going to get a rabbit!

cat001

Young Bun
We've been wanting a male rabbit for a while now, we've been making enquiries here and there but have found out that a family we know doesn't want their rabbit anymore. I've not seen this rabbit myself but from what I hear he's very over weight and rarely gets the chance to leave the hutch as they also have a dog which barks at the rabbit. Here he'll have the chance to exercise fully in the garden with a good, managed diet and a girl friend to keep him company! :) Our Lucy is very friendly towards other animals, I just hope this rabbit is just as friendly towards our girl. I've got plans to slowly introduce them and to try and manage his wight issues, really looking foward to seeing how things go. Going to get him now! Will take pictures when he arrives. :)
 
So glad you are giving him a fresh start in life from the hell it sounds like he is in now. Good luck with bonding.
 
Oooo, how exciting! They are both neutered right?

Welcome to RU, if I've not said so already! :wave:
 
That is exciting :D Lucky bunny!

However, I would really like to emphasise the point of quarantining him, for the sake of your girlie.
 
Here he is, we let him on the garden for a bit where he proceeded to mow the garden for us lol but now he's in an indoor hutch for the night. He's 2 years old and not currently neutered but will be before we start bonding the buns!

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His chin is huge!!! and he's got a lot of fat on his front legs too which will hopefully go down with correct diet and exercise.

I remember when we first got Lucy, she was a rescue and terrified of people, thinking about it i've now realised just how much she herself has changed in the time we've had her, she'll run up to people so enthusiastically looking for treats and will even accept a pet on the head, it's such a lovely experiance working with animals on their problems and issues...I'm realllly looking forward to the morning just simply working on our trust, between the rabbit and I! Oh and by the way, his name is Snowy lol.
 
These are lovely pictures! :love: I've never seen a male bunny with a chin like that, but I'm sure he'll respond well to a healthier lifestyle. Keep us posted! :wave: I adopted my bunny when he was seventh months old, and can identify with the patience needed to build up trust - it's so worth it. My lad was actually well loved, but his owner had poor health and wasn't able to give him as much attention as she felt he needed.
 
I'm just thinking- are you sure its a boy, it looks very like a dewlap to me.
We took in a 9 year old rabbit who was supposed to be male ( according to the owners, turned out she was a girl!)
 
I was thinking that three! It is possible for males to get rolls of flabby skin there but it's far more common in females.

Well done for rescuing the lovely bun :) Whatever gender he/she turns out to be I would recommend making sure that both buns are neutered and calmed down after their operations before you attempt to bond them on neutral territory.

Good luck, I bet the new bun is loving having that extra space :)
 
advanced warning

Just in case no-one warned you - if he isn't used to grass it may upset his tummy - sometimes this can be serious - so maybe keep his grazing sessions very limited for now, and increase them gradually - he may be tempted to overdo it otherwise...

He/she looks adorable
 
Him being a her did very much cross my mind as I too thought it was supposed to be a more common phenomena in the females but in either case a rabbit in need is a rabbit in need ;) I can't check for myself at the moment as it has become very apparent that 'he' has rarely been handled and don't wish to stress him out too much on the first day, I'll know for certain however when he makes his little trip to the vets lol.

I've recently let him out for a wonder around the room, he was looking very tense and anxious and was even displaying steriotypical behaviours in the form of a slight rocking of the head from side to side as well as intervalled thumping, I'm not certain whether this is typical of him or if he's just stressed with the move? He's calmed down and looks more inquisitive now he's been let out for a wonder and has even eaten whilst out the hutch. It looks like he's also fineally settled down in the corner of the room!
 
My bunny behaved like that when we brought him into the house to stretch his paws in the first few days after we got him (ie. before the big pen for the grass arrived). It's good he has picked a corner, must be settling. Has he rubbed anything with his chin to claim it as his? :wave:
 
displaying steriotypical behaviours in the form of a slight rocking of the head from side to side as well as intervalled thumping, I'm not certain whether this is typical of him or if he's just stressed with the move?

Rocking of the head sounds very much like 'scanning', it's a phenomenon most commonly associated with red eyed white bunnies, and Snowy looks like s/he may well have a redness to his/her eyes as some non-pure white bunnies do. It's basically to do with poor eyesight, they sway their heads slightly to help them to focus on something - a bit like you sometimes see people moving a newspaper backwards and forwards in front of their face, except in this case they are moving their head instead of the object. So you would expect to see this particularly in a new environment where the bun is trying to have a good look at everything there.

It will probably carry on but maybe less so as things get more familiar to the bun. Assuming this is what it is (mention it when you go for a vet check), it's nothing in particular to worry about other than being aware that s/he may have poor eyesight so talk to him/her so that you don't startle him/her by appearing suddenly.

Also just as a general note of caution, it's getting to that time of year now where the temperature drops off quite steeply at night, so if s/he is going to be an outdoor bunny, I would suggest putting him/her back outside soon otherwise s/he won't have enough fur coat to cope with the night time temperatures.

Good luck :) x
 
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