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New here and need advice

mummyb

Warren Scout
Hello all, but of a weird few days for us here as we unfortunatly had to take our Continental giant back to the shop :( Yes silly us bought from a petshop :shock: I won't do it again after this.

We were told Ronnie (male) was 8 wks when we bought him and without ever seeing a baby giant before we thought to be true but he was very very aggressive with us for the 3 wks we had him and it all came to an end when he made my 7yr old terrified after a really bad attack. We were forced to return him after it. Vet checked him health wise but didn't question his age he weighed nearly 12lb at 9wks

Now we have since bought another 2 baby giants both 8wks (female) from a lovely breeder, they both weigh approx 3.5lb now my question is do you think our petshop bunny was much older than 8wks or was he just a much bigger baby?
 
Hello all, but of a weird few days for us here as we unfortunatly had to take our Continental giant back to the shop :( Yes silly us bought from a petshop :shock: I won't do it again after this.

We were told Ronnie (male) was 8 wks when we bought him and without ever seeing a baby giant before we thought to be true but he was very very aggressive with us for the 3 wks we had him and it all came to an end when he made my 7yr old terrified after a really bad attack. We were forced to return him after it. Vet checked him health wise but didn't question his age he weighed nearly 12lb at 9wks

Now we have since bought another 2 baby giants both 8wks (female) from a lovely breeder, they both weigh approx 3.5lb now my question is do you think our petshop bunny was much older than 8wks or was he just a much bigger baby?

ok what giant breed are they ?
and what breeder did you use did you use a brc breeder or another
reason i ask is if its a conti giant 12lb sounds aabout right pending on breeder it may have been a little older but by 12 weeks you expect that weight
here are some pics to give you an idea
did you get all the info you wanted on the breed you have, ei do you know conti giants on a whole only live 3-4 years ?apple breaks this rule :roll: british giants longer
apple aged 16 weeks
Jaswiv.jpg

apple 6 mth
Ann1.jpg

6 mth luchiano
BM_MC_310110a64.jpg

padame and 5 week old baby british giants
IMG_3414.jpg

8 week conti belle
rabbits033.jpg

apple now 7
otley019.jpg

apple with 5 week babies
beckiphotoshoot097.jpg

my daughter with a under 5 mth conti
pontipart2009-1.jpg

hope that helps you a little
ann xx
 
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hi thx for the reply, what gorgeous photos!!!

yes we searched many web pages and books before getting our bunnies!

pet shop Ronnie was a continental giant and or two new bunnies are continental too. The breeder is a brc breeder and also shows his rabbits, the mum and the dad are both previous winners so i assumed that they were better rabbits and maybe a better size for 8wks. Just feels a bit strange that the petshop one is more than double the size of the new babies.
I must say however Petshop Ronnie was weighed at vets and our new babies (Daisy and Lily) were weighed on kitchen scales hehe

I suppose i'm just looking for a reason to why more Ronnie was so aggressive as he was also a very happy bunny :roll: just seemed to fit that maybe he was actually a little older

thanks again
 
hi thx for the reply, what gorgeous photos!!!

yes we searched many web pages and books before getting our bunnies!

pet shop Ronnie was a continental giant and or two new bunnies are continental too. The breeder is a brc breeder and also shows his rabbits, the mum and the dad are both previous winners so i assumed that they were better rabbits and maybe a better size for 8wks. Just feels a bit strange that the petshop one is more than double the size of the new babies.
I must say however Petshop Ronnie was weighed at vets and our new babies (Daisy and Lily) were weighed on kitchen scales hehe

I suppose i'm just looking for a reason to why more Ronnie was so aggressive as he was also a very happy bunny :roll: just seemed to fit that maybe he was actually a little older

thanks again

who was the breeder if you dont mind me asking ?
we tend to keep the biggest from the litters as size is everything ;)
there isnt many breeders of contis and only 4 including my self i would recconmend
i wouldnt worry too much all rabbits are different my jack was a little boy at 8 weeks however he grew to a huge 3 and half ft and weighedin at 28lb :D
as for him been a nasty bunny thats down to breeding none handling these are strong rabbits and they know it bucks tend to be mre gentle does can get really nasty if they want
apple is a right cow :lol: shes jazzys you can see jazzy can do anything with her but me or anyone else you have no chance if you want to keep your hands intact thats just apple she is very protective of jazzy and has been since jazzy decided she was her rabbit she was called apple when apple was a hour old ;)
ann x
 
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Photo

Thought i would add a picture of Lily and Daisy. I have some of Ronnie too but can't really see the size difference in the photo's .
Both seemed very happy in their new home, i'm dying to give them big hugs but better let them get settled first :roll:



daisy and lily 8wks
DaisyAndLily.jpg
daisy munching greens
P1020025.jpg
 
Sorry took me so long trying to figure out how to post photos i never seen your post lol awww that's lovely that they have such a close bond

Mmm paperworks in the car and hubby has the car but we got them near Falkirk if thats any help lol As far as i'm aware this is from their 1st litter but there lovely bunnies and very well looked after they have been handled well.
I'm still sure Ronnie was older than the petshop says :?
 
Hi just wanted to add that if indeed Ronnie was older as you suspect, his aggression could have been down to his hormones creeping in. Any un neutered/spayed bunny is likely to show some aggression xxx
 
Hi just wanted to add that if indeed Ronnie was older as you suspect, his aggression could have been down to his hormones creeping in. Any un neutered/spayed bunny is likely to show some aggression xxx

This goes for your 2 new girls too I'm afraid. Once they reach maturity they are likely to become territorial and aggressive. You'll need to get them both spayed at around 6 months to prevent this.
 
Sometimes rabbits from pet shops are not handled properly and are quite nervous when not downright aggressive. I have such an experience with my doe Maia, who even after her spay has remained quite ill-tempered. I still love her, but she is small and there are no children in the home so chances for incidents are very low.
However I'm not sure that rehoming through a pet shop was the best choice. That rabbit needs an expert owner who can deal with big rabbits and perhaps re-train him to be less aggressive, and most pet shops don't care much to find such an owner for their less friendly animals as long as they're sold.
 
his aggression could have been down to his hormones creeping in. Any un neutered/spayed bunny is likely to show some aggression

Well this is my worry to be honest because if i'm right about him being older we could have got him neutered and 'may' have helped with the problem. Also if i right about his age it would give some sort of reason to why a 'baby' was so aggresive! I phoned the petshops to express my concern anyway hopefully they let his new parents know my concerns.

This goes for your 2 new girls too I'm afraid.

Yes my girls will both be done too, just as soon as there old enough ;)
 
However I'm not sure that rehoming through a pet shop was the best choice. That rabbit needs an expert owner who can deal with big rabbits and perhaps re-train him to be less aggressive, and most pet shops don't care much to find such an owner for their less friendly animals as long as they're sold.

I didn't rehome Ronnie through a petshop i returned him to where i bought him and got my money back.

I wish i could afford to keep him and give him to an expert owner but truth is me and my kids have waited 6 mths before getting a giant and when we did it turned out so bad. If i had more money i could buy all the lovely pets in the store and give them better homes too :(
 
Well this is my worry to be honest because if i'm right about him being older we could have got him neutered and 'may' have helped with the problem. Also if i right about his age it would give some sort of reason to why a 'baby' was so aggresive! I phoned the petshops to express my concern anyway hopefully they let his new parents know my concerns.



Yes my girls will both be done too, just as soon as there old enough ;)[/
QUOTE]

Which unfortunately will be further away than your boy bun, cos girlies have to wait longer for it to be "safe". You may well end up with two hormonal, aggressive or fighting contis before they are spayable.
 
Which unfortunately will be further away than your boy bun, cos girlies have to wait longer for it to be "safe". You may well end up with two hormonal, aggressive or fighting contis before they are spayable.

Really? OH no i questioned the vet about this long before we got any rabbit and we were told 4mths for a female and 6mths for a male?! Don't tell me i have a rubbish petshop and rubbish vet :shock:

I thought i was doing good getting a bonded pair, i've only ever had one rabbit before many years ago!
Luckly for us their cage is big enough to section off if need be :roll: so its not a HUGE problem just an annoying one
 
Well this is my worry to be honest because if i'm right about him being older we could have got him neutered and 'may' have helped with the problem. Also if i right about his age it would give some sort of reason to why a 'baby' was so aggresive! I phoned the petshops to express my concern anyway hopefully they let his new parents know my concerns.



Yes my girls will both be done too, just as soon as there old enough ;)[/
QUOTE]

Which unfortunately will be further away than your boy bun, cos girlies have to wait longer for it to be "safe". You may well end up with two hormonal, aggressive or fighting contis before they are spayable.

such a shame, i thought that buns were done via theier weight rather than age? but for sure if ronnie had his balls dropped already then he was able to be neutered also the problem is generally as a rul;e is females are more hormonal and territorial than males and will become more aggreessive quicker and yet becasue they develop slower internally you will have to wait longer, im glad you are getting them done though, and their vaccs will be important too! :) sometimes rabbits are jsut scared and becasue they are prey animals find it very difficult to adapt, some need more time than others i wouldnt expect a bunny to fully adapt tot a new enviroment for several months as it causes them a lot of upset initially while settling in, this could be another reason for ronnies upset and aggression, generally you are best to get an adult bunny who has been neutered and their personality is known already if looking for one type of personality as sadly once hormones ckick in even after a neuter as they grow up they can change im not saying they all do but some do, it will mean keeping an eye on them as they go, generally i think if you get them spayed as son as you are able then you should be ok and make sure they go in to be done together and recover together indoors, i hope you are very happy with your new additions you will find many people on ehre anti breeder and showing as many rabbits are distressed at shows and kept in very small cages also there are so many unwanted and unloved bunnies over 30 000 in rescues and this forum stems from a rescue webpage (rabbit rehome) now that is not me scaring you off at all as im happy you have found ru and all bunnies deserve a good home but i wanted to explain in case you have negative reactions to getting bunnys from a breeder there are a few good ones out ther but sadly many are not. good luck with your two buns im sure they are gorgeous! any bunny lvoer is welcome and its good to see you having such a responsible attitude towards their neuters too! :) xx
 
Really? OH no i questioned the vet about this long before we got any rabbit and we were told 4mths for a female and 6mths for a male?! Don't tell me i have a rubbish petshop and rubbish vet :shock:

I thought i was doing good getting a bonded pair, i've only ever had one rabbit before many years ago!
Luckly for us their cage is big enough to section off if need be :roll: so its not a HUGE problem just an annoying one

the problem with finding a good rabbit vet is they ar very few and thin on the ground there is a list of questions you can ask to ascertain their rabbit knowledge, such as did you attend the rwa confrence, what additional rabbit training do they have, which vhd injection do they use (lapinject ahs less side affects than cyclap if they use cyclap would they allow you to have lapinject ordered in) how many rabbits do they see a day/week, how many spay/neuter/dentals do they do per week on rabbits, would they be open to seeking second opinions from rabbit expert vets should something be deemed out of thier knowledge should you feed your rabbit before surgery (answer is always yes) the problem is rabbits are classified as exotics but give us your area and we can offer a few suggestions of rabbit knowledgable vets to you?x

edited: also a pair of bunyns is always a good thing so dont worry about that they love having cmpany xx
 
Really? OH no i questioned the vet about this long before we got any rabbit and we were told 4mths for a female and 6mths for a male?! Don't tell me i have a rubbish petshop and rubbish vet :shock:

I thought i was doing good getting a bonded pair, i've only ever had one rabbit before many years ago!
Luckly for us their cage is big enough to section off if need be :roll: so its not a HUGE problem just an annoying one

Are you sure it wasn't the other way around, 4 months for a male and 6months for a female? Sometimes we get so much information from a vet visit that we get wires crossed etc. If that's genuinely what the vet said then it doesn't sound very convincing. It's not that easy to find a rabbit-savvy vet but once you find one stick with him/her :wave:

How big is their cage? I'm not an expert on larger breeds but I know they need quite a large permenant area.
 
Are you sure it wasn't the other way around, 4 months for a male and 6months for a male? Sometimes we get so much information from a vet visit that we get wires crossed etc. If that's genuinely what the vet said then it doesn't sound very convincing. It's not that easy to find a rabbit-savvy vet but once you find one stick with him/her :wave:

How big is their cage? I'm not an expert on larger breeds but I know they need quite a large permenant area.

agreeed most "standerd" bunnys (medium 2.5kg size) would need a minimum of a 6x2x2ft hutch and run of min 6x6ft sq, contis i think need a lot more room to stretch out i guess as house rabbits they would need a dog bed and an area such as a back room as theirs? and then free run of the house im not very up on house rabbits but i know when i had two frenchies stay with us they had an 8ftx4ft area(normal ceiling level) and then free run of downstairs, i know most rescues suggest outdoors of a shed and avairy with free range time as well. i have to say iv never owned contis though! mine are all medium and small breeds so i could be wrong. x
 
I wouldn't advise keeping your girls together, when they become hormonal they will become aggressive and this risks the buns causing serious injuries to one another. I'd keep them near each other but in separate enclosures, but with the ability to smell and see one another. Then when old enough to be neutered and recovered from their neuter then I'd attempt to bond ; on neutral territory.

Speying female bunnies not only improves temperament of the bunny but reduces the risk of uterine cancer; which is incredibly common in unneutered females.:wave:

Your babies are beautiful.

As for Ronnie, it was probably hormonal aggression and may well have died down after neutering him.
 
Thank Bunlover i did kind of get the unwelcome vistor feeling tbh :roll: however i'm delighted to tell you that the unloved bunnies in over 30 000 rescues.....none of them where in my area :D:D I waited 6mths to get the right rabbit for my children (mine really but don't tell them that) and phoned several centre's in this time looking for one but there were none. Wither or not i phoned enough places i do not know however i did phone several from Rabbit Rehome in the ayrshire area. Also as i mentioned earlier the person i got the rabbits from, this was there first litter its not like i bought them from a rabbit farm they were a reasonable price too so there not it it for the money either :oops:

tigerangel i will check on Friday when they go for their rabbit check, i hope i have it wrong! Not sure where the what size is there cage question came from lol but there indoor rabbits so soon they will have pretty much full roam of down stairs but there 'their area' is 8ft x7ft and 4ft high when closed off and a rabbit proof hall way thats 12ft x 6ft plus when cage is open :) Also they have a 9ft x 9ft run out the back attached to my daughters old playhouse all rabbit proof too ;)

I love the way you grill your new people lol least i know you care for the bunnies ;) I have found this website very good been having a good read over past few day (scared to post being new) but there has been no frightening stories thats made me NOT want bunnies.....i have down my homework well i hope! They will be dressed as soon as they can, checked by a vet friday, they get their 1st lot of inoculation jags next week, i know most of what to feed them (banana's were not in the book) but most important i know what NOT to feed them :)
 
Thank Bunlover i did kind of get the unwelcome vistor feeling tbh :roll: however i'm delighted to tell you that the unloved bunnies in over 30 000 rescues.....none of them where in my area :D:D I waited 6mths to get the right rabbit for my children (mine really but don't tell them that) and phoned several centre's in this time looking for one but there were none. Wither or not i phoned enough places i do not know however i did phone several from Rabbit Rehome in the ayrshire area. Also as i mentioned earlier the person i got the rabbits from, this was there first litter its not like i bought them from a rabbit farm they were a reasonable price too so there not it it for the money either :oops:

tigerangel i will check on Friday when they go for their rabbit check, i hope i have it wrong! Not sure where the what size is there cage question came from lol but there indoor rabbits so soon they will have pretty much full roam of down stairs but there 'their area' is 8ft x7ft and 4ft high when closed off and a rabbit proof hall way thats 12ft x 6ft plus when cage is open :) Also they have a 9ft x 9ft run out the back attached to my daughters old playhouse all rabbit proof too ;)

I love the way you grill your new people lol least i know you care for the bunnies ;) I have found this website very good been having a good read over past few day (scared to post being new) but there has been no frightening stories thats made me NOT want bunnies.....i have down my homework well i hope! They will be dressed as soon as they can, checked by a vet friday, they get their 1st lot of inoculation jags next week, i know most of what to feed them (banana's were not in the book) but most important i know what NOT to feed them :)

If I die and come back as a bunny i will be comming looking for you to adopt me :D
 
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