About to adopt a hissing rabbit!

Hi everyone, im new to the forum, have been looking for somewhere that can help!

I have previously kept rabbits, but not had any for about 4 years and went to look at one today to keep as a house rabbit. The people are getting rid of her because she is difficult to pick up and her children have lost interest, she's currently kept in a hutch in a summer house, but as i said, im intending to keep her as a house rabbit.

She was ok when i stroked her, and seemed to quite enjoy having her ears tickled! she looks a little overweight, and the lady who has her at the minute says she sometimes hisses, now i've read about this and from what i can gather it's sign of aggression but i think she was scared by my coat sleeves.

I'm really wanting to take her on as the lady said she would be going to an animal shelter if she couldn't find someone to rehome her!

She's a 6 month old female mini lop, little overweight and hasn't been spayed.

I'm wondering if you could help me try to get her settled in as much as possible in her new home and hopefully build a bond with her so she's a happy bunny! and what can I do about the hissing?

Thanks!!

StaceyR said:

Hi everyone, im new to the forum, have been looking for somewhere that can help!

I have previously kept rabbits, but not had any for about 4 years and went to look at one today to keep as a house rabbit. The people are getting rid of her because she is difficult to pick up and her children have lost interest, she's currently kept in a hutch in a summer house, but as i said, im intending to keep her as a house rabbit.

She was ok when i stroked her, and seemed to quite enjoy having her ears tickled! she looks a little overweight, and the lady who has her at the minute says she sometimes hisses, now i've read about this and from what i can gather it's sign of aggression but i think she was scared by my coat sleeves.

I'm really wanting to take her on as the lady said she would be going to an animal shelter if she couldn't find someone to rehome her!

She's a 6 month old female mini lop, little overweight and hasn't been spayed.

I'm wondering if you could help me try to get her settled in as much as possible in her new home and hopefully build a bond with her so she's a happy bunny! and what can I do about the hissing?

Thanks!!

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Sounds like hutch aggression, which could be territorial, due to her not being spayed.

I would firstly get her booked in at the vets, vaccinated and spayed.

Once she's recovered from that, i would hope you could build a bond and gain her trust slowly, but surely

Do you think i should get her spayed straight away? or let her get settled with me first then book her in?

StaceyR said:

Do you think i should get her spayed straight away? or let her get settled with me first then book her in?

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Personally, i'd get her in her home at yours and call the vets and arrange it all and see what they think.

Sounds like Nutmeg! I should think spaying and a bit of love and patience will help immensely.

Thanks

I dont want to bring her here and then tink that i'm going to do terrible things to her so would like to get some sort of bonding started as soon as i get her home. shall i leave her to settle for a few days before trying to pick her up as apparently she can be very nervous and tis is why the previous owners are getting rid of her or jump in and get her used to it asap? how much on average does speying cost?

StaceyR said:

Thanks

I dont want to bring her here and then tink that i'm going to do terrible things to her so would like to get some sort of bonding started as soon as i get her home. shall i leave her to settle for a few days before trying to pick her up as apparently she can be very nervous and tis is why the previous owners are getting rid of her or jump in and get her used to it asap? how much on average does speying cost?

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It's very much dependant on the vet.

Anything from £50-£100 i would think.

ok, i will give them a ring but I think it will depend on her weight to be honest, i know it did with my dog, as she's overweight it might be wort putting her on a little diet for a couple of weeks first lol. i will let you know how she gets on and post pics when she is home

StaceyR said:

Thanks

I dont want to bring her here and then tink that i'm going to do terrible things to her so would like to get some sort of bonding started as soon as i get her home. shall i leave her to settle for a few days before trying to pick her up as apparently she can be very nervous and tis is why the previous owners are getting rid of her or jump in and get her used to it asap? how much on average does speying cost?

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I can tell you what I did with Nutmeg.

I set up an indoor cage (yes I know too small but didn't want to increase her space too quick) in a part of the house where people were often (in our case the living room). I put it on a table in the corner so that when I was around I could open the door and let her run up and down the sofas. Initially she didn't want to come out so I didn't force it, just put a few treats by the door, then she came out but would bolt back in as soon as I tried to go near her, then she got braver and started to come and explore me, I didn't go to touch her at this point, just let her explore me and not the other way round, then I gradually started to stroke her.

She got spayed about a fortnight after we got her. She had her myxo vacc and a checkup a week before that though. Then once she recovered from the spay we moved her cage upstairs next to the other two and then after a week or so of that we bonded her with them. Initially she hated them and was SO scared of them and would zoom off to the other end of the sofa but after some encouragement from me she started to get to know them (this is the lops). She did have a good relationship with them but she was a little left out so we got Smudge to go with her and they bonded really well.

Right, I am getting her today so I think I will go along the same lines as Schuette, she will be in a cage for the time being, but obviously she will have outdoor time where I think I will just open the door and let her explore the place herself without pushing her and let het get used to me, if she comes upto me i will reassure her etc. I think when I do pick her up it will be with a towel or blanket to make her feel secure so she doesn't struggle. Is it imperative I get her speyed to try and resolve this hutch agression? I have no other buns to bond her with so it's only me she needs to get used to! I dont want her to feel threatened and to keep hissing, when she did it to me she sort of stamped her front feet at the same time as if to say MOVE NOW!!

I think once Peaches is comfortable then I will get another rabbit to keep with her, but I don't want to put too much on her with the stress of being rehomed!

Can you take her for a checkup, and see what the vets suggest?

I think getting her spayed is important. It does improve their behaviour a lot, but also female rabbits are at such high risk of uterine cancer and spaying helps prevent this.

I don't know about when you should do it so I would ask a vet.

I really agree with the idea of her being kept in a cage at first. She won't be used to big spaces so this will help her feel safer and you can increase her space gradually.

The best way to bond with a rabbit is to get down onto their level, talk softy and calmly, give nose rubs... and a few treats help. If she's overweight perhaps healthy treats though.

I wonder what the previous owners have been feeding her? I apologise if you already know all this diet stuff but I'll go over it anyway. Make sure she has unlimited hay to eat, the best quality you can get. If she's on a muesli food you might want to swap her very slowly onto a pellet over a couple of weeks. Her diet should be 80% hay 10% pellets and 10% veg. And with a little bit of exercise she should be a healthy weight in no time.

Good luck. :wave:

Oh, and pictures please. :mrgreen:

We had cuddles for nearly an hour last night, i'm really surprised at how affectionate she is! i was getting nudges when i stopped stroking her and she was doing lots of chin rubs again. She started to dig at my leg though as if she was burrowing, and she nipped me when she was doing this... does anyone know why she will have done this? and also, I don't know if it was pee, but wen i put her back into her cage i had this stuff on me that was wet but looked creamy? I have posted pics in the photos so maybe you can tell me if she looks like a mini lop or not?

Shes currently on wagg rabbit pellets, are these good enough for her? this is what her old owners fed her so i just continued, and she has lots of hay to nibble on, and some veg aloso. i think it's lack of exercise to be honest thats making her chubby not too much food but I will see how she gets on with running around in the kitchen where she's safe enough to do what she pleases!