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Intermittant strange behavious

bunkin

Warren Veteran
My bunny does this about every 2-3 months * I have had him for 18months) and having rushed him to the vet on two occasions and arrived with a bouncing healthy looking rabbit and was told they could't find anything wrong ! He has not done it for at least 2 months but last week lost his mate so I am super watchful and today he did his usual trick as follows.

He was let out of his cage as usual and ate his treat and some greens an had a run round. Then he just sits or lays looking really sleepy mostly with eyes closed and if I disturb him he gets very shirty and knocks my had away and goes back to sleep - he will not eat or drink. This lasts about 4-5 hrs by which time I am in panic mode and then he suddenly wakes up and is his usual bouncy self and starts eating and drinking again quite normally.

On the two occasions I took him to the vet as soon as we picked him up to put in the pet carrier he came to life and was perfectly fine even before we left the house. Both times they gave him a really good exam but could find nothing wrong.

Any ideas.
 
What time of day did these 'episodes' occur ?

Rabbits usually like to sleep from mid morning to mid-late afternoon.
 
Once or twice he has been like this when gone to let them out in the morning but has been fine again by lunchtime - also happened from late morning till mid afternoon. today it was from late morning to about 4pm.

I was gong to add that he does not eat much during the day anyway and often goes for quite a few hours during the day without eating - he seems to eat overnight but he is a tiny rabbit weighs about 3lbs,

I had worried he had tummy ache as he was stretching out and asleep but on both occasions the vet said his tummy felt and sounded normal.

Obviously if tomorrow monring he has not eaten his food or pooped etc then its off to the vets but usually he is totally fine.
 
Rabbits naturally have periods of inactivity. If he is eating, pooing and doesn't appear to be in any discomfort I'm not sure there is a problem. Wild rabbits would be active only twice a day and left to their own devices domestic rabbits would probably follow the same pattern.
 
I had worried he had tummy ache as he was stretching out and asleep but on both occasions the vet said his tummy felt and sounded normal.

Ori sleeps laid stretched out on his side all the time, it looks odd but it's normal for him.
 
He has gone from sleepy dopey drawers bunny yesterday to super charged eat everything in sight bunny today:D I can only assume its a behavioural thing and nothing to do with health. He always follows exact same pattern.

The last time I took him to the vet and he bounced around the surgery:oops: she did say I think you might have the only bunny that gets short term bouts of depression :lol::lol:

PS I just read on another post that bunnies not eating even for a few hours is an emergency but mine often does this during the day and not only when he is in dopey sleepy mode???
 
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I'm really puzzled - He is having another weird spell. He can do this two or three times in a couple of weeks and that has been when we have taken him to the vets in the past and then not for months.

He bounced around all day yesterday ,whenever I went to his enclosure and ate everything in sight, felt I was starving him by not letting have more food! He peed and pooped overnight as normal in his cage and ate his veg and pellets. He was perfectly bouncy bunny when he was let out this morning and demolished a fenugeek treat and had a mad run round his enclosure.

I just went out to clean his cage out and had to go looking for him and he was laying in one of his bunny tunnels, stretched out and completely ignoring me. He does not stretch out on days where he is not doing this.

He might be like this for up to 4 hours and then he suddenly bounces to life and rushes around and eats his food thats out for him.

As he has done this intermittantly for past 18 months ever since we got him we can only assume its not a serious health problem but certainly seems strange behaviour.

My vet said last time that as long as he comes to life by end of day and eat and poops overnight not to worry or we would be forever at the vets and as soon as we put him in the carrier he comes to life anyway!

Just wish it did not worry me when he does it!
 
Hmm our Truffle does something similar a couple of times a year. In fact she did it yesterday. When your bunny stretches out, does it seem like he's sort of pushing his belly into the floor? That's what Truffle does - she flops out (not something she normally does either), but she's restless (uncomfortable) and when she repositions herself she just drags herself around with her front legs but with the rest of her staying stretched out! She tends to alternate between doing this and sitting balled up grinding her teeth. Is it anything like this?
 
Slightly he does not grind his teeth at all he seems to be in a trance like state but does alternate between stretching out with back legs out to side and front paw out to front laying head on front paws and then sitting in his usual position with al paws under him still with a no one at home look on his face!

He was only like this for 2 hrs today and then suddenly sat up and started having a good clean and then ate all his food!

Before his partner was pts I would not necessarily see them much during the day so he may have done it more and I did not know about it but because of what happened I am in and out like a jack in a box checking up on him and trying keep him company.

Nice to know other bunnies can be strange too!
 
hmm hard to say if it's the same or not. Wtih Truffle it definitely is her belly playing up, and we used to rush her to the vet too, but now we try to get her through it at home. I can certainly tell though even when she's balled up that she is 'uncomfortable' somehow - she just doens't look 'right'.

If it doens't seem that way to you, maybe it's just normal for your bun...
 
I was about to reply saying your bunny sounds as if she is in pain with the tooth grinding but you already know that:oops:

It does seem as if this is just part of my rabbits behaviour as its as if a switch has been thrown and he it totally normal again.

I had to laugh this afternoon after worrying about him - he was a little thief:love: I was sorting out his stuff in the garden shed ( not spoilt or anything but has a shed all to himself for his stuff) and put his box of fenugeek treats on the floor while i moved things around. I did not notice the lid was not on properly and watched out of the corner of my eye as he sneaked very quietly up to the box, pushed the lid off with his nose until he could get his head in the took a treat but did not eat it he put it behind him then did the same again. The he turned round and ate both treats faster than he has ever done before. At this point I snaffled the box back in case he pinched any more!
 
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