General questions before new bunny arrives in 4 days

Hi again all.

Before I start, thanks again to all who have helped so far with my housing questions.
I have now ordered a 6'x3'x2' hutch for outside and a 4'x2.5'.2' dog crate to convert for initial temporary/hospital housing as the hutch won't be here until 3 days after bunny.

Anyway. Now that all that is sorted out, I asked the breeder several questions about our bunny in particular, and as there doesn't seem to be a "general questions" forum, I thought I'd post in here for advice.

If this is the wrong place, please feel free to move it.

The questions (and responses) were as follows:
Breed: Mini Lop
Sex: Female
Age: 8 weeks (but is eating & drinking, so can leave any time)

Bedding: We find wood chipping and hay are the best bedding. They sell large bales of both which will last 4 weeks at The Range.

Current Diet: We have been feeding them on Wagg food (not ideal) as the food we usually feed them has been out of stock. The usual food is called "Chudley's Rabbit Royale".

Vaccinations: She hasn't had any jabs. None of our rabbits have, but they are all healthy.

So - The most concerning things for me:
1. How soon should she be vaccinated? Should I be urgently finding a vet on Thursday morning or does she need a bit more time?
2. Wood chips? I thought these were a complete no-no? I was planning newspaper and hay, but WHICH hay? there are so many, and most appear to be for food (not bedding).
3. Food - Where to start? At 8 weeks, how much of what should she be eating? (I have read the stickies on the diet forum, but couldn't equate that to a "what to feed her" list). I know that I shouldn't change thing too quickly and that she need pellets as well as hay, but how much of what type and which is the best food for a young doe? (Is either "Chudley's" or "Wagg" any good?)
4. How soon should I arrange spaying? 4 months old?
5. How old should she be before I consider a "hus-bun"?
6. Does anyone know a REALLY good rabbit-friendly vet around Leigh/Bolton/Wigan/Manchester (if I must)?

I'm really sorry to throw all of these questions out at once, but I have just 3 days to get everything as near to perfect as possible, before she arrives.

It feels like the build-up to my daughter's arrival, 9 years ago. :lol:

Get them vaccinated as soon as you can just to be on the safe side, but ask if your vet does the combined jab - this minimises the stress on the bun as it only has to have one injection and it will be fully protected xx

Also get her booked in to be spayed as soon as she is old enough.

Also you could get a buck now, just keep them in seperate enclosures and let them out one at a time, this will let them sniff and be curious about the other without the possibilty of unwanted humping or boxing!!

This way when they both have been spayed they can be slowly introuduced in a neutral territory and should get along fine And have a mate for life xx

This is how we did it for our bubs and they are inseperable now xx :thumb:

Thanks for the (extremely) quick response - But you just reminded me of the last question I meant to ask.

Which vaccines does she need?
I need to ensure that nothing gets "missed"

the vhd jab and the myxi jab - but the combined jab is for both of these

If you do get the 2 jabs seperatly though you need to wait two weeks after getting one to get the other, so the bun would not be safe outside until she has had them both x

Please forgive my ignorance.

I know what Myxomatosis is, but what's VHD?

And is there a "Trusted vets list" on here anywhere?
I looked, but couldn't see one.

have a look at this link

http://www.future-of-vaccination.co.uk/vhd-disease-rabbits.asp

VHD is untreatable and is a horrid disease that can kill within hours.

We dont have VHD in our area but we got ours vaccinated just incase as it only take one animal or a gush of wind (its airboure) and the bun could get it.

As for the trusted vets list im new to this site and have no idea where to find one sorry.

hope this helps xx

Vaccinations (I think!) are better when they are 12 weeks old. That's when i had mine done first It's either the new combination vaccine or separate ones, the myxi and then there should be a 2 week wait before VHD jab

Bedding, hay is good :thumb: any hay good quality hay can be found on hay for pets website or hay experts, or maybe a farm can supply you I use 3 different hays! I have a 3.5kg bag of Asda hay (£4) as a bedding hay (not always good quailty) in the litter trays I use Wilkinsons hay (mine love it but they only get a handful every day because it's a mission into town :lol and fill it and their hay racks with hay for pets ings hay (9.5kg bale - £16, lasts ages)

Keep her on Wagg for now :wave: and when she is settled, slowly change to a better food, it is best to use pellets so they cannot selective feed :wave: and do it slowly because it can upset their delicate tummys, excel pellets or science selective are best a baby would need more food but when she is older she won't need more than an eggcup full :wave: hay should be main part of the diet with a little veg :wave: green veg is best really, things like carrots and bananas aren't great for them as they are full of sugar so should only be fed as a treat. I avoid veg mostly, herbs are better as that is what they would eat in the wild there is a list on here somewhere with herbs that can be fed :wave: veg shouldn't be fed until 5+months anyway though because they have sensitive tums and can get messy bums from it, which in this weather is dangerous because of fly strike.

Spaying a female is invasive and it depends on the vet, some spay at 4 months, others at 6 months

Age doesn't matter when it comes to husbuns, but spaying her and waiting 6-8 weeks before introducing her to a neutered boy is best :wave: you don't need to think about that yet though, there are over 40,000 rabbits in rescues so there will be one waiting when you are ready :wave:

Pie Eyed said:

Please forgive my ignorance.

I know what Myxomatosis is, but what's VHD?

And is there a "Trusted vets list" on here anywhere?
I looked, but couldn't see one.

Click to expand...

Hi if you start a new thread asking for a bunny savvy vet in your area someone will probably give you some links to some :thumb:

@Wendle - Will do, thanks. I tend to try to avoid starting multiple threads, but will start one for this in the health forum.

@Aly - Thanks for all the advice, but can I just say...... 40,000 ????? Wow. That is, quite simply, staggering (and worrying)

Pie Eyed said:

@Wendle - Will do, thanks. I tend to try to avoid starting multiple threads, but will start one for this in the health forum.

@Aly - Thanks for all the advice, but can I just say...... 40,000 ????? Wow. That is, quite simply, staggering (and worrying)

Click to expand...

Yes it's very sad a lot are just abandoned, 'set free' or neglected places like p@h and back yard breeders just mass produce to make money, if breeding isn't done sensibly or properly then who knows what problems a rabbit may have, leading to people getting bored or refusing to pay vet bills :roll: it's very frustrating when you see more of the rescues on here being full to bursting with rabbits but p@h and garden centres still sell them to people without explaining how to care for them properly.

If you have any questions or worries then we can help the best we can :wave:

If it is the Wagg PELLETS that the rabbit is on then these are fine, it's the mix that isn't so good!

I get Louie hay from the local farm, £1 for a black bin bag full.

I wonder about that, as he texted me back, and I quote, "All I can say is go for the ones which look like they came from a farm, opposed to a pellet factory".

He also feeds regular carrots, greens and a weekly barley ring.

I don't know about the barley ring - Good or bad - but I though carrots were treats only, and that green veggies were out for a few more weeks yet?

hello

how exiciting, it is a bit like having a child without the physical pain....

Dont forget to ask about the rabbit's behaviour - we found that quite important to know what they liked/disliked, temperament, habits etc. felt like we knew them already if you get my drift

did you consider microchipping? Not everyone has it done, just something to consider. Pets at home insurance give you a 10% discount if your rabbits are microchipped. Ours were done just for peace of mind but it is another cost...

Hi carrots should be given as a treat occasionally as there is a lot of sugar in them mine prefer fresh herbs specially basil coriander mint etc and occasionally a small piece of apple on a Sunday if they been good :lol::lol:

Hi there. A lot of this might be a repeat. Sorry but firstly I would let your bunny settle in before vaccinating. Maybe a couple of weeks. A lot of folk use Carefresh for bedding. I would but with 40 plus rabbits it would work out a tad too expensive. Keep her on the food she is used to for a couple of months then slowly introduce whatever food you decide on. Spayinng is done between 4 and 6 months, I prefer to wait. Then maybe the best thing then woulld be to go to a rescue and get an already neutered buck so you ca begin bonding straightaway almost. Good luck with your new bunny. Please dont hesitate to ask more questions. You might need advice around the bonding time. Some rescues will bond for you if you are feeling unsure. It has to be on neutral ground.

Fantastic.

Thanks to all of you, I feel like we're about as prepared as we'll ever be now.

I'll look in to Carefresh, but have newspaper & straw lined up for her first couple of weeks indoors.

I have a well recommended vet lined up (speaking to them tomorrow to get her registered), insurance ready to go, main outdoor hutch coming in 6 days, temporary/hospital indoor housing here in 2 days, outdoor storage box in 2 days as well.

Need to order a run and a connector kit, so she can exercise at will.

Phew. What a lot of work for an "easy to keep" animal. :lol:

Can't wait to bring her home now and let her start to bond with Aoife and I (plus my wife if she can get past the allergy).