Neighbour Care during Holiday

Hi fellow bunny parents, thanks for looking and hopefully you can just give me a little advice to a very new bunny mummy.

I have two young bunnies, 3 months old, that I couldn't resist giving a good home too three weeks ago. They have a large yard to run around in when I am at home and also a 2m x 1.2 m metal run that we have attached to their cage when I am working so they still get to hop around and have a burrow box in there too full of compost. (Weather permitting we also move the run on to the garden when we can). I only work shifts two days a week so they do get a good hop around when they want.

Their house is a bluebell hideaway from p@h with the downstairs being their play area. My niggle is that we are going away for six days next week and my neighbour who does a superb job of looking after my cats is going to look after the bunnies too, although she is a complete novice. Because you have to move the metal run to get to clean out the litter trays upstairs and she has a bad shoulder we are going to have to take the run away and leave them just in their hutch. She won't have the time (and I wouldn't expect her too) to watch them run around the yard for an hour and she is too nervous to pick them up - they do run fast being young. Will that be alright if they have a sedate week with no proper exercise during our holiday - obviously as soon as I get back normal hop around playtime will commence again. I have only just got them vaccinated and next year will consider putting them in a boarding house so they get proper care and my neighbour doesn't get put upon too much. They do need to put a bit of weight on for winter so I'm hoping a lazy week will help them without it being too bad for their health? All I really want from my neighbour is to check the trays every couple of days and feed them twice a day and check their water - anymore of that I feel I make be taking advantage and ruin the good relationship we have.

Any expert advice would be gratefully appreciated

I'm not sure about keeping them locked in but just wanted to ask if you'd seen the Runaround pipes and connectors? That would allow you to keep the run attached whilst still being able to access the hutch easily. Plus the buns like the pipes - gives them lots of fun, running up and down them.

Thanks

Thanks I have seen the runabouts and they look fantastic unfortunately I have spent literally hundreds on the rabbits within the last three weeks so that is going to have to go on the back burner til I can work some overtime or ask for them as a Christmas pressie. I defo want them as well as another run so I don't have to cart the metal one to the grass down the stairs everytime its sunny and I think they would like a grass day.

I think for the time being though I have sorted the problem, I realised if I just raised the hutch a centimetre higher than the run then the top doors wouldn't catch and therefore access could be gained without moving the run so I put some coasters under the hutch legs and yippee it works - they will have to settle for bunny prison in the run but at least its more room than just being in their hutch for six days.

Another question whilst we are talking runs - the run is on a cobbled floor - do you allow them access during winter in the daytime or is it too cold for exercise????

Rabbits don't mind the cold - so as long as they have access to their warm hutch they are fine to leave out in their run.

to be honest I would not leave someone who is a complete novice with rabbits to look after two such young and relatively new to their home, rabbits. As you may known from reading about them - rabbits can go downhill very very very fast if something happens to them such as digestive issues or upsets, (frequent with young rabbits), or ingestion of something they shouldnt eat (like furpads), or stress, etc etc.


The signs are very subtle - like sitting still and looking odd, or having slightly cooler ears than normal or slightly less poo, . . . . and I wouldnt trust a complete rabbit novice to spot the symptoms at an early stage.

When are you expecting to go on holiday?

Hi :wave: I'm glad you sorted out the run problem

What I will say though, is if your neighbour is a bunny novice, are you sure she will be able to detect if something is wrong? Sometimes the signs can be very subtle and it takes an experienced owner to detect them. I know it's not something you want to hear but if I were you I wouldn't be trusting a neighbour that is a bunny novice. Looking after bunnies is very different to cats!

Whereabouts are you located? Perhaps someone on here could help you?

Oh, parsnipbun beat me to it :lol:

Hi, I realise the holiday was booked well before I took the bunnies and they are considerably more high maintenance than my moggies. I've only just had them vaccinated so will book them in for boarding next time. I kind of hoped leaving them in their home will keep their stress down. I am going this Thursday, they have a health check up Wednesday night. I live in keighley, west yorkshire. I have a proper chat with my neighbour yesterday and told her look out signs and gave her my vets number and she can get in contact with me if required. Up until 3 weeks ago the nearest I'd been to a bunny was a lindt chocolate one. The hutch and run will be totally cleaned on weds so all she has to do is feed and water them, clean their litter trays, and have a natter. She knows not to feed them anything other than hay and an amount of measured pellets.

I think, if you trust her judgement they should be fine, and although a week with limited exercise isn't ideal, it is ONLY a week, as long as they have lots of things to keep them entertained it shouldn't be too bad.

Also, if you do a spot clean before you go and don't put so much bedding in, it will save her cleaning somewhat

Can you give her access to this forum? If she's unsure but worried about going to the vet because of costs to you she can ask on here, then she has all of us telling her to go to back her up!

Thanks bunny lover I was getting a bit upset with some of the replies, I am trying my best and try to give all my pets the best home they can get. They don't actually have a bed, the sawdust made one of them sneeze and I didn't like the mess. They have a piece of vet bed rapped in a towel which they love to sit on and Lino down. I use filet bedding in their trays and they have lots of hay boxes or filled tubes to nibble on, as well as a tunnel and toys (which they ignore)! Most of all they have each other x

New bunny mum said:

Thanks bunny lover I was getting a bit upset with some of the replies, I am trying my best and try to give all my pets the best home they can get. They don't actually have a bed, the sawdust made one of them sneeze and I didn't like the mess. They have a piece of vet bed rapped in a towel which they love to sit on and Lino down. I use filet bedding in their trays and they have lots of hay boxes or filled tubes to nibble on, as well as a tunnel and toys (which they ignore)! Most of all they have each other x

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I don't think anyone was trying to make you upset, it's just important to consider these things. Better be safe than sorry in my opinion

Hi there,
Just a thought for next time you go away, in my area they have a couple of 'pet sitting' companies. They visit your house while your away to look after your pets rather than you having to take them to bunny boarding, which I think would be less stressful for the buns. I guess you'd just have to sus out how experienced they are with rabbits but just an alternative to consider.
Hope you have a nice holiday, and I'm sure the buns will be fine. Mine get spoilt rotten with attention from my friend when I go away, i think its surprising how bunnies grow on non bunny owning people!