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Fireworks coming soon.

M

Macwannab

New Kit
Hi all,we have only had our bunny for 6 weeks roughly and I'm starting too worry about fireworks,as they tend too start early like mid October,do u have any tips etc what do u do if your hutch is outside,I'm thinking on bringing the hutch indoors for it,any help and advice would be appreciated .
 
Hi there, My buns are outside too. My hutches are too big to bring indoors. While the fireworks are going off, I go down the garden and feed my bunnies and chat to them. I give them their special treats and pop down several times. I sweep the path and hover about for an hour or two. After a while they don't bother about the fireworks. I've got two new bunnies this year so I can see I'll be spending several evenings out there with a warm coat on. Hopefully they'll just associate the bangs with having goodies to eat and some comforting words and just my 'normal' nutty behaviour.
 
I have never seen any animal less bothered by fireworks than my rabbits - all they seemed to think on new years eve was "Great! Someone is up at midnight to feed us!" Cat nowhere to be seen, dog a heap of misery under the couch.
 
They aren't all so brave. Mine were indoors most of their lives. Matthew was terrified the first time he heard fireworks and sulked for a fortnight. He blamed me, the first year, and the second year. After that, I think he got used to the idea. His sister was less concerned.
 
When I had outdoor bunnies, one was very affected by fireworks, so I ended up bringing them inside and flinging all the windows open (not fun...brr!)
 
Most rabbits don't seem to be scared by loud bangs or thunder. They just carry on munching away at their hay, or stay asleep.
 
tonibun said:
Most rabbits don't seem to be scared by loud bangs or thunder. They just carry on munching away at their hay, or stay asleep.
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This is my experience with our three rabbits who live outdoors in a shed and outside associated areas. I find that if they are outside, they will sometimes be startled by thunder, a low-flying aeroplane or a chainsaw etc and run into the shed. However, once in the shed they seem perfectly OK.
 
I've been thinking about the same thing this evening .. Robin is a house bunny but his pen is in the conservatory.
He's quite skittish at night so I'm worried he will be terrified of the fireworks too.

I'm trying to get him to come into the living room but he hasn't been interested in exploring the other 2 rooms he's allowed in yet
 
I've never had a bun that was upset by the noise of fireworks. However I have had several that were upset by the flashes. I mostly just try to make sure they have somewhere dark they can go where they won't see the flashes. Or block the flashes completely on the worst nights, so curtains closed for indoor buns and maybe a blanket over the hutch if they are outside.
 
Macwannab said:
Hi all,we have only had our bunny for 6 weeks roughly and I'm starting too worry about fireworks,as they tend too start early like mid October,do u have any tips etc what do u do if your hutch is outside,I'm thinking on bringing the hutch indoors for it,any help and advice would be appreciated .
Click to expand...

You could try covering the hutch up so that they don't see the flashes. If you have somewhere cool indoors you can put it, then that's a good idea too.

Indoors I usually close the curtains and put on some music for the duration :)
 
Ive been thinking about this too. The fireworks go on for weeks around here, from dusk till 2 - 3am virtually every night. Short respite early December then it all kicks off again from Christmas Eve through the New Year, Festival of light is soon too, which is big around here. My dog is petrified and sits behind an armchair shaking every night, ive tried dap for him & some pills from the vet, nothing helps.

I really hope the buns will be ok, they are outside.

Christine x
 
Christine662 said:
Ive been thinking about this too. The fireworks go on for weeks around here, from dusk till 2 - 3am virtually every night. Short respite early December then it all kicks off again from Christmas Eve through the New Year, Festival of light is soon too, which is big around here. My dog is petrified and sits behind an armchair shaking every night, ive tried dap for him & some pills from the vet, nothing helps.

I really hope the buns will be ok, they are outside.

Christine x
Click to expand...
For your dog it may be worth creating a den from a dog crate. The door stays open but it's padded with a nice dog bed and has thick blankets & duvets over the top to help reduce the sound. Make it nice and dark.

Zylkene works well for fireworks but for best results you need to start them a couple weeks before fireworks are due. They're not a sedative, but are a anti anxiety pill for dogs & cats - may be worth talking to your vets x ( can be used with DAP/adaptil)

Sent from my SM-G903F using Tapatalk
 
When Daisy and Digby lived outside they weren't bothered by fireworks at all, apart from maybe those horrendous ones that are like bombs going off.. And even those would only make them sit up and wonder what was going on!
 
A few weeks in advance i used to play videos of firework noises to the rabbits, gradually increasing the volume until it got very loud (this works great for other things to like rabbits scared of dogs barking, vacuum cleaners etc.). On the night I'd put the radio on loud so the bangs blended in with the radio noise and I covered the hutch so they couldn't see the flashes. I think as long as you get them used to loud noises and they can't see the flashes they'll be fine, no need to bring them in as long as theyre coping fine. Some rabbits would find the change in environment and temperature more stressful than the bangs (as long as they're used to noise)
 
None of mine have ever been bothered by fireworks, but they do live inside. However, we get a lot of loud fireworks round our way, starting weeks in advance, and they are definitely audible within the house. I used to observe the rabbits carefully for signs of trauma, but the loudest bangs made me jump more than it made the bunnies jump.
 
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