Only bun, is it cruel?

My bunny Noel is an only bun. There are several reasons for this, as she was a stray and I don't know how old she is (I think quite old by looking at her) so i'm quite reluctant to put her through a ga just incase. Room, she's in a fold up run with a base I made (4' by 4' or 6' by 2' depending on how it's set up) She was going to be free ranging most of the time, but when I bought my own place she 'forgot' her litter trainging. So she only comes out in the evening when I can keep an eye on her.

Do you think i'm being cruel keeping her as a single bun? She loves the cat and they sit together (bun in her run, cat outside it), so I suppose that's a bit of company. Each evenng apart from the hopping (which isn't much as she's quite lazy :roll: ) she sits on my knee for an hour or so as she loves being cuddled , do you think this is enough attention? Also her pen is in the living room so I always stroke her when I walk past and talk to her ( :roll: I know, i'm bonkers :lol: ) Please can I have peoples's opinions? Ta

Have you tried to litter train her again, since the first time?

I say get her a friend, particularily as shes only out in the evenings (presume you work during the day??)

Obviously spaying's advised, but you could just get her an already neutered boyfriend.

Hi,

Yes I have tried retraining her and just as it starts looking good, she finds a new place to wee in :roll: lol.

Yes I do work during the day. I weighed up having her spayed, but as the main reason is that they can get uterine cancer so young and she's defo not young I don't think the risk of a ga is worth it (I know that sounds selfish, but I am terrified) of course I keep a very close eye on her and first dign of symptoms she'd be down to the vets.

I didn't think a rescue would home a buck if the doe wasn't done (maybe they'd think I was being too cruel not having had her spayed?).

rhiannon.hughes said:

I didn't think a rescue would home a buck if the doe wasn't done (maybe they'd think I was being too cruel not having had her spayed?).

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I would think they would :? , would be suprised if not- they would understand that it is not that you are against paying the money etc.
As long as you care for her properly in other ways- food, vaccinations, excercise I cant see why it would be a problem, but why not call and ask some local ones?

Some rescues insist on the doe being neutered but alot don't.

Tam

I would try phoning some local rescues and have a chat. I don't think its cruel to keep her on her own . . but she probably would love to have a friend!

Spacegirl said:

I would try phoning some local rescues and have a chat. I don't think its cruel to keep her on her own . . but she probably would love to have a friend!

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That's what I think, and it shouldn't matter to anyone whether she's spayed or not, it's your bunny and your choice, the partner will be neutered if coming from a rescue and she'll be calmer if she's older so I don't see a problem...

Zoe's alone and unspayed but still a happy bunny!

Hi
I can understand your situation. I too have a single bun, due to her friend dying after an op last week. I've moved her indoors and she seems really happy, but I am still deciding whether to get her another friend. I don't think it's bad to just keep one bun if you can give them lots of attention. I am just looking at my bun in the garden now, and she does look a bit lonely without another bun to play with, although I suppose it does have to be the right bun.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

xx

Hey there
My bun Benji is on his own as his little buddie died last month. I must say that I was thinking of getting another bun for him but he does seem soooo happy on his own. He hasn't changed at all, I do give him lots of love and attention and he seems fine. Maybe in time I will give him a friend but at the moment I think he is ok on his own, he has the run of the house so its not like he's in his hutch all the time. He is a very much loved and spoilt bun We shall see........ Sure you will make the right decision Claire x

I have Fudge on his own since his brother died in Jan I tried to pair him with another rabbit but to be honest he seems much happier by himself, he was a bully to his brother and severely injured his girlfriend, and hes been much less aggressive to me since he's been single. His run is quite close to my other rabbits though so he can see them all the time if he wants :?

Deej is a very happy single male - we considered getting him a girlfriend, but (among other reasons) he's such a feisty chap we really didn't think he would easily accept another bun.

He's an indoor bun, with free range of the whole ground floor for most of the day, and he's very happy following me around, and playing with his toys and chilling out!

At the end of the day every bunny has a different personality and lifestyle. You have to assess, their personality, how much space and attention they get, if you can accommodate and afford a 2nd bun, etc when deciding what you feel is best for them.

Thank you so much for your responses guys. You've given me a lot to think about. And it's really good to hear about other people's set ups.

I thought seeing as I keep going on about Noel i'd post some pics of her. They're in the Rabbit chat section. They are massive, not very good at resizing. I apologise now to those of you with dial up!

I think it's nice for the buns to have a friend, though it does sound like you give your bun lots of love and attention.
Plus talking to buns - I do it all day!!

Just wanted to say something here...

As I've probably said loads of times on here (broken record! ) my personal opinion is that all bunns should be given the opportunity to have a friend unless they have been tried and proven to dislike other bunns...but this is even more important (In My Opinion and I am no expert) if you are out all day working...perhaps some peoples bunns genuinely appear to be happy on their own, but these are generally people who are home all day and can give them lots of attention.

When you see bonded bunns together and how happy they are to have someone to groom them and who speak the same language as them, you can see how truly happy they can be.

As I said...my opinion and not trying to start a debate

Well, here's my situation

I had two sisters from the same litter for 3.5 years until Donut sadly passed away in July.
I was then faced with the dilema of what to do for Egg - get her a friend, or try her as a house bun (i couldn't face leaving her down the garden on her own).
Well, I umm'd and ahhh'd for a good while because her attitude didn't really change, and she was as spritely as ever, but we thought we'd take her to a local rescue to see how she would respond to other buns. We took her over to RNGP rescue in rugby and she met Tuesday, a single male, and she was all ears and sniffing - getting chased around, and chasing back.
Egg is such an inquisitive and excitable little bun - she won't lie down all day - she'll be up off sniffing and climbing getting her nose into all sorts of business, so we decided to adopt Tuesday - because while we are at work in the day she'd be alone, and Egg thrives on stimulation.

I think we are 2 or 3 weeks in now, and i think we've made the right decision for Egg. Tuesday is always playing Egg's games, and he follows her around like a little sick puppy (bless him) and Egg has been running circles around him trying to get him to chase her (at full pelt across the lounge I might add).
Whenever they are snoozing they'll sit down/lie down together.

hmmm it's hard to know what to do sometimes isn't it?!my first bunny,mrs smith,was on her own for quite a while to start with and she absolutely adored me(she was a house bun,free range all the time)i have to say that allthough i love all my buns equally that i have not had quite the same adoration from any of my other buns.i guess she purely relied on me as her bunny family.she did change towards me when elvie-woo came along,but personally i can't think of anything better than watching all my bunnies binkying,grooming and snuggling together.i get pleasure seing them content.whatever you decide,i hope you are all happy.