New bunnies - help needed please

Hey all, just thought I'd revert to this forum in the hope that some of you can offer me some useful advice =]

I purchased a dwarf lop rabbit on Thursday of last week (she is approx 9 weeks old) and my partner came home with a mini lop rabbit on Friday as a suprise - we only have one hutch so spent the afternoon introducing each other so they could live together. They're both DEFINATELY female and, so far, appear to be getting on well.

We'd decided to have them as house rabbits - and let them run around the room alot but, I'm worried that this will cause them to be harder to litter train as I am having problems with this at the moment. I know I've only had them a few days, but my previous bunny was trained within a few days and was only 2 weeks older than the eldest of the 2. - does anyone have any useful tips on this? I have a corner litter tray, at the moment, and I use paper based litter and place some hay in the corner in the hope they will eat and poo - at the same time, it seems to work (esp with weeing) but not all the time.

Secondly - feeding. How often should I be feeding 2 baby rabbits? At the moment we're replacing the pellets 3 times a day - morning, afternoon and evening and they're finishing them all... fresh hay is also available for them, which they seem to eat alot of.

And, finally, handling - I am struggling to tame these two - I wouldn't say they were nasty or agressive, but they're not easy to handle. The mini lop struggles to break free, and runs away.. and the dwarf lop is very timed and stays in her hutch alot. Again, I understand that I've not had them long.. but my previous bun was great to handle straight away.


Any advice would be appreciated, through the day time we place the hutch in the shade in the yard - as they're boiling in the room in the house where they're usually kept.

Thanks,

Lou x

Hiya Lou :wave:

Congrats on the new bunnies. Dont forget to have these 2 girlies spayed when they are old enough so there are no fights And they'll live happier together as well.

Secondly, about the litter training, my two are house bunnies as well, and i found the more room i gave them the more they would mark their territory by weeing and pooing EVERYWHERE! :lol: Eventually i reduced their space until they were able to use one litter tray and i gradually increased their space back up and added 3 more litter trays about the house. Now they are both litter trained and only wee in their trays. We do get the odd poo about but i'm not too worried about that.

Secondly, Milo, hates being picked up too, he has an absolute fit and kicks his legs until my arms are ripped to shreds, yet Gracie loves being cuddled. Some buns just dont like being picked up - i think sometimes you just have to get used to this. I have found though that if you spend time with them on 'their level' then eventually they get more used to you and when you have to pick them up - to cut claws etc.. then its not as stressful. I'm sure that once they are full settled in, and get to know you a little more, picking them up wont be such a chore.

Mine are 15 weeks now and i'm feeding them twice a day and only if their food bowls are empty. I think 3 times a day might be too much although i do understand you can feed baby buns unlimited pellets - i guess thats just up to you. Mine are french lops so are big bunnies but i find two bowl fulls a day is more than sufficient - along with unlimited hay and a few greens.

Sounds like you are doing it all right to me - it may be genetic that they are a bit skittish compared to your last one. I have a group of 4 sisters and one of them is much more timid than the others, and they all get treated the same. I guess you just have to be patient. It's hard to sex them so young so make sure you check again in a few weeks. They don't tend to litter train so well young - wees are the main thing as it ruins your carpet, so maybe if you get them a bigger litter tray they will both want to sit in it together like my girls do (I use big, 2' long trays from the bottom of a guinea pig cage, or underbed storage boxes as the high sides stop the muck getting kicked out)
I think 3 or maybe 4 feeds a day is fine (my adult bunnies have 2 feeds a day) - hay is the main thing for their long term health and you seem to be doing great so far

Thank you both for your lovely replies =] I shall keep you all posted on the progress of Jamie and Kitt (whose pictures can now be seen in the photo of pets thread =])

Lou xx

Hi, I wouldn't worry too much yet about your babies. They are still very young and it can take quite a bit of time to get them used to being handled. Instinctively they don't tend to like being picked up as the only time they get picked up in nature is to be eaten. However you need to get them used to it gradually as there will be times when you need to. Rabbits aren't really 'cuddle' pets generally, they often love nose rubs, stroking and attention but not being picked up.

As far as litter training goes, you probably need to reduce the area until they start using their tray then you can extend the area again