Essentials for a new rabbit!

[KoShiatar]

I also have a cat carrier to bring her home in, that should be fine, shouldnt it? The holes in the front grid are about as big as the ones in my cage

I suggest that you make sure there's no cat smell in it before you use it (if you have cats of course), as that will scare rabbits, expecially if already stressed by a new situation. Otherwise the cat carrier will work just fine. :thumb:

 

[fizabella]

I suggest that you make sure there's no cat smell in it before you use it (if you have cats of course), as that will scare rabbits, expecially if already stressed by a new situation. Otherwise the cat carrier will work just fine. :thumb:

How will I get rid of my cat's scent?

 

[Aly&Poppy<3]

How will I get rid of my cat's scent?

50% water 50% vinegar (any vinegar) or a good scrub with pet safe disinfectant. Put some carpet or something in the bottom and fill it with hay too stops sliding around!

 

[fizabella]

50% water 50% vinegar (any vinegar) or a good scrub with pet safe disinfectant.

Thanks, you're so helpful :lol:

 

[Elena]

You'd be surprised on the hay bale front. I live just on the edge of the M25 and I go in the direction of London for my hay, not the other way round!!

 

[Hesperus]

50% water 50% vinegar (any vinegar) or a good scrub with pet safe disinfectant. Put some carpet or something in the bottom and fill it with hay too stops sliding around!

I recommend putting some newspaper in there too! Ludo does a lot of wee in his as he gets frightened and it leaks out otherwise.

 

[Rabcat]

Hiya :wave:

It's great how you are planning so well for your little bun

If you do get a chance to go for some hay from a farm take a single quilt cover to collect the bale in as it really cuts down the mess. You can get a cheap one from wilkinsons for around £5.

Toys for buns are a good idea as it keeps them stimulated. Do you have a garden centre close enough to travel to? Even if you just go occasionally you can pick up bunny things there. Wilkinsons also have some things for buns such as willow balls to play with.

 

[biscandmatt1]

aw, you sound so excited

another thing you want to do before you bring her home is make sure you know your closest rabbit vet (post a thread on here asking for recommendations where you are) and make sure you know how you will get there, before you ever need to (hopefully you won't ever need to in an emergency but worth knowing just incase!)

if vet bills are likely to be an issue, pet insurance might be a good idea aswell. :wave:

eta: these might be useful:

http://www.thehayexperts.co.uk/

http://www.hayforpets.co.uk/

http://www.dustfreehay.co.uk/index.html

http://www.deansfarm.net/

http://www.fitchrecycling.co.uk/animal-bedding/fitch-pet-bedding.html

http://www.vetuk.co.uk/

just some of the popular sites for supplies. :wave:

 

[fizabella]

You'd be surprised on the hay bale front. I live just on the edge of the M25 and I go in the direction of London for my hay, not the other way round!!

Where from?

 

[fizabella]

I recommend putting some newspaper in there too! Ludo does a lot of wee in his as he gets frightened and it leaks out otherwise.

I've set the carrier up now, I've put some newspaper down and a towel so she doesn't slip around inside there

 

[Elena]

Where from?

Have PMed

 

[Vita]

If you are pretty central this is probably your nearest specialist vet: http://www.rvc.ac.uk/BAH/BSAH-vet-in-camden.cfm

 

[fizabella]

Hiya :wave:

It's great how you are planning so well for your little bun

If you do get a chance to go for some hay from a farm take a single quilt cover to collect the bale in as it really cuts down the mess. You can get a cheap one from wilkinsons for around £5.

Toys for buns are a good idea as it keeps them stimulated. Do you have a garden centre close enough to travel to? Even if you just go occasionally you can pick up bunny things there. Wilkinsons also have some things for buns such as willow balls to play with.

Well off there's a hay farm close by I will definitely keep in mind to do that, thank you!

I didn't know wilkinsons did rabbit toys, there's one quite near me so ill have to pop in at some point this week

 

[fizabella]

aw, you sound so excited

another thing you want to do before you bring her home is make sure you know your closest rabbit vet (post a thread on here asking for recommendations where you are) and make sure you know how you will get there, before you ever need to (hopefully you won't ever need to in an emergency but worth knowing just incase!)

if vet bills are likely to be an issue, pet insurance might be a good idea aswell. :wave:

eta: these might be useful:

http://www.thehayexperts.co.uk/

http://www.hayforpets.co.uk/

http://www.dustfreehay.co.uk/index.html

http://www.deansfarm.net/

http://www.fitchrecycling.co.uk/animal-bedding/fitch-pet-bedding.html

http://www.vetuk.co.uk/

just some of the popular sites for supplies. :wave:

Thanks for this! Everyone on this site is so kind and helpful, I've learnt a lot in the two days since I've joined, which is the whole reason I made an account on this forum! I've bookmarked some of those pages

 

[fizabella]

Have PMed

Thanks x

 

[fizabella]

If you are pretty central this is probably your nearest specialist vet: http://www.rvc.ac.uk/BAH/BSAH-vet-in-camden.cfm

Camden is about an hour away from me, I live quite close to West Ham or Stratford if that would help anyone? I'm not sure if the vet where I got my cat neutered specialise at all in rabbit care, will have to find out. Thanks

 

[Vita]

There aren't loads of rabbit savvy vets around so unless you're lucky there isn't necessarily one very nearby.
Here is another threads that might help: http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/showthread.php?337129-Rabbit-Savvy-Vet-South-Essex
and The Animal Clinic in Shooters Hill is recommended on the Greenwich Rabbit Rescue website.

Practically all vets will be competent to do vaccinations at least. And when you need to get her spayed, (or need to see a vet for any other reason) you could post to see if anyone knows of any others on your side of London. Also there is a list of questions somewhere to ask vets in advance if you need to use a vet who's an unknown quantity. (Things like whether they recommend withholding food before an op - this shouldn't be done for rabbits - whether they provide pain relief to take home etc.)

Most vet schools only provide a few hours training about rabbits, though this is changing, so unless the vet went to certain universities quite recently, or chose to specialise in exotics (which rabbits are classified as in veterinary terms) they may not know anywhere near as much about the developments in rabbit medicine as they do about cats and dogs.
Hopefully your bunnies will be healthy but if rabbits are ill it is particularly worthwhile finding a specialist vet. Insurance (e.g. Petplan) is a good idea in case you ever do have to pay vet fees for an illness or injury but you would need someone who's 18 or over to take out the policy.