how do I help my hutch rabbit become a free range house rabbit- advice

[silverbunny]

hello there
we have a new to us (ie a rescue) three year old female rabbit. we want her to be a free range house rabbit, as we have had a lovely house rabbit in the past. she is very nervous, so we keep her in a penned off area in the kitchen but the pen has an opening so she can get in and out when she wants. slowly, after three weeks of living with us, she is taking food from my hand without being too scared, and then she lets me stroke her. I am a bit worried as she will only eat pellets and a bit of hay - I only give her a handful of pellets daily, and although she has a big pile of hay to go at, she is only really keen to eat pellets. I think she wasn't used to eating other things! she may eat a bit of veg, but not very much - our old rabbit used to eat anything and everything and we barely fed him (he had access to a large safe garden). I am thinking of getting her speyed - what is the rationale behind this? also, I would, once her hormones have settled down, like to find her a male to be her friend - any advice on bonding as I know nothing about this (our old rabbit bonded with my partner, who works from home and is always around. the rabbit was his best mate!). I know there are lots of questions here, but we all want her to be a happy bunny! thanks in advance

 

[hoppetylop]

Hi and welcome to the forum:wave:Sounds like youre giving this rescue bun a lovely home

Firstly give her plenty of time to settle in.Chances are shes had a lot of upheaval so she needs time to realise you are giving her a happy home and are being kind to her.From what you've said shes already learning she can trust you.
Re her food.Provide plenty of hay as you are doing-some buns have preferences over hay types so try different ones if you can or a mixture.Its the most important element of their diet so its good to find some she really likes.Keep the pellets to about an egg cupful a day-a tiny bit more if shes under weight and I would introduce alittle of one type of veg at a time.
Provide plenty of hiding places for her too.This will help her to feel secure and so ultimately abit braver know she has a safe place to retreat to if shes worried about anything.
Its important to get her spayed,She may become calmer afterwards but more importantly it will eliminate the chance of uterine cancer which unsprayed female rabbits are prone to.Getting her bonded is a brilliant idea.Many rescues will do the bonding for you if you adopt a friend for her from them.Takes a lot of stress out of the whole thing!
Sounds like youre doing everything you can to settle her into her new life with you.Stay with us for loads of info and stories and pictures!At the top of the forum sections are "stickies"with lots of extra helpful info and advice.

 

[tonibun]

You are doing a good thing by helping this bunny. I would let her settle in a bit longer, a couple of months, doing as you are. Maybe a handful of pellets is a little too much so cut down a little and in time hopefully she will start to eat more hay. This can take up to 3 months or so, so try not to rush things. As she is 3 yrs old and not accustomed to eating hay, maybe having her teeth checked to make sure she can eat hay would be a good idea.

Once she is settled and eating more hay and feeling happier, you can then book her in to be spayed. Once she has recovered you can look for a male friend. You will need a neutral area to bond her with a male rabbit as she will claim all the areas she is allowed to free range, so bear this in mind when you are giving her more space. Otherwise this could make it difficult for her to accept another rabbit.

How is her weight only I find a lot of bunnies become overweight as they are given too many pellets so she might need to lose some before she is spayed.

 

[silverbunny]

thanks both for this advice. I am cutting down on the pellets and today have offered them one at a time to get her to come to me. she takes them from my hand and lets me stroke her too. I am sure you are right about it taking time! on the bonding front, I will keep her in the kitchen until we find a friend for her, and then they can perhaps explore the whole house together. this is such a good forum, with so much advice and care for all the rabbits. I shall enjoy belonging here!