Quiet bunny turning grumpy/snappy...

[newbabybuns]

Sorry this will be long to give as much info as poss!!! Cookie is my 5 year old spayed girl, she is a very quiet/lazy bunny, she rests the majority of the day, usually snuggling down where she can get some heat from the heater, but is active late at night (and is hilarious to watch in the early hours of the morning). She has always been this way. When we lost her sister Frankie late last year (they lived in the same room but were separated and couldn't see each other but knew each other were there) she became quite jumpy and nervous in the immediate days/week after losing Frankie, but this did improve.

Well now she has got a bit aggressive, apparently (he hadn't said!) she has been like it with my OH for a while when he has gone to feed her and last night I was sat in with her, she seemed a bit grumpy and would make a grunty noise when I put my hand near her but was still accepting head strokes (and enjoying it) but when I went to stroke near her back she snapped, bit me and scrabbled my hand with her paws multiple times. She just seemed quite on edge aswell. We had heard a loud noise earlier in the evening and her tunnel had moved considerably so whether she had scared herself and was extra on edge I don't know. This grumpiness seems to be reserved for night time aswell. Just the day before when I was cleaning her out she appeared happy I was in her pen and interested in what I was doing.

I don't know if it is worth a vet check to see if there is anything wrong with her physically (she is normally a healthy bunny, was at the vets for vacs early last month and all was well) even though there is nothing I can think of (and she is eating/pooping fine) and this seems to be more like something slowly developing, like something behavioural going on, maybe time of year? or maybe because now she lives in the room on her own, I just don't know.

I was going to try and put Lola out in the same room with Cookie so she knew she had bunny company again and we would then get our dining room back as a dining room. They do have history though, Cookie injured Lola at around 5 months old, when they were pre spay & sorting their hierarchy hence the emergency separating, and when I have introduced them through bars before they have been scared of each other and ran off in panic mode which put me off showing them to each other. But I was going to do the same set up as with Franks, so they couldn't see each other but knew they had company of their own species.

Sorry for the massive long post, does anyone have any thoughts over it all? Is it more likely behavioural caused by her on her own in her room now, rather than physical health as that is what I am leaning towards I think.

Thank you in advance xxx

 

[tulsi]

I have a feeling that putting Lola in where Cookie will know that she has comany would be a good thing and worth doing. If the problem persists you could take Cookie to the vet. Sorry about Frankie. I remember when you lost her. She was gorgeous.

 

[newbabybuns]

Thank you tulsi xxx and thank you for remembering my little Frankie, I am still utterly heartbroken over losing her, she has left a big hole in our household that is for sure.

I will definitely give it a go moving Lola in to Cookies room then, I can always move her back if it doesn't work out I guess. Cookie is a little quiet this evening but it was quite chilly in her room. She was slightly grunty when I put in her night time hay but accepted some strokes with no snapping. I've just remembered the past few weeks in the daytime when I have gone to sit out with her she has got up from being snuggled down and gone and tucked into hay. I imagine she does desperately want company again.