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Help- Very stressed neutered male & owner!

We got a pair of baby rabbits in Early November- they are boy/ girl siblings and were fully bonded when we got them- everything was fine. We then had about 6 weeks of separating them while they were neutered and still all fine- Ping ping was spayed towards the end of this time when she was big enough, but- when she returned from the Vet she seemed to have totally changed personality and has gone from being affectionate to very cautious.

Our main issue though is with Sprinkles - our neutered boy. He is so neurotic it's a real issue. They are indoor bunnies and have a 2 storey hutch that they stay in and we let them out for anything from 4-12hrs a day (the living room/ kitchen area is about 60m2 so they have a lot of space. We realised that they were essentially getting less tame as soon as they were back together again, as we were just opening the hutch to let them out in the morning so despite being with us we were having relatively little contact. So we've been trying to pick them up from the hutch to handle them before letting them run around- we have a very annoying hutch that has a real dead spot (do not buy the ferplast medium rabbit cottage- until they change the bottom access so you can reach the back right corner) that we can't reach so this is becoming quite stressful. The bunnies will do anything they can to stay in this spot. So we're finding improving our relationship really hard. Should we simply find a way to block this end of the hutch? We don't really want to reduce their space.

On top of this Sprinkles is absolutely hell bent on chewing the inside of the hutch- he won't eat any hay at all, but if he is hungry in the hutch he will chew the wood or the metal bars- at this rate we'll need a new hutch in 6months (not joking)- I've tried putting tabasco sauce on which works in the short term but he just finds a new bit and now he's chewing the bars it's even worse. They aren't too bad at chewing anything else in the house as we have bits of wood/ cardboard hidden about the place that they're allowed.

My main concern is that Sprinkles is very unhappy and stressed. When we got the rabbits I was keen to have them inside so they would be part of the family and have company rather than being forgotten about in the garden. The whole idea of pets does make me slightly uncomfortable but I decided to go for it to help my daughters mental health, on the grounds that they were well looked after. That said- his incessant chewing is really stressing me out! They have chew things in there- we keep it clean- they always have fresh food and water- HELP!!! At this rate they will end up in the garden which would be a massive shame as they love running about in the house in such a big space- I just don't know what to do, I feel like we've gotten stuck in a bit of a pickle......
 
To me that sounds like quite an unhappy animal. He isn't chewing the bars and hutch because he's hungry, it is more likely to be frustration. Whilst I understand your thinking behind picking them up each day, this is likely to have the opposite effect to what you want, making them MORE wary of you - rabbits are prey animals and many do not like to be picked up at all.
Could you maybe attach a run to the hutch so that they have more space 24/7, where you could put different enrichment activities, toys, different hays and grasses, maybe another litter tray? This would give them more choice and more activity. Include some things to climb on and off too, and a tunnel if you can. Then leave the hutch open all the time so it becomes a safe place and a cosy bed, not the place they are shut in.
Instead of picking them up, you could then go and sit on the floor in this run and just be with them - take a book, just chill and watch them. Take a few goodies that only come when you are there and try and handfeed them. Let them explore you, rather than you capturing them.
Please don't put things like tabasco in the hutch - it is their home, and they are chewing because they feel they have to, if they are chewing due to upset then restricting that with nasty flavours will only make him more stressed. Maybe look at lining the wood with something less chewable for now, or even just another layer of wood to protect the hutch itself.
And don't block off that corner unless it is an emergency and you really need to get hold of them (and even then do it as a last resort) - it is good for them to have a real safe space to retrreat to. If you make friends with them properly then they won't need to use it so much, and when they do go there it becomes them telling you they do not want to play today.
 
It sounds like he really doesn't like being confined. Rabbits should have 24hr access to more space than just a hutch / cage - have a look at the RWAF recommendations (see link below). If you don't want them free roaming all the time, can you partition off an area around their base with puppy panels? They really need to be 3' high to stop most rabbits just jumping out. It would give some much needed extra space.

Many rabbits don't like being handled. Grabbing them while they are in their 'safe' space may just make them aggressive towards you as they see it as a threat. They may prefer it if they can come to you - so just sit in their space and wait. Maybe read a book and have some treats to hand, so they get a reward for coming to you. You could save their pellet ration just for this.

https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-care-advice/rabbit-housing/
 
I agree with the posts above, it looks like the hutch is too small I'm afraid. Looking online it's only just over 1 metre (or 3 foot) when it needs to be minimum 3 metres X 2 meters as the link above as constant access. Its fairly easy to bunny proof a room or you can attach a pen to the hutch, then you can spend time inside on the floor where the rabbits will hopefully be more trusting :)
 
Just looked at these cages and they are really expensive because they look nice. Where are you supposed to put their litter tray though. Rabbits can be litter trained. You could buy a Puppy pen, 8 sided which would give them more room, room for a nice big litter tray full of hay and keep the door of this cage open. The ramp looks too steep also - how big are your Bunnies?
 
Agree with the above, they sound very stressed and this is showing in their behaviour. The hutch is in all likelihood too small which doesn't give them enough space to move around and exhibit normal behaviours. Most rabbits also don't like being picked up (mine absolutely hate it) so this could be adding to their behaviour.

I was using an Ellie Bo puppy pen, I recommend them or similar as a suitable indoor space as you can configure it to suit your room and it provides much more space for them. It also means you can sit with them and they can come to you on their own terms.

I would prioritise new housing and some enrichment toys and you should hopefully see a positive change in their behaviour. They may never like being picked up but that's normal and doesn't mean they won't enjoy being stroked and having a fuss made of them.
 
Thank goodness that you have 'listened' to your rabbits and have asked advice. I really hope that you manage to resolve things.

Love their names btw!
 
THANKYOU!!!! xx

Thankyou so much everyone for all your advice- I think where we got stuck is where they were totally fine and then suddenly not fine!

I have obviously totally misread the whole situation putting 2 & 2 together to make 5, the other rabbit Ping Ping is much more chilled and happily goes and potters about the hutch even when the door is open so I'm not worried about her. For Sprinkle's happiness though we shall absolutely just go back to opening the door first thing and just letting them roam about however they want to. I will put them in at night though (as they are quite partial to the bottom edge of the doors) which they don't mind at all- they're only little dwarf rabbits and happily go in when I ask them at the end of the day (11pm ish) They are completely litter trained so that's fine- we do have a pen which is currently blocking the woodburner but they hate being in it anyway and essentially pushes it about the room (hard floors)- they can go in the garden again in the pen when its sunnier although no idea how to catch them now!

So to make friends we just basically wait for them to come to us and see what happens? I think it's because everyone always says they should be handled everyday - baby bunnies are always advertised with that as a plus- it's just confusing!! Ping Ping does come and sit with me in the evening so hopefully Sprinkles will too soon.

Do you think Sprinkles will start eating hay when he's less stressed or are there any top tips for that? He definitely does start chewing the door late at night if he's a bit hungry (when he's had masses of time running about) because if I give him some nuggets then he's totally fine......

Anyway- thank you for confirming my suspicions but being super helpful x I shall update with any progress!
 
Tonibun - Yep- they are really expensive but on balance we thought it was the best option as it is essentially a bit of furniture! Ours are dwarf rabbits so little and we did ask about before deciding on it- the ramp is totally fine and we have a litter tray in the bottom and a hay rack/ water etc, it's really well designed for cleaning etc it's just tricky to not actually be able to reach them if needed. WE also have a litter tray outside for when they're running around and the kids make cardboard things that they hide about the place for them to explore- we do love them (even me!) so want them to be happy -
To be honest we've just got confused with behaviour so hopefully all will work out if we just leave the door open and they trust us again.x
 
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How old are your bunnies now and how many pellets are you feeding per day? To encourage more hay eating, it's very often necessary to reduce the amount of pellets. If they are really hungry (bunnies are very good at acting as though they are starving) then give them a pile of herbs or forage.
 
They are 6 months old- they love dandelions/ kale etc so have a couple of handfuls of that a day along with 2x 80g bowls (between them) of nuggets- it might just be where he's been so stressed?! I feel absolutely awful he's been so sad! Although to be honest I can't remember him ever being that bothered.....there is always hay in the hay rack. They weigh about 1.1kg each x
 
They are 6 months old- they love dandelions/ kale etc so have a couple of handfuls of that a day along with 2x 80g bowls (between them) of nuggets- it might just be where he's been so stressed?! I feel absolutely awful he's been so sad! Although to be honest I can't remember him ever being that bothered.....there is always hay in the hay rack. They weigh about 1.1kg each x

80g sounds a lot to me. Is that the amount suggested on the bag? If so, it'll be too much. Generally the advice is to feed around an eggcupful per bunny per day. However, if you want to reduce the amount, this should be done gradually. With less pellets, Sprinkles should start to eat hay. It might also be a case of finding a hay that they both like. Bunnies are fussy sometimes :) Eating less pellets and eating lots of hay is important firstly to prevent obesity and secondly to prevent dental disease.
 
They are 6 months old- they love dandelions/ kale etc so have a couple of handfuls of that a day along with 2x 80g bowls (between them) of nuggets- it might just be where he's been so stressed?! I feel absolutely awful he's been so sad! Although to be honest I can't remember him ever being that bothered.....there is always hay in the hay rack. They weigh about 1.1kg each x

Sounds like they are getting too much nuggets, they will always eat nuggets if they're available but they're not the best for them. For reference my two (about 2kg each) get 25g to share between them once a day. Basically an egg cup full is all they need a day as adults, maybe less as yours are smaller. If you cut down the nuggets they should naturally eat more hay. Hay is the most important part of a rabbit's diet so I would cut back the nuggets and the increase hay, otherwise you could be looking at dental problems at some point. Hopefully someone more knowledgeable than me can tell you whether to cut the nuggets straight away or gradually as I'm not sure given yours are still young.
 
Do you think Sprinkles will start eating hay when he's less stressed or are there any top tips for that? He definitely does start chewing the door late at night if he's a bit hungry (when he's had masses of time running about) because if I give him some nuggets then he's totally fine......

What hay are you trying? Sadly not all hay is created equal, so it will be a case of trying different hays, but we might be able to gentle nudge you in the right direction.

Richard
 
The bag says between 60 &110g per day plus hay so I thought that was about right? I shall try and reduce it x we let them out all night last night and hopefully will turn a corner soon- 🤞the house survives 😂xxx
 
Have they got fresh wood to chew rather than chew toys? There's a big difference between fresh and dead, and they generally prefer fresh as it is food too so if you haven't already it would be worth getting some fresh apple sticks or willow sticks (or both, mine prefer apple) and leave some in the cage and some round the house, then hopefully they will go for them over skirting boards.
 
You say they chew the bottom edge of the doors; could you put a strip of perspex or metal on the bottom? That way the won't be able to chew it and your doors will survive the night if they are out all night. :) It really would be much better not to put them in their hutch even during the night. I know you say that they don't mind being in at night, but consider that this is still about 1/3 of their day and bunnies don't sleep through the night like we do. This is a very long stretch of time for them to not be able to be active and behave naturally. They need to be able to run around and jump and binky whenever they want, which they simply can't do in such a small hutch. As for them being very small bunnies, it's a common misconception that small bunnies don't need as much space as bigger bunnies. Small bunnies like Netherland Dwarfs, for example, tend to be very energetic, so they need a lot of room to exercise and play 24/7, so even for very small bunnies your hutch is too small to be locked up in for any amount of time. It's great, though, that you want to give them good lives and ask for advice. :D
 
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