Should I be worried about my new bunny?

FlowerBunnys95 · Aug 9, 2022

Hi,

I rescued 2 albino, 5 month old bunny’s about 2 weeks ago. They are kept in the house in an entire room where they’re getting lots of human interaction, treats, hay etc. They’re not neutered atm but I plan to have this done in October. And they’ve been vaccinated.

One of the bunny’s has settled in very well. She’s coming to us for strokes and food. She doesn’t mind being picked up for health checks. She flops and just overall seems very chilled and happy.
But her sister just doesn’t seem to have settled. Her breathing is more rapid (not panting but you can see her heart is beating much faster). She’s far more nervous and only comes to take food from my hand then runs off. She doesn’t like being stroked and has a meltdown when picked up. Last night I had to pick her up for a health check and for about an hour after she just sat in a corner, her sister going to comfort her every few mins. She also has a dirtier rear. It’s not bad but it was wet unlike the other, as if she’s not cleaning herself properly.

Is this something to be worried about? Or could it just be that her personality is different and she’s generally more nervous?
They have had a vet check and the vet didn’t mention anything wrong apart from the faster heart beat. But I didn’t specifically ask them to check for other things as I hadn’t had them long enough.

Thank you for any help in advance!!

Thanks
Bun Mum x

InspectorMorse · Aug 9, 2022

FlowerBunnys95 said:
Hi,

I rescued 2 albino, 5 month old bunny’s about 2 weeks ago. They are kept in the house in an entire room where they’re getting lots of human interaction, treats, hay etc. They’re not neutered atm but I plan to have this done in October. And they’ve been vaccinated.

One of the bunny’s has settled in very well. She’s coming to us for strokes and food. She doesn’t mind being picked up for health checks. She flops and just overall seems very chilled and happy.
But her sister just doesn’t seem to have settled. Her breathing is more rapid (not panting but you can see her heart is beating much faster). She’s far more nervous and only comes to take food from my hand then runs off. She doesn’t like being stroked and has a meltdown when picked up. Last night I had to pick her up for a health check and for about an hour after she just sat in a corner, her sister going to comfort her every few mins. She also has a dirtier rear. It’s not bad but it was wet unlike the other, as if she’s not cleaning herself properly.

Is this something to be worried about? Or could it just be that her personality is different and she’s generally more nervous?
They have had a vet check and the vet didn’t mention anything wrong apart from the faster heart beat. But I didn’t specifically ask them to check for other things as I hadn’t had them long enough.

Thank you for any help in advance!!

Thanks
Bun Mum x

The fact that the more nervous Doe has a wet bum is something that merits another Vet check. Her character could just be very different to that of her sister, but that should not mean she has a wet bum. Is there ever any sign that the more confident Doe is bullying the more nervous one ? As Rabbits reach puberty they can fall out with their companion. Until they are neutered they would need to be separated should a lot of bullying and/ or fighting occur.

FlowerBunnys95 · Aug 9, 2022

InspectorMorse said:
The fact that the more nervous Doe has a wet bum is something that merits another Vet check. Her character could just be very different to that of her sister, but that should not mean she has a wet bum. Is there ever any sign that the more confident Doe is bullying the more nervous one ? As Rabbits reach puberty they can fall out with their companion. Until they are neutered they would need to be separated should a lot of bullying and/ or fighting occur.

Thank you for you response! I may give the vet a ring about the wet bum.

They definitely chase each other sometimes but both are guilty of it and it only lasts a few seconds. But most of the time they’re like best friends, cuddling each other. The nervous Doe uses her sister as support. She always runs to her for comfort and the confident one looks after her by grooming her. They happily share food too. So atm I don’t think there’s an issue with bullying. I think the nervous one would struggle even more without her sister.

tonibun · Aug 9, 2022

Also, you may have a boy and a girl so a good look underneath won't go amiss as you don't want babies. At 5 months old the girl would be capable of getting pregnant. Rabbits don't tend to like being picked up and they may be finding it too stressful being checked every day.

Should I be worried about my new bunny?

FlowerBunnys95

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InspectorMorse

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FlowerBunnys95

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tonibun

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