# Neighbours rabbit



## Dante (Feb 21, 2011)

So my neighbour has gone away for ten days (only telling us this at the last minute) and asked us to look after her two cats (whom she's leaving outside with no indoor access at all) and, also at the last minute 'oh by the way, can you just check the rabbits food and water?'.

So I have been, religiously - Now it's been a long time since I've owned a rabbit, but I'm pretty certain leaving their hutch unchanged in ten days is pretty frowned upon? On day three I was already thinking it needed a fresh load of bedding, now on day five.. It definitely does. 

She also told us not to worry about not letting her out, which the poor thing is desperate to do but I'm worried I'll never catch her to get her back in seeing as I've never had any contact with her before. I get the impression changing the bedding slipped my neighbours mind as normally the rabbit spends more time out than in, therefore wouldn't soil it as much..

I've looked around and can see no sign of any fresh bedding, so I'm tempted to pop out and buy some - I can't bare to see her sat in her hutch surrounded by her own urine and faeces 

I'm pretty angry at the situation she's left us in, nothing to change the rabbit's bedding over with, nothing to wash or dispose of the cats food waste with, the list could go on..

She's said she'd return the favour if we ever needed it.. I don't think so love!!

Sorry for the rant - but would someone be so kind as to remind me what I need to do/use when changing the rabbits bedding over? 

(Oh and just to add, this poor rabbit has toe nails so long they're crossing over each other )


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## Lil Miss (Dec 11, 2010)

have they left you with hay for the bun? i would probably suggest lining the botom of the hutch with newspaper and then put loads of hay on top
wood shavings shouldnt be used for buns really and carefresh can be xpensive, and megazorb can be hard to source 

is there no secure area, like a run, that you could let her out in


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## Dante (Feb 21, 2011)

She's left me nothing and it looks like she currently uses wood shavings :/

No run, they just let her out in the garden..

Are you starting to get a picture of the kind of people they are?


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## Lil Miss (Dec 11, 2010)

no hay at all  80% of a rabbits diet should be hay!!!


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## Nonnie (Apr 15, 2009)

Rehome it and tell her Mr Foxy ate it.

Some people really shouldnt own animals.


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## emzybabe (Jun 30, 2009)

I agree with Nonnie on this one. 

or you can tactfully put a load of information leaflets through her door once shes back. But you'd probably want to act dumb about rabbits.

You need to scoop all the wee & poo out of the corner on a daily basis. Prehaps leave it in a carrier bag next to the hutch for when shes back. 
Alternatively if you let it out for some supervised run around time, you will find it'll go back for feeding time without any problems.


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## Lil Miss (Dec 11, 2010)

Nonnie said:


> Rehome it and tell her Mr Foxy ate it.
> 
> Some people really shouldnt own animals.


not a very sensible suggestion that really is it :lol:
not only is it ever so slightly illegal, and more then likely to get the OP into seriouse trouble if they ever found out! but they sound like the sort of people who will just go get another to "replace" it

i think your best bet would be to try and educate them, if you can i would go out and buy bun a bag of hay, it will also give bunny something to snuggle into at night to keep warm now the weathers getting colder too
i would print off some information and pass it all onto her


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## Nonnie (Apr 15, 2009)

Well i was being facetious, but in all honesty, its something id be tempted to do if i felt an animal was being neglected.

But realistically, whats been suggested is great advice. Id also give her a mouthful when she gets back. 

And the bill.


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## wacky (Jan 23, 2011)

i would clean it out myself exercise it feed it then wnen shes back slap her with the bill and a care sheet oh and threten her with rspca if she dosent improve quite nicely though:cursing:


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## Lil Miss (Dec 11, 2010)

Nonnie said:


> Well i was being facetious, but in all honesty, its something id be tempted to do if i felt an animal was being neglected.
> 
> But realistically, whats been suggested is great advice. Id also give her a mouthful when she gets back.
> 
> And the bill.


im sure we all would be tempted hun 
i know i cant stand to see any animal neglected like that, hopefully its just a case of ignorance, rather then deliberate neglect


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## Dante (Feb 21, 2011)

Yep, no hay.. Just some Wilko's rabbit food. She wouldn't be able to go back for feeding time as there is no ramp into her hutch, so she'd have to be helped. 

Not even a scoop in sight, but she must have one.. I checked the obvious place, the shed, where she keeps the food but nothing remotely resembling any hutch cleaning/rebedding equipment.


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## Wobbles (Jun 2, 2011)

Whilst I deffo agree with what's been said about mistreating animals, She doesn't sound the sort who neglects them, as much as simply doesn't know much about them. I.e the bun is out most of the time not shut up in the hutch, but on the other hand doesn't have hay to go with the rabbit food, which suggests that she's not really cruel( the bun gets enough exercise) but perhaps doesn't know about a rabbit's need for hay to eat. And as it is high summer (well at least it is meant to be) she might not have thought about needing any bedding. My buns live loose in the shed, but they don't have any bedding (other than the litter tray) atm as it is still warm enough not to need it,if anybody came to look after them for me while I went away, they wouldn't find any straw either, but give it a month or 2 and they would. Rehoming her whilst the people aren't there is an awful thing to do UNLESS the animal really is being neglected, imagine how you'd feel if you got back from your holiday to be told 'I'm very sorry but a fox/dog caught your bun whilst you weren't here'. Also as already said, you would get into awful trouble if you were ever found out.

Personally, what I would do is buy a bag of hay for the rabbit myself and feed it whilst your looking after her, the when the owner comes back, I would say something like ' Oh I couldn't find any hay anywhere so I went to get a bag from the shop' to which she is likely to reply either that she never feeds her hay, which I would take as an opportunity to explain that rabbits actually should eat it - she may be grateful to you for telling her this, or she will say something like she forgot to tell you the bedding is in x part of the house, thank you for buying another bag, and you would know that bun does get fed properly after all.


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## Dante (Feb 21, 2011)

I've been and bought hay for munching today and straw.. Is straw okay for bedding? It was either that or the wood shavings, which I remembered being mentioned as not particularly suitable.

Thanks


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## Lil Miss (Dec 11, 2010)

straw is fine for bedding, my buns get megazorb all over their hutch, and then the bed boxes, and the kennel, are filled full of straw to snuggle into, i also put a layer of straw over the run floor when i clean out, which gets hay added to it daily as i feed them :lol

a layer of straw in the living area, on top of some old newspaper, and the bed area filled up will be fine for her, straw isnt particularly absorbent to use as an all over bedding though, so spot cleaning the hutch when you feed her would be a good idea


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