# My Rabbit



## Chris95 (Nov 30, 2012)

Hi, new to the forums however a couple of months ago my brother rang me up and asked if I wanted a rabbit.

I accepted and I went and bought a run with a bedding area (which was very expensive) and all the other essentials.

Things I know about the rabbit:
- Her name's LouLou
- She's a Chinchilla rabbit 
- She's a couple of years old, but no exact age
- Previous owners were Gypsies (nothing wrong with that), and didn't want her anymore.

It's been a while now and I've bought a big hutch for the winter, along with a lot of bedding to keep her warm. After reading around the forums, I'm going to buy some transparent material with gaps for air to put around the hutch to keep her out of the wind and rain and also put an old sock or some bubble wrap over the bottle to make sure it doesn't freeze.

I let her out once a day for at least 20 minutes and she has two toys that she never uses.

I'm not sure if she is depressed or not however she just sits in her hutch all day in the same position (except from at night when she goes and sits downstairs in her hutch which is the run.)

I haven't taken her to the vets yet for any annual check ups or had her vacined for anything so I'll have to find a vets that specialize in rabbits and take her there.

I was thinking she must get quite bored/lonely by herself all day so I wanted to get another rabbit so they can be together however apparently the previous owners had to get rid of her because apparently they wanted another rabbit and they fought.

I wouldn't know where to get another rabbit from as I am unaware of any rabbit 'dealers' in Norfolk, UK.


Any advice? 

Thanks.


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## Guest (Nov 30, 2012)

First of all welcome 

Secondly I pop pop her along to the vets to get her vaccinated and health check and then get her spayed (85% of does contract uterine cancer so it is very important for their health), once she is spayed have a look around for some rescues (I'll have a dig around for my links for rescues in Norfolk) and then choose a buck for her (buck/doe pairings are the easiest bond), you can either choose to bond them yourself (the bonding guide is in the sticky section) or you can ask the rescue to help bond them for you 

The benefits of choosing a rescue over a breeder or pet shop (please don't support pet shops, think puppy farms full of rabbits and you have a close picture of where the stock comes from) is that if your girl doesn't get on with your chosen buck (lets face even humans don't get on with everyone ) then you can work with the rescue to find the perfect partner for your doe and they will come already vaccinated, neutered and they will have had a full health check.

The reason why you have been told that your doe won't mix is because she is either entire, they didn't bond on neutral territory or a mixture of both. It is actually quite rare that a rabbit chooses to be alone, you just have to find the right companion


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## jaxb05 (Apr 12, 2009)

She is probably lonely. Look and see if you find a rescue around you where you can find the little girl and husbun. Bunnies like company and it would be good for her to have a friend. Sometimes rescues will do the bonding for you for a small donation.
You seem to have done your research which is great. Get the little bunny spayed when you find a good vet adn then think about getting her a friend. Well done on taking her on x


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## Louiseandfriends (Aug 21, 2011)

Hello there! 

How big is 'big'? Rabbits really need a minimum of a 6x2x2 hutch attached to a 6x4x2 run ALL of the time. Rabbit's don't come cheap!

A good set up would be like this:









She'll need her vaccinations done ASAP and you should really neuter her to prevent her getting womb cancer and to allow her to be put with another rabbit.

A friend- *YES YES YES*! Rabbits are naturally social creatures and live in groups in the wild. It's unkind to leave them solitary and that's the main reason why she is bored. 8 weeks after neutering both rabbits, they can live to together. You then need to put them together in neutral territory and begin the bonding progress! The best combo is a doe and buck pair.

We're happy to help you do the best you can for LouLou!  xx


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## Hel_79 (Jun 14, 2011)

Replies in green below 



Chris95 said:


> Hi, new to the forums however a couple of
> months ago my brother rang me up and asked if I wanted a rabbit.
> 
> I accepted and I went and bought a run with a bedding area (which was very expensive) and all the other essentials.
> ...


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## Summersky (Aug 11, 2012)

Welcome to the forum!!

The others have already given you some great advice.

Your instincts are right - she is bound to be bored - and lonely. If she is about 2, then having her spayed now will protect her from getting uterine cancer. Give her a couple of months for hormones to die down, then do find her a neutered bunny husbun. Rescues are great - you help another bun in need, the bun should come to you ready neutered and vaccinated, and you should receive advice and support re bonding. Rescues know the characters of their buns too, so will know which ones will more likely bond with yours.

In the meantime - lots of bedding to keep her warm, as big a permanent space as possible, with a cosy draft proof bed area to snuggle in. 

Also, vary the toys - bunnies get bored quickly. Give her apple branches to chew (as long as they have not been sprayed), give her a big box to hide in/jump on, give her little boxes and loo roills with hay and a treat or two in, give her shop bought toys, a cardboard carpet tube to run through, an underbed storage box of hay to dig in, scatter feed her pellets (not too many) to make it interesting, hide/dangle her food to make her "forage" - anything you can think of to make her life interesting.

The reward is watching a happy bun at play. When she does have a friend, you will be amazed at the change in her. A bonded pair is lovely to watch.


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## lisa0307 (Aug 25, 2009)

WELCOME...Can we see some pictures please


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## Chris95 (Nov 30, 2012)

B3rnie said:


> First of all welcome
> 
> Secondly I pop pop her along to the vets to get her vaccinated and health check and then get her spayed (85% of does contract uterine cancer so it is very important for their health), once she is spayed have a look around for some rescues (I'll have a dig around for my links for rescues in Norfolk) and then choose a buck for her (buck/doe pairings are the easiest bond), you can either choose to bond them yourself (the bonding guide is in the sticky section) or you can ask the rescue to help bond them for you
> 
> ...


I'm definitely going to take her to the vets, as soon as I find a place suitable that know rabbits well. I'll also be looking for Rescue Homes in Norfolk. I did do a bit of research but I could only find 2 rabbits and they needed re-homing together which is too much for me.



jaxb05 said:


> She is probably lonely. Look and see if you find a rescue around you where you can find the little girl and husbun. Bunnies like company and it would be good for her to have a friend. Sometimes rescues will do the bonding for you for a small donation.
> You seem to have done your research which is great. Get the little bunny spayed when you find a good vet adn then think about getting her a friend. Well done on taking her on x


I'll be getting her to the vets to see if she's already been neutered ect.



Louiseandfriends said:


> Hello there!
> 
> How big is 'big'? Rabbits really need a minimum of a 6x2x2 hutch attached to a 6x4x2 run ALL of the time. Rabbit's don't come cheap!
> 
> ...


Yeah I feel bad each day when I realise she's most likely a bit lonely. I'm not actually sure if she's been neutered or not so I'm hoping the vet will be able to tell me if she has or not, and I'll be getting her some vaccines as soon as I find a good vet near where I live.









This is her hutch, it's quite big however it looks small in the picture because I was inside my house at the backdoor zooming onto it with my phone. She's sitting there waiting for me to feed her 



Hel_79 said:


> Replies in green below


Thanks for the replies 



Summersky said:


> Welcome to the forum!!
> 
> The others have already given you some great advice.
> 
> ...


Great toy advice! Going to start finding stuff.
I got some transparent plastic stuff to cover her from the wind at work today and I also got some type of bubble wrap to cover her bottle to hopefully stop it freezing.



lisa0307 said:


> WELCOME...Can we see some pictures please


These pictures are a couple of weeks old:









(http://i.imgur.com/u1Jdb.jpg)









(http://i.imgur.com/vMTb6.jpg)









(http://i.imgur.com/IBwBr.jpg)

And this is *CHEEKY* LouLou managing to get passed the area I blocked off so she couldn't get passed. I walked outside to see a rabbit infront of my car as she sneaked out! I've blocked it off more now so she hasn't managed to escape but bless her!









(http://i.imgur.com/7zfxj.jpg)

I'm going to buy that microwave thing from Amazon however I'm a bit worried it'l melt, looking at the bad reviews so I'm going to buy some cheap towels from a charity shop and cover it in that, then put it under her hay.


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## Hel_79 (Jun 14, 2011)

I should add that 'vet bed' is worth investigating. It can help keep buns warm by trapping heat, and if they wee on it, it passes straight through so they stay dry.

This is just an example; you'll find lots of options on amazon, ebay and online pet sites:
VET BED Fleece Bedding 51 cms x 66 cms Pet bedding | eBay

Megazorb makes brilliant litter. It won't irritate buns and it's highly absorbant.
Megazorb - Wood Pulp Horse Bedding

Also, it's worth knowing that buns do like to sit and eat hay in the same place they pooput:
So it will be good for her to have a big litter tray/area with megazorb & loads and loads of hay. Obviously you'll need to clean it out regularly, though.

Unlimited hay is essential; I personally like The Hay Experts, but their postage is a little pricely:Natural Hays Rabbit Supplies | The Hay Experts
You want Meadow & Timothy hay mostly.

Good luck!


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## Summersky (Aug 11, 2012)

I think that LouLou is going ot be a lucky bun - and even more so, when she is able to have a friend.

we use Snugglesafes during the winter, and microwave them over and over again, without any problem. 

Micro ready meals aren't quite so appealing with bunny hay and poo in tho!!! But you kind of get used to it.


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## LouLatch (Jul 2, 2012)

How cute!! She looks really sweet, and what a great name!!


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## Zow (Sep 18, 2012)

That hutch is FAR too small, her hutch needs to be at least 6ft x 2ft x 2ft, with a large (RWAF recommends 8ft x 4ft as a minimum) run attached

You can read their guidelines here:
A Hutch is Not Enough - Rabbit Welfare Assocation & Fund (RWAF)


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## Hel_79 (Jun 14, 2011)

Zow said:


> That hutch is FAR too small, her hutch needs to be at least 6ft x 2ft x 2ft, with a large (RWAF recommends 8ft x 4ft as a minimum) run attached
> 
> You can read their guidelines here:
> A Hutch is Not Enough - Rabbit Welfare Assocation & Fund (RWAF)


I'm humble enough to share that I housed my rabbit in a similar hutch to this person's for the first few weeks when I first took him on. We didn't have much time to prepare or research - I just wanted to help at the time. I quickly learned it was unsuitable and it was through the help and guidance of various people on this forum that I made improvements. He went from a tiny single hutch (his original owner) to a double story hutch (first home with us/still too small), to a double story hutch with attached run (just about meeting the minimum guidance) to a shed with large aviary style attached run (his current abode...a bit of work but worth it!).

I hope this forum and the advice you receive help you make more informed choices about caring for your bun, too.


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## Chris95 (Nov 30, 2012)

I bought a run/house before in the summer and it was much smaller than that and it was £80 so it was quite a lot of money for something very small.

I decided to buy the bigger hutch which was like £180 and I think it's quite big enough, the picture was zoomed so it may look small but if it's too small for her, then I'll have to invest more into her.

I've got her a vet appointment tomorrow with Pets at Home (which was quite expensive for just a check up) so hopefully she's already been neutered and there's nothing wrong with her.

 I'm going to look at the heat pads now, thank you


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## Louiseandfriends (Aug 21, 2011)

Chris95 said:


> I bought a run/house before in the summer and it was much smaller than that and it was £80 so it was quite a lot of money for something very small.
> 
> I decided to buy the bigger hutch which was like £180 and I think it's quite big enough, the picture was zoomed so it may look small but if it's too small for her, then I'll have to invest more into her.
> 
> ...


We don't really advise you to go to Pets at Home. They don't give very good advice.

Measure the hutch and see if it fits in the guidelines.  xx


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