# New Rabbit!



## kellyyoungmoney (Jun 20, 2012)

So I recently just got a rabbit due to one of my friends not being able to keep it in her apartment. I've never owned a rabbit and I'm moving in a week and half so I am looking to rehome it. But while I have her I want to make sure I'm taking care of her properly. She is in a large dog crate with a litter box that I filled with pine pelleted cat litter. She has pellets available always and I fill up a large bowl with timothy hay at morning and at night. She gets greens at night (spinach and clover sprouts) and I have a water bottle for her because she wouldnt stop flipping over her water bowl. And lastly she has basically an oversized paper towel tube that I had for my hamster. Is there anything else I should be doing or anything else she needs? Also a reason why I am not keeping her is because my Great Dane is very interested in her and the rabbit tries to bite him through the cage if he gets too close and then he thinks its a game. So if anyone has any tips on how to get them to coexist then maybe I'll consider keeping her.


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

For the dog.. take the bunny out and sit with her on the ground in between your legs, to make a sort of barrier around her. Scratch her cheeks and ears, as most bunnies will stand still for that. Invite your dog over and let him sniff. If he starts to get too crazy just do a firm no. It sounds like your dog wants to play with and not eat the bunny, so he needs some time to learn that bunnies don't like to play with dogs! My doberman was very similar with our first rabbit, she had to eventually realize the rabbit is not for playing with, but she will still lick bunnies.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Flint (Oct 22, 2013)

You can get pelleted pine litter for horses much cheaper than Feline Pine. I have two house buns and litter can get expensive! At one year of age you'll want to reduce that pellet amount to 1/4 cup. (;


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

If over a year old, bun needs 1/2 cup of food for every 5-6lbs of body weight. If the bunny is senior I would generally start to free feed again as many seniors can get thin.


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## kellyyoungmoney (Jun 20, 2012)

Thanks I'll try that! He tries to play with all my fish too, but the fish are a little harder to get to. And i would really like to get him used to small animals because I'd like to get a hedgehog in a few months.


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## kellyyoungmoney (Jun 20, 2012)

Okay, I think she's about 8 or 9 months


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## kellyyoungmoney (Jun 20, 2012)

But i am worried about introducing them because she becomes a little aggressive/defensive when he gets too close and lunges at him and tries to bite him. Should I let her so he learns his lesson or should I just be extra cautious and try to avoid it?


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

Have her between your legs so she can't see the dog and just keep petting her. Let the dog sniff first. After he's done, have your dog lay down (not sure if he's obedient enough to listen when there's an exciting rabbit around, let's hope). And let the bun approach and do what she wants. She should stop lunging once she realizes the dog is not a threat 

She's also at that so so age... She may start lunging at you as well. Rabbits are territorial, best advice from this is never stick your hand in her cage when she is in it. It's her personal space. Always let her invite herself out, after which you are free to clean and go inside. If you do keep her look into getting her spayed as it will reduce her aggression a lot! Though how aggressive she is will depend on her breed. I think dwarf breeds common as pets are a bit more rowdy than the New Zealand and other commercial breeds.


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## kellyyoungmoney (Jun 20, 2012)

I'm pretty sure she's been spayed and I have kind of noticed her being jumpy like that when i refill bowls in her cage. And my friend who had her said she's supposed to be a holland lop but only one of her ears is lopped and the other sticks straight up. And she doesn't appear to be dwarf of any kind, shes quite big actually.


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

Yea, they definitely don't like having their space invaded. So until she gets a bit older you can free feed the pellets.
Also if you keep her, I don't know what food she is being fed.. But young buns need a high calcium in their diet. Best way to do this is to buy some alfalfa hay... After a year they are switched to timothy hay, as the high calcium in alfalfa can cause bladder stones.. Some low quality commercial foods have way too much calcium for an older rabbit (it's usually a cheap preservative in pellets).

So it's important to have them interact outside the cage, as with the cage between them can create a false sense of confidence in either animal and make them more aggressive. You want the rabbit between your legs so she doesn't know that the dog is there to the best of her knowledge. Just keep petting. It's important to have the animal with the most power and potential to injure (the dog) calmed down first. After that the weaker animal can usually get over any aggression or fear fairly quickly. The rabbit will sense if the dog has calmed down, and, maybe after a final warning bite, she will settle as well.


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## kellyyoungmoney (Jun 20, 2012)

Thank you so much for your help! I am still hoping to rehome her to someone who can give her more time but if not I'm glad I can take care of her properly!


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

No problem!


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## Flint (Oct 22, 2013)

Don't you raise your buns for meat, Oly? Generally HRS reccomends to be sparing with pellets and the range is 1/4 to 1/2 cup but they like you to be on the lower side. You should also look into upping your greens and the kinds, she needs more of a mix than that. A good green list is being linked beneath as well as some other helpful links. Taking her to a vet is important as is getting her spayed if she isn't already. Does have an 80% chance of getting cervical cancer before the age of 4 and it only increases from there. Spaying is very important for the health of your bun! Just make sure you ask the vets success/kill ratios. They are important!!


Binky Bunny
HRS
Full Diet
Fruits and Veggies
Spaying
Other Pets & Buns


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

Meat and pets, showing in the near future. And yes my info does come from the 
House Rabbit Society, as well as the American Rabbit Breeders Association, which ironically is where a lot of pet rabbit info does come from.... 
Feeding amounts are based on weight because feeding a 3lb rabbit 1/2 cup a day and feeding a 12lb rabbit 1/2 a day each makes no sense. A young rabbit should be free fed as they are still in their growth stage... 
I know very well the difference between raising for meat, show, or pets. Prepping a meat animal is different from a show animal which is different from a pet.. 
The study you are quoting has been a bit exaggerated (and also 56 years old)... what it actually found is around 80% of rabbits will get tumors between ages 5-6 if they aren't altered... which means both benign and cancerous.. studies of cancer rates vary from anywhere between 1% to 50% in animals.. age obviously being a factor, but I also personally believe it has a lot to do with herd genetics...


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## hgual22 (Jul 18, 2014)

Rabbits can overeat, so its best not to give them constant pellets, however, they should have unlimited hay. So give a bowl or two of pellets daily and have hay always available and your good! Also, limit the greens to only a few times a week, not every day, and mix it up a bit. Also try occasional fruits. My rabbits favorites are apple and bananas. But too many greens/fruits causes diarrhea, which is fatal and requires an expensive vet visit.


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## Flint (Oct 22, 2013)

Rabbits need two cups of greens *every day* for every 6lbs. That is an extremely necessary part of their diet. If you are giving fruits and greens that cause diarrhea, you aren't giving the proper greens.


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

If she is still 8-9 months, be careful with greens. Rabbits really shouldn't have veg until they hit a year (end of growth stage), though many owners do start introducing veg at 7 months in small amounts safely. 
This all goes back to them being in their growth stage... Right now her gut bacteria is not developed completely. If all she has ever had is spinach and clover sprouts, that's fine, but when introducing any new veg, keep it at 1tblspn a day to let the gut bacteria adjust. Keep with the amounts you have.. slowly you can work up to that large amount of foods... Slowly.. What you are doing is fine now, but suddenly throwing down a large variety is very dangerous for the youngin. 

Feeding any sort of fruit or veg to a rabbit under 5 months will almost surely end up being fatal, as with the small amount of bacteria flora they will get diarrhea, which while an adult can handle, a baby bunny dehydrates rapidly and dies.


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