Rabbit Bonding-Day 1

When you start doing rabbit bonding. You may want to look out for a few things. I will tell you about the equipment you need and what I did when I first started bonding 2 of my male rabbits.

Equipment

1) An old shoe that you can use to break up fights
2) A squirty bottle that you can use to stop any fights that are about to happen
3) A neutral area where there isn't each others scents yet such as in a bathtub or a new place
4) Some sort of positive thing such as treats that are good for them to have
5) Each rabbit on a lead if you have any

Day 1

Today was more of an introduction day where we just let them meet each other. This is a good way to start your rabbit bonding. We let them see that each other was there and let them smell each other by petting one and then the other. You don't want to do too much on the first day because they won't necessarily get on. We had them out for about half an hour. You would want to have them out for at least 20 minutes a day. The more that you have them out, the less time overall it will take for them to be very good buddies.

Helpful Tips

When doing any rabbit bonding, it is easier with a male and a female since they get along better.

Two males are harder because they are very dominant and don't get along very easily.

Here are some products which you can use to help you bond your bunnies!



If you have any questions or concerns about rabbit bonding, please comment on this post.

New Baby Rabbit

New baby rabbits require lots of loving care weather they have just been born or are very young and you are buying them. In the contents below I will tell you all about the care that they will require.

Food..........

These cute bunnies will require a nutritious diet. The best way to do this, is to give them good pellets, lots of hay(alfalfa hay is probably the best) along with fresh, clean water for them to drink. The best pellets to give them is ones with 20% or more crude fiber. The hay is good to keep their teeth short and is good for them to make a bed in when it gets colder. If they are very young (just born) they will drink milk from their mum for the first 7 weeks. when it has been about 7 weeks, you can start gradually introducing them to new foods.

Toys..........

When rabbits are around 8 weeks old (2months old), they may begin to have mental stimulation where they need to use their mind to solve things or chuck a toy around. If they don't, they may become bored and they can die of boredom. To find suitable toys for them, you need to kind of experiment. You can do this by seeing if they will play with a small ball or chuck around a mall block of wood. To help you find more toys to give your bunny, they like to throw, nudge, jump, flip, and hop on things. They might also like to do something else to toys but you just have to watch them closely to see what they enjoy doing. 

Exercise.......

Bunnies need to have exercise to keep them healthier. You can do this by letting them out in there enclosed run or let them hop around the garden WITH supervision. Just be aware of any predators that may enter your garden. If you keep your rabbit indoors, you could let them out in a open topped run or loose in your house as long as it is bunny proof. 

When they are outside in there run or indoors, there will be many things that you can do with them. To start off with, you could teach your bunny their name. All you do to teach them this is say their name every time that you walk past or see them. If you wanted them to come up to you when you say their name, is make sure you haven't fed them before you go out there. Let them out in the run and have some of their food with you so that they know you have it. Go about a step or 2 in-front of them and say their name. If they come up to you, give them a piece of food. When they start coming up to you when you say their name to get the food, start going back a step or 2. You can repeat this as much as you want. Eventually they will just come up to you when you say their name. 

Clicker training is another thing that you can do with your bunny.

Here are some bunny products which  I thought you may like. If your interested, click on them below!

If you have any questions or concerns, comment on this post.

Myxomatosis in Rabbits

Myxomatosis in rabbits is a very horrible disease. Bugs such as fleas will carry this terrible disease and spread it to bunnies. I will tell you all about preventing this disease and the symptoms.

About The Disease..........

The virus originates for South America. This caused a mild disease in the rabbit population. The population of bunnies in Australia got out hand from them having no natural enemy. They then decided to internationally introduce the disease to the wild rabbits. Somehow, by accident the disease was introduced to the wild rabbits. 

How it Spread.................. 

This can be spread by direct or indirect contact. This is mainly by parasites usually from fleas, midges, mosquitoes and flies. To keep this from happening, make sure you scoop out your bunnies poo everyday along with scrubbing out there hutch once a week to be very clan and not attract bugs. If you notice that they have an infected eye, abscesses on the body or impacted faeces on their bottom, they are at risk. Make sure that if you see a fly land on a dying wild rabbit (who has the disease) that the fly doesn't land on your rabbit because they will end up with it and might die.

Symptoms.................. 

  

 The symptoms of myxomatosis in rabbits are quite easy to spot. They are swellings of the genitals and of the head, this is especially the eyelids considering they will usually end up blind. Your bunnies appetite will stay about the same until shortly before the death which is usually 13 days into the infection. Near the end of summer on country roads you may have seen wild bunnies sitting still not even able to eat or smell food. Starving to death. This is a heart breaking thing to see. Not all of the infected bunnies die. 10% of wild bunnies that get the disease, will survive. If your bunny catches the disease, it is most likely that the medicine you get can't cure them. They will end up with severe scabbing and scarring on their heads and body. In more humid weather if your bunny hasn't had the vaccination, make sure to look for any of these symptoms on them before its too late.

Treatment/Prevention......

Any bunnies effected with the acute form of this disease, cannot be treated. To prevent them from suffering, euthanasia (putting them to sleep) is the only option. There is a chronic form of the virus if the bunny has built up some immunity. They will end up with lumps on their head, paws and ears which form scabs. They only have a 50% chance of surviving once the lesions shrink.  Some good home nursing and antibiotics are needed. 

To help prevent your bunny getting the disease, I recommend you doing the following:

Disinfect hutches- Make sure that it is a bunny suitable disinfectant. You can usually buy these at local pet shops. A regularly cleaned hutch will keep all the nasty flies away.

Vaccination- This is one of the best ways to prevent the terrible disease. Although your bunny may still catch this, it won't be as bad as it could be. You can first give them the vaccinations at 6 weeks old. The best time for them to get this is in May and June. Depending on how fatal the disease is in your area, you will either get it every 6 months or a yearly one. It is recommended to get the vaccination every 6 months though. Occasionally, a bunny may develop a lump from the vaccination, but this is completely normal.

Here are some products that I thought you might like. Take a look if you are interested! 

I hope you found this information about myxomatosis in rabbits useful. If you have any questions or concerns, comment on the post below.

Rabbit Spaying

Rabbit spaying is an operation that the female bunnies can get. I would recommend getting this for your bunny because there are lots of benefits from this. Read the following to find out what they are.

Prevents them getting pregnant. If they aren't spayed and have an male who isn't neutered, in a year they can have up to 13 litters in a year which is between 2-10 babies every litter. They will also not get any false pregnancies as well. A false pregnancy is where a female rabbit thinks that she is going to have a litter, but doesn't.

 Uterine adenocarcinoma will quickly spread to other organs in their body such as the liver and lungs. It isn't treatable once it reaches this point. Rarely, females under the age of 2 get this disease so this is the best time to get the operation before anything bad starts to develop. Cancer is the most popular disease found in the uterus, but other diseases are also found such as pyometra. This is where the uterus is infected and filled with pus. Uterine aneurism is another and is where the uterus is filled with blood. Endometritis is another and is inflamed uterine lining. All of these are more common for bunnies over the age of 2 years old.

Their behavior can change as well after the operation. They will become a bit calmer then what they were. Some rabbits have been known to be a lovely, snugly, friendly bunny. I have also heard of a bunny who seems to bite anyone when they come near them, but that is unlikely to happen.

A few weeks after the operation, they are able to share a hutch with another female or male bunny. At first they will try to be the dominant rabbit, but after a while this should go away. From what I have been told, a male and a female will get on best. 

 Here are some products which I thought you might like! Have a look if you are interested!



This is all of the benefits and preventions for rabbit spaying. If you have any questions or concerns, comment on the post below.

Rabbit Neutering

Rabbit neutering is something that rabbit pet owners should consider. This is just for the males because spaying is for the females. By doing this, they can live a longer and healthier life if they aren't breeding. I will tell you about the benefits of rabbit neutering.

Your bunny will most likely stop spraying his wee on everything. This is good because you will find that he might  be a bit neater then before. After my bunny Pumpkin was neutered, I found that he was calmer and neater by mainly using the toilet in one corner.

If your male bunny was aggressive before the operation, he most likely won't be afterwords. When they are babies they were probably easy to handle. But when they get a bit older, they could completely changed and become aggressive. This is their way of learning how to protect themselves from danger in the wild. Just be careful if they are sharing a hutch with another rabbit at the time. Like what happened with my 3 male rabbits they were all together and friendly, then about a month later, they all wanted to kill each other.

Here are some products for your bunny which I thought you may like or find interesting, take a look!



This is why I found rabbit neutering very good because you can enjoy spending good time with your bunny. If you have any questions or concerns, please comment on the link below.

Rabbits Digestive System

A rabbits digestive system is very important for when they eat. Unlike most animals, bunnies are unable to throw-up. This is because they have no muscle to. In the contents below, I will tell you how a rabbits digestive system works.

The food that your bunny eats, goes into its stomach. The stomach stores the food and in here it is sterilized.

The contents is then moved into the small intestine. Whilst it is here, 90% of the protein, sugar and starches are absorbed from the food. The undigested, fibrous food proceeds on and is sorted. The fiber goes into the colon forming hard waste. The rest of the food is ready for digestion and goes into the cecum. The cecum is larger then the stomach.

The hard waste that has gone passed the cecum is moved through the colon in circular motions and forms perfectly round hard balls.

On either side of the anus there is a scent gland. Your bunnies scent goes onto the round waste as it passes. They will use these to mark their territory.

The cecum is a complicated organ that re-digests food. In here, it is filled with enzymes and bacteria used to break down food. Every 3-8 hours, the cecum contracts and forces the contents back into the colon where it is then coated in mucus. Then this comes out there anus. This looks like a clump of grapes as well as very soft and squishy. This is called "cecotrophes" and you may find that your bunny will eat these. This will normally happen at night. The reason that they eat the cecotrophes is because they can get more nutrients out of it. 

Below are some bunny products which I would recommend to you as my bunny does enjoy playing with some of these. Make sure that you know what they enjoy most! 
 

That is how your rabbits digestive system works. If you have any questions or concerns please leave a comment below.

Rabbit Toys - Homemade Rabbit Toy 3

Here is a short video that I have made. It is of a homemade rabbit toy that I have made and wanted to share with you. I find this toy very fun and easy as well as a long time of fun for my bun! Click the play button below to have a look.

  

Here is some rabbit toys which are store bought yet still very fun and good for your bunny. These are what I reccomened you to buy as I find my bunny loves some of these! Make sure that you know what type of toys your bunny enjoys most as they do have preferences!

Rabbit Toys - Homemade Rabbit Toy 2

Here is another rabbit toy video that you will hopefully enjoy watching! Make sure NOT to make your bunny these rabbit toys EVERY SINGLE DAY! As this can be very bad for them to nibble/digest lots of cardboard.

  

You may find that some store bought toys are also very good and easy to get a hold of. I find these one quite nice and very fun for my bunny!

Rabbit Toys - Homemade Rabbit Toy 1

Here is a short video I have created. It is about how to make homemade rabbit toys. Click the play button below to have a look.

 

   have a look at these enjoyable toys as you may fund them nice to but as well as you being able to make your own for your bunny every now and then!