I want a happy bunny.

[bluemoon]

In December our elderly rabbit died. He was one of those "Can we have him Mum? We'll look after him and clean him out and feed him and everything. Honest. Promise. Please. Pleeeeeease" rabbits. Naturally I ended up looking after him pretty much from day one. I was actually far more upset at his death than I thought I'd be, the kids who'd begged for him having flown the nest long before he did. Anyway, I've now heard of a young bunny who needs a new home, so I've said we'll take him. I did get a leaflet from the vets many years ago which said that rabbits should have a diet which comprised largely of hay and vegetables with a minimum amount of processed rabbit food, but we could never persuade Dylan that this was a good idea and although he ate veggies he only snacked on them and refused to touch hay at all. So when the new rabbit arrives tomorrow I'd quite like to get him used to the hay-and-veg thing as soon as possible (he's about 6 months old). How do I do this? Would cutting down the daily amount of rabbit food gradually and increasing the amount of hay-and-veg work? Or will I have to do it all at once so he gets the idea? Was Dylan just fussy and most rabbits will be quite happy with the new diet?
Also, although our hutch is still OK we're going to need a new one soon, are those with the upstairs and downstairs OK? Or would I be better spending the same amount of money on the biggest traditional hutch I can lay my hands on? Dylan had a traditional hutch, but not a huge one, and a run which could be set up for him on fine days (and there aren't too many of those).
Finaly, the new rabbit is called Lewis, so I'm going to have to change it (a cousin's son already has the name) any suggestions? He's grey with upright ears and that's pretty much all I know.

[jackie j]

Ah cute but dont tell my daughter, we lost hers a while ago he was called thumper, years ago we had floppy his ears flopped, guinea pigs were called crunchie cos she was ginger and munchie cos she was fatter and ate the most and was grey more like a chinchilla. Cats were toffee ,cos of her colouring, chani, chocolate and we still have lucy.
As for food the rabbit ate guinea pig food as the guinea pig was in with him as well as veg and he didnt eat much hay tended to make a bed with it,

[allotmentlady]

Maybe changing his food slowly will work, he is coming to a new home, new people, new smells, he might be off his food anyway for a few days while he settles in, then slowly start to make the change. It should work out.

What you going to name him?

[Flummery]

Gandalf (the Grey!)

Sorry, don't know anything about feeding rabbits.

[bluemoon]

Gandalf (the Grey!)

Sorry, don't know anything about feeding rabbits.

Gandalf is such a cool name, I don't think I need to look any further. Thanks, Flum.

[lynda66]

just start as you mean to go on, put up a hay rack, for fresh hay, and another one for leafy veggies, feed him a small amount of bunny food at a set time each day, so he knows that is all he's getting, most rabbits don't particularly like pellets, if given the choice of them or traditional food.

the double tiered rabbit hutches are good, they don't really mind about their hutch, as long as they get a couple of hours outside it every day, a tarpaulin over the run is a good idea, so he can go out when it's raining too. but if he can't go out every day the bigger the hutch the better.

gandalf sounds like a good name ...... and if you fancy a friend for him, i know where theres a really cute cuddly(coff) black lionhead bunny needs a friend

[janeyo]

DON'T listen to Lynda!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

janeyo

[Flummery]

It's called SARUMAN! It's EVIL!

[OverWyreGrower]

We started off with 1 rabbit who had never been outside, and had been fed pellets all his life - he'd never eaten fruit or veg!

We've now got 3 rabbits (the original one having hopped off to bunny heaven) who live 80% outside (except for over winter, when they live in an outbuilding).... they are fed mostly hay and fruit/veg. Their rabbit pellets are only topped up once every other day.

As Linda says - start as you want to. Stick loads of hay in there, some nice fruit and veg; and maybe once he's been in his hutch for about half a day, put a bowl with some pellets in too. Make sure you keep his fresh food coming, then he doesn't have to rely on the pellets.

My 3 can get through a HUGE amount of veg etc in a day!!

[BarleySugar]

I think it depends what he has been used to. If he has been fed only on pellets, then a sudden change to vegs, together with the stress of moving might upset his tummy. I know he is 6 months old, but in my experience a sudden change in diet can be dangerous, especially with rabbits.

The link below looked quite interesting. I copied the bit about gradual change.

Natural Nutrition Part II: Pellets and Veggies

'The most important aspect of increasing the amount of vegetables in a rabbit's diet (and the amounts mentioned here represent a radical increase for most rabbits) is to do so gradually. Even if a particular vegetable is safe for your rabbit, giving her a cupful when she is unaccustomed to such riches could wreak havoc on her digestive tract. Instead, begin with something that has been previously successful, such as carrot. Increase the amount slightly, and as long as no diarrhea occurs, add a small portion of a new veggie every few days. This way, you can be sure which food is the culprit if digestive problems are experienced. '

[lynda66]

It's called SARUMAN! It's EVIL!

she's not she's called psycho, and she's erm .... ok she's evil lol

[miffy]

Pity he's not a girl cause miffy is a fab bunny's name.
We had two rabbits which we called Mini and Cooper after our obsession with our car!!
Sad i know but totally true. Do you have a favourite thing you could call him after that is of course repeatable in polite society!!
We had a black and white cat years ago which we called Guiness, raised eyebrows of an eveing with the neighbours when we stood at the back door shouting his name, i think they thought we were desperate for a pint!!

[SueA]

One of our neighbours had two rabbits & he told his little girl they were called Lunch & Brunch because that's what they were going to be when they fattened up! My rabbit when I was little was called Snowy, big fat white one, not a very original name! Snowy used to eat just about everything but seemed to like dandelion leaves a lot, maybe try some of them?

[Nicos]

The happiest bunnies I have known are house bunnies.
They are caged during the day when people are out at work but have 5-6 hrs of company first tig in the morning and in the evening- and the house is warmer than an outdoor hutch!
Our first bunny was in an out -door hutch - with legs chopped off ( hutch- not bunny!!!)in the kitchen/morning room area- he soon became house trained in the cat's litter try.
Sweet little things- it's such a shame when they are outside with no company ....

Ours lept most of the time when we watched TV in the evening-after a mad jumping sesh about the lounge!

[tamsin]

As BarleySugar noted, it's important not to change rabbits diets suddenly. So stick to the same brand of dry food his original owner fed and don't introduce vegetables suddenly if he hasn't had them before, give him small pieces to start with and gradually up the quantity.

The best dry food are complete pellets rather than mix. The look more boring but they actually pass the bunny taste test quite well. If you read the nutritional info on the back of the pack you'll be lucky to find a mix with fibre over 10% where as pellets are 18-25% fibre (depending on the brand). Rabbits need a high fibre diet

Hay (or grass) is the most important part as it's high in fibre and wears down their teeth. You can feed as much as he'll eat without worrying about sudden changes as hay doesn't upset their tummies like other foods can.

Rabbits that don't get into the habit when young can be quite hard to persuade sometimes. If he's not a hay eater already, then gradually decreasing the dry food will help, you can also mix the dry food into the hay to encourage foraging/accidental nibbling or sprinkle it with herbs.

Hay is a substitute for fresh grass which can be fed instead. Unlike hay, you need to introduce fresh grass gradually as it's more rich and can upset their tums if they binge on it suddenly.

My rabbits eat approximately, 2 eggs cups full of dry food per day each and a pile of hay each about as as big as they are. The also have any veg scraps eg carrots tops, cabbage leaves etc - anything you'd usually put on the compost heap except potato.

For accommodation, the best price for size hutches are 6' hutch/run combos sold by Happy Hutch, they sell on their website but also slightly cheaper on ebay: Massive Rabbit Hutch Run Combo 6ftx2ftx2ft hutch+6x4run on eBay, also, Rabbits, Pet Supplies, Home Garden (end time 18-Jan-09 20:13:50 GMT)

Do consider slightly less conventional accommodation though, you can pick up a 6'x4' shed for about the same price (or much cheaper second hand), do a bit of conversion and you have a dry place to sit and interact with your bunny. Likewise I've seen nice wooden children's playhouse conversions, greenhouse frames covered in mesh with a small hutch inside etc. I keep mine in a aviary.

Tam