Found Rabbit

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Kieka

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So cute. And smart. I love animals. :hearthrob:
My Dad just told me Link was yelling at them Thursday morning. I let Peter out usually when I go to work but that day I left at 4am, well before sunrise. Link was yelling because it was 7am and Peter was still in. Link ran back and forth across their bed until they got up and followed him outside. He then laid down near Peters door until Peter was let out. Yup, Links rabbit.
 
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Kieka

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There aren't a whole lot of rabbit toys out there. For some reason many of the ones out there are ferret/small rabbit sized. While Peter isn't a large rabbit, he also isn't a small rabbit. So he sometimes gets cat toys in addition to his wooden chew blocks, toss balls and hanging fence toys.

His newest addition is a tunnel. The fun part is the top opening in the middle, he likes to stand up and glance around before deciding which way to go.

IMG_20180723_085422_369.jpg
 

mazie

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You keep your rabbits outside, what about wintertime? I see you live in southern California, I guess it does not get cold where you live. Are they outside year round?
 
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Kieka

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You keep your rabbits outside, what about wintertime? I see you live in southern California, I guess it does not get cold where you live. Are they outside year round?
Peter is outside year round. He's only been with us a year but we've kept rabbits before and we have parakeets in an aviary outside. Since we are in Southern California, in a desert valley part, we get extreme highs and a few lows. Since Peter has access to a run area during the daytime he does a pretty good job of regulating his own temperature by going into sun or shade as desired.

For frost, which is only a few nights a year, we put a heating lampnin the aviary. Peter gets extra bedding and hay in his smaller upstairs area. It is enclosed with just a small entry hole and has solid wall/ceiling. With the extra bedding he can burrow in to stay warm. If it was to get lower or longer we'd bring him inside for the time needed.

With heat, the bottom of his hutch is pavers so we wet those down at night. During the day we water his area as needed. Luckily we already have several trees so our yard is 5-10 degrees cooler then the surrounding area. He has a indent/ditch he's dug out under a bush. Between the damp ground, lower position and overhanging bush his hollow can be cool compared to the surrounding area. It was recently 120F here and Peter was stretched out in his hollow. I checked on him and he had no signs of overheating. He did get a frozen water bottle as well but he found it offensive and spent a good 15 minutes push it as far away from him as possible. I also opened the roof of his hutch to vent out hot air for an hour before he went in for the night. The birds fan out their wings and take dips in their water dish, plus we will wet down the roof to lower the temperature as needed.

If I was in a colder area I'd look into this one, Eglu Go Rabbit Hutch | Plastic House and Run for Rabbits. With a plastic insulated housing area the rabbits can stay out in even colder weather. I'd be a little worried about the plastic in extreme heat.

I know some people have convereted sheds into winter housing as well with lots of hay and smaller houses inside. They just have a hole cut into the door, or open the door, to allow rabbits outside during the daytime.
 
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Willowy

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Rabbits handle cold weather very well. I know a lot of 4-H-ers who keep their rabbits outside all year round here, we're talking below zero weather and blizzards. They just need shelter from the wind and a lot of hay/straw in their box to snuggle in. And unfrozen water every day, of course.

Heat is a lot worse for them. They overheat easily. As long as they have access to the ground, they'll dig nice cool hollows, but if they're stuck in a cage they can get too hot very quickly.
 
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Kieka

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I wish I could get a videotape of it but.....

When I step out the back door for dinner time I call "Peter" as I walk to the garage where his food is kept. Then I call again "Peter Dinner" once his food is in hand. For the last week he's been doing a little jump and spin at that second call. Then he dashes into his hutch and waits at the door for his evening treat. Which I close the door on him and tell him "upstairs". He goes upstairs and gets his treat (I want to keep food in the top only just for consistency and cleanliness).

But his little hop, spin and happy dash have been cracking me up. The angle and distance are prohibitive for video or photos.
 
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Kieka

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He is SO cute!! What an adorable face! It looks like he's molting now
He is. He's quite dramatic about it partially because he likes running under a piece of wood and manages to clear off his back quicker then the rest of him.
 

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He is adorable. :redheartpump: Does he like pets or picking up?

We have two Holland Lop bunnies (neutered, bonded pair), but they live on the front porch. It is super hot here so they lay on frozen jugs/in front of fans almost year round. They HATE being picked up and barely allow pets. :rolleyes: They would LOVE that setup but it is super wet/hot here and we are afraid of parasites/pneumonia (our last bunny who lived in a run on the ground died of pneumonia).

I saw this somewhere and thought it was accurate: "Dogs have owners, cats have staff, bunnies have slaves" :D
 

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He is. He's quite dramatic about it partially because he likes running under a piece of wood and manages to clear off his back quicker then the rest of him.
Hehe. Some are much more tolerant than others with getting help from people with brushes or even just pulling out the fur tufts. My mini lop used to allow me to help by pulling out the tufts when I was petting him but not with a brush... I think you have to really train them/desensitize them to be able to use a brush.
 
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Kieka

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8kitties 8kitties I know that fear well, we had two who go some unknown something years ago. They were on an IV at the vet for a week and then had botfly infestation multiple times over three months after that. Everytime we thought they were clear and let them out; another swarm. We finally kept them in for two months with twice a week baths to check them. The boy ended up healing fine and lived another five or six years. The girl damaged her ears in the process and held her head sideways for the last two years of her life. Although she was still spunky and full of attitude. We moved both into a smaller area with nothing they could bump into while the single bunny got their old larger area (the two we got together and the single was another that we found in a park five years later, we weren't spaying females at that point and the two females hated each other). When that female died the male joined the other female until he passed. We lost the other female to cancer probably two years after the male. But I still have a fear of botfly and random illness (our vet thinks a mouse or squirrel brought in a rodent illness and peed in their area that they ate) despite us having had rabbits for over twenty years and those two being the only with illness or botfly.

With Peter, I am diligent about cleaning his area. I dust the whole space with DE when I change his bedding and hay. His poop pile, which he is very particular about, gets scooped out weekly. He will let us hold him and pet him, but it's usually more of a "okay, get it over with. Where's my treat for cooperating." thing.

GreyLady GreyLady He will let me pick out tufts of fur and help him molt sometimes. He loves to play with Link through the fencing and will hop up for a quick lick when I say hi but he is very much an independent little one with a huge personality. I honestly haven't tried brushing him, not sure why. But I might see how he likes it after I find our rabbit brush.

We've thought about getting him a buddy but he is so particular about his area. Toys must be in specific spots, poop only in the single spot, he tore down the hay basket we tried to put in his hutch and he gets really annoyed about changing his bedding. I think a buddy would annoy him more than anything else.
 

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It's hard to say with bunnies. Most of them benefit from having a mate. Almost all of them are picky about their areas, like you described. Bonding bunnies is a long drawn out process like introducing cats because they are territorial, picky, and sensitive to change like cats. Some rescues do a matchmaking service where you can bring your bunny in to screen potential bunny friends, when I used to volunteer at House Rabbit Society they did this. However they only adopt to indoor homes.
 
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Kieka

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It's hard to say with bunnies. Most of them benefit from having a mate. Almost all of them are picky about their areas, like you described. Bonding bunnies is a long drawn out process like introducing cats because they are territorial, picky, and sensitive to change like cats. Some rescues do a matchmaking service where you can bring your bunny in to screen potential bunny friends, when I used to volunteer at House Rabbit Society they did this. However they only adopt to indoor homes.
I did find a nearby rescue that did rabbit matching, but same thing of indoor only adoptions. Which I do understand and respect, not everyone has an outdoor set up with space like Peter does. He's probably going to remain an single bunny unless another rabbit was to wander in. He has the cats who check up on him and my Mom spends hours working the yard around him.
 
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