Rabbit advice please

ClareEmily

Get them all neutured NOW (at a rabbit savvy vets), and also they all NEED to go to the vets for their 6 monthly and yearly vaccinations even if they are house bunnies.
http://www.rabbitwelfare.co.uk/resources/content/leaflet_pdfs/vacination28.8.07.pdf

We had two boy rescue bunnies (both neutured) and they suddenly fell out and they would have fought to the death if we hadn't separated them.

Like another poster said you may have to separate them and get one or more rehomed. Lots of rescues about who can give you advice, for example:
http://www.bobtailsrescue.org.uk/links.asp

Neuturing info here:
http://www.rabbitwelfare.co.uk/resources/content/leaflet_pdfs/neutering28.8.07.pdf

Very useful leaflets here: http://www.rabbitwelfare.co.uk/resources/index.php?section=leaflets.html

Clare

Loopy_Girl

God I thought she meant just the males were sharing the cage - surely it's not all 3 of them?:eek:

If it is then there will more than likely be baby bunnies on the way......surely no one would put males and female in and naively think nothing would happen?

They don't call it 'at it like rabbits' for nothing you know;)

xJayJayx

You need to separate them immeadiately or there could be a bunny death on your hands!
They will get very aggressive and tear chunks out of eachother.
I would advise getting them neutered immediately if it hasn't already been done to calm them down.
If they're sharing a cage with the mother too you will end up with inbred rabbits which in turn means they will have lots of things wrong with them!

clutterydrawer

The males need neutering to stop them from fighting. however, even after neutering, it may be too late for them to get along. a pair of males isn't always an ideal combination even when neutered - a female/male pair is safer.

The female also needs spaying as otherwise she has a 80% risk of developing uterine cancer which will be painful for her, and distressing and expensive for you.

let us know how they go x x

ClareEmily

Loopy_Girl wrote: »

God I thought she meant just the males were sharing the cage - surely it's not all 3 of them?:eek:

If it is then there will more than likely be baby bunnies on the way......surely no one would put males and female in and naively think nothing would happen?

They don't call it 'at it like rabbits' for nothing you know;)

I know I hope not either, I have re-read original post and I'm still not clear, hoping it is just the two boy bunnies.

furrypig

Thanks everyone for your replies!!

I have the 2 brothers in a large cage together and they have been together since they were born (April 25th last year) I thought this was agood combo and they are so often really affectionate with each other and seem to be more aggressive with us than with each other. They do seem a bit less friendly to each other at times, but I thought they were now 'bonded' and that seperating them now would mean I couldn't put them together even if they were neutered... I'm a bit confused!!

I am not naive about male and female rabbits!! I had a beautiful lop eared male and the female and he was so funny and a devil!! He used to roam around our garden and he chased our cat away!! He was sooo feisty!! He had been found by someone in a garden and was given to someone I knew who had him in a completely inappropriate cage so we 'rescued' him and brought him home. Then we got our female from a family member. He was really interested in her and one day he jumped from the ground up into her cage as my daughter was getting the female out (they had always been seperated!!) and 32 days later the babies were born! Sadly after he impregnated her he did a runner (typical bloke!! lol).

We found homes for all the babies with friends planning to keep one then someone let us down at the very last moment! A friend who had 2 other brothers was told by the vet that they should be ideal to live together so I assumed my 2 would be as well!

I didn't realise that they should have vaccinations, I have the cat vaccinated yearly and didn't think rabbits needed them (I know several people with rabbits and none of them have taken them to the vets ever either!) so I went with their advice!

I didn't realise that they should all be neutered either!! I called the vet to ask the cost of neutering a male and was quoted £60!! So it's gonna cost a lot of money! WE have just spent £60 on a new run for them so will have to see if another vet will do it any cheaper as I think that is a huge amount of money to pay out again.

Thank you for your advice but some of what I read in the leaflets and what have been said on here conflict a bit so I guess I'll have to find a vet to discuss it with. My daughter will be really upset if we have to give the rabbits away, but equally it would be very difficult if they got sick and were suffering!!

i think we have a difficult decision to make!

clutterydrawer

neutering is expensive and can vary between vets but sometimes it's worth paying a bit extra for a vet who knows what they're doing. I have heard horror stories about vets recommending starvign a rabbit before an op (=very dangerous!) and not giving details of appropriate aftercare. So whichever vet you go with, quiz them first to check they know what they're up to.

Remember a lot of vets deal primarily with cats and dogs, and rabbits have a physiology so different from these that they're actually classed as exotics. good luck anyway

Loopy_Girl

It's actually not cheap to keep a rabbit....actually, let me rephrase that - it's actually not cheap to keep a rabbit if done properly and in the best health interest of the bunny!

£60.00 for neutering sounds about right. As well as cutting down on the hormones it VASTLY decreases the chances of any cancer.

They need 2 vaccinations a year. The myxa jab can get done either yearly of bi-yearly. Personally as I have an outdoor bunny I choose the bi-yearly and they are £20.00 each jab. There is another one which must get done every year and 2 weeks after the myxa jab. The name escapes me and I can't be faffed googling as am a tired bunny (geddit!). Someone else will now dount clarify.

What do you feed your bunnies on? Is is pellets as oppose to the 'muesli' that you get in the pet shop?

Also remember they ALWAYS need a fresh (not foosty smelling) supply of hay and should get a daily portion of fresh veg/herbs.

Personally I give Max (that's him in the pic!) his greens in the morning and his pellets for his tea.

There are a few of us on here who are bunny mad so feel free to ask away any more questions. Neutering is defo the way to go though...maybe if you book them both in the same day the vet might give you a discount? Worth a try

ClareEmily

I remember years ago when I was a child having a rabbit and at the time there were no rabbit vets, neutering was dangerous, vaccinations were unheard of and it was just given a carrot and a bowl of mixed bunny food, while being stuck at the bottom of the garden.

You need to get a different vet, and consider joining the RWAF as their advice is pretty spot on, they get the most uptodate information from actual vets.
Two neutered boys rabbits who have been bought up together can sometimes live happily together but the best combination is always a neutured male and female.

Thankfully things are changing, if you think £60 is expensive your eyes would pop out at what we spend on "Biscuit" bunny so her life is as good as possible and she remains healthy.

She is on the hay/veg diet with only a egg cupful of excel a day, so veg costs at least £5 a week if not more.

Hay from Willow Warren - Timothy (non dusty) every two months, £30 as a lot on delivery, but she loves it.

Vaccinations and boasters, one yearly, one every six months.

Nails clipped and general checkups

Pet insurance - about £11 per month, definetely worthwhile.

RWAF membership

Toys - tunnels, balls, chews, willow items, vet bed etc etc

We also pay for rabbit boarding when we go on holiday.

In return I get a bunny who comes to her name, is fully litter trained, definetely knows the word banana, races round the house doing blinkies, and loves to have her head rubbed. She is very nosy into everything and it is actually a bit like owning a cat (she rules the house).

Rabbits can live up to approx 11 plus years if properly cared for.

You should also get some advice from a local rabbit rescue, bobtails for example can do rabbit bonding for you.
http://www.rabbitrehome.org.uk/centres.asp

Good luck

Clare

dolally_2

If you think a £60 neuter is expensive try having a dental bun :rotfl:

Really you do need to get them neutered,. there are some vets in the country doing free neutering at the moment so if you 'phone the rspca you should be able to find out which vets are taking part.