Piggies&buns – bunnies!

Saffron (right) and Luna (left)
Now 14 months old with attitude, but incredibly pretty!

As predicted decided going back to their enclosure doesn’t apply to them and made sure I knew they didn’t want to comply!
 

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They are gorgeous! Two peas in a pod. Is it personality that separates them? They look so similar.
 
Siikibam said:
They are gorgeous! Two peas in a pod. Is it personality that separates them? They look so similar.
Click to expand...

Luna is slightly smaller (being Netherlands they are small anyway) and is slightly more stand off-ish than Saffy usually but when she does have attitude on her, she tends to be worse than Saff!
Saffy is more confident generally and doesnt mind the odd head stroke but is very much like the piggies in that she'd rather I hung out with her but didn't touch!
Neither of them are as friendly as Patch is but this is my experience of the differences between their two breeds anyway - Patch is an English cross and all the English rabbits I've had have been incredibly friendly, more dog like. Nethies are known to be more independent and 'wild'.
 
Oh Patch, you melt my heart you gorgeous bun! :luv:
The ladies looking beautiful too, such good little twin posers there! :love::love:
Hope the vets goes well and Patch isn’t too stiff bless him x
 
The bunnies had their annual vaccinations and check ups today. They are all doing well.

The vet said she couldn’t see any sign of stiffness in Patch’s back legs today but that if I notice it again this winter then she will pop him on metacam.

Vet confirmed their weights are all good - today was 2.8kg for Patch, 1.35kg for Saff and 1.05kg for Luna
 
I am glad they are all well. Particularly the precious Patch.
 
My gorgeous old boy Patch has been for a visit to the vet as he suddenly developed a cloudy eye.
It didn’t look like a haypoke to me and it turns out that it isn’t. He has a cataract and is blind on that side. He also has arthritis so will be put on pain medication to manage this. The vet did say though that considering his age, he is in very good condition for 9 years old. He seems to be adjusting quite well to his sudden one sided blindness and to me he is now just even more special
 
9 years! Bless him. He's lucky to be with you and have your excellent care.
 
Poor Patch. Hopefully he'll continue to adapt. Remarkable how quickly they seem to adapt really. We are often more worried than they are.

How different is it taking care of the buns vs pigs?
 
Engel said:
Poor Patch. Hopefully he'll continue to adapt. Remarkable how quickly they seem to adapt really. We are often more worried than they are.

How different is it taking care of the buns vs pigs?
Click to expand...

Some things are the same, some are different.
Daily and weekly care it’s pretty much the same - daily poop picking, weekly hutch cleans, daily and weekly health checks etc.
Bunnies are all litter trained so I just empty their trays rather than poop pick a whole cage like I have to do with the piggies.
Diet is pretty much the same - unlimited hay, veggies and a small amount of pellets

There are some differences

Neither species can take heat, but the bunnies are fine with the colder temperatures.
Where piggies need to be between 18 and 22, bunnies are most comfortable between 10 and 20. In winter, the bunnies are actually ok down to freezing though provided they have somewhere warm, dry, sheltered to go to replicate the burrows.

Space is the biggest difference. The rabbits need permanent access to a minimum of 60 square feet.

Otherwise, it’s the fact bunnies have to be spayed and neutered as it does change their behaviour and also to stop the risk of cancer in does, and also the annual triple vaccination for each bunny.
 
Sorry I’d missed your post about lovely Patch, hope he’s doing well and the cataract doesn’t bother him at all, it’s amazing how they deal with them!
It definitely just makes him extra special :luv: x
 
Piggies&buns said:
Some things are the same, some are different.
Daily and weekly care it’s pretty much the same - daily poop picking, weekly hutch cleans, daily and weekly health checks etc.
Bunnies are all litter trained so I just empty their trays rather than poop pick a whole cage like I have to do with the piggies.
Diet is pretty much the same - unlimited hay, veggies and a small amount of pellets

There are some differences

Neither species can take heat, but the bunnies are fine with the colder temperatures.
Where piggies need to be between 18 and 22, bunnies are most comfortable between 10 and 20. In winter, the bunnies are actually ok down to freezing though provided they have somewhere warm, dry, sheltered to go to replicate the burrows.

Space is the biggest difference. The rabbits need permanent access to a minimum of 60 square feet.

Otherwise, it’s the fact bunnies have to be spayed and neutered as it does change their behaviour and also to stop the risk of cancer in does, and also the annual triple vaccination for each bunny.
Click to expand...
Interesting. I knew about the vaccines, neutering and temp bit, space however, I didn't and I'm not surprised at all.

There's a couple of single buns up for adoption near me and toying with the idea of adopting one however I need to be absolutely sure before I even consider it really.

Do rabbits need a friend like pigs? I always thought they did but there's lots of single buns about.

What's your setup like? I assume you can't lock them into a hutch at night as it's way too small. How do you stop predators? We have foxes and many cats that roam and would be a massive worry for me. (This is one of the reasons I swayed to having a shed for the pigs.)

I know pigs and rabbits can't share a cage but can they share a room/shed? I understand bordetella is part of the issue here.

Thanks for sharing all this information, even if I don't adopt a bun I'll at least have the knowledge and be able to share and advise those who may consider a bun in the future. 😊
 
Engel said:
Interesting. I knew about the vaccines, neutering and temp bit, space however, I didn't and I'm not surprised at all.

There's a couple of single buns up for adoption near me and toying with the idea of adopting one however I need to be absolutely sure before I even consider it really.

Do rabbits need a friend like pigs? I always thought they did but there's lots of single buns about.

What's your setup like? I assume you can't lock them into a hutch at night as it's way too small. How do you stop predators? We have foxes and many cats that roam and would be a massive worry for me. (This is one of the reasons I swayed to having a shed for the pigs.)

I know pigs and rabbits can't share a cage but can they share a room/shed? I understand bordetella is part of the issue here.

Thanks for sharing all this information, even if I don't adopt a bun I'll at least have the knowledge and be able to share and advise those who may consider a bun in the future. 😊
Click to expand...

Rabbits do also need to be kept in pairs. My Patch is a single bunny (despite my best efforts) but he is housed next to Saff and Luna so they can interact through the area of the wire but he shows very little interest in them.

The best pairing is a neutered buck and spayed doe. You can keep two does together but they would both need to be spayed before attempting to bond otherwise they will be territorial and a bonding will likely fail. Keeping two bucks together, in my experience, is pretty much impossible but I have heard of a few who have made it work.
Bonding bunnies is a much longer drawn out process though and not done like piggies. Rabbits could need to live alongside each other for many many weeks then going to having short meetings each day until they can build up the time they spend together enough to be able to be left together in the same enclosure.

The enclosures is something we made to be able to give enough space. Nothing commercial comes close. Sort of half shed, half aviary with a hutch in there as well for additional shelter/hay area. They also have a lawn run but that is separate so they have to be moved to and from it, and they have it on a timeshare so both the girls and Patch get some time in there.
I’d really like a proper bunny shed (like the piggy shed) which I can connect to their current enclosures to give them even more space but that’s a bit of a dream for now.

Ideally you do not keep them in the same shed/room as piggies, you ideally want to avoid rabbits and piggies sharing the same air space. I don’t even put the rabbits lawn run anywhere near the piggies lawn run or put the run on the same patch of grass when moving them around the garden. The piggies have their side and the bunnies have their own!
I always deal with the pigs first so I don’t risk taking anything from the bunnies to the piggies, separate equipment etc.

I find the pigs slightly harder work due to their requirement to be kept warmer but having sufficient space for rabbits is one of the biggest initial factors in taking them on. They eat more and are more expensive on vet care routinely due to the vaccinations! I do like the fact they have a longer life span though.
 
Piggies&buns said:
Rabbits do also need to be kept in pairs. My Patch is a single bunny (despite my best efforts) but he is housed next to Saff and Luna so they can interact through the area of the wire but he shows very little interest in them.

The best pairing is a neutered buck and spayed doe. You can keep two does together but they would both need to be spayed before attempting to bond otherwise they will be territorial and a bonding will likely fail. Keeping two bucks together, in my experience, is pretty much impossible but I have heard of a few who have made it work.
Bonding bunnies is a much longer drawn out process though and not done like piggies. Rabbits could need to live alongside each other for many many weeks then going to having short meetings each day until they can build up the time they spend together enough to be able to be left together in the same enclosure.

The enclosures is something we made to be able to give enough space. Nothing commercial comes close. Sort of half shed, half aviary with a hutch in there as well for additional shelter/hay area. They also have a lawn run but that is separate so they have to be moved to and from it, and they have it on a timeshare so both the girls and Patch get some time in there.
I’d really like a proper bunny shed (like the piggy shed) which I can connect to their current enclosures to give them even more space but that’s a bit of a dream for now.

Ideally you do not keep them in the same shed/room as piggies, you ideally want to avoid rabbits and piggies sharing the same air space. I don’t even put the rabbits lawn run anywhere near the piggies lawn run or put the run on the same patch of grass when moving them around the garden. The piggies have their side and the bunnies have their own!
I always deal with the pigs first so I don’t risk taking anything from the bunnies to the piggies, separate equipment etc.

I find the pigs slightly harder work due to their requirement to be kept warmer but having sufficient space for rabbits is one of the biggest initial factors in taking them on. They eat more and are more expensive on vet care routinely due to the vaccinations! I do like the fact they have a longer life span though.
Click to expand...
Do they chew a lot?

Would a single story hutch be better than a double?

I know I'm asking a lot of questions and could ask Google but I always find the most reliable information from great slaves....I mean owners, like you 😆
 
Engel said:
Do they chew a lot?

Would a single story hutch be better than a double?

I know I'm asking a lot of questions and could ask Google but I always find the most reliable information from great slaves....I mean owners, like you 😆
Click to expand...

Ask away! More than happy to help!
The RWAF website is a good source of information - The Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund

They can do. Bored rabbits, for example, can be particularly destructive and bad tempered.
Mine don’t tend to be destructive ie they haven’t chewed the hutches etc but they will happily chew on things they are supposed to like their carrot cottages!
Loads of enrichment is needed - which is another reason a large enclosure is needed so you can fit everything in! Wooden boxes to jump in, out and onto, tunnels, digging pits. I give plant pots for them to throw around, scatter feeding the same as with the pigs.

I personally only use single hutches with my rabbits (plus with an older arthritic boy, he cannot be climbing anything anyway!) The girls like to use the platforms to jump onto the roof of their hutch and sit up there and wouldn’t be able to do that with a double! I often find then sunbathing up there in summer!
 
Piggies&buns said:
Ask away! More than happy to help!
The RWAF website is a good source of information - The Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund

They can do. Bored rabbits, for example, can be particularly destructive and bad tempered.
Mine don’t tend to be destructive ie they haven’t chewed the hutches etc but they will happily chew on things they are supposed to like their carrot cottages!
Loads of enrichment is needed - which is another reason a large enclosure is needed so you can fit everything in! Wooden boxes to jump in, out and onto, tunnels, digging pits. I give plant pots for them to throw around, scatter feeding the same as with the pigs.

I personally only use single hutches with my rabbits (plus with an older arthritic boy, he cannot be climbing anything anyway!) The girls like to use the platforms to jump onto the roof of their hutch and sit up there and wouldn’t be able to do that with a double! I often find then sunbathing up there in summer!
Click to expand...
Thats adorable!

Space isn't an issue with me. What really worrys me is bordetella. If it gets too hot/cold and they all have to come inside, they'd have to be in the same room as the pigs. 😔

I have a vets practice that routinely vaccinates, microchips and neuters rabbits so that isn't an issue either.

Do all rabbits normally carry bordetella?
 
Engel said:
Thats adorable!

Space isn't an issue with me. What really worrys me is bordetella. If it gets too hot/cold and they all have to come inside, they'd have to be in the same room as the pigs. 😔

I have a vets practice that routinely vaccinates, microchips and neuters rabbits so that isn't an issue either.

Do all rabbits normally carry bordetella?
Click to expand...

I would consider that to be a problem. If mine have to come in, I never allow it to be in the same room.

Many rabbits can carry diseases including bordatella asymptomatically but of course it’s not just that which they can have and can pass on. E.cuniculi is another. This is why I never allow them in the same room - just not worth the risk in my opinion
 
Piggies&buns said:
I would consider that to be a problem. If mine have to come in, I never allow it to be in the same room.

Many rabbits can carry diseases including bordatella asymptomatically but of course it’s not just that which they can have and can pass on. E.cuniculi is another. This is why I never allow them in the same room - just not worth the risk in my opinion
Click to expand...
Yes. E.cuniculi? Sounds familiar, is that a parasite which can cause neurological issues?

It's probably not in my piggies best interest is it. Oh well, maybe in the future.
 
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