MissLaura1973
Posts: 161
Joined: 11/11/2008 Status: offline
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Congratulations on your adoption of Akuma! House rabbits are wonderful companion animals (I share my life with seven permanent resident bunnies and constantly have fosters coming and going). You're likely going to be having lots of questions; check-out the national house rabbit society website at: http://www.rabbit.org/ - also, if you'd like to PM me your location I can see about hooking you up with a local rescue group that will be able to provide supplies, vet referrals, support, etc. Litter Training: Buy a LARGE litter box (several times Akuma's body size ... and you'll have to upgrade/size up as she grows), line it with newspapers or carefresh litter, and then add in several inches of fresh alfalfa/hay. Rabbits tend to urinate and defecate where they eat, so if the bunny is in the box eating hay (which is where she should be a lot of the time), she'll relieve herself there ... and over time that will be where she chooses to go to the bathroom. Some rabbits do better than others, and they're all prone to accidents, but they will use the hay box. (When Akuma hits puberty, though, be prepared for urine spraying and other delightful things ... you can [and really should] spay/neuter at about six months for a female, earlier [as soon as the testicles drop] for a male.) Food: Right now, at her age, Akuma's primary food should be lots and lots of good quality alfalfa - she needs the calcium to build her skeletal structure and gradually gain weight. The alfalfa will also help prompte healthy digestion (essential, because rabbits are prone to GI issues - and GI stasis can easily become fatal). A good quality timothy hay pellet should also be offered (OxBow is one of the best - you want a pellet that's just pellets, not mixed with other crap). Greens should be offered in small amounts - lettuces are good, as are dark green leafy herbs. (Mine get: romaine, red leaf lettuce, green leaf lettuce, escarole, mustard greens, dandelion greens, cilantro, Italian/flat parsley, and American/curly parsley.) There's an excellent list of good staple veggies at the website I noted. Avoid human foods and any veggies/fruit that are high in sugars (such as carrots ... carrot greens are good, though) - the sugars can cause an over-production of cecals, leading to poopy butt issues, GI upset, and other nasty things. The sugars also promote tooth overgrowth, leading to a need for regular tooth-trimming on some rabbits. I'd suggest nixing the celery (not a lot of nutrients and the strings can cause trouble), as well as the spinach (unless given in small amounts). You may be in for a surprise when Azuma hits puberty - it's a real challenge to sex rabbits before four months or so ... the immature penis and immature clitoris look pretty darn identical. There's a lot of not great information regarding rabbit care floating around ... much of it is aimed at rabbits that will be eaten or used for fur, where it's not too important that the animal live for a long time. However, if you're planning on having Azuma as a long-term companion (and I trust that you are), you're going to need to start early getting her body off to a good start. Do you have a local vet who's used to treating house rabbits? Oh, one more thing: I'd really advise against keeping Azuma in a cage - please look at setting her up in a x-pen (or multiple x-pen) arrangement - a corner of a room where the people often are is an excellent location, so she can be socialized and allowed out for supervised roaming, and yet you'll still have a large enclosure where she can retreat to rest and where you can secure her when you have company, etc. Btw, my rabbits positively adore the Cottontail Cottages that are available on-line - please consider ordering one from a rabbit rescue group Give me a hollar if you've any more questions .... Laura, Proud Caretaker of: Annie, Toby, Opal, Wee Willie, Pidge, Brown Bunny, and Tan Bunny
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Though boys throw stones at frogs in sport, the frogs do not die in sport, but in earnest --- Bion
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