I don't want my house rabbit indoors anymore :(

[BlueDragonfly]

but i don't want him to die outside either!!

we are waiting to find out if we are moving. If so, DP will not let the rabbit come back in the house. It's fair enough, he is Old now (7!) and he stinks and doesn't always make it back into his hutch on time so sometimes wee's on the carpet. He is going thru a poo-ing phase as well so only comes out at night so the DCs don't get pooed on He is also blind in one eye and his back legs aren't as strong as they really should be.

It sounds disgusting but i do vacuum every night and the carpet is cleaned regularly!

If we move we will have a garage, will he be ok in there/ or is it to cold and lonely? I don't want to put him into the garden, he is a bit of a scaredy rabbit and is scared of the breeze when the window is open. (i know he is is weird!!!)

Or, are there any indoor hutches where he can have his privacy from the DCs and not smell but have enough room to run around so he doesn'thave to come onto teh carpet?(he is a dwarf lop X lion head so is only small)

forgot to say, it has to be as cheap as poss as well!

(We wouldn't be able to make one-have tried that before!)

oh bless! we have our rabbit indoors winter time and outdoor summer time. have a long run in the garden that DH built. it has one area where it has tarpaulin over it, so she can shelter from rain and wind.. the rest is chicken wire.

can you leave a litter tray out for your rabbit ? tyhey are usually very clean creatures

have seen big hutches, but they are dear

IMHO putting an old house rabbit into the garage is not fair one bit. He is used to the company of family, so isolating him is cruel.

Would something like this be in your league? Ebay has crates starting at £20ish - This one, big enough for a german shepherd is only £30 + postage and would give your bunny oodles of space - I'd guess the wood to make a shelf as suggested, plus extra mesh and wood for the kickboard, would come to another £20 tops.

(the £30 is enormous btw, and smaller costs less ;) )

thats my opinion too nutterlyuts!

He already has a big hutch. Its really an outside hutch but it has the private part for him to hide from the DCs and the other part he whizzes round in like a loony! He was house trained, its just that as he has got older he isn't as able to get back in his hutch as quickly.

Oddly, now that i have said his back legs are not so strong, he is whizzing round the room as i type

will look at those links thank you

He will be very very sad to be put in the garage. Please don't do it. I have a house rabbit and cleaning up after him is a pain when he gets an upset tummy (he's a plate raider.) I always think - that's it he's going to live in the bloody garden! But I just couldn't do that to him, he'd hate it. You could put old sheets down for him when he comes out and chuck them in the washing machine.

Message withdrawn

we actually took him to be neutered but the vet wouldn't do it as he is so old. He is getting in for a rabbit apparently!

At his age and the discription you gave it would not be fair to put him outside now, as he is getting on and not 100% he now more than ever needs somewhere warm and to hear the familiar noises. You could opt for keeping him in some sort of pen indoors possibly? Then letting him out supervised instead.

Is there a reason he smells, rabbits generally don't smell. Ok they smell like rabbits but their pee shouldn't stink badly.
There are also bunny friendly wipes you can get to keep his area clean. Check his diet and talk to the vet if the pee is starting to smell badly. Perhaps a rabbit suppliment might be needed in his diet now as he is getting on but the vet would prob. tell you if that would help.

Neutering isn't really an option now, if he was in full health and as a last resort perhaps but by the sound of it it wouldn't be a good idea.

If it's possible do let his last few months or years be comfortable being a lone rabbit it would be terrible for him to be on his own, even if you spend a lot of time with him outside he would miss the comings and goings. Rabbits sometimes don't let on but they really do watch everything that's going on.

did your vet recommend trying some pain relief if his back legs are a problem? if they didnt then why not ask if there is a rabbit specialist vet near you? what county do you live in?

He isn't in any pain from his legs. They get a bit stiff from time to time.

His pee - hmm well. He is such a fussy bugger, when i change him i line the hutch with newspaper and cover that with sawdust, he moves all the sawdust from one half into his sleeping section and then he pees straight onto the wood so nothing is soaking it up. He won't have hay or straw in his house at all either!

He is generally clean. every so often we put a little water in the baby bath and he loves it in there! (strange creature!) he runs from one side to the next and will kind of splash you with his front legs! I am sure his DNA got mixed up with a puppies! Its tricky getting enough time to properly clean him as he will only let me pick him up and obviously i don't want to encourage the DCs to pick him up if he does't like it!

I am going to show DP this thread. I don't really want him to go outside, i know from the OP that it sounds as if i do but really i don't. I just want a less smelly,less messy bunny!

Cavycare I love your comment ' Rabbits sometimes don't let on, but they really do watch everything that's going on..'

It amuses me to think our rabbit, would tell us she's taking it all in, but can't be bothered!

I really would recommend an indoor litter tray too. They can pick it up really quickly.

A plstic hutch would probably be better from the wee point of view - you can properly wipe it rather than it soaking in.

I am also thinking that we need to go back to the plastic one. We did have one but swapped it so that he had more privacy (he is in what is really an outdoor hutch but indoors) I like the idea of the dog cages as they look lots bigger.

Dog cage does look good - can you make a little cover to go over one end so he can hide?

i can pop a cardboard box in (a shoe box type one) he loves those-he can eat, play and hide all at once!!

fab

bluedragonfly if your bun is a bit stiff then is poss an arthritis prob and he's pushing everything else out the way cos feels a bit unsteady on it to wee.they bear down quite hard on bk legs to wee or poo so can be an arthritic prob if started recently??bunnys are a prey animal so if showing any signs of discomfort at all ie stiffness it will be uncomfortable.

I use a litter tray with old towels over it. That way he can't move anything out of it. The towels soak it up. My rabbit has smelly wee as well. I thought it was normal!

My old rabbit (sadly no longer with us) started having a little problem with stiff back legs, then later on it turned into an arthritis type problem like muffinmum suggested. She wasn't in pain at all initially (just like your dr - dear rabbit) but after a little while she needed painkillers. Just letting you know that in case it is useful later (I am sure you are monitoring it though. )

p.a. would love to know his name?

cornsilk - i don't know what you mean about a litter tray with towels over it? I can't visualise what you mean!!!

he does need something i can shut him into, i am paranoid that i will step on him if i get up in th enight (i live ion one level) or that he will jump on the bed(has been known in the past!) and i will squash him!

So,how will i know he is in pain? I monitor his use of his back legs by watching him run round, by setting him obstacles to hop over (small ones) and making him stretch up to get his treats. He seems quite happy to do that at the moment, he doesn't squeak oddly or at odd times.

His name is incredible unimaginative i am afraid...Bunny Bunny the rabbit

I noticed with my dr (Primrose) that she just seemed stiff initially but like Bunny would still run round and stretch etc. She then after a few weeks/months started to get a bit more subdued and seemed to struggle to get up in the hutch etc. I think it is quite common in rabbits. Vet gave me some drops, not sure if they helped really as she was getting on a bit by that stage anyway.

It sounds as if you "know" your rabbit quite well and would notice pretty quickly if he seemed to be in pain or not mobilising so well. hth.

he is the only pet i have ever had. Well, i had 12 stick insects when i was little but i lost them when i was swapping their "vegetation"

DP says he contacted a rabbit breeder that was recommended thru one of our pet shops (a v good one) and he suggested that he may need his nails trimmed. They are probably longer than they really should be but we do them ourselves and are scared of getting his vein!! Going to trim them down a bit more 2mo if he will let us.

could also be stress as DS2 used to be a bit of poker, hence the change in hutch!! (DS3 arrived 16 weeks ago too which means he has a bit less attention)

I once "lost" some stick insects in the changing room at school when I dropped the jar! (teacher was Not Impressed!)

Nails are tricky, I confess I did "nip" one of my bunny's paws, thankfully no real harm done, just had to cuddle rabbit and apply pressure.

Hope you get situation solved soon.