Bunny People........I Need Advice Please!!!

[CharmedMinis]

I have a rabbit that was dropped off at our property back in March.

He's wonderful and we love him! We built him a bunny condo, it's 2 stories and each story is 2.5 feet wide and 8 feet long. He has toys galore and 2 houses, a bed, and litter box.

He's a very happy healthy bunny. But since it's gotten cold he isn't drinking hardly anything. He stopped drinking out of his sippy bottle 2 weeks ago and I have been filling up a small bowl with warm water twice a day, but it's not making much difference.

This bunny is an outdoor bunny, but his condo is under a porch and up against a warm adobe wall that is kept warm because the water heater for the house is on the other side of it.

So are there any tricks in getting a bunny to drink when it's cold??? He is still playing and eating good and appears very healthy. He also has a nice thick winter coat.

Thanks!!!

 

[rabbitsfizz]

What are you feeding him?? Bunnies get a lot of their moisture from their food. Not all, but a lot. If it is cold he may also be spending more time indoors(Watching TV no doubt!!) and not be expending so much energy, so needs less water. You can get him a Bunny salt lick, that will encourage him to drink- and there is no reason why you could not put a little Gatorade in his drink but, if you do this make sure he also has clear water. If he is eating and healthy I would not be inclined to worry.

 

[CharmedMinis]

Oops guess I should have added what he eats

He gets free choice Orchard Grass that has a tidbit of alfalfa in it and then he gets free choice rabbit food.........ummm it's one of the high end ones purchased at Petsmart.....Mazuri Gold I think. It's mostly pellets with a few seeds of some sort in it.

He also get half an apple every other day and on the weekends he gets other leftover fruits and veggies such as pear cores, pineapple peels, melon rinds, celery, berries, etc.

He also has one of those calcium chew things, lots of wood chews, a red salt lick and a white salt lick, and one of those flavored bunny licks......banana I think.

Told you he was spoiled

Thanks for the input so far, much appreciated since I don't know a darn thing about bunny rabbits

 

[runamuk]

As long as he is eating I wouldn't worry my bunnies water consumption always goes down in the winter.....a little hay a few times a week will also help make him thirsty........rabbits deal far better with very cold weather than they do with hot weather .....many show rabbits are kept in climate controlled barns that are kept at about 45 degrees year round........

 

[runamuk]

ok you posted when I did

with a diet that varied he isn't going to drink alot of water unless it is hot......lucky bunny

 

[ChrystalPaths]

Wow, I'd come back as your bunny. I raised bunnies for years and their water consumption does go down when it cools. I used to offer nice warm water several times a day and was sure to offer all the yummies you offer as they supplement the liquids they need.

 

[Jess P]

I own rabbits and will be breeding next year.

Something that caught me was this

It's mostly pellets with a few seeds of some sort in it.

Get a new feed from blue seal or where you get your horse grain. I feed Bunny 16. You should not be feeding anything with seeds or any colorful pieces in it, just pellets. The pellets should have over 16% fiber.

Since he is getting fresh fruits and veggies (Feed more veggies than fruits as the fruits tend to have a lot of sugar in them), he may be getting the water he needs from them. It seems that you are doing the right thing by supplying a bowl as well.

He should drink more water if he is licking his salt wheels.

Good Luck!

 

[runamuk]

Get a new feed from blue seal or where you get your horse grain. I feed Bunny 16. You should not be feeding anything with seeds or any colorful pieces in it, just pellets. The pellets should have over 16% fiber.

I disagree the mazuri feed she is using is perfectly fine for a pet rabbit my house rabbits loved and thrived on that stuff (mini lop, dutch, and a holland lop). I bred and we showed dutch, polish, and jersey woolies .........our rabbits did best on 16% from purina it was cost effective and kept good weight on even my nursing does. I know the rex breeders swear by 18% ........mazuri feeds is purina's zoo division and those feeds are great just expensive when feeding 40 some rabbits

...I fed sunflower too all my show rabbits and used safflower at times as well..... rabbits tolerate and enjoy seeds and dehydrated veggies which are what the colorful pieces are in the feed she is speaking of.

Charmed ......I want to come back as your rabbit in my next life

your doing great

 

[CharmedMinis]

Thank you guys for all the wonderful information and encouragement

He showed up here, and he was just another animal that needed to be spoiled at our house. His condo was another of my Father's grandiose ideas

But it turned out awesome, I will post a couple pics tomorrow. As for all of Buster's goodies, once I saw how much he liked to play with a piece of wood, I decided he needed toys, so now he has them, and he's a happy camper.

I won't worry about his water intake now. It just alarmed me because I watch my horses water intake during winter so much that seeing Buster almost stop drinking put me into panic mode. But I'll just keep giving him some warm water in a bowl.

Thanks again

 

[ChrystalPaths]

Lindsay, blocks of wood are good for bunnies as ithelps keep their teeth fileld down and nails shorter not to mention the fun aspect of tossing them around!

 

[_minihorses4ever_]

I know nothing about bunnies, but you have one spoiled bunny! I am sure he loves y'all!