My house bunny and the foster dog

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Preitler

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Hi,

about two months ago I ran into a hutch shortage (rabbitosis... *sigh*), and since my experiences with a doe as free range house bunny are not so good (very destructive) I gave my 2 1/2 year old 8-9lbs (of course intact) herd buck a try. To my utter surprise he was completly housebroken from day one, doesn't nibble any cables or wood (I didn't bunny proof anything), doesn't mind the slick floor - well, he isn't very affectionate, that's ok for me, he does accept some petting and a good nose rub, comes for treats on command, and jumps on my bed in the morning when I'm late for his piece of apple. Has free range of the house and during the day also the garden.

10 days ago I took in the dog of a friend who's in hospital (she's awake now, after beeing under a week, recovering). Herr Hase (=Mr. Bunny- I'm awful at giving names...) wasn't thrilled, to say the least, but Gina knows rabbits, and tends to ignore them completly, bunny berrys are way more fascinating for her. And with about 11 years, she's not a hyper active youngster. :roll:

First the rabbit bolted every time he saw her, then he stayed, alert, as long as she didn't come too close, and now he mostly ignores her or even comes close when I give him treats or food, and even starts to show interest in that strange thing.
They both sleep in my room, did that since the second day, Gina in her bed at my feet, Herr Hase on the floor in front of the bed.

It's interesting to have two so different animals in one house, They'll never become best friends, I guess, but living together isn't a problem for this two :)
 

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Herr Hase looks like he could give Gina a good dose of what-for if she tried anything, and she probably knows it. Great that they've both opted for peaceful coexistence. :D
I've been thinking about you and your friend and I'm glad she is recovering, best wishes!
 
Preitler":3pyunq7n said:
10 days ago I took in the dog of a friend who's in hospital (she's awake now, after beeing under a week, recovering).
I'm so glad to hear there's been progress. I hope you (and her daughter, of course) keep getting good news! :oops:

Preitler":3pyunq7n said:
Herr Hase (=Mr. Bunny- I'm awful at giving names...)
With fur as orange as his, I'm surprised his name's not Pumuckl! :p
He is a cutie, though! :D
 
Thanks for all that positive vibes :) .

My friend recovers incredibly well, I guess a good part of it is because the resources that get available when you cut out smoking, she had about 30-40 cigarettes per day, that is an awful addiction, too bad it creates a LOT of taxes...

She's very positive, full of good resulotions, let's see how that translates into real life. Anyway, her daughter quit smoking too, and now plans to get a drivers license, she had to relay on friends to get her anywhere since her mother wasn't available. I hope this was a wake up call for her too.

My friend will get out of hospital on Tuesday (if things go as expected), and I will bring Gina back on Wednesday :). Maybe I stay for the night to ease things out, since she has broken ribs from reviving and isn't strong overall, but she really does miss her dog.

Herr Hase and Gina ignore each other, which is perfectly ok. I can use Gina to herd back the 2-3 growouts that keep escaping the fence during the day, not really necessary but gives her something to do, and I prefer to have those locked up before I release the other crowd.
 
Well, it'll take somewhat longer, they don't rush things at the hospital, want to be absulotly sure the infection is gone and she's strong enough, now it's end of the week/next week.

Gina and Herr Hase had their first dispute because Herr Hase stole the piece of carrot Gina was munching on :D, but niether holds a grudge.

There are bad news too :( , I just was at the Vet with Gina, yesterday when searching her for ticks I found a small tumor in a mammary gland, Vet said it's still small, hard and well defined, should be removed within 2-3 weeks. Need to talk with G. about that, not right now, I think, but when she gets home and I bring Gina back.
Vet recommends a hysterectomy too when she's on the table anyway to reduce the chance of more tumors and other problems that come with age, Gina is 10 or 11 years old...

Well, that's all not too surprising, and something to work on, and maybe it's a good thing it happens now - I'm pretty sure the tumor would have gone unnoticed much longer at home, with G. not able to lift her for the next weeks.

__________ Fri Sep 01, 2017 3:49 pm __________

So, I brought Gina home today, it was kind of disappointing for G.. Gina acknowledged her like "Oh, you are here too" for 3 minutes , and then just acted normal, as if she never left (it was 3 weeks..).

I definitly spoiled her, giving cuddles and walks whenever she wanted, arrrgh, of course G. can't offer this, ribs still sore from reviving, and all those visits through the nights did take their toll on me too, I lost about 3kg during the last 3 weeks. (that, actually being a good thing although being quite underweight - i didn't drink much alcohol.

Ok, I'll fetch her on tuesday, bring her to to the vet at wednesday, and return her right post surgery.
 
Yesterday I fetched Gina, spent the night here - Herr Hase not thrilled, but didn't care much - no food for her today, at 1400 I brought her to the vet for surgery. Brave girl, after an hour the tumor was removed and I brought her back to G., the vet warned me that they often come out of nightmares when waking up, but Gina woke up tail wagging :)
G. recovers, still weak, but noticeable progress everytime I see her :)

That's it for a few months, then I'll get her again for 3 weeks. Meanwhile I'm considering retiring and neutering my oldest breeding doe and have her live in the house with Herr Hase, but I need to read up on any experinces with intact boy and neutered doe. If it doesn't completly change her personality there is absolutly no question who is going to be the boss, although he's a laid back dude I can't have rabbits peeing everywhere...
 
Glad to hear that your friend Gertrude and her Gina are doing well. It sounded so grim when you first posted, so the good news about them is especially nice. :)

About two house bunnies . . . You're a brave man. :lol:
 
Nahh, I didn't think an intact buck would make a pet, I tried and he proved me totally wrong, why not stretch my luck? I desperatly need to get rid of breeding does. And I accept the fact that my Black Fury is smarter than me - about half her pregnancies (about 8 in total) were not planned by me.

My younger does need a chance, they are all good. All 3 of them :shock:. Plus the 2 old ones. I could do perfectly with just 2 does, but well, when your livestock is 90% of your social interaction you're not going to cull for efficiency reasons....
 

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