Meet the new Bunbun

[finchly]

This is Luke Skyhopper!
He is 10 weeks old and supposed to be a Holland Lop.

He is not the other rescue bunny. They do not adopt this close to Easter, plus they were busy and didn’t answer my questions. I dunno, that just didn’t work out.

So this lady gave me, for free, this adorable bun. However if you notice, his eyes are squinted. I’ve been on a rabbit board asking questions, and got a few different supposed answers (yes I know, vet, but it’s friday evening and I feel like crap). I got a look in his mouth. It seems like his top teeth skew off to the side a bit. Couldn’t get a look at the molars. Still, it doesn’t seem like slightly crooked front teeth would lead to an eye infection; ;that would be more like back teeth. So what is up with his eyes?

Well, I have a Few clues. The lady had a. 6 yr old very rambunctious boy. She kept saying he was too rough with t he bunny. So I’m thinking he hit him with a toy? Or something. That one eye is missing some eyelashes, and has a scar=like place. I noticed that his mouth area feels hard, like leather. As I recall bunny mouths are very soft. So I’m wondering if that has been damaged somehow?

One person suggested the squinting is all stress, wait till Monday and see how he is then.

Oh and his hay was basically sticks, stems, I’ve never seen alfalfa hay this poor. I didn’t even know it could look so bad. So it’s plausible that he has an eye injury from icky. Hay. Maybe even the strange mouth.

Anyway stay tuned, if he is worse I’ll go tomorrow but most likely Monday to the vet. I hope she wasn’t lying. There were 3 red flags but in my excitement I ignored them.

The timing is really bad, since I feel so poorly from the covid shot. It knocked me down. Hopefully I can get back up. I keep falling asleep.

 

[saroj12]

Awww! He’s soooo cute!
hope you feel better soon!

 

[finchly]

Awww! He’s soooo cute!
hope you feel better soon!

Thank you!

 

[Sunni Tiel]

Congratulations! He is so CUTE!

Feel better soon!

 

[Birdbabe]

OMG!!

 

[Shezbug]

Very cute pic of you two

Congratulations on your new family member

 

[iamwhoiam]

Congrats on the cute new bunny.
Hope you are better soon.

 

[Lady Jane]

Sorry the vaccine hit you hard. Bunny is in a good place with you.

 

[rockoko]

Oh gosh he’s adorable!
I hope you feel better soon!

 

[Zara]

Awwww love him! Such a cutie! Great pic of the two of you

 

[Kassiani]

Adorable!! I’m sorry you and he are feeling a bit rough and hope you’ll both feel much better very soon!

 

[Sylvi_]

He’s too precious!! Hope you both are feeling better soon.

 

[Sparkles99]

He's adorable! Sounds like he was a direct rescue, by you!

Private rescues can be odd. I always support the municipal shelter as they are open admission. If you pick & choose which animals to take on, I won't support you. Sorry you dealt with that & the implied judgement that you only want a bun for Easter.

If rabbits are roughed up, their eyes can be affected. I've heard of one case where this caused blindness. So I bet you're right about the rough play. I'd wait & see. Could just be genetic too.

Just give him tons of hay while you wait for the vet appointment; hopefully his teeth will be fine. I'd replace the sketchy hay.

Rest up with your new bun!

 

[annafauna]

OMG, he's so cute!! What a little guy.

In the photos, the skin around his eyes looks a bit flushed? And maybe his nose is dirty/drippy? I'm not sure about the rough skin, but he might have a little bacterial infection. Or maybe an allergy, which could connect the skin issue, too? I know you'll get him to the vet when you can -- hopefully they can figure it out!

I bet he'll be happy to get some nice, soft timothy! I feed my bunnies grass hay from our own hay field, and even when it's time for the next haying, the previous year's hay smells so fresh and delicious (you know, if I were into eating hay). I can't imagine what they were feeding him, but once you get him feeling better, he's going to be thrilled to be living with somebody who takes such good care of him!

 

[finchly]

you know, if I were into eating hay). I

I get it
And you’re right- he has a dirty nose! I had some Timothy hay so he got it today.

I got some pics. He was running and kicking his heels up today so at least he feels good!

 

[finchly]

OMG, he's so cute!! What a little guy.

In the photos, the skin around his eyes looks a bit flushed? And maybe his nose is dirty/drippy? I'm not sure about the rough skin, but he might have a little bacterial infection. Or maybe an allergy, which could connect the skin issue, too? I know you'll get him to the vet when you can -- hopefully they can figure it out!

I bet he'll be happy to get some nice, soft timothy! I feed my bunnies grass hay from our own hay field, and even when it's time for the next haying, the previous year's hay smells so fresh and delicious (you know, if I were into eating hay). I can't imagine what they were feeding him, but once you get him feeling better, he's going to be thrilled to be living with somebody who takes such good care of him!

Hey maybe you know the answer to this. I was giving him pellets and alfalfa hay. A guy told me I should limit hay because he is so young! So I started reading and it says limit pellets and give unlimited hay, also read not to give alfalfa exclusively... no wonder people get confused. What’s the right answer?

 

[annafauna]

My understanding is to limit pellets and give unlimited TIMOTHY/grass hay. Not alfalfa. I think alfalfa is too high in... calcium and protein? Oh, I just looked it up and it said some people feed alfalfa to baby bunnies. I hadn't heard of that before. Certainly the recommendation is to feed pellets that are primarily timothy! I got Oakie and Cedar when they were 6wks? 2mos? I can't remember -- little puff balls, anyway, and they were eating grass hay then. I can believe there IS a limit to how much alfalfa any bunny should have (and that limit might be *no* alfalfa, depending what you read), but if you feed timothy/grass hay, it should be unlimited.

I guess my take on it would be that the protein and calcium requirements should be met by the pellets, so alfalfa is unnecessary. Timothy/grass hay is best for bunnies, and they can have an unlimited amount. Fresh veggies should be given every day (though I'll admit my boys don't get it EVERY day in the winter ). But all new foods should be introduced slowly, since their digestion is such a pile of busted machinery.

Gratuitous photo of baby Cedar, baby Oakie, and adult Aspen:

 

[Sparkles99]

If you're prone to allergies or sinus issues, I recommend orchard grass hay. Timothy causes a lot of people's allergies to act up.

I give alfalfa based pellets/ hay to my current buns fairly regularly. They always have grass hay too. This is because it contains calcium, so too much is a bad thing, but too little can be too. However, if you do this you can't have any soybeans/ hulls/ soy-anything in their pellets/ diet or they * will * get GI stasis.

If the rabbit is a baby, they actually need some alfalfa. You can discuss how much at your vet appointment. I've never cared for a baby rabbit.

Though they're a different species of rabbit, I try to match their diet to those of the wild buns I've watched all my life. If there's alfalfa or any species of clover (all legumes) or dandelion on offer, as there regularly is at my parents', they eat that then the grass.

The one thing to avoid at all costs is soy. Also corn. So-y many problems. Ever seen rabbits raiding a soy or corn field? Neither has anyone else. Given the choice between soy in pellets or alfalfa, I choose the latter. Since doing so, no bun in my care has gotten GI stasis, including the late Cincinnati, who had it semi-regularly until I did this admittedly radical thing.

I also wonder about the plethora of older rabbits with wiggly teeth leading to much larger issues. If they'd have had more regular amounts of calcium, would the result have been different? I regret not having given Cincinnati a more varied diet earlier, but this is for each to decide for themself.

 

[finchly]

My understanding is to limit pellets and give unlimited TIMOTHY/grass hay. Not alfalfa. I think alfalfa is too high in... calcium and protein? Oh, I just looked it up and it said some people feed alfalfa to baby bunnies. I hadn't heard of that before. Certainly the recommendation is to feed pellets that are primarily timothy! I got Oakie and Cedar when they were 6wks? 2mos? I can't remember -- little puff balls, anyway, and they were eating grass hay then. I can believe there IS a limit to how much alfalfa any bunny should have (and that limit might be *no* alfalfa, depending what you read), but if you feed timothy/grass hay, it should be unlimited.

I guess my take on it would be that the protein and calcium requirements should be met by the pellets, so alfalfa is unnecessary. Timothy/grass hay is best for bunnies, and they can have an unlimited amount. Fresh veggies should be given every day (though I'll admit my boys don't get it EVERY day in the winter ). But all new foods should be introduced slowly, since their digestion is such a pile of busted machinery.

Gratuitous photo of baby Cedar, baby Oakie, and adult Aspen:

View attachment 377379

OMG cuteness overload!!!

Thank you. That clears it up. I ordered “everything” so I have Timothy hay, orchard grass, pellets for “young” rabbits, and the original adult pellets I’d bought whe I thought I was getting an adult.

I switched out his little potty tray to a ginormous covered cat litter box. We spent all this time discussing whether to cut a hole in the side, give him steps, try this try that yadda yadda and as soon as I put him down he jumped in - across the steps I’d made Then jumped out avoiding them again. So apparently he’ll be fine.

He’s really snuggly. And when I stop petting, he puts his head under my hand “You’re not done yet, hooman!”

If you're prone to allergies or sinus issues, I recommend orchard grass hay. Timothy causes a lot of people's allergies to act up.

Yep! Got that loud and clear, with tissues to prove it. I have the change-the-hay station in the garage because my DOG is allergic, but it’s hitting me too. I remember when I was first diagnosed with my many allergies, alfalfa hay was one. Blah.

 

[annafauna]

Awww, I love that he's a cuddler! My boys aren't super snuggly -- Cedar likes scritches the most (partly because he has trouble scratching his face on the side he's missing his back leg), and often the other two will get jealous and suddenly demand forehead rubs too. Usually they're just hoping I'm handing out treats, though!

It stinks that you're allergic to the hay! And your dog!

I know you mentioned the teeth being a bit off center. Looking at the photo... well, I'm no expert, but the teeth look nice and healthy, though I see what you mean about the positioning. He's keeping them "trimmed", though! I'm curious if they vet will think anything of it. I wonder if he's been having drainage from his nose, and that's irritating to skin above his mouth. My baby boys had a little infection when I first got them, and they really did rub their noses a lot when they were dripping. Maybe frequent rubbing could have done it? It sort of looks like maybe there's drainage from the eyes that's dried up, too. I wonder if it's allergies or infection or what! Hopefully the improved diet will help a lot.