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bunny distractions/play things/activities

836 Views 3 Replies 4 Participants Last post by  Booklover
I have two sweet bunnies - a mama bunny who is 3.5 and her daughter, Snooper, who is a year. Well, I'm fairly new to bunny ownership - only been 10 months, except for when I had them as a child - so I'm still trying to learn stuff.

Previously I had carpeting in my basement, and when I'd let the buns out of their pen, the carpeting seemed to make the buns want to dig. They'd dig at the corners or where the carpet met the wall. The carpet was really old and bad, so I had it removed and put down vinyl flooring. The digging has stopped, but Snooper is now nibbling at my baseboards - not on the boards, but on the quarter rounds I just had put down to finish the look where the vinyl met the baseboards. I'm thinking maybe the wood smells fresh and she's smelling it and so it's attracting her.

Anyway, I'd like for them to have some stuff that interests them when they come out of the pen to keep them from nibbling on the baseboards. I put down an old carpet and a blanket - Snooper sometimes likes to arrange blankets - but that didn't keep their interest long. In their pen they have a large cardboard box which they both (but Snooper especially) love to dig at. They have a cardboard tube which they love to go through, another smaller box they like to climb on. They've got a log to chew on and they get plenty of hay. I don't have the problem as much with Sparkles, the older one and the rabbit society told me the older ones are more calmed down - the younger ones are more like puppies.

I'm thinking maybe I should put a box with some sticks in the corner - so when they come out, they know they could go in there and chew on sticks. Maybe getting something they can climb on - Snooper loves to climb - chairs, stools, shelves - anywhere she can get, but sometimes I don't want her climbing where she decides to climb.

Any bunny owners have some tips? I have been using the water bottle whenever they chew on something and I've been using citrus spray and bitter apple - but my basement is huge and I can spray that all the time - it doesn't last long either.
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I raised rabbits when I was a kid for 4-H, and now we have 2 males for the children. Ok, it's really to fertilize my garden, but don't tell the kids that!

Definitely let the rabbits have sticks to chew on. Softer ones like from fruit trees are good (no brambles like berries, though, too prickly), but any others will do. But they need SOMETHING, because the teeth of rabbits are constantly growing. This will keep them in good shape and trimmed down, otherwise you will have vet dental bills.

Make sure you don't give them pieces of wood that has varnish or chemicals on, or that is fake like pressboard or laminate, and all should be good.

They will chew on the wire of their cages if they don't have sticks, and that is not good for them.
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