# Racer lives life in the fast lane!



## l.lai (Dec 15, 2009)

Hey guys,

I thought it was time to start a blog because Racer was successfully neutered today. In 4 weeks time i'll start bonding him with my sisters minilop doe LeeHom. Over that time i'll be blogging on their progress to become forever [email protected]! I hope to be able to video their sessions together and hopefully get feedback from you guys on your thoughts.

In the meantime, meet my boy Racer! I've had him since September 5 2009, he was born on the 27th of June 2009. 

I was worried that a Netherland Dwarf would be skittish and unfriendly. At first he was quite skittish but after about a week he started trusting me. Now he's grown into a very loving and affectionate bunny, when he hears strange noises he still jumps a little, but once he settles down again he'll jump on my chest for pats and lick my face for agesssssss!

He's very curious and when i give him run time but dont give him attention, he'll get up to mischief, he'll find ways to get past barriers into places he's not supposed to be in. He'll find holes, he'll pull boxes out of the way, he'll jump onto shelves and back down again into restricted areas. Once i sit on my bed or lie down again, he'll come hopping over for pats. He's a little attention seeker!

When i picked him up from his breeder:

He was just a little boy here, he was very brave in the car, sat there and didnt move or try to run!











In his playpen:

I know the pen isnt huge but i think he's quite a happy rabbit!























In my room:

He gets a lot of run time everyday and is pretty comfortable around me!

















My favourite shot!





Be back soon with more photos and an update on his neuter!


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## mistyjr (Dec 15, 2009)

What a cute bunny you have there...


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## devilzzy (Dec 15, 2009)

aww racer is soo cute. i love his fur color!! does he chew your carpet?


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## l.lai (Dec 15, 2009)

*devilzzy wrote: *


> aww racer is soo cute. i love his fur color!! does he chew your carpet?


No carpet! Just anthing remotely cardboard or paper he can find he'll chew. Including magazines, folders, packaging anything!

What colour is yours?


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## Fancy77 (Dec 15, 2009)

OMG what a cute bun i just wanna snuggle up with him


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## l.lai (Dec 15, 2009)

He's pretty quiet after his neuter yesterday. He didnt eat his food last night, but he isnt licking his wound or anything. He's kinda just snuggling up in one corner and chilling out.

I gave him a slice of apple last night that he promptly eat, but he didnt touch his pellets or veggies.

This morning i changed his food and he didnt eat it, so i put the "metacam" that the vet gave me on a small piece of apple and he eat that up straight away. I hope the metacam makes him feel better.

When i held pellets up to him he eat 2 of them but on the 3rd he just turned away.

I left him in a quiet room with no light, hopefully he'll get more rest today and when i get home later tonight around 9pm i'll let him out for a small run on my bed.

See how he goes!


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## Myia09 (Dec 15, 2009)

He really melts my heart. What a handsome bunny.


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## missyscove (Dec 15, 2009)

He's very cute! Thanks for sharing pictures.


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## l.lai (Dec 15, 2009)

Thanks for the replied guys, i'll get some photos tonight of Racer and his recovery!

Hopefully he'll eat his food today!


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## devilzzy (Dec 16, 2009)

l.lai wrote:


> *devilzzy wrote: *
> 
> 
> > aww racer is soo cute. i love his fur color!! does he chew your carpet?
> ...



donut's color is black otter.. with a few light brown areas. (;


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## RosemaryVanDeuren (Dec 16, 2009)

Racer is ADORABLE-- I love him! XD He's such a pretty color. & he does look very happy in his playpen! 

My vet told me that smaller breeds of rabbits can start out a bit higher strung (mine's a mini rex), so even if he's a little skittish now, I bet that will improve with age


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## Wabbitdad12 (Dec 17, 2009)

He looks so innocent and sweet!


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## l.lai (Dec 17, 2009)

Update: Today was the first day since the neuter that Racer looked remotely interested in food. Usually he'll see me in the morning and run right u to the playpen and paw at the gates because he knows he being fed.

Lately he's just been sitting in the corner and doesnt even look at his food.

Today he was moving around again and looking sorta hungry even though there were plenty of greens in his food bowl.

I bought 3 large bags of Oxbow Bunny Basics/T (Timothy hay pellets) because before his neuter he was on regular cheap leucerne pellets which he loved.

I wonder how much his reduced appitite has to do with the change in pellets from the leucerne to the timothy pellets. 

Nonetheless he i watched him eagerly eat his pellets and carrot right up. I put some metacam on a piece of apple and fed that too him also. 

Hopefully when i get home tonight from work his food bowl will be empty like it used to be!


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## Fancy77 (Dec 18, 2009)

glad to hear is is doing better


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## l.lai (Dec 20, 2009)

Update:

Racer seems completely healed up now, last night he was jumping from the ground back up to my bed, and from the bed back onto the floor.

I have found that he's not eating the same way he used to, he eats most of his pellets but leaves a lot of the veggies behind, wheras he used to demolish all his food...

Would it be because he's no longer using as much energy from his lowered sex drive after his neuter?

I've also found that although he still licks my face occasionally its definately less than before the surgery so his affection levels have dropped slightly, he prefers to just flop down on the floor next to my bed..

Mmm.


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## hln917 (Dec 20, 2009)

He is such a cutie! How did you get him to stay still in the car?


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## l.lai (Dec 20, 2009)

*hln917 wrote: *


> He is such a cutie! How did you get him to stay still in the car?


Well...good question, i doubt i could get him to stay still now, those photos were from the first time we met so he was probably pretty scared, he just sat on my lap the whole ride home!

He also pee'd twice.


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## l.lai (Jan 10, 2010)

Racer and LeeHom's 2nd bunny date!

2nd bonding session between my Netherland Dwarf buck "Racer" and my sisters Mini Lop X doe "LeeHom". It was a great success with them grooming each other around the 7min:30sec mark and the 9min:00sec mark.

Unfortunately i was unable to film their first bonding session. 

Video:

[flash=425,344]http://www.youtube.com/v/LrqmGrbO6C8&hl=en&fs=1[/flash]


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## jcottonl02 (Jan 10, 2010)

Aw that's so cute! I love the way the grey lop keeps putting his/her head down for a groom, like 'pplleeaaassee pretty pleeaaasseeeeeeee kiss me!' lol. 
You can really tell who is the dominant one there. 

Keep at it- it looks so promising!


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## fuzz16 (Jan 10, 2010)

Leehom looks so nervous poor girly, but it does look good so far!


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## l.lai (Jan 10, 2010)

Bunny Date 3: Racer meets LeeHom in her territory!

Aside from a little chasing, it was good, no fighting, a little chasing, some humping and a bunch of grooming. They seemed content to flop down onto the carpet but separately.

Better than fighting right?

I know i may have rushed the introduction of Racer into LeeHom's area but i felt that they were getting along nicely so i'd give it a try.

Next stop a car ride together?

Part 2 of the bonding session uploading as we speak.

[flash=425,344]http://www.youtube.com/v/OzLkj43nKkE&hl=en&fs=1[/flash][flash=425,344]http://www.youtube.com/v/OzLkj43nKkE&hl=en&fs=1[/flash]


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## l.lai (Jan 11, 2010)

Date 3: Part 2

They seemed content to flop next to each other, no fighting, looks promising considering its in LeeHom's territory. 

If i cant drive them together tonight then i'll video LeeHom in Racer's territory.

[flash=425,344]http://www.youtube.com/v/943VCcH3AqU&hl=en&fs=1[/flash]


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## Wabbitdad12 (Jan 11, 2010)

Good luck with the bonding. I hope it continues to go well.


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## l.lai (Jan 13, 2010)

New videos of latest dates on the way. But doesnt seem to be attracting much attention!


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## jcottonl02 (Jan 16, 2010)

That looks really promising- keep at it!


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## l.lai (Feb 3, 2010)

Its been pretty hectic so Racer and LeeHom have had limited time together, since there was little interest in filmed meetings between the two rabbits Iâve stopped doing it.

In the time lately theyâve been spending together it seems theyâre quite happy apart from when LeeHom tries to mount Racerâs face, he doesnât like that, I think Racer is keen on staying the dominant one.

Its now been around 6 weeks since Racers neutering, and he is starting to act more normal like he was before his neuter. Heâs affectionate again and spends more time on my lap and licking my face like he used to. Post-op and for around 1 month he was a bit of a loner content to sit in a corner of my room to himself, but now heâs more inclined to jump up onto the bed and hang out again like he used to.


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## Wabbitdad12 (Feb 3, 2010)

I am glad he's back to normal and he is feeling better.


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## yngmea (Feb 3, 2010)

cute cute buns


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## DartANrun (Feb 3, 2010)

OMG! They are so sweet together! I wish bonding my guys had been half that easy. She's so patient with the young wippersnapper. No, groom the head, no, the head, no, groom, sigh, groom the head, no, no, the head... hehee. Too cute. I think she's the dominant one, a very patient dominant one. She doesn't let him mount her for long and consistently swings around presenting her head. And she seems thrilled over this newbie. Even did some binkies. Do you think they need the car ride? They look so relaxed around each other. Are they going to share the room eventually?

I love the videos. I'd take them just for myself...home pictures to be watched for old times' sake.

My guys only stayed together about 5 min. before I had to separate them the first time. I had a squirt gun and a box for penning and lots of hiding places and obstacles for both to use for evasion. I had to use the squirt gun a lot and had to break up humping contests and tifts. Yours are doing great compared to mine. Mine are now fast buddies, but it was not easy.


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## l.lai (Feb 4, 2010)

Thanks DartNRun, they're pretty good around each other.

This week i'm moving LeeHom into a play pen next to Racer and they'll live separated side by side with daily meetings.

After about 3-4 weeks of this i may start putting them together in the pens if they are getting along while im around.

When should i put them together in the pen? The problem is i cant put them in the pen together and watch them as the pens are in another room.


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## DartANrun (Feb 4, 2010)

I've only put together these two. Can you leave the door open, maybe a gate? Bring a chair into the hall with something to do, read, listen to music? The room didn't look too small. Maybe you could hang out there with them. My hubby is home all day, so he could keep an eye on them, though I did the refereeing to begin with. I think after a week of them getting along during the day, we let them stay together at night. I washed as much as I could to change the smell to strange for both of them, and included both of their hiding boxes and both litter boxes when they were together. I also put something new in there to distract them from each other. Since my hubby often can't make it up the stairs to bed, he was downstairs for their first nights together. They have had two spats since (that I know of), in which Truffle just reasserted his dominance, chasing and humping poor Dart for a minute or so. Dart stayed upstairs, pouting and Truffle went back downstairs. I think it was started by Dart grooming Truffle too roughly. I think the best thing in their environment for helping avoid tiffs were lots of hiding places and obstacles. One would run dodge till the other gave up. Plus, then they can play tag.


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## l.lai (Feb 4, 2010)

Interesting ideas! It will be challening to set up an environment like that but i'll keep you posted as i progress!!


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## l.lai (Feb 9, 2010)

Just a quick update:

They've been moved side by side, and are getting along well. They groom each other through the fence.

its not a perfect world though, although LeeHom often puts her head down to be groomed, Racer likes running behind her and humping her (he's neutered).

She'll put up with it sometimes, other times she'll run away. 

Sometimes she'll hump him and he'll run and they chase each other.

No biting though.


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## kirbyultra (Mar 27, 2010)

Hey Lawrence. How are the buns doing, together yet?


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## l.lai (Apr 18, 2010)

Hi there,

Just an update, its been a while:

Racer and LeeHom were living happily together for about a month, but unforunately together they were creating a HUGE mess in the house, including far more shedding, pee everywhere, poops not in trays, flipping bowls and all sorts of mischief.

Since separating them and giving them occasional bunny dates, they both seem to be back to normal (pee and poops in litter trays, no more bowl flipping and less hair everywhere).

Thanks for all your help with the bonding, i'll still be posting about Racer though.

I've got a thread in the infirmary right now as it seems Racer is not eating well and is passing some poop which is strung together by hair. 

I've got some Oxbow critical care i'll give to him tonight, he's currently on a water and hay diet, trying to get him moving again!


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## hln917 (Apr 19, 2010)

Thanks for the update. Sending good wishes to Racer for a speedy recovery! 

When you get a chance, looking forward to more pics of them!


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