I finally found a castor Mini Rex buck that my children have been wanting (OK I admit, I\'ve been wanting him too). The situation is that he is four months old and has always drank from a cup for his water, but we prefer to use water bottles. How do we get him to use a bottle? We picked him up Sunday and since then we have provided both a bottle and a cup. We were hoping that he\'d eventually get it, but he has no interest so far. Does anyone have any advice on getting a rabbit to use a bottle after he\'s used a cup all his life?
Thanks for your help!
Shannon
Yes. Take away the cup and offer ONLY the water bottle. Trust me...your Mini Rex WILL drink from it. In 42 years I have never had a problem transitioning rabbits from one to the other.
You might want to \'tap\' the end of the stem to produce water droplets periodically and squeeze the bottle when the rabbit is nearby. His will to survive will supercede any reluctence he might have to using the bottle.
Charlcie Gill
Zodiac Rabbitry
Astoria, OR
http://www.zodiacsatins.com
I hesitated using the water bottle only because it\'s summer time and I was worried about him getting enough water. We\'ll go ahead and try removing the cup and see what happens. I\'ll keep you posted.
Thanks!
Shannon
When we first got our rabbits they were used to a bowl too. After having to fill the bowl several times a day from them dumping it, we switched to bottles. To show them the water was there, we tapped it a few times to get s few drops of water on our finger tips, then touched our fingers to their noses. They got the hang of it right away.
Good luck!
Thanks for your input. I did remove the bowl this afternoon and this evening my daughter witnessed him drinking from the bottle. I guess I worried about nothing.
Shannon