Pet’s Corner Q&A
My rabbit, Rosie, has started growling and running at me, sometimes baring her teeth. She’s well otherwise. I’m scared to go near her, what can I do?
Rabbits can show aggression due to fear, pain, hormones, or frustration.
Your vet can check her for pain, or may suggest neutering if her behaviour appears hormone related.
This will also protect her from cancer of the womb, which affects 80 per cent of unneutered female rabbits.
Bunnies are happiest living with at least one other neutered rabbit in a large hutch with a run where they can dig, run, and hide – but be sure it’s rabbit proof as they’re expert burrowers!
Make sure your bunnies have plenty of hay to eat as well as toys and activities to help prevent boredom.
Rescue centres can help pair your bunny with a friend of their choice. You’ll need to make sure she’s vaccinated though.
My daughter’s gerbil has a lump on her tummy. It doesn’t seem to be growing or causing her any discomfort. What might be wrong?
The lump could be an abscess, cyst, or tumour.
An abscess is caused by infection and cysts are caused by blocked glands. All three can be very uncomfortable and can make your gerbil feel unwell.
It’s important to take her to your vet as soon as possible to get this checked out and make sure she isn’t in any pain.
Your vet will need to check the lump so they can advise on the best course of treatment.
They may recommend an operation to remove the lump, however, if they are not concerned about it and it is not causing the gerbil any problems, they might advise to leave it alone.
My budgie, Ron, loves to fly around outside his cage, but it’s really hard to get him back in and takes ages. We don’t want to stop letting him out, but how can we make it easier?
Exercise and time out of the cage are vital.
Make sure the cage is a nice place to return to though by keeping it clean, roomy, with toys and natural, budgie-safe perches.
Wild budgies live in groups and feel safer together, so bonding him to another budgie may help him to feel more secure in his home, when he has to go back inside.
Lure the budgies back inside with a favourite treat.
With patience and time, budgies can be trained to step onto your finger or a perch so that you can take them in and out the cage easily.
Make sure any training you do is reward-based, using favourite treats.
Picture: Budgie – Picture: Pixabay / stumpi_1
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