Ive got an 11.5 yo dwarf rabbit named Sparkle (neutered and vaccinated) thats acting oddly and much different than normal. This is kinda long, but I dodnt know what info would be helpful so I tried to give as many details as possible
Note: We kept her original name from the rescue org. Since her bonded bun was named Stormagedden: Dark Lord of All ("Stormy" for short) we liked the balance in names.
Background:
She has never really taken to people. She would occassionally groom me and would let me pet her for up to a minute, but that was it. 2 years ago her bonded partner died. I thought that she'd seek out more attention after that, but the opposite happened. Now she wont let me pet her at all. Before I'd always let her be her and never pushed petting so I just kept doing that.
I don't think she scared of me because she'll be grooming herself outside her pen and I can walk by and she wont even stop. And if I stick out my hand, she'll run up to it, but if i dont have a treat then she'll run back. I can hand feed her cilantro without issue.
Anyway, she self limits to the top floor of our house (all carpet). Her pen door (pen is 8'x8') is open 90% of the time. She would frequently run into the main bedroom exlpore a bit and then run back. Sometimes she just does laps going back and forth.
Current Situation:
4 days ago she was out more than normal and took up a spot in the main bedroom. She basically treated that spot like her pen. If I was in there, she'd move out of the way for me and then go back to essentially where she was before. She would continue exploring the main bedroom but then go back to that same spot. After 7/8 hours, it was getting late so i ushered her back into the other room/her pen. She was reluctant but agreeable enough.
She hadnt been out of the pen at all since then so I thought "I hope she doesnt think that my ushering her back into the pen meant she was in trouble by going into the main bedroom" so I moved her into the main bedroom. She took up her old spot, but once again would move around as necessary and to explore. It was getting late and i decide to just let her be. I figure when she gets hungry or needs to poo, she'll go back to her pen.
I wake up and shes still in essentially he same area but theres rabbit poo in a pile next to her. Since she has always been exceptionally good about using the litter box, I start to get concerned. I try to usher he back into the other room and she runs the opposite direction and hides in main bedroom. 5 minutes later she returns to the area she was hanging out and I try again. I get her moving towards her room but she keeps trying to turn back around and run into the main bedroom. I grabbed a pillow and used it as a fence to block her and eventually got her back into her pen. That was this morning and she has left her pen since then.
Hanging out in the main bedroom (as opposed to just exploring) was odd enough, but then there was her reluctance to go back into her pen which is inconsistent with her normal behavior. Especially since it meant she didn't use her litter box. She has been running and sprinting and theres no sign of any injury.
Her pen is 8'x8' and both it and her litter box are clean. The main bedroom is about the same temperature but is darker, fwiw.
Any idea what might be going on with her or should I just take her to the vet?
by TouchConnors