Hi all, please help!

Oof this is gonna be a long one :joy:

So, I'm a bit concerned about my rabbit Bertie. I know how much you all care about rabbits and I'd love to hear your thoughts.

A few months ago, February I think, we started a lot of construction at my house. Builders coming to our house 8am-3pm five days a week. The extension we are getting is pretty big and we have had our old garage knocked down and replaced with a new room with big windows looking out onto the garden.

Our garage used to be attached to our house and the work that was going on is very close to the rabbit houses. My main concern initially was how our new rabbits, Nelson and Jesse, at the time would respond.

The first day was rough, they managed to knock down the whole garage and I was at school at the time, so I can't even imagine the amount of noise!

All the rabbits were a bit anxious, which was to be expected. But surprisingly, the one who suffered the most was my poor boy Bertie.

Bertie is by far the most trusting and friendliest rabbit I've ever had and it was a shock seeing him like this. He would jump at the tiniest noise and was on high alert with his ears pricked forward at all times. However the most noticeable difference was that a lot of his fur was coming out from the stress. His cage mate Bumble wasn't fazed at all and didn't care in the least.

Fast forward to a week later and things seemed to have calmed down. All the rabbits were pretty much 'used' to the hustle and bustle and knew the routine well by now. Bertie's fur wasn't coming out anymore and he seemed less jumpy.

Now here is our current situation. I think the construction has had an effect on him because he is a lot more flighty than he ever used to be, he is always ready to run into the box in the corner and is shockingly afraid to even go outside.

Bumble is eager to come outside to free roam but Bertie sits at the doorway and runs into his box whenever he sees me. This worries me a lot as it is the polar opposite of what he is usually like. To give you an idea of his normal behaviour, we have given him the nickname 'dog'.

If I do manage to get him outside and into the pen he will spend the whole time chewing and rattling the metal bars and digging the ground. Clearly distressed. He'll even pull on my shoelaces and scratch at my shoes to get out and when I do let him out he runs straight back to the door.

He's fine in his house most of the time though, eating and pooping well. Even coming up for cuddles and spending time grooming his cage mate.

It just concerns me that he will not go outside, especially since he needs the excercise and is such a large breed (continental giant). I've even spotted him recently (attempting) to do a binky in his cage.

I want to help him and I don't know what to do, the garden is like a bomb site and it's risky to let them free roam as there are bits of nails, glass etc everywhere. The dog is using the front garden to pee and poop and I just want to be able to help him the best I can.

I will update you all as frequently as I can on any changes we make, please comment any advice as I really need it.

If it would help, I would even consider bringing him indoors, but we have a very big dog (Weimaraner) and I don't know where we would put them.

I would appreciate any help, thankyou~