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The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

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Forum DIET & CARE Advice or Tricks for Picking Up/Handling Your Bunny

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    • Roxygirl
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        Hi Guys,

        It’s been awhile since I’ve been on here…busy busy over the summer!

        Two weeks ago we adopted a new bunny wife for our resident housebun Heff named August (I will post a picture soon, she needs a new name and I need help!  Being named August because that’s the month that your family dumped you off at the Humane Society just won’t do.) and she does NOT like to be picked up!

        I realize that part of this is because we are still new to her and probably because every time she has been picked up in the past it was to go to the strange smelly shelter with all kinds of new creatures, to be stuffed into a carrier to go to a new home with a bunny who’s not quite sure he likes this new addition yet, being stuffed in a carrier again to go to the vet for a wellness exam, etc., etc.  The problem is that when I need to pick her up or “catch her” to put her back into her NIC cage after out time, she runs and typically under or behind the furniture.  I’ve tried offering her a bit of a treat, but like Heff, she is much too smart to fall for that trick and instead will streeeeeeeeeeeetch out her neck and body while standing on her tiptoes to snatch it away and run!  She also isn’t too sure about pets yet, sometimes she tolerates them when she is in the XPen (she and Heff are switching back and forth every day as we try to bond them), but it seems like she’s more afraid than actually liking the attention.  Then when I do manage to snatch her up (which I hate doing but is sometimes a must when she has to go back to her cage and I’m late for work), she grunts and wiggles and struggles REALLY hard, no matter how firmly and supportively I hold her.  I’ve also tried to “herd” her back to her cage,  but she gets scared, peels out on the linoleum, and darts under or behind furniture.

        I realize that once she has been with us longer and becomes comfortable with us that this issue will probably resolve on it’s own, but in the meantime, I need to find a way to handle her without her being scared of me for grooming and out of necessity.

        Any advice and tips for us?  I’m getting tired of bunny scratches!


      • b2dg3r
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           Block off access to hiding places.

          You can also pick her up and pet her for short periods and then return her to play so being picked up does not always mean putting her away.

          Good luck with the new addition!!!


        • LBJ10
          Moderator
          16870 posts Send Private Message

            Can she get into the cage on her own? I always wait until “bedtime” to give the rabbits their pellets. Believe me, they (normally) come running and get into the cage all on their own when they hear the bag.


          • MayaConsuelo
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              I agree with LBJ, I didn’t even try to intentionally train my rabbit this way, but when I adopted him he went from a pellet diet to fresh food diet… but will still come running when he hears the pellet bag being shaken!
              So if I need to get him in his condo, I shake the bag and he runs in, I give him a teaspoon of pellets while I lock him in, and it’s done. It might take a week or so to train your rabbit this way, but it can be done! Or shake the raisin bag but don’t give him one until he’s inside his cage. It’s easier if it’s a multi-level cage, so you can trick them inside to an upper level and then lock them inside quickly before they can run back down.


            • MayaConsuelo
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                Oh also, I’d advise you to keep picking up the bunny against his will (for a short time each day.) I went months without picking up my bunny (who is super cuddly and kissy, but doesn’t like being picked up) – then when I needed to pick him up again it was super difficult. Better to pick him up for a bit each day, pet his forehead and cheeks while doing it, then put him down and give him a treat, it’ll make it much easier to handle him in the future when it’s necessary.


              • Elrohwen
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                  I like to shoo the bunnies into a carrier (usually one at a time) and then pick them up from the top opening door. Once they’re in the carrier there’s nowhere to run, so they usually sit quietly while I pick them up.

                  Actually, I don’t even bother picking Hannah up – I just let her walk out of the carrier onto the kitchen counter and then do what I need to do while holding her down on the counter.


                • bunnnnnnie!
                  Participant
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                    Zeus has never learned to be comfortable being picked up.  I’ve learned to “herd” him wherever I need him to go.  He flails when I pick him up, and since he’s a big boy, it’s difficult to keep him still. .  The only way you can really pick him up and carry him is by doing a bunny burrito, and I don’t even have that much success with that.  I’m too slow, he wiggles out before I tuck him in snug.  Stubborn bunny!  


                  • Roxygirl
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                      Thanks you guys! I actually tried the “shake the pellet bag” trick this morning. She did come back to the room, but she had also been out for about an hour and a half and might have been on her way back anyway but, hey I’ll take it! We’re also working on scratches and pets while she is in her condo. She kind of hunkers down and tolerates it (ie, she doesn’t move away from me, but maybe she’s just too scared…) but I’m not sure how much she actually enjoys it just yet. Last night I layed on the floor while she was exploring the living room and got a nose bump on the foot and a thorough sniffing! Then she flopped about 4 feet away.


                    • Kokaneeandkahlua
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                        1) Don’t grab bunny and go for a long grooming session. You make you and grooming scary. Work on grooming in very small intervals often instead and end with a treat. If your doing nails, do one paw and let bunny run off and stomp and calm down. Then feed dinner. Unpleasant things that you want them to think of as pleasant should be short (to lessen the length of time they are unhappy/scared/uncomfortable) and followed by treats.
                        2) Go slow. Don’t make cuddle sessions long. Pet once, and walk away. Hold for a second, put down and walk away. Follow with dinner, breakfast a treat.
                        3) Handle OFTEN. You should try to pet/hold more than once a day, for only a few seconds and follow with pleasantries-food and you leaving them alone

                        I know this works-Rupert was the jumpiest bunny ever, could not stand being held (white eyed, rigid body, digging in and frantic to escape); now he loves being pet, nudges me for pets (or treats) is maybe a 1 on a 1-10 nervous scale and is just fine being held, groomed, tranced, nail clipped etc. So patience and work often, work short, follow with food


                      • TriBun
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                          I followed the same routine Kokaneeandkahlua just said and it worked wonders.


                        • Roxygirl
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                            Thanks so much for all of your advice! I guess I will just have to wear a towel over my front while I work with her on being picked up…she gets he little claws in anywhere she can when she is scared. Are there any tricks to actually picking her up or do I just have to snatch her while she is trying to run away and scared? I hate doing that, but right now it seems to be the only way I can pick her up at all. Maybe I will try herding her into a box and picking her up from there so she can’t get to far away…


                          • Roxygirl
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                              Whoops, double posted.
                               

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                          Forum DIET & CARE Advice or Tricks for Picking Up/Handling Your Bunny