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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.

BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

Forum BEHAVIOR I don’t understand my bunny’s action…

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    • Tedster
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      33 posts Send Private Message

        Hi guys, so I just bought my bunny, Teddy, at a rabbitry. He is about 7 weeks old. He was very nervous at first entering his new cage. He sat at the corner for 2 hours and now he’s really comfortable with his cage. I left him alone for 2 days to adjust to the new environment. He gets really scared when being picked up and I’m really afraid to pick him up so my boyfriend does this most of the time…but please teach me how to carry him and will he become calm one day when being held or carried? I have him for 5 days now and I realized that we can’t carry him out of the cage, but we have to let him come out on his own, so I bought him a playpen. Sometimes when I walk by, I would let him sniff my hand. In the beginning he would run away or sniff my hand and turn away and I left him alone and he wouldn’t let me pet him, but now he does even though he gets scared from time to time. Recently when I let him sniff me (and this only happens sometimes), I can feel him licking me, or I think he’s licking, but I would feel his teeth, and I would withdraw my hand and that would shock him…I don’t want him to bite me, but he didn’t seem aggressive or anything. Sometimes he would be far away in the cage and still come up to sniff and lick me, but once I feel his teeth, I would pull back to prevent him from biting me. I don’t know what’s he trying to do…is he trying to nibble me or bite me or lick me? And what does this mean? Please help me; he’s really precious to me and I want to treat him right and create a strong bond with him. 


      • litheandgraphic
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        608 posts Send Private Message

          First of all, don’t worry. I know it can be intimidating and disappointing when your bun doesn’t immediately love you and give you all the affection and trust in the world. It’s natural for most rabbits to take a long time to build trust, even months! I have definitely experienced this with my bun, who is also my first bun! But it’s very much worth it. Until you’re bonded, here’s some tips.

          1. As you may know, most rabbits really don’t like being picked up and carried. It scares then to leave the ground, as in the wild this signifies one thing: they’re someone’s lunch! So it is natural for them not to enjoy being picked up. Therefore, you should avoid trying to pick him up and carry him as much as possible. It is easier and much less stressful for you and the bunny to try and lead him using treats or fresh veggies/herbs that he likes (preferably nothing too high in sugar or carbs – cilantro is often a good choice). But you will need to know how to pick him up sometimes, this is true. I recommend going to YouTube and watching videos that can show you how to do this properly. A really good video series in general is the Howcast rabbit videos hosted by Mary Cotter and Amy Sedaris. (I would advise you to ignore the videos that show you how to do a “bunny trance” where you flip the rabbit on its back – this is highly stressful for rabbits!) The main idea is support. You want to make sure you’re always supporting the back legs, as rabbits’ spines are fragile and they can break their backs if they kick too hard without support!

          2. Building trust can be a real process with any animal, but it can be even more of an endeavor when youre dealing with a prey species like rabbits. They’re hardwired to be scared of everything! You have to remember this and alter your psychology to try and see the world through their eyes.

          3. The best thing you can do is to allow your rabbit some time to get used to his new environment. It sounds like he’s already getting comfortable in his pen, which he will now think of as his house. A tip you might want to follow is to avoid cleaning his pen while he’s inside. Doing this sometimes annoys the rabbit, who sees you moving his furniture and stuff around!

          4. Your bunny really is a baby, so it will be a while before you can neuter him. Most rabbits are neuter/spay-ready around 5-6 months of age. When he hits this age, I highly recommend you get him neutered. This will be best for his health and behavior and attitude, and therefore best for you!

          5. For right now, bonding sessions with your baby bun should consist of allowing him to explore a binny-proof area with you and/or your boyfriend sitting quietly with him. You can offer him small healthy treats like alfalfa pellets (you should slowly make the switch between alfalfa and Timothy hay hay when he gets around 1 year old) or herbs. Check out rabbit.org for good diet info. Let him come up to you and explore you – if you reach out to pet him and he accepts, great! If he wants to get away, let him. You don’t want to seem like something that will chase him.

          6. It may be a while before you can start really picking the bunny up. I would wait until you feel he trusts you more before you start doing this. The motto overall is GO SLOW. You can reward him for allowing you to touch him by getting him used to little things – gently lifting his front end and then giving him a treat, then once he’s comfortable with that you can try lifting him off he ground an inch and then giving him a treat, and so on and so forth.

          The big thing to remember is that he won’t trust you right away, but that’s okay! Just give him some time and encouragement and show him you’re a safe and friendly presence, and you’ll bond in no time!

          As far as the teeth/licking thing goes, he probably smells something tasty on your hand and is trying to figure out what it is, or he’s trying to figure out what YOU are. Just licking you though is a sign of extreme trust and bonding – it means he’s grooming you. Not to be a buzz kill, but o think that because he’s new and you feel his teeth, it’s more likely he’s trying to figure out just what your hand is.

          Good luck!


        • Tedster
          Participant
          33 posts Send Private Message

            Thank you so much for replying and for being so detailed. I will try working on how to hold him and building a bond with him. Today when he was outside of his cage, he did nibbled my thigh. It didn’t hurt but when I moved my thigh slowly he stopped nibbling it. Once again, thank you so much, I’ve been dying waiting for an answer.


          • litheandgraphic
            Participant
            608 posts Send Private Message

              Of course! This is what this forum is here for! I’m glad I could help a little bit (even though my post was filled with typos — was writing on a phone!). 

              Yeah, bunnies often use their mouths to test what things are. He’s still so young, he’s probably still approaching everything so curiously and trying to figure it all out. It seems like moving away from him when he does this is working, though, so that’s good.


            • Tedster
              Participant
              33 posts Send Private Message

                Yup. I’m so glad to have found this forum! But once again, thank you so much for answering my questions!


              • litheandgraphic
                Participant
                608 posts Send Private Message

                  Of course!
                  Oh, one more thing that might also be happening — when he bonks you with his nose, it could mean one of two things: if it’s a harder bonk, he’s asking you to move out of the way a bit. If you don’t, this could be followed by a light nip. If it’s a softer bonk, he’s asking you for pets or food. Just in case his mouth is followed by bonks, that may be what’s going on, too.


                • LizziAnn
                  Participant
                  84 posts Send Private Message

                    Hi.
                    7 weeks is very little, I got my Luna when she was 8 weeks and she was very scared. When I first but her in her new room and cage she stamped her foot and looked terrified

                    I bonded with her by sitting on the floor with her for most of the day and letting her come to me. I also let her bite me a few times so that she could tell that I am not edible and that I am friendly. After a while I would say OWWW loudly and she stopped. It never hurt and never broke the skin it really was her exploring and checking if things are safe.

                    Luna is a very timid rabbit, she is better now because she is bonded with my laid back lop Neji. Sometimes that is just their personalities.
                    Make sure you sit with your bunny a lot, offer treats and don’t give up- you will get the bond you are looking for if you continue to be friendly.

                    I understand that most of what I have said is what Funny-Looking-Rabbit has said but this has been my personal experiance and I wanted to share it with you.


                  • Tedster
                    Participant
                    33 posts Send Private Message

                      Okay. I don’t think Teddy has ever bonked me before but I will make sure to look out for that. Also Lizzi, I am super glad that you want to share your experience because every little experiences counts, so thank you very much. To be honest, I am just really afraid to leave my hand there until the point where he will nibble on me and say owww, but I will take that into consideration and try to prevent him from nibbling in the future. Thank you guys!

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                  Forum BEHAVIOR I don’t understand my bunny’s action…