Bunnies on Walks (leashes)

[FrodoBilboBunny]

I want to get my bunnies a leash (the harness kind not collar) and take them on walks but Icam afraid of them picking up fleas or eating something they shouldn’t does anyone have an experience with this?

[Bam]

It’s often not a very good idea to walk a bunny on a leash, f ex if you go somewhere where there are loose dogs. Rabbits scare easily even when there are no dogs or other predators and can hurt themselves on the harness, sometimes severely.
That said, many people do take their bunnies out on a leash, I personally wouldn’t though.

[HereComesTheBun]

Bam makes some very good points. Rabbits have a much more acute sense of hearing than we do, so it’s true that even if there aren’t any predators around, they may still freak out at an unfamiliar noise. My rabbit once thumped and hid in his hidey home for no apparent reason, so I assume he heard something that I couldn’t. If you do use a harness, I would recommend getting your rabbits used to walking around your house before venturing outside and then sticking to a small, safe area. I don’t know very much about walking rabbits, but I think I remember reading that you’re supposed to let the rabbits guide you rather than the other way around.

[Coney Kuneho]

I agree. Coney used to walk with harness but I quit after that because he ended up chewing the harness instead when we get home and he outgrew them. He hates the harness and is smart enough to destroy it when we get home esp. if I leave it on the floor or a place where he could reach it. He even chews on it when I put it on and he ends up not walking at all.

[Eepster]

Porky will not let us put a harness on him. The rabbit I had as a teen though was perfectly happy to walk on a leash though.

It was a different time. There was a lot less wildlife around, so less worry about predators and contagions. All rabbits lived outside anyway, since it was believed that living indoors caused respiratory illness in rabbits (I suspect it was all the indoor smoking that was the norm back then and generally lower indoor air quality.) So taking him for walks on a leash was his only chance for a good hop.

I had to get him a metal chain leash after he bit through multiple cat leashes. It was funny, I’d have this cute little dutch bunny on this serious dog chain, and people would ask if they could pet him and I’d have to say “sorry he bites.” He did bite, it was his nervous habit.

[LittlePuffyTail]

I think it’s not worth the risk. If a bunny spooks and takes off, he/she can get fatal injuries (broken back).

[Author]

Messages