Picking my bun up

[Nala]

I have a hutch bunny, Nala. She is a 4 month old lion head cross.. I’ve had her since 28th June & have been building a bond with her from day 1. I go out to her every morning give her her breakfast and some strokes & every evening I sit out with her stroking her feeding her etc. I haven’t quite mastered picking her up when she’s inside her cage though & lately it’s becoming a problem. When it’s nice weather I usually put her in her outdoor run & some evenings I bring her indoors so she is able to really stretch her legs, relax with me, play with her, brush her, check her over etc.. I use to do this by putting her travel carrier in her hutch, she use to just go in straight away.. then it got to a point where I had to bribe her in with her favourite coriander & the last week she won’t go in at all. This is a big problem as I haven’t been able to brush her she’s been in her hutch for 4 days straight so she’s not beeen able to stretch out.. I sat in the garden with her for an hour trying to coax her in & gave up in the end as I didn’t want to scare her too much. This evening my partner came out he put his hand in her hutch and she went crazy, hissing growling scratching at him! I was a little shocked! I put my hand in to stroke her after as she was visibly shook up & she let me stroke her, I tickled behind her ears which is her favourite & she settled down.. she has always taken a dislike to my partner though even though he has tried with her.. I feel terribly guilty her being in her hutch when she can come out for hours & have the run of the house like she’s done since day 1 of me bringing her home.. what can I do? I feel bad trying to pick her up & scaring her but I don’t like Leaving her in her hutch

[Deleted User]

Why couldn’t you house her inside?

[Nala]

We are re decorating all the house at the moment, only bought it 8 months ago so it’s under going some work therefore we don’t have the room inside for an indoor hutch. I currently share my bedroom with my Tortoise. But nala comes into the house & has the run of the kitchen & hallway most evenings for at least 4 hours & at weekends she’s in all day it’s only been this last week that she won’t cooperate and get into her travel carrier nor will she let me pick her up, she usually just kicks out if I try but my partner tried this evening & she really wasn’t happy never heard her growl like that before it was awful

[Wick & Fable]

If it’s too difficult to rabbit-proof your entire dwelling, I do suggest, since you care so much about Nala and her quality of life, you re-arrange some furniture so you can either create a rabbit-proof area, or set-up a large pen that can be a) temporary for when you want her inside then folded away when she’s back in the hutch or b) permanent so it’s easier to make the decision to transfer her indoors. As you realize, it’s best for her to have as much out-of-hutch time as possible, so really go the lengths to make a good space for her.

Could you perhaps use some boxes to create steps down from the hutch? The steps would lead down to an area you have penned off (so she can’t run away), then you can scoop her up in that enclosed space to bring inside.

A big part of having her inside is to try and familiarize her with the security which can come from being lifted off the ground. Naturally, rabbits do not like it, since it’s like getting swooped up by a bird; however, some rabbits can learn to tolerate it, if necessary. Familiarization can happen in baby steps, so first just getting her used to you putting your hands underneath her belly. Then lifting her a centimeter up, then putting her back down. Depending on how she handles it, you can space out sessions per day, only make sessions last 2 minutes, etc.. You want to gauge her body language, as to not hurt your bond with her.

In regards to your partner, Nala saw him as a foreign attacker in her territory. Rabbits cannot see directly in front of them either, so depending on his approach, it was probably quite terrifying since she does not know him as well. I highly suggest you being with your partner, indoors, while Nala is indoors. Rather than you feeding Nala, have your partner feed Nala treats and food. Additionally, teach your partner some of the body language you’ve learned about Nala. You being by your partner while in Nala’s presence may make her feel more secure with him around. If she’s alone with him, there is no safety there, as of yet. Also, don’t let your partner jump to interactions at the level you have with Nala. He’ll need to start with just hand sniffing, light strokes in small intervals, and limited contact-initiated-by-him. Generally, let her initiate the contact so she feels more secure.

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[Nala]

That is true it really is difficult to Bunny proof the entire house. We use to have her in the living room with us but she kept going behind the arm chair, there is quite a huge gap between the chair and fire place & the chair can not be moved to such an angle that she won’t be able to get behind there where our telephone line is & wifi wires! So I made the kitchen her space since I thought she can’t possibly cause havoc in there. I was wrong lol she chewed a pipe on the washing machine. Luckily she didn’t chew much of it, it was not electrical nor did she digest anything! I have covered every gap in the kitchen now & boarded off the stairs. I do think making a pen outside her hutch is a good idea, no so good of we have bad weather, I live in the south of England uk so weathers unpredictable! But I could manage to scoop her up from a pen. She does have an out door run & she loves it in there once she’s in it & I am able to interact with her so much better! As far as picking her up goes I am able to do this indoors only, it’s the only place she will allow me to handle her but it’s getting her indoors that is the problem.. I think the pen attatched to her cage is a good idea though & something I am definitely going to look into doing. I have built a good bond with her so far. I especially love the mornings she gets so excited to see me & wants me to pet her! I have explained to my partner you have to go in slow towards her & he does try, she is just not interested, rarely does she take the treat he is offering her she just hops off lol. I do care about her amensly, she’s become my number 1 priority I always look forward to going home and seeing her! Your reply was very informative thank you very much! such a shame our bunnies don’t understand us & know we are just doing things for them! Lol.. i just hope I can Earn her trust more!

[Deleted User]

Posted By Nala on 8/17/2017 3:25 PM

We are re decorating all the house at the moment, only bought it 8 months ago so it’s under going some work therefore we don’t have the room inside for an indoor hutch. I currently share my bedroom with my Tortoise. But nala comes into the house & has the run of the kitchen & hallway most evenings for at least 4 hours & at weekends she’s in all day it’s only been this last week that she won’t cooperate and get into her travel carrier nor will she let me pick her up, she usually just kicks out if I try but my partner tried this evening & she really wasn’t happy never heard her growl like that before it was awful

Congrats on the new house! That’s exciting!!  I think it would be good if you could even find something temporary to keep her inside, even if you can only section off a portion of a room with an xpen. Bunny proofing everything can be quite a task…You think you have thought of everything but then your adventurous little fluff points out the flaws in your proofing   Bunny grunts are something that I don’t think I will ever get used to. I never heard Ophelia grunt until I brought Quincy home….I have been attacked several times but luckily we are making progress and I haven’t had any aggression from her in over a week! I can even touch the tummy!!

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