My bunnies dont seem to love me =(

Both Dumbo and Latte dont seem to like us very much... I mean me and my gf love reading and replying on this forum but we cant but feel jealous whenever we come across comments like "o our bunnies come and lick us all the time...or they like to cuddle with us whenever we sit down..."

I understand rabbits like people are different in terms of personalities...we let both of them out the second we wake up and leave them out for the rest of the day till we go to bed...so they get a good 16-18 hours a day outside of their cage.. They are both indoor rabbits living in an apartment on the 20th floor so getting out of the apartments pretty much impossible unless we are taking them to the vet.

Anyways for most of the day they have a pretty cool hideout under the dining table where i bought a cat pipe that they like to run and hide in...they also like to camp out on top of the dining chairs or in the cardboard box( it acts as litter box and "digging" area because it contain shredded paper and bedding in it) i have around the house in a corner. But i mean for most of the day they do their own thing and every now and then they would jump up onto the couch to investigate what we are doing while we watch TV..but other than that they pretty much keep to themselves..of course the second i grab one of their treat bags or their rabbit pellets they come running towards you...begging for some...other than that ive seriously never had these incidents where i've had them come up to me and lick me... well dumbo has done it once or twice where shes run up to your foot and licks it.. than runs away but i doubt that even relates to the whole being licked by your rabbit thing...

They are 9 months old they're both spayed... i mean do they not like us? or is just that they are still young... =(

o and one more thing to add they NEVER let us pick them up unless u do it fast and do the whole flipping the bunny on her back where they become like motionless...but other than that if you even seem like you are going to pick her up she runs for her life..

I have a couple of bunnies, Buttons is my spayed female bun and she's a licker.. if I put my hand or face to her nose, she'll easily lick my fingers or my nose she has been this way since I got her as a baby. she's also rather laid back, if she's lying somewhere and I go up to her to pat her, she will not move/run away and just lie there enjoying pats & nose rubs

now Yohji, my neutered male, is a different thing.. he has not given anyone a single lick since he's been here.. and he runs away when anyone approaches him, unless he is munching away in his litter box, that's the only time he stays still for pats

they both don't like to be carried.. i have yet to flip & trance them and they've been with me for a year already! they are not snuggly either, no way will they sit on my lap or sleep with me

anyway, my point is that i don't think your bunnies dislike you i think its just the individual bunny's character, whether or not he/she is a licker or snuggler or otherwise. Buttons and Yohji have both been raised the exact same way, given the same amount of attention and love, but yet they both treat humans differently..

what you can do is to keep trying.. get down on their level, try to give them as many nose rubs as possible etc.. i'm doing that with Yohji, hopefully he'll get better over time. treats help a lot.. when he was younger, he would never ever dare to put a paw on me or hop over me whenever i'm on the ground with him. so i'd sit cross legged on the ground and hold a treat high up and close to my chest.. if he wants it badly enough, he has no choice but to step on my legs to get it.. it took a while but now he's ok with climbing over me to get to that raisin lol!!

You aren't alone!! I always read the posts where people say that their bunnies love to sleep on their lap, or jump up and lick their face etc...

But those aren't the only ways to show affection! Your bunnies have already shown that they like you by being themselves around you, and running around playing etc. Didn't you mention in your previous posts that you've just recently got them back after being away fora few months? Maybe they're still just adjusting to all the space and the return to their environment, and you guys again?

But what you can do, is to try and get more involved with their playtime. Our buns don't come and visit me very often, so once or twice a day, I lie down on my front on the floor, in front of their cage. Mouse and Chalk were a bit wary at first, but eventually they started to jump on my back, sit on me, etc. Now, they will jump on and off my back, and *sometimes* lick my head/shoulders/nose as they see fit.

With Barney and SnowyI started lying half in/out their cage, with my head really low to the ground. I rub Barney's head while he's lying down, and at first he didn't seem too impressed, but I persisted and now if I stop, he nudges his head under my hand for me to carry on! Snowy used to run away when I tried to pet her, but eventually she learnt to like it, and now she competes with Barney at the same time for pets. After carrying on like this for a little while, they eventually started to come over and see me too. One day Snowy hopped closer while I was lying in the cage, and licked my forehead! I couldn't believe it! Then Barney did the same. And it's carried on from there.

I don't think they'll ever be the kind of bunnies to jump on my lap and cuddle for ages- Barney will if I put him there, but Snowy, Mouse and Chalk will just jump straight down. But you can make up for it in other ways!

So sorry for such a long post, but I strongly advise lying down and letting them start to trust you more. It might take a while at first, but I'd be very surprised if you didn't get somewhere with it in the end. Plus, you see a whole lot more bunny cuteness when you're on the same level as them!

Jen xx

When you have more than one rabbit, they are more likely to bond with each other than with their humans. The hierarchy of social animals can be quite complex and we may not always be able to figure out how our pets determine who is the alpha and who is the pleb.

Pam

haha thanks for the replies i guess you're right in a sense that not all bunnies are the same...i just wish! =( but we still love them every now and then we do lie down on the floor and rabbits being a curious animal they tend to come an investigate... it would be nice to have them actually come and bond with you but i guess i should have gotten a more sophisticated animal if i wanted that =P i always wanted a cat but my girlfriends allergic..and a dogs just too much of a hassle for college students =(... anyways we've decided to let them out at night as well instead of dealing with them rattling the cage at night in protest..we'll see how things go =) if they behave while we are asleep than i guess ill let them out at night from now on =)

Get down on the floor with them. Let them climb into your laps or on top of you. Hold something "tempting", as you already do.

Some homo sapiens are "huggers."

... Relate this to a lagomorph's personality.

Plus they'll read your body language.

My suggestion is to gradually work w/your bonded pair on their level and respect that their background and unique traits (and whether they were handled frequently as infants, youngsters?) may ever make them kissers or cuddlers. It took our PapaYEARS before he'd come out of his protective shell;with his agouti fur, he and his like-colored agoutihouse dwellersare LotsLess LoveyDoveycompared to othergoofs or breeds in our home. They'llshow gratitude in subtle& different ways. From our experience, some rescues and family members (adopted from shelters) do convert to affectionate ways... on their own time.

Perhaps pick a day and not give them a *great deal *of free roaming space? Just a suggestion. Stay in one room and do a project (paper sorting?) on the floor. You and your significantsweetie. WRT picking up, keep practicing !! and respect their concern on "airlifts".

Do you praise Dumbo when she gives the rare lick? Do so!Stop what you're doing and put on your best Grandpa-ish holding his newborn ACTOR tryout!! Lavish on the praises. Reward her w/verbalcompliments. "are you e-ver a Good bunny, dumbo,thank you so much for the kisses!!, oh... I love your kisses !! such a good girl ..." ... in a sweet and 5-inch frosting-like vibe. (keep the windows closed in case neighbors are eavesdropping)

Adding to the helpful advice, it may take time, but act like a big sponge-bunny on their level. Plop a craisin or fave treat in the middle of your chest.

Good luck with your girls ~ and hope you'll have moreaffection-exchanging moments as the months go by! Keep us posted,

rabbits are sophisticated.

Simply tune your ears to a different frequency. Understanding what makes them tick and respond is pretty cool. - TF

Richard0600 wrote:

Both Dumbo and Latte dont seem to like us very much... I mean me and my gf love reading and replying on this forum but we cant but feel jealous whenever we come across comments like "o our bunnies come and lick us all the time...or they like to cuddle with us whenever we sit down..."

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Lol, you aren't the only one who feels jealous
I understand rabbits like people are different in terms of personalities...we let both of them out the second we wake up and leave them out for the rest of the day till we go to bed...so they get a good 16-18 hours a day outside of their cage.. They are both indoor rabbits living in an apartment on the 20th floor so getting out of the apartments pretty much impossible unless we are taking them to the vet.
Lucky buns, mine are outside unless I bring them in for like 10 minutes.
Anyways for most of the day they have a pretty cool hideout under the dining table where i bought a cat pipe that they like to run and hide in...they also like to camp out on top of the dining chairs or in the cardboard box( it acts as litter box and "digging" area because it contain shredded paper and bedding in it) i have around the house in a corner. But i mean for most of the day they do their own thing and every now and then they would jump up onto the couch to investigate what we are doing while we watch TV..but other than that they pretty much keep to themselves..of course the second i grab one of their treat bags or their rabbit pellets they come running towards you...begging for some...other than that ive seriously never had these incidents where i've had them come up to me and lick me... well dumbo has done it once or twice where shes run up to your foot and licks it.. than runs away but i doubt that even relates to the whole being licked by your rabbit thing...
Luckier than me lol
They are 9 months old they're both spayed... i mean do they not like us? or is just that they are still young... =(
They seems like the norm in my point of view (mine are kept OUTSIDE though)
o and one more thing to add they NEVER let us pick them up unless u do it fast and do the whole flipping the bunny on her back where they become like motionless...but other than that if you even seem like you are going to pick her up she runs for her life..

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Mine are (were) ALWAYS like that (except Roren, His cage was neck-level so he just hopped onto me and we went inside*sigh*)

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I wrote this back on July 14, 2005 about Tiny and our 'tweebs (2 Netherland Dwarfs). I was writing to someone who felt very much the same way as you feel.

As many people know - we lost Tiny last month - after having him 2 years and 10 months. One of the things I miss the most about him - is how he gave me kisses and would come and climb in my lap when I sat on the floor with him and how he would come up and nudge me for attention and let me know when he wanted pets.

It took him over 2 years to get to that point....and it took me getting down on his level and letting him do what he wanted.

Tiny hated being picked up and he would bite and fuss....but if I would get down on his level....he would come to me.

I can't say enough about how I think they'll become closer to you if you get on the floor - without trying to make them play - but take a book on the floor and read or lay on the floor and watch tv or listen to music. But get on their level so they get your scent and so they will get curious and want to explore you.

Peg

When you have more than one rabbit, they are more likely to bond with each other than with their humans. The hierarchy of social animals can be quite complex and we may not always be able to figure out how our pets determine who is the alpha and who is the pleb.

Pam

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This is exactly what I was thinking as I read your post. Years ago when I got my first bun, he bonded with me pretty well...but he was an only bun. When I got his bondmate, some of his affection diverted from me to her, and she was ONLY interested in him, not me.

After he passed, 4 years later, she decided to bond with me and I got to really know her then. Finally, my current bun is a single and he is bonded very strongly with me, but I'm sure if he had a bondmate, his affections would be diverted.

With your two, they are still young and developing their personalities. It really is wonderful that they have each other.The big thing is that they trust you, the human/bun bond can grow from there. Even if only one seems to be "coming around" toward you, the other will probably follow her lead. It will take time and a lot of floor sitting and waiting, but hang in there, rabbitsalways seem toreward you with love eventually....and that is worth the wait!

I feel the same way. We love these kids so much but they have very little love for us, or so it seems.
Our buns are the same as yours as far as out time goes. We are stay at home moms so they get let out in the morning and stay out all day with the run of the place untl midnight or 1 am when they go back into their cages for bed time. I think that has something to do with it, I think since they have so much space and so much freedom, being confined to one area for pets or love is just too constricting for them. Why sit and be loved when you can run all over the house?
But when they do come over to my desk chair and stand up and want a pet it is THE BEST!!!!!
I get very frustrated too, like why do my babies hate me? But I am learing, mostly from this forum that it is all in their own time.
My girl was more loving when she was a single bun then she is now with TWO boys fawning over her, but I know she is happier with bodnmates then she would have been with just us humans and that is okay with me.
Hang in there, they will come around, even if it is a little bit more then what you have now, they will come around.
Good luck

thanks for the tips and replies everyone glad to know we arent the only ones =)

You just have to bond with them. I know somewhere Pipp posted a really great thread that Flashy wrote about bonding with bunnies. I'll try searching for it, unless you've found it already, but I'll post it here anyways, since I need to read it.

Emily

Ahah, found it: http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=33921&forum_id=48

There's SO much great information in there on forming bonds with your bunnies. Make sure to thank Flashy!

Emily