Bunny Panic Attacks

My bunny is about 5 months old and is an unfixed female. I don't know what to do about her panic attacks. She will seem fine and happy and then all of a sudden flip out and start frantically running around. When I am holding her she will be happy, cuddly, playful... then she seems to get a little nervous and I try to take her back to her cage but she squirms frantically and goes crazy and has been scratching me really badly. I am also worried she will get hurt trying to force herself away from me during a panic attack. She does this alone in her cage too, she just randomly starts running around frantically. I thought there could be something scaring her, but I honestly can't find any pattern. I really love her, but this is becoming more of an issue now that she is full size (she scratches me so much I bleed and it can be really difficult to not drop her when she is panicking) and it makes it hard for me to bond with her outside of the cage. I don't think the issue is me because when she is normal she cuddles into me, licks my hand and shows all the signs of a happy bunny. She also likes my cats and will play with them, so it doesn't seem like they could be triggering the attack. I really need help fixing this issue

This can be a sign of happiness. Running around in circles really fast is commonly referred to as 'bunny 500's'. My Korr will run around the coffee table then go flop on the floor. Rabbits also binky which is when they jump up and sort of look like they are spazzing, but they are happy when they do this.

Most rabbits do not like to be picked up or put down. They will fight and try to get away. It is important that you don't let them get away with this behaviour as they will keep doing it. The rabbit will learn that if they fight and squirm, you will put them down. Holding her securely so that she can't hurt herself when she does struggle she can't get away does help. When she calms down, you can put her down. It may take a while for her to understand that struggling does not get her what she wants. Wearing long sleeves does help prevent scratches. Clipping the nails is also a good idea.

Remember that rabbits are prey animals. Picking them up can mean they will be eaten (in their eyes) and they don't want that. They will fight for their lives. It can take a lot of work for the rabbit to trust you. Rabbits are also quite preceptive of the world around them. They can see and hear a lot more than we can. You might be worried about the cat across the yard but your rabbit can be more concerned about the hawk in the sky that you can't see. Your rabbit may react to something you can't see or would not think is a threat.

I'm not sure why this works for us but if I support my bunnies bums and hold my other hand between their front legs, they are calm. Bunbun used to scratch me and kick and squirm so bad I thought he would really hurt himself. My husband is still too timid to pick him up because he is afraid he will jump out of his arms. It's become a mantra in our home, " support his bum" it works well for us.

I learned last night while the bunny was at the vet, that when I accidentally covered his eyes while trying to pat his head while the doctor looked at him, that he calmed right down. His breathing even became calmer. He's a bit nervous today to be picked up but I covered his eyes just before I did and I could almost feel his calm. He was great after that.

i have buns that i HAVE to carry like a football with their eyes covered..then when i let them down i put them down backwards so they cant jump from my arms..its tough..its taken me quite awhile to learn dif ways of carrying a bunny.they are all dif too...and Tristana my boyfriend wont pick up a few of our buns because of the same reasoning as ur husband..my Hercules baled from his arms one day and scared the heck outta us..he was ok but we cant let that happen again..i HAVE to pick up my buns ..theres no way around it...they need to be picked up..so i practice and i learn ..and when they start squirming like Kate said u gotta snug up on them ..dont let them squirm and bale out of ur arms..squeeze them a little tighter...its for their own good...and urs too cuz ur gonna end up with some serious war wounds from these guys....
Hidden Flower just remember when she gets scared shes not trying to hurt u on purpose ..shes absolutely petrified its just the way they are....she will get used to u ..u have to learn to hold her right too for this to be easier on both of you..good luck and if u need more info on this let us know im sure we can come up with pics or video to help you..

tristaw. wrote:

I'm not sure why this works for us but if I support my bunnies bums and hold my other hand between their front legs,

Click to expand...

Tristana can u explain this to me a little bit more..im all ears when it comes to properly holding a bunny..like i said i have 10 bunnies they all need holding dif ..a few of them im still having probs with and im open to any and all suggestions..
FYI ..the one bunny that is the hardest for me to pick up is a 14lb Flemish Giant..shes all muscle too..i swear if i dont grab her right the first time she will knock the air outta me with her hoppers.

Hi Lisa, I've been trying to figure out a way to explain but I'll try

When I go to pick him up, I put my right hand under his belly palm up with my index finger between his front legs and and my thumb is under his right leg and my ring finger is under his left. at the same time my left hand scoops his bum so that his big floppy feet are almost by his head ( not quite,it's a bit of an exaggeration).

I hope that helped. I have no idea how one would do that with a Flemish Giant though lol. My bun is a 5lb holland lop and the other is itty bitty at the moment

I don't know if this will post properly or not...
So here goes...

http://www.ontariorabbits.org/pdfs/handlingmar07v2_72.pdf

thank u Tristana..i think i do this same thing with some of my buns..but my giants nope no way
and Danielle good link thanks for posting