Bun hates head rubs

[katiecrna]

My bun doesn't like to be touched. No head rubs, nothing. I have to give her a treat and she will let me touch her but as soon as she's done or grabs it she's out. She either runs away, or turns her back. She acts like she is appalled at my behavior, how dare you try to touch me you horrible human.
Is she just scared or is this how she is? She hasn't gotten spayed yet so maybe this will help? Anyone have similar experiences?

 

[katiecrna]

When I'm in her pen with her she tolerates it. But she looks like she can't wait for it to be over lol

 

[BlackMiniRex]

Spaying could help, I don't think that's just 'how she is'
I like to play on my kindle while I'm in Andy's room, I dont touch Andy or anything, then he gets annoyed and shoves the kindle out of my hand and demands attention lol. You could try that, even if she is sniffing you, just let her climb all over you without you trying to pet her.
Hope this helps

 

[Aki]

Some rabbits don't really like being touched. She might not like humans much. She might also just be very skittish - she might mellow a bit growing up, spaying might help... When did you get her? Considering you say she's not spayed, I'm gonna suppose she's a teenager. Teenage rabbits are like teenage humans: as a whole, they kinda suck - a lot of them can become dirty, temperamental, withdrawn... My suggestion is for now, don't force her. Gently try sometimes, but don't insist (she might bite if your not careful). When she's around 8 month old, spay her. Allow her about two or three months to recover from the operation and see what her adult temperament is like. If she's still really skittish, I would consider getting her a human friendly laidback bunny (so, preferably a neutered adult male, to know what you're getting) as a friend to help her relax. If you don't want a second rabbit, sometimes patience does the trick. I have to warn you, though: my Aki was almost a 'wild bunny' (born in a real burrow outside and from a mother who was probably never touched by a human) when I got her. Having a bunny friend helped immensely to relax her. Still, it took THREE YEARS for her to let me pet her without becoming tense or to stay in a relaxed position when I am standing in the room. She's 7 and a half now, and she trusts me completely but it took a lot of time to come to this point. I'm still a bit awed everytime she lets me pet her like it's nothing (and she still can't stand strangers - she'll hide the second she hears an unknown voice in the house, men being worse than women for her).

 

[__DD__]

I've just managed to coax my bunny to come to me and sniff my hands, he has also taken charge of my sofa, so jumps on to it ( on to me) and marks his space around me, whilst pretending not to notice me, however the moment I don't pay attention to him, he shoves his face in my hand. I wouldn't say my bunny likes head scratches, he tolerates stroking, but generally just likes me to pay attention to him in different ways. He also just likes lying near me, especially when it's just me and him. I think that's the best time for him. But he's not really a shy Bun. He bounces around when anyone is here really.

Perhaps spending time with her, but not paying much attention ( nor eye contact); let her come to you. Sniff you, be curious of you. Do this every day. It helps so much when it's familiar and routinely .

 

[katiecrna]

She is 5 months, I've had her for only two and a half months. She is friendly otherwise, she comes up to me, hops on my lap, jumps on the couch to see me when I'm on it. Follows me around sometimes. As soon as I put my hand to touch her she backs away and looks at me like whoa whoa whoa what are you doing?? She's so cute she makes me laugh. I swear she's a prissy little princess who flirts and is a tease lol.

 

[JBun]

Honestly, some rabbits just don't like head rubs. I have one that hasn't since he was a baby(he's 4 now). If he's laying down and in just the right mood, I can manage to sneak in a little head rub, but most of the time he just hops away. So that's just his personality.

I only have one that likes head rubs any time. The rest mostly only like them when they are ready to settle down for their naps.

 

[Yurusumaji]

Spaying could help, I don't think that's just 'how she is'
I like to play on my kindle while I'm in Andy's room, I dont touch Andy or anything, then he gets annoyed and shoves the kindle out of my hand and demands attention lol. You could try that, even if she is sniffing you, just let her climb all over you without you trying to pet her.
Hope this helps

This is what I do with my boy, too. I browse my phone or tablet and pretend to ignore him. Then he gets right up in my face like, "Hey! How dare you ignore me?!" His favorite spot is on human butts. We lay belly-down and he likes to jump onto our butts and survey his domain.

While mine tolerates petting, if you try to pick him up he will fight you tooth-and-nail to get away. All bunns have a different tolerance level, but you might find they warm up to you if given time. My guy used to hate being touched at all, so he's come a long way.

 

[RavenousDragon]

Like everyone else said, it could just be that she doesn't want to be petted because she's a strong independent bunny and she don't need no human pets!

One thing to try (this is all about timing, so you have to be very precise) is to give her a treat at the same time you are petting her head and then stop petting her and take the treat away (if it is big enough she hasn't eaten it all). Essentially, every time you are petting her she needs to have a treat in her mouth. Once there is no treat, there should be no petting. That way it is very clear to her that pets are a good thing (pets= treats in her mind). This may make her at least comfortable with it (she may never love it- I had one get to be 11 years old before he finally decided he LIKED being petted, he was way too active before then).