GREETINGS TO ALL

[BACI]

Hello,I am new to the site due the the recent addition to my family: Delilah. I already had a cat and dog which seem to have accepted Delilah for the most part. Thank you for the warm welcome and bounty of infomation on the site. I hope I am able to help others as you have helped me. I did a lot of research before purchasing my rabbit and have been quite pleased and pleasantly surprised by the experience. I would like to remind other members to remember that each animal is different and should be treated as such. I followed the advice of everyone not to pick up my rabbit and it has taken forever to bond. I finally read a thread from someone who suggested picking them up mini-lops often and her personality seems totally different now. So, just remember to treat them as individuals just like us.

 

[naturestee]

:welcome

That's a good thing to remember! We often get used to giving out the "don't pick up often" advice because there are so many new bunny parents that get frustrated with their rabbits who don't enjoy it. None of mine enjoy being picked up, they just tolerate it (some of them anyway), so I forget that some rabbits actually do enjoy being picked up for a good snuggle.

 

[BACI]

I hope you don't mind me asking if people don't pick them up and pet them, how do you bond with them? I knew this was a trait before I got her but she was so skittish prior to me holding her and petting her. Is this normal?baci

 

[tailof2rabbits]

There are far better people here to give advice but if you're not doing anything better, you can lie down on the floor while the bunny's running around, with treats on your belly and wait for her to come to you. Say her name while she's enjoying her treats so she'll start responding to it. You can snuggle on the floor. It's less intimidating for her. She'll probably think you're an overgrown rabbit.:bunnysuit



Lisa

 

[Pipp]

Hi Baci, welcome to the forum!! :hello:welcome

Great advice re: bunnies asindividuals, I preach it myself all the time!!

I think that advice about picking up the rabbit is misconstrued. I don't think they mean you shouldn't handle and cuddle your bunny, they do well when they'resocialized, but they mean, "do it on the floor!"

Tailof2rabbits is right on!

I think rabbits as a rule simply don't like heights.:shock: I sit on the floor and hold mine and give them their treats, and even the squirmers will soon associate being held with good things. Eventually I've been able to carry mine, although none of them really like being up that high. Somebunnies, mind you,areterrified about being confined, though, and it's not worth the stress, but that'spretty rare in my experience.

Let us know about your bunny, if you haven't already! (I haven't checked the Blogs yet).

sas and pipp :bunnydance:

 

[bunnydude]

Welcome!!!:welcome

Alot of bunnies simply hate being picked up. My bunnies, Devon and Amber, can't stand it. I bond with them by laying on the floor or just sitting next to them. It works just fine for me. Now they will actually come sit or lay next to me on their own, so I am confident that we have developed a strong bond.

Matt

 

[BACI]

/images/emoticons/big_grin.gifTHANK YOU!! I appreciate all the great advice. Rabbits being afraid of heights makes sense as well. You read all the stuff about not forcing yourself on a smaller defenseless animal, but there are times you have to pick them up and I would rather it be a less traumatic experience for her.I was frustrated holding treats and waiting for her to come to me. I have to pick her up to get her out of her cage due to the setup we have. So, It is rather important she trusts me.Baci

 

[BACI]

Sorry that was so big, I am new to thisbaci

 

[Nadezhda]

I feel lucky that my bunny didn't mind being picked up! She loved it, and would always be looking around when I'd pick her up, and be moving from facing the left side to the right side of my body to look at things around her.

If you do need to pick up bunny, I would suggest you lean close to the cage so that bunny only has a short distance to go between her feet lifting off the floor and her butt being secure against your body.

 

[BACI]

Thank you. I think something may have happened to her before we got her because she scratches or kicks her legs if you try and support her hind quarters when picking her up. I read the HRS articles about proper tecniques so I would not hurt her. I wanted her to feel secure but she seems the least upset if I just put a hand under her chest and belly as I pick her up. Unfortunately since we took her to the vet this weekend, where she was wrapped in a towel, and had her nails cut, she is a spaz if I try to pick her up. I have started just wrapping her in a towel as soon as I pick her up so I won't drop her, with the scratching she does, which seems to calm her down. I place her and the loose towel on my lap for a few minutes to pet and reassure her before we play on the floor.baci

 

[naturestee]

I find that treats help train my bunnies to be picked up- or at least not to hate me for so long afterwards. I give a small treat while holding them, if they'll take it (some are too angry or scared to eat while being held), or I give them a treat as soon as I put them down.

I've also found that sitting or lying on the floor has done a lot to help my rabbits bond with me. It took me two weeks to be able to touch Fey at all- she had been neglected and was totally unsocialized. But if I sat down quietly and read a book, she and her sister Sprite would come check me out, nibble my book, and try to figure out what the heck I was and why I wasn't hurting them. Eventually they learned that I wasn't going to hurt them or scare them, and they allowed me to start touching them a little. Same thing with Loki, who wasn't scared of people but didn't see what good I could do for him beyond food. Once he learned that I wasn't interested in picking him up (not often, at least) and that he was free to be near me or not as he chose, he got very interested in being petted.

My rabbits (especially Mocha and Sprite) also like to climb on me like a jungle gym- it's lots of fun!

 

[BACI]

Thank you for the advice.Baci

 

[maherwoman]

You're totally right...my bunny (a half-lop) was picked up as soon as they were old enough to be safely handled, and she actually requires that time with me everyday. In fact, she won't get back down unless she's done cuddling and nuzzling in my neck. It's so cute! She loves being loved...

 

[JimD]

Hi BACI. Welcome to the forum.

I have 8 buns ....none of which "likes" to be picked up. They all crave attention and will interact "at their level". Brindle is the only one that doesn't struggle when I have to pick her up, but you can sense that she's very uncomfortable off the ground.

~Jim