How to acclimatize your bunny to being carried/handled? Any other way to clip nails?

[lavingroony]

My female bun really really hates being carried or having her underside touched, although she's very affectionate and sweet otherwise. This means it's nearly impossible to clip her nails at all. I managed for a while clipping her nails when she lay down to rest, but she's also learned to recognise the sight of the nail clipper and hops away once she sees me with it

Is there any way to get her used to being handled? I've tried the very slow approach, which is to get her used to having my hand below her body, and lift her a little off the ground every day and give her treats when she doesn't struggle (wasn't effective - she still struggled after a few weeks, and I have to put her down immediately because I don't have the strength to control her and she might hurt herself). Would appreciate advice!

 

[OakRidgeRabbits]

Don't go slow or be shy about it.

Pick your rabbit up at least once daily, several times if you can, and just walk around the house with her while talking to her/petting her. Watch TV with her on your lap. Make it a point to spend at least 10-15 minutes with her, hands-on.

If handling is only occasional, she will certainly struggle or will recognize when you're coming for her and hop away. But if you make handling/carrying a daily occurrence, she will get used to it and expect it. Even if she fusses, don't give up. The bunnies aren't in charge, we are. It doesn't really matter if she "likes" being touched in certain places or handled in certain ways. We have to be able to handle them in order to care for them properly, and the rabbit has to be taught how to interact with us. Not many naturally want to be carried around, but if there is no option to get out of it, they learn to at least know what to expect and tolerate what's happening.

 

[zombiesue]

:yeahthat:

When I was a new rabbit owner (like, I don't know, the first year or two that I had him LOL) I was always really worried about hurting him, and rabbits are really fragile, however, they're also pretty hardy at the same time. Having the whole rabbitsarefragilerabbitsarefragilerabbitsarefragile all over the internet I think can make people think that if they start kicking or squirming we need to just give up, like we shouldn't tug on their legs too hard to clip them or hold them down when they need to be.

Taking my rabbit to the vet a few times and seeing how they do it really opened my eyes. So yeah, don't be shy or slow and don't feel squeamish about really getting your hands in there and actually handling her. even if she hates it.

If you're finding it's uncomfortable or you're not sure how to start, get a towel and wrap her up in that. When her legs aren't free to kick, picking her up and holding her is a lot easier and I think it provides some support for nervous buns too

 

[Rainbow_Foxes]

Trance her in your lap upside down and lightly mess with her feet. Get her used to you handling her feet. Or you can put on a jacket, put her in your lap, upside down with her butt towards you. Lay forward on her so she cannot kick and trim the front feet. Then you can stick her upside down under your arm like a football, butt towards you so you can trim one foot. Then switch sides and trim the other foot.
Or you can try towel wrapping the rabbit, leaving only the foot you are working on poking out.

 

[TheMadMarchHare]

My rabbit hates having his nails clipped also! He bit me pretty good the last time. He CAN'T be flipped on his back, because he just doesn't have it. But, having someone else hold him while I clip works really well!

He's not a big fan of being held either, but I try to hold him every day, and he recently has stopped struggling when I pick him up. I usually scruff him with one hand, and put the other under the butt. Or, pick him up "like a football" the vet calls it, with my hands around his chest and shoulders, and forearms along his body to block him from kicking his back legs.

 

[lavingroony]

The problem is I can't control her at all once she starts struggling, so I have to immediately put her down (or risk dropping her) and she always gets her way I'm small sized and she's a rather big bunny, she's stronger than I am! It's completely impossible for me to trance her at the moment as I can't even pick her up. I'll try the towel method though, it sounds promising. Thanks for all the replies!

 

[namimommy]

Mine is also like that. Couldnt pick her up because she'll crazily struggle and will jump eventho its very high. She'll ended up molting like crazily when i try to pick her up. I also dont know what to do.. I already tried in about 3 months but its not working. She'll struggle and will jumped and then will be moody all day, whenever she saw me, she'll runaway and it takes like 2 days to be okay.

 

[OakRidgeRabbits]

The problem is I can't control her at all once she starts struggling, so I have to immediately put her down (or risk dropping her) and she always gets her way I'm small sized and she's a rather big bunny, she's stronger than I am! It's completely impossible for me to trance her at the moment as I can't even pick her up. I'll try the towel method though, it sounds promising. Thanks for all the replies!

Sometimes you have to be very forceful. It may feel mean or harsh because we are so used to hearing about how fragile rabbits are. However, they are hardly animals and we have to handle them confidently to prevent injury.

If a rabbit is really struggling, I slide my pointer finger between the ears (from the direction of tail to head), then use the rest of my hand to pinch the ears and "scruff" the head/neck. I grab (yes, grab and hold, not just place a hand for support) the hindquarters and immediately flip the rabbit over. This is easier to do on small rabbits, but possible to do with any rabbit. I stuff the rabbit's back end in my elbow while my hand on the same arm is still holding the head/ears.

I try to not to make "cuddle time" this intense, but sometimes it takes a few minutes in that transitional period for them to settle down.

I understand that you don't want to hurt your rabbit. But trust me that handling a rabbit won't hurt them or your relationship with them. It's when we are not confident, indecisive or don't give it 100% effort that injury can happen. You have to be firm sometimes - and that is with any animal, not just rabbits.

There weren't any great videos on Youtube of the technique I described, but it is similar to this:

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zPeolhLiPk[/ame]

Don't listen to the commentary. Rabbits DO NOT carry their babies at all, so not by the scruff either. But she is right that scruffing the rabbit momentarily WITH hindquarter support will not hurt the bunny. It's just a secure hold. If you're still unsure, I'd be happy to try and make a quick video for you too.

 

[lavingroony]

Great tips, thanks loads! I'll try it soon and update

 

[selbert]

I've just adopted two very young rabbits that are both around 5 months (I've only ever fostered adult rabbits that have luckily always been friendly and cuddly from the start) who are very affectionate towards me and love being petted.
They seem to be quite stressed when handled though. I've tried putting them in a trance, one wont stay at all and the other will for a few minutes whilst breathing heavily and then will struggling away!
Should I persist with trying to handle when they react like this? I've only had one for just over a month and the other just over a week. Should I be more gradual?
I don't want them to have a bad experience with being handled so it puts me off putting them through this.

 

[Imbrium]

Trancing is actually quite stressful for rabbits - it taps into a fear-based response to being carried away by a predator that allows a rabbit to "play dead" in hopes of being abandoned rather than eaten.

OakRidgeRabbits' advice is dead-on. Whether I'm clipping nails on my rabbits (3.5 and 4.75 lbs) or our cats (approx. 12 and 16 lbs), I use the same basic tactics which involve being careful but FIRM. If you're holding a rabbit snugly enough, it's difficult for them to struggle and impossible for them to kick. A bunny that seems stronger than you probably *isn't* - they just know how to throw their weight around and get the right leverage to convince you they're in control.

Also, being firm with your rabbit actually makes them feel more secure in addition to being a very effective way to handle them. When they feel secure, they may be less inclined to struggle.

One last thing to keep in mind is that rabbits can sense anxiety - if you doubt yourself, your rabbit will too! (And worse yet, those little naughties know how to use your nervousness to their advantage!)

 

[selbert]

Oh I didn't know that thank you This is great advice! Thank you very much.
I forgot to mention that when I out them back down, they're never frightened of me and are happy to be petted again (grinding their teeth with joy!).
I think they do sense that I'm a little scared of frightening them, I need to be a little more firm and a little less timid!
Thanks again for all the advice, it's been really helpful

 

[Imbrium]

Oh, one other tip - don't take crap from the bunn(s)! If you say it's nail trimming time, then it's nail trimming time. If you start the process, they put up a bad fight and you abandon your attempt, then the bunny wins... meaning they just learned that they can out-stubborn you. Do NOT let a bunny learn that they can out-stubborn you! If they have already learned that, then stop letting it work and be very consistent; they'll eventually realize that you've upped your game. If they break away from you during the trim, *immediately* track them down, scoop them up and go right back to what you were doing. You're the parent, they're the child - you have to enforce that discipline sometimes!

I don't care how naughty a cat or bunny is being, I get at LEAST one full paw and preferably two completely done before giving them a break. I keep the break short and get back to the trimming within 10-15 minutes.

Also, regardless of how hard they fight you, reward with a small amount of healthy treats as you go - I like to give one craisin (our new favorite is cherry-infused, which is even more like bunny crack than pomegranate-infused!) when I scoop a bunny up for nail trims and then one after each 1-2 paws and one at the end as I put them down. The reward correlates to you succeeding in your goal (or a portion of your goal), not in whether or not they were agreeable about it - this allows you to reward even the naughtiest of the naughties and, over time, they often come to tolerate the nail clipping just to get those noms faster .

 

[ladysown]

Just pick them up and be firm and confident in your actions.
Cover their heads and hold them firmly.

Don't let them make the choice to leave, always make that particular choice for them.

If they act uncomfortable some of it is them testing their boundaries (much like a toddler would), some of it is "HEY, I was doing my own thing and you interrupted me!", and some of it is just bunnies being bunnies.

Pick up your rabbit, keep it's feet on a solid surface and just hold the bunny there. Wear a jacket the first few times if you need to in order to give yourself some protection and well as to give yourself confidence that your rabbit won't hurt you if he struggles to get away. Put your hand over the head and hold it down firmly. Then talk to your rabbit and help it to relax. As your bunny settles and realizes you aren't going to hurt it (prey animals think this way)... then you can start flipping it over on it's back with it's head tucked between your arm and body.

Over time you will gain more confidence, the rabbit will learn what to expect, and everything will be much easier to do.

 

[selbert]

Thanks for the tips everyone! Just clipped Dog's nails without any issues! As soon as I was firmer, she felt much more comfortable
Thank yooooou

:brow-bunny

 

[Imbrium]

If they act uncomfortable some of it is them testing their boundaries (much like a toddler would), some of it is "HEY, I was doing my own thing and you interrupted me!", and some of it is just bunnies being bunnies.

Oh, how they love to test those boundaries!! They really are like toddlers, and need to be handled the same way - be loving and comforting while still asserting yourself as the boss.

Selbert, I'm so glad you were able to get your bunny's nail's trimmed! Hopefully the OP will be able to achieve the same results . Being firm and confident makes all the difference.