How to catch a bunny in the house?

[Duckie]

What a silly situation! As Duckie has gotten older, she's gotten faster and harder to catch to put her back in her cage. She darts from under the couch to under the chair, down the stairs, up the stairs. It's bedtime - too late for these shanagans. How can we catch her when it's time for bed?

 

[Korr_and_Sophie]

Try to corral her into a smaller room. This can be a bathroom or bedroom. Close the door to prevent escaping from there and work to get her in the smaller space.
If you have an pen of some sort, you can use it to block off an area. This can also be good when she is out to limit the space she has access to.
Get in the habit of feeding her at night. You can just put the food in the cage and she should go to it much easier.
Some rabbits will come to you for a treat. Offer one and wait for her to come to you. Give the treat in small amounts to keep her near you. Slowly go to grab her but don't try to do it suddenly as it can startle her and make her run off. It can take time for a rabbit to be comfortable enough to do this.

 

[Duckie]

Great ideas! She eventually went into her cage on her own last night. She'll let me get near her and even pet her but some how she knows when I slowly move into position to grab her. Tonight we'll try your ideas and maybe it will go smoother. Thanks a lot!!

 

[~*sAbRiNa*~]

I agree with feeding her at night. Sabrina will come up from downstairs in a flash if she hears her pellets bag being opened.

 

[GorbyJobRabbits]

I wouldn't let her out until she learns manners. Why let them have freedom if they are going to abuse it? It's just a like a dog, if you let it out and it roams, it should loose the freedom of the yard until it learns to stay.

 

[jujub793]

bribery usually is the ticket, when Willow hears the yogies container shaking she comes running at the speed of sound. Works every time!!

 

[Nancy McClelland]

A feeding schedule helps and you can also set "traps". We have several boxes around the room--the one that works best is an apple box with holes cut in the sides and a pan of shredded newspaper in it. When it's time for one of our bunnies to go up we herd them toward the box and they "usually " run into it. Problem solved. A couple like their vegetables and treats, so they come right up to us.

 

[Duckie]

Hey, that's a good idea about the "traps" and it sounds like something we could try. Duckie loves her treats but won't be so easily lured.

Gorby, would you explain how we'd go about teaching our bunny manners?

 

[Bunnykinz]

In the summer, my buns are outside in a pen with a ramp to their hutch. When I want them to go into their hutch I just pat the ramp. They've learned that they can either go in then, or get herded in by me. Maybe your bun can eventually learn something like that?

 

[MikeScone]

Don't bother chasing the bunny, she'll just think it's a game.

It takes a little while, but rabbits catch on to patterns. I made it a habit when I was ready to go to bed to tell Natasha "bedtime", and then put her favorite food (broccoli) in her cage. Before long, as soon as I said "bedtime" she ran into her cage and stood up looking to see when I was going to bring her treat. She also knows "go in", in case I need her in the cage some other time. I just say "go in", and reinforce with a banana chip or craisin when she does.

 

[Tweetiepy]

Bunnies are smart, if one of mine is in his cage, I'll lock him in, the other will actually go out of his cage and run back in, knowing he'll get a treat. I haven't tried letting them outside yet this year, I have a feeling I'll be back here checking this thread out for hints on how to get them back inside...

 

[elrohwen]

I feed my bunnies at night, right at bedtime, so they're more than happy to head back to the cage and get food. I think bribery always works better than chasing them around.

 

[kuniklos]

How friendly is your rabbit? I don't have issues getting General Bismark into his cage. When I give him his last helping of greens before bed he goes into his cage without a problem. But if he's not up for going in on his own I usually just sit on the floor for a minute or two and he'll come over and demand nose pets. Once he's been petted up I can just pick him up and place him in his cage.

I have a vote for either bribery or to let a rabbit's natural curiosity lead them to you so you can pick them up.

 

[Duckie]

Well, I'd say that she's a friendly stinker. Kind of like our cat - she's friendly when she WANTS to be friendly. I agree that the chase seems like a game to her. I think the best route is going to be feeding her at night and making her cage be a place she'd LIKE to be.

 

[MiniLopHop]

I have taught mine to go back to their cage when I tell them to "go home". They happily hop right in because they get their veggies at night and their enzyme treat (it's sweet so they love it and it breaks down the hair since one is an angora). Bribery works wonders!