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I don't take mine out into the grass/yard ever. I don't want fleas on them, and I can't imagine how hard it would be to get fleas off of rabbits numbering in the 50s. They do get Xpen time, in a section of the barn. And they do get handled daily, groomed, etc. And Nestle has been going to the horse shows with us, and pretty much everywhere else I go that I can take an animal with me. But his feet haven't touched grass before, either...except what I pick and give him. :)

As for BunBun, I didn't think it was a very good idea. But he's not my rabbit, and apparently it's been working for them. Very shocked at how he was picked up, too. Just too many things out there that can hurt/kill a bun to risk it without taking a few second to slip on a harness and lead for my liking.
 
Harriet really likes going outside. I put her in a harness and leash, but often let go of the leash and sit in the grass. Her outside time is always short right now because I do get nervous that she might run off and it's too hot for me to follow her around for too long in the middle of the day.

She has started following me around lately so I'm getting less and less worried she'll leave and never return.
 
For those of you wanting to give them more space, without wanting to risk safety, have you considered those 'recall' leashes used with dogs? I have one that is superlong but you can get shorter ones. That way, you could at least have some control without keeping them restrained at your feet. You'd need to practice handling the leash well so you can get them back when necessary but I would thikn that might be a better solution to just letting them loose with cars around. :) This would still allow them some 'freedom' without having to sacrifice the safety. :)
 
Melody enjoys going out side on his leash and harness. I have a retractable leash and usually leave it pulled all the way out. This way Melody can go wherever he wants but I still have a say in how far he gets from me. Usually he just hops around his outdoor cage and mows the grass for me. He really enjoys being outside with us. My yard is not fenced and we have dogs and hawks in our neighborhood so I cant let him have free reign.
My parents travel alot and take their bunnies with them unless its a big trip. They go to antique engine shows and camping rallies. Their rabbits are so used to the noise that they aren't bothered by much. And of course everyone that knows my parents enjoy seeing the rabbits and ask after them if they are staying with me.
 
BunBun also likes to jog. He taught himself that trick.

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

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKAO2NFB0qQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKAO2NFB0qQ[/ame]
 
BunBuns Human wrote:
wendymac wrote:
I cringe every time I see a video of BunBun. :(
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And Bunbun and I cringe every time we think of bunnies locked in cages because their owners don't take the time to properly train them.
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BunBuns Human,

I have no problem with watching the videos. Thanks so much for sharing. Actually kudos to what you have given BunBun and now Booger. True Freedom. And the videos truly show me you spent lots of time with BunBun to have this much trust from him. Again, good for you for allowing your bunnies that much exercise. And exercise is their best friend. You have extended this bunny's life atleast a year or two.

Look, in the real world that's what bunnies do. They run. They jump, they hop, they rest, and then they do it all over again. Good job! Thanks for showing and sharing.

K
 
I dont really have a problem with your videos either. I personally wont do something like that because i'm not brave enough, lol. I would honestly think one of my buns would get hit by a car. So they are allowed to roam free in my house and if I can fix my rabbit run, in the backyard too lol.
 
Yes, bunnies in the wild do all those things. They also get hit by cars, killed by predators, etc. You could achieve the same results by putting them on a retractable leash. They could have their "freedom" and you could guarantee that they didn't get hit by a car or chased by a dog/cat.

It's evident in the videos that BunBun isn't "trained". You had to chase him numerous times in the one, and all it would have taken was one wrong hop and he'd be dead. If every time you called him back to you, he came, it would be a different story. But he doesn't.

To each their own. I prefer to let mine out in Xpens...where I know they're safe. I don't feel the need to play Russian Roulette with my animals.
 
The area I live in doesn't really have a good spot to let Harvey out and about. Plus it depends on the rabbit too. If they are jumpy around loud noises, which Harvey can be. He does bolt when he hears a dog park outside of my apartment.

But I'm going to have to agree with Wendy. He isn't trained. He comes when he wants to, which wasn't often. It's not like a dog that is trained to come when you call and really need him to come. (And wild bunnies also live much shorter life spans)
That's all I really wanted to say because people can live their lives and raise their animals how they want. As long as they aren't abusing them of course.
 
BunBuns Human wrote:
wendymac wrote:
I cringe every time I see a video of BunBun. :(
Click to expand...
And Bunbun and I cringe every time we think of bunnies locked in cages because their owners don't take the time to properly train them.
Click to expand...

So it is either locking them up in a cage or recklessly allowing them to run rampant? How do you know one of these days he won't hurt one of those jogger by tripping them up while they are trying to avoid him? It could result in injuries to more then the bunny. One of these days he'll go to the wrong person and get punted, that has nothing to do with trust in the rabbit. Honestly, I find it a bit rude that people are out trying to jog and they have a rabbit constantly cutting them off. If that was a dog jumping up people wouldn't find it so cute.

Speaking as someone who trains rabbits, I know there are a lot of way to work with them and my rabbits all get walks, know voice commands (And actually listen to them!) and do agility courses off leash. It's not the cage or running loose.

I just cannot agree that this is a safe, responsible way to handle your rabbit. I am generally flexible on accepting new methods and learning new ways to care but this... Too much can go too wrong too fast.
 
I'm going to avoid the bickering part of this thread and stick to the actual point of the OP.

I've owned buns a few times, although things have changed A LOT over the years since my last bunny. But my last bunny had free roam of his old home prior to me and outside time in my yard with me too - ALWAYS supervised.

My new bun? He was already used to going out on a harness and leash thanks to his previous owners, and I don't have a fenced yard... So I take him out on the leash and harness. I do have a long line(lighter weight and feel than a retractable and more control too - I hate flexi's and won't even use them with my dogs) but even then, I'm still standing right next to him at all times, keeping an eye out for dangers(neighbor dogs, other wild bunnies, hawks, cats, etc).

That said, my boy is very relaxed and loves being out. He doesn't mind dogs either, and he sticks close by typically - he's a people rabbit and likes being in laps and pet. Loud noises and pesky animals don't phase him, but I wouldn't leave him loose out of fenced confines, off leash where strange loose dogs or hawks could get him. I'm more comfortable being with him at all times for his safety.

Just because you keep your bunny safe, does not mean he's lacking by being on a leash.
 
wendymac wrote:
Yes, bunnies in the wild do all those things. They also get hit by cars, killed by predators, etc. You could achieve the same results by putting them on a retractable leash. They could have their "freedom" and you could guarantee that they didn't get hit by a car or chased by a dog/cat.

It's evident in the videos that BunBun isn't "trained". You had to chase him numerous times in the one, and all it would have taken was one wrong hop and he'd be dead. If every time you called him back to you, he came, it would be a different story. But he doesn't.

To each their own. I prefer to let mine out in Xpens...where I know they're safe. I don't feel the need to play Russian Roulette with my animals.
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Very much agreed.
 
I don't even know if Harvey would let me put a leash on him... I haven't really wanted to risk one of my limbs haha. He would not be happy with me. I wish I had a yard tho so he could enjoy a safe outdoor area. But he is not caged all the time. He is out most of the day when I am home to watch his interaction with the cats. He almost lost his ear because he pushed the cat too much when they were first meeting. The rabbit was excited to have a new friend and the cat is a bit of a wimp when it comes to changes.
 
I've been thinking a lot about this and I must admit that I, myself, do things that make others cringe. I think the idea and intentions are good, I just couldn't imagine myself taking that risk with so many cars around. However, perhaps with some further training, perhaps the bunny really would be a bit more obedient and it could work better. I don't know. What scares me is the fact that if BunBun does decide to do something, you have absolutely no control over it and you are putting him in a place where there is a high risk of something going wrong. We cannot deny that your BunBun looks happy, but there are ways of making them happy without having to sacrifice the safety as well. :)Just keep that in mind on your next walks please.
 
What a wide variety of responses -- from those who barely ever taketheir bunnies outside to the extreme of Bunbuns being out with no constraints.

I'm curious, though,if any rabbitrescues would allow Bunbuns human to adopt one of their rabbitsIF they saw his videos.
 
When we first got Rascal we put her in a harness and took her for a walk around the neighborhood. She only got half way before she was DONE and laid down on the sidewalk. My husband carried her the rest of the way. We discovered she was much happier milling around the yard instead of walking. Our Bitsy would run off every time he was out. We spent too much time chasing him to let him out often. Now we have the babies. They love being outside. We take them out in the front yard (we have a deep front yard so they are not right by the street) and we watch them while they run. They love it. :) We used to take all the kits outside too when we had them. :)

We don't really have neighbors where we are and there isn't a lot of traffic and the only dogs I see are those being walked on a leash (well, and our dogs, but ours don't run loose in the front yard they are fenced in the back).

Here are our kits playing in the yard. Thumper is the grey one, he is the one from this litter that we kept.

rabbits.jpg


I should add that there were 4 of us watching these guys too, they weren't just running around without supervision.

This is how Thumper spends most of his time outdoors...
6.jpg



 
Blue eyes wrote:
I'm curious, though, if any rabbit rescues would allow Bunbuns human to adopt one of their rabbits IF they saw his videos.
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We do adopt out a lot of rescue rabbits and are willing to work with people who will allow themselves to be educated. However, if this was insisted on, I can guarantee none of our rescues would ever go to that situation.
 
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