How do you pick up reluctant bunnies

[Baxter n Boos Mom]

I have been searching for videos on how to handle reluctant/skittish rabbits – but they always show very docile, cuddly, complacent buns.  Mine take off, if they even think I’m going to try to pick them up.

I’ve found that if I can corner them in a small space with the Expen – they give in more easily.  Are there any suggestions, or videos out there for more reluctant buns?

Thank you.

[Beka27]

I just pet their foreheads for a moment and then scoop ’em up. But I pet their foreheads far more often than I pick them up. The picking up only happens (maybe?) once a week…

[peppypoo]

It’s important to be able to pick up your bunnies for transportation and care, but other than that, most bunnies are happiest with four feet on the ground…cuddly bunnies that love to be picked up are really quite rare. As far as technique, I do what Beka recommended – pet them for a little bit before scooping one hand beneath the butt and one supporting the upper body.

[Baxter n Boos Mom]

Thanks for the responses.  I don’t pick up my buns often – but when I need to take them to the vet, or clip their nails, it’s quite challenging.  I try to pet them first, but as soon as they sense my hands near their chest and/or hind side – they take off.  If I’m lucky enough to scoop them up before they dash – they squirm very hard trying to get away, even when I bring them close to my chest. So I don’t know if it’s best to work with them – say in an enclosed expen, or just deal with it when the need arises.  

[Bam]

My rabbit isn’t fond of being picked up, but he’s learned to tolerate it. When he got a reaction from a vaccine, he developed sores in his ears which I had to clean and put antibiotic cream on twice a day for 2 weeks – after that he seemed to be less and less stressed out by being picked up. But I don’t know if it would work to just pick the rabbit up often – when I had to do it the cream I put on made his sores stop itching so that probably made him see more more as a good person than as someone who was planning to eat him.

The technique I use for picking him up was named “the cobra” by my relatives. That pretty much describes it.

[Baxter n Boos Mom]

Thanks Bam. Can you describe the Cobra technique to me? I’m not sure if I’m picturing it right.

Thank you.

Lena

[LittlePuffyTail]

I do like Beka. I pat the bunny until they become relaxed and submissive before picking up. Trying to scoop up a frantic bunny is dangerous.

[DUSTBUNNY-CLYDE]

dustbunny was super skittish when I got him. I sat in the x pen a few times a day and let him jump on me and I would give him treats and tickle his nose. It took a few months. now he loves being held!!

[Baxter n Boos Mom]

I wish my bunnies were more relaxed, like my cousin’s lops. I totally agree that it’s not good to pick up a frantic bunny. And I do pet them to relax them…BUT as I said above – the second they sense that both hands are on their body, or anywhere near their chest or backside – they take off. Hence why I need some advise how to get skittish bunnies over this fear.

I spend lots of time with both buns one-on one petting them, feeding them and giving them their night time treats before bed time.

But unless I can get them to relax more, it’s always going to be struggle to clip their nails and/or take them to the vet. I’m also reading a book right now that says they can help a bunny get over the fear of being held….and I’m looking forward to applying her suggestions – but was hoping that others here could help.

Thank you.

[Eucalyptus]

Scoop and secure. You want to lift them really quickly so there’s no time for them to freak out and struggle, and then secure them by holding them closely and tight (obviously not too tightly), so they feel like they can’t struggle. Support the whole body, especially the butt. You don’t want anything hanging, or it’ll feel even worse for them.

No matter what, they’re going to be really uncomfortable.

Also, I personally don’t pick up Java like other people pick up bunnies. I do a “one arm under the torso scoop” and then hold him sideways close to my body. I started doing that after it was too difficult to pick him up with two hands under the “armpits.” Anytime you even gave him a hint that your hands were going there, he’d freak. I think my way is wrong, but he almost never struggles when I do it that way, and he seems a lot calmer. It seemed like he got over it faster once I set him back down. Plus It’s more comfortable for me to hold him that way, and using one arm/hand gives me a free hand to do whatever I have to do with.

I wouldn’t try doing it that way unless you’re really comfortable with it. I picked up my cats that way a lot, so I picked him up that way out of habit and realized that it was more ideal for both of us. *shrug*

[Elrohwen]

Hannah is extremely hard to pick up, so I scoot her into her carrier (she usually goes in willingly) and then deal with her from there.

I can pick Otto up if he doesn’t know it’s coming, but sometimes it’s easier to just get him in the carrier first, and once he’s there he’s calm enough to pick up.

[Baxter n Boos Mom]

Eucalyptus: The one arm technique is how our vet picks up our bunnies… If the techniques in my book don’t work out – then maybe I’ll try the one arm technique.

And thank you Elrohwen – yes, we’ve used the pet carrier technique to get one bun to the vet. But now that we have 2 buns – we need to take the pair in their cage. It’s not too difficult to get one in there, but then the other one tries to take off – so we usually need to pick up the other bun. They’re so smart!!!!

The book I’m reading says to try to de-sensitize the buns from having your hands near their bottom and chest….by touching those areas while petting them. She suggests taking your time, as the buns are already nervous when hands touch these areas. Once they’re comfortable with your hands petting them there, then lift their chest off the ground a tiny bit, and immediately put them down. Once they’re comfortable with this – lift their chest a little further off the ground. Do this till it no longer bothers them. Then start the same process with their bottom side. Once comfortable….then start to lift the bun with both hands, and immediately put them back down….but barely off the floor. And then work your way up to picking them up off the floor. It sounds to me, that this can take weeks/months….but I’m willing to try 🙂

[NewBunnyOwner123]

Sally, my lop, doesn’t like being picked up. I have to scoop quickly and keep her snug against my chest and cover her eyes.
Harley, my harlequin, will try and run at first, but once his feet leave the ground he kind of just… accepts his defeat and takes it like a man lol. so in my case, my lop is like “NOOOOOO!!” and Harley is like “Nooo…ok, fine. do what you need to do, you win” lol

[NewBunnyOwner123]

Oh and when I bend down to put Sally down, I have to go EXTREMELY slow because she feels like she is falling with the motion of me going down so I take a good couple of seconds just going down to put her on the floor. If I just bend down at normal speed she tries so desperately to get out of my arms and scratches me up pretty badly.

[RabbitPam]

Securing the butt and getting them held tightly against your chest or facing into the crook of your elbox is very important to their feeling securely held and not squirming.
Some bunnies also feel better if you cover their eyes as you move them around high up in the air, such as when you stand and walk.

My vet’s assistant told me that they can breathe just fine if a towel is draped over them, so you can also take a light towel and toss it over the bunny when you have one cornered, and scoop within the towel so your bunny is actually securely wrapped in it, held against you. My bunny runs away too.

When you pet them first, try gently but firmly pushing down between their shoulder blades before you go to lift. (Without the towel.) This spot conveys dominance, and the bunny will usually hunker down and sit still if pressed at that spot behind their head and ears. They are more complacent that way, because they understand it to mean that you are a dominant animal and in charge so there’s no use struggling.

[LBJ10]

Have you tried bribery?

[Baxter n Boos Mom]

Thank you NewBunnyOwner: Next time I have to pick them up – I’ll try to cover their eyes.

RabbitPam: Thank you for your suggestions as well! I’ve tried the “bunny burrito” technique – and the vet’s assistants have suggested this to us as well. It worked great to clip Baxter’s nails – the last time we needed to. But I’ll try the shoulder technique as well. It’s funny – I think they both recognize my husband as alpha – but not sure if they realize that I’m next in line 🙂

LBJ10: Unfortunately, when my buns are nervous – they are not interested at all in treats 🙁 The other day, I thought I’d bring one bun into an Xpen to start training them with treats – to get used to me petting their chest and such – but he was so upset about being trapped that he would not allow me to pet him at all! He tried to gently nip a couple times too – which is unusual for him. They’re both free reign buns – and I wonder if this makes it more difficult to manage them.

Thank you all for your suggestions! I really appreciate you sharing your knowledge.

[BinkyBuster]

Good luck! Buster is the same – as soon as I touch anywhere near under his belly he books it under my bed and thumps for a good 3 minutes straight.

I honestly think confidence is a huge factor too. I’m always really nervous to try to pick him up, because I know he’s scared of it – so it makes me scared. I know he can sense it because he starts getting nervous too.
The last time I took him to the vet to get his nails trimmed they had a different ‘rabbit savvy’ vet there. He picked him up in one hand, and he flailed like CRAZY. The vet left the room to get a towel, and Buster tried to jump off of the high table. I scooped him up and held him! He’s never let me do it before, but I literally HAD to or he would have hurt himself. I think it’s a matter of being confident and just going for it. I find if you’re reluctant at all when you first go under then they have time to run away.
(Trying to talk like a pro when I’ve only been able to hold him like 3 times haha.)

[Stickerbunny]

Stickers hates being picked up, but if I scoop her up fast enough, she doesn’t have time to freak out. And petting doesn’t relax her, so it has to be a “give out craisin then scoop fast” maneuver. When I need to get them both (soon as you get one, the other knows what is coming! lol) the carrier does help. I find it’s easier to do it with Stickers first in the carrier, then Powder next, since Powder is a bit easier. I have also left their carrier in their room though so they view it as just another hidey spot, so it isn’t a big deal to them to go into their carrier. And sometimes I put treats into it and don’t close them up, so they don’t associate it with anything bad.

[Serenity]

Serenity (Lop) fights like crazy if I try to pick him up. I’ve tried to be gentle and I’ve also tried to get him fast and secure but as soon as I try to get a hold of him he kicks his back legs so frantically that I cannot keep a grip. I have also read that a bunny can break their spine if their back legs are left hanging and they kick to hard or too much. Not sure if it’s true but I’m not going to test it. The best way I have found which I have used to check his wound from his spay is to throw a soft blanket over him and to scoop him using the entire length of both my forearms so he is fully supported. Once i have him enclosed in the blanket resting just above my forearms he doesn’t fight because he cannot see. I then tip him over gently so he is flat on his back on my lap and pull the blanket up slightly from his rear end. I keep the blanket over his face so he can’t bite me. I have tried every way and extra love doesn’t work for my bun. He just ain’t having none of it. When he’s in the blanket he doesn’t fight which means it’s not such a stressful experience for him and I can have a good look how his wounds are healing.

[Baxter n Boos Mom]

Thank you all for your wonderful suggestions! I really appreciate it.

[NuggetBuns]

Yeah, like BinkyBuster said, confidence does have a lot to do with it too. If you are calm about it, it will put the bunny at ease and not freak out as much. When I first got Nugget, I was very desperate around her and she did not like me. I wanted to pet her and pick her up and she kept running away because she could sense how needy I was. My bf was very relaxed around her and she would go to him for attention. He picked her up so easily and she wouldn’t try to run away. It was hard for me because I was scared and nervous that she would kick, scratch, or jump out of my arms. When you’re struggling, the bunny feels like you have no idea what you’re doing and doesn’t want to be messed with. But over time, I built up my confidence and just picked her up without any problems. You just have to earn your bunny’s trust. Also, bring them towards your body when you pick them up so they feel safer in your hands/arms. Our vet was very surprised when he first met her because she was so chill when he held her, drained pus from her abscess and trimmed her nails with no issues.

[jerseygirl]

With Rumball I usually get him to hop into a litter box or basket then carry him in it to a high surface. From that level I can scoop him up and bring him directly to my chest. He copes with that a lot better then being taken up from the ground.

His former owner showed me that’s how he got him from A to B and its been a very useful technique.

If this works for your 2, I would do some sessions where you pick them up from the higher level (say a table height), hold them for short time then set them back down. It may help them become more tolerant to being held. A little reward after wouldn’t hurt either. ; )

[Swamp Pop]

Honestly, we just gave up on ever being able to pick them up… We groom them as best we can by trying to pluck loose fur out before they run away. The other day we tried to coax them into their carrier and it took about two hours and an entire bunch of parsley. We just can’t pick them up without them running in terror, and we don’t want to do anything to hurt the trust bond any more than we already have by holding them to administer medicine etc. in the past.

[Swamp Pop]

Honestly, we just gave up on ever being able to pick them up… We groom them as best we can by trying to pluck loose fur out before they run away. The other day we tried to coax them into their carrier and it took about two hours and an entire bunch of parsley. We just can’t pick them up without them running in terror, and we don’t want to do anything to hurt the trust bond any more than we already have by holding them to administer medicine etc. in the past.

[Baxter n Boos Mom]

That is so interesting about taking them to a higher point…I did notice that they never struggle with our vet, when they’re on the examining table – which is the same concept.  I’ll have to try this next time.  Thank you!!!

[jerseygirl]

With the vet in one side and owner on other, plus the unfamiliar environment, I think these things keep the rabbit in place.

At home, take care when they’re up on a higher level. Some will be daring enough to jump. Ideally, place them on a surface where most points to jump off are blocked. For example, I often use the washer top. It’s in a corner so there are walls in 2 sides and a sink on the 3rd. I stand on the 4th side.

[BeaBunny]

My vet told me to wrap them in a towe and try that as they feel more comfortable, it stops Bea from kicking a little

[BeaBunny]

My vet told me to wrap them in a towel and try that as they feel more comfortable, it stops Bea from kicking a little

[Fox]

Since Vegas is younger, I’m not sure if it will work for an older bunny, but all I did was pick her up, and hold her for long periods of time, put her back for a little while, then pick her up again and keep holding her for a while again. She eventually grew to stop fighting it, and actually enjoys it know!

[Author]

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