Forum

OUR FORUM IS UP BUT WE ARE STILL IN THE MIDDLE OF UPDATING AND FIXING THINGS.  SOME THINGS WILL LOOK WEIRD AND/OR NOT BE CORRECT. YOUR PATIENCE IS APPRECIATED.  We are not fully ready to answer questions in a timely manner as we are not officially open, but we will do our best. 

You may have received a 2-factor authentication (2FA) email from us on 4/21/2020. That was from us, but was premature as the login was not working at that time. 

BUNNY 911 – If your rabbit hasn’t eaten or pooped in 12-24 hours, call a vet immediately! Don’t have a vet? Check out VET RESOURCES

The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

What are we about?  Please read about our Forum Culture and check out the Rules

BUNNY 911 – If your rabbit hasn’t eaten or pooped in 12-24 hours, call a vet immediately!  Don’t have a vet? Check out VET RESOURCES 

The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

Forum BEHAVIOR Very aloof bun

Viewing 10 reply threads
  • Author
    Messages

    • Buckley's Mum
      Participant
      95 posts Send Private Message

        I’ve had my gorgeous Nethie dwardf bun for 5 months now, he’s almost 9 months old, he is incredibly aloof, it’s almost as if he doesn’t care whether I’m there or not.

        We had huge big-girls-blouse issues when we got him, he was scared of his own shadow and wouldn’t let anyone touch him.  He is confined to the kitchen (he’s actually never tried venturing out) and has an open cage when we’re home.  When we got him I spent hours sitting on the kitchen floor every night trying to get him use to me.  I have since discovered he doesn’t seem to recognise me if I sit on the floor, even now, he’ll come up and sniff my foot and then wander off and will have no further interraction with me, even if I sit there for hours reading or on the phone.  However, if I lay on the floor with my head at his level, he’ll come to me and sniff my hands to see if I have food/treats for him and if I do, he will happily eat out of my hand, but as soon as he’s bored or the treats have gone, then he’s off without a backwards glance.

        He never asks for pets (unless I can’t read the signs), but I can recognise when he’ll be amenable to being petted and I make the most of it, once I start petting him, he will lower his head to the floor and let me carry on until either my arm goes dead (quite hard petting an animal when you’re supported on your elbows!) or he’s had enough and off he goes.  I would say he is “comfortable” with me as he will sit almost nose to nose with me without moving or he’ll hop a couple of feet away with his back to me and just sit there/grooming himself, he doesn’t move when I walk past him (he always sits outside the entrance to his cage and will sit there unmoving for hours, is he asleep?).  He won’t climb on me, even if I’ve left a trail of treats onto my lap, he has never done more than put his front paws on me and stretched to get treats and if he can’t reach, he gives up.  Under no circumstnaces will he allow me to pick him up, the fight/struggle he puts up is not worth the stress on both our parts.

        Although he puts up with me, he does not do that to any other member of my family, he only tolerates me. He is not neutered as he shows no signs of maturity (vet didn’t recommend it when I took him), he is very docile (unless you try to pick him up), he doesn’t make any sound at all, he doesn’t bite, he doesn’t flop, he’s utterly adorable in every way, I would just like to know if there’s any way I can become closer to him, or is this just his personality and he’s just not a person-rabbit?

        I’ve tried clicker training, but he’s afraid of the clicker noise!  I can’t bribe him with food/treats and he’s just not bothered by food and is quite a fussy eater.

        Any helpful suggestions would be gratefully received, I don’t know if there are any games we could try playing together, he has a shed load of toys all over the floor that he can play with, but he seems to always go for his chew sticks.  Thank you and apologies for the ramblings of a mad woman! x


      • SirThumpsey
        Participant
        539 posts Send Private Message

          Sounds pretty normal to me. Most buns would prefer four on the floor (as they are prey animals, this makes them feel the safest)

          It is possible you aren’t reading the signs but he does let you pet him so that is good. And it seems to me that he feels comfortable enough to share a space with you. And I think it’s normal for animals to pick their single human they feel comfortable with and then ignore the rest.

          Is your vet rabbit-savvy? Some vets won’t recommend it because in your area there may be alot of farms or buns used for breeding or shows. (I think for showing they have to be intact, not sure though) Most of the buns in my area are just hutch animals, they get thrown food once in awhile and some hay and then that’s about it. Eventually, the owner gets tired of them and they are given away, or let loose. So you just gotta think about your area. Have his testicles dropped? You have had a hard time picking him up so I would suggest you try to sneak a peak when he stands up and looks around. Still might be difficult. Have you tried the burrito or trancing him? Some buns (only one of mine was ever able to be tranced) when you hold them and lay them on their back (like you were holding a baby) they will relax and go to sleep almost. If it works you can check alot easier. Also make sure you give treat after you let him go if you do try this.

          Some buns will play, some won’t. The buns I have had have mostly been loners and would rather just explore around the house. So hopefully, another forum member might be able to help you. Good luck!


        • Buckley's Mum
          Participant
          95 posts Send Private Message

            Thanks Sir Thumpsey, I live in the UK and the vet surgery almost laughed out loud when I asked if they were rabbit-savvy, as if it were the most bizarre question ever. Not sure where in the world you are, but owning an indoor rabbit is almost as common here as owning a dog or cat. I felt that she asked me all the appropriate questions about his health/behaviour and gave an opinion that was in Buckley’s best interest, they also look after my hamster who visits once a month for teeth clipping (misaligned jaw so she can’t grind her teeth herself), and they seem perfectly at ease with “small animals”.

            Unfortunately I can’t trance Buckley as I can’t touch him (other than pets) and to bunny burrito him is like trying to put a squid in a net making sure it’s tentacle don’t spring out! I think I’m even going to have to take him to the vet to get his nails clipped as he won’t let me. When I took him to the vet in January, she did show me his testicles and they looked like two small round pink mounds and not “testicles” as perhaps I would have imagined. (but not having seen any bun testicles, I wouldn’t really know, she just confirmed he was a boy), maybe this is as friendly/interractive as he gets, if that is the case, then that’s fine if that’s what he wants, I just worry that perhaps I should be doing “more”, or he wants “more” and I just don’t know what “more” is. He is a happy bun as he binkies all over the place and he shivers after I’ve petted him (but this could be just his putting his fur back in the right place after I’ve messed it up?!?)

            Maybe I’m just being a over protectve neurotic bun-mum? x


          • mia
            Participant
            519 posts Send Private Message

              You can try training without a clicker and just using his fav food/treats. My are fairly aloof and do their own thing. In order to get more interaction, sometimes I’ve hand fed everything except for hay. Even with hay, I’d start out with hand feeding each strand and letting them put the strands from my hand, a little tug war before I let them “win.”
              5 months is still a short time. With time, your bun will open up more and more but they may still be more aloof than you’d like. One of my buns also did not flop in my presence for over a year and now flops almost everyday.


            • bunnylova123
              Participant
              255 posts Send Private Message

                Most british vets are quite rabbit savvy, bunnies are the 3rd most popular pet in the uk. Is he rescue? A lot of rescue bunnies have bad and stressful pasts ( not that I want to put anyone off rescues ) and they just take a bit longer to open up and calm down. Even if he was from a pet shop he might have had a bad experience with children or ignorant adults.


              • Buckley's Mum
                Participant
                95 posts Send Private Message

                  Thanks guys, to me, 5 months is almost an eternity as I can’t remember not having him now. He was not a rescue (looking back, I wish I had rescued) but he was in a pet shop that had open pens and anyone could reach in and pick up/stroke any pet they liked, so he really didn’t have a choice. I worked out that my poor little bun was actually older than the pet shop told me (as they told me his birth week) so it is likely that he was in the pet shop for approx 7 weeks, that’s assuming he was removed from his mum at 8 weeks, but then again, it could have been sooner. Bearing in mind he hates being picked up, he probably found it quite traumatic being in the pet shop and being mauled by every passer-by and child. When we got him home, he was scared of his own shadow so he probably didn’t like the pet shop.

                  I guess what you’re trying to say is that i’m being neurotic and 5 months isn’t very long! Lol. I guess I’ll just have to give him more time/space then, but thanks to everyone. Everyone on here is so helpful, not having a bun before I’m relying on everyone else’s experience and advice. Thank you x


                • Monkeybun
                  Participant
                  10479 posts Send Private Message

                    That sounds an awful lot like my Monkey, who is also a nethie. Queen of No-Touchy.

                    However, over the last few years she has gotten more used to me picking her up, and now tolerates it to a point. It takes time, just try every day to pet, touch, and gently but firmly picking him up.

                    Monkey also had a hard time with treats and such at the beginning. She would NOT touch a new kind of food. What I ended up doing was offering stuff every day, the same thing over and over, had to pretty much shove it at her face, and eventually she would get annoyed and grab it with her teeth to throw it away… and taste it. And then decide it wasn’t so bad after all Although, she still runs from bananas…

                    I say just keep up what you are doing, gain some trust, and practice picking up when you can. Not too often, but you do have to get him used to it, especially in case there is ever an emergency, you don’t want to have to be chasing him around.


                  • bunnylova123
                    Participant
                    255 posts Send Private Message

                      Open pens sound very stressful, I can imagine a lot of people who could’ve been ignorant, or mean when picking little buckley up.


                    • LittlePuffyTail
                      Moderator
                      18092 posts Send Private Message

                        I agree with the others. It took some of my buns quite a bit longer to love and want to spend time with me.


                      • Deleted User
                        Participant
                        22064 posts Send Private Message

                          Dear Buckley’s Mum I really doubt anyone thinks you are being neurotic, just lovingly concerned. My heart does go out to poor little Buckley, what a very rough start. I’d guess with his difficult beginning in the pet store (sounds to me as though you did rescue him, even if it wasn’t from a shelter) he’ll probably need a little extra time, hard as that might be for you. Think it would take a lot of us a while to feel completely confident that this is the way things will Always be. Always wish I could have a few conversations to explain things to my furry ones, it would make some things so much simpler!

                          Something I came across a couple of days ago (from the resources link on this forum) may help you interpret his body language and the things he does try to communicate to you. An example is the behaviour you describe when he comes to you for a pet seems to be quite a compliment. You really might want to take a look at: http://language.rabbitspeak.com/

                          Best of luck, … he’s a very lucky rabbit (he found you!), and I feel sure he knows it.


                        • Buckley's Mum
                          Participant
                          95 posts Send Private Message

                            Sorry, it’s been a few days since I checked this thread and thanks everyone so much for their kind words of encouragement. I love Buckley to bits, it’s like I’ve had a new baby and always want to talk about him! Even my husband said “if you wanted another baby, why didn’t you just say!” lol. I don’t need another baby, I have Buckley! I have read the Language of Rabbit Speak from top to bottom and devoured every word, that was my bible at the start. For Christmas Buckley bought me “Rabbits for Dummies” which I have also read, but getting advice from “real” people is so much more realistic. I still have 1001 questions I need to ask, but I need to make a list before posting it!

                            Buckley and I thank you for all your advice x

                        Viewing 10 reply threads
                        • You must be logged in to reply to this topic.

                        Forum BEHAVIOR Very aloof bun