bunny talk... interpretations needed

FORUM

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

This topic has 18sd replies, 11 voices, and was last updated 15 years, 10 months ago by BinkyBunny.

Viewing 18 reply threads

Author

Messages
- 05/18/2010 at 7:28 AM
  babybunsmum
  Participant
  3896 posts
  i know that bun buns honk when delighted… pinky honks when i feed her. but can they honk in disgust / irritation too? she makes these honk-like noises when i pet her, pick her up or when we cuddle some times and i can’t tell if she’s lovin it or puttin up with it getting ready to chomp on me.
  
  last night i plopped her on my bed for some cuddles and laid next to her. she immediately tucked in against me near my face with her head down ready for head pets. because my ear was right near her head i could hear all these sounds coming from her as i pet her. they sounded like little gurgles or like wee honks broken down into syllables. sometimes they got louder when i pet down her back and so i thought maybe she doesn’t like it. but then it happens also when i rub her ears and she leans into it. my main reason for questioning this noise is that she makes it when i pick her up too… she of course tries to run from me and i have to corner her first… so i’ve always assumed this was not a happy sound. i’m confused.
  
  (i should mention that pinky recently had a full exam at the vet and was given a clean bill of health – follow up to her past stasis issue)
- 05/18/2010 at 7:44 AM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  Meadow will make soft honking noises if Max is getting too amorous and she’s not in the mood. She’ll hop away while making the honking sounds, sometimes he’ll chase, sometimes he won’t. So I think they can do it if they’re happy or annoyed…
- 05/18/2010 at 7:46 AM
  Sarita
  Participant
  18851 posts
  I think the instinct is to run always. I think if she stays and she seems to be enjoying the attention those are sounds of content. Some rabbits really do tend to be extremely vocal. I love the honking!
- 05/18/2010 at 7:48 AM
  Elrohwen
  Participant
  7318 posts
  It could be that she’s using a similar grunting noise as both happy and unhappy and it’s the context that’s different.
- 05/18/2010 at 7:53 AM
  babybunsmum
  Participant
  3896 posts
  i love it too! either way its sorta funny and full of character. she HAS to submit to a cuddle session every day whether she likes it or not anyways
  i guess the honking is kinda like how some people gesture wildly with their hands when they talk excitedly. they could be angry or just very enthusiastic and passionate.
  
  i’m glad she is no longer thumping… her extreme form of anger and disapproval. she was doing this a lot when i first adopted her. this weekend my neighbors tore down their old metal shed which happens to be about 12ft away from pinky’s bedroom window. she didn’t even thump at that! but she sure was not happy. she paced in her room glaring up at the window, ears a twitching. poor dear. good thing it didnt take too long!
- 05/18/2010 at 7:54 AM
  Sarita
  Participant
  18851 posts
  She really is a Drama Queen!
- 05/18/2010 at 8:15 AM
  babybunsmum
  Participant
  3896 posts
  she is! bless her heart.
- 05/19/2010 at 12:08 AM
  yes
  Participant
  22 posts
  What does honking sound like, really?
  I have a bunny girl who makes these noises that sound like, well, kind of a nasal meeeee, meeeee, meeeee. LOL.
  I don`t know how else to describe it! And then, when she`s really excited, if she hasn`t seen me in a while, or if
  she wants something really badly, she does this thing which in human terms I can only describe as the sound of a race car
  coming up quick and then gone just as fast.
  What would you call that, then?
- 05/19/2010 at 12:53 AM
  LoveChaCha
  Participant
  6634 posts
  Posted By BunnyOHara on 05/19/2010 12:08 AM
  What does honking sound like, really?
  I have a bunny girl who makes these noises that sound like, well, kind of a nasal meeeee, meeeee, meeeee. LOL.
  I don`t know how else to describe it! And then, when she`s really excited, if she hasn`t seen me in a while, or if
  she wants something really badly, she does this thing which in human terms I can only describe as the sound of a race car
  coming up quick and then gone just as fast.
  What would you call that, then?
  
  A fellow member described it perfectly: mm, mm, mm.
  
  Mine does it every once in a while now. She just got spayed. I miss hearing it so much It is such an adorable noise!!!
- 05/19/2010 at 11:59 AM
  yes
  Participant
  22 posts
  Oh, you mean they stop after spaying? Oh no, I hate that, already, lol!
  I always take it as she`s talking to me in her own special way.
  Awww, I`m gonna miss that too.
- 05/19/2010 at 12:18 PM
  Lintini
  Participant
  3329 posts
  Bun does that noise when I clean her cage but to her I’m messing it up and she’s mad!
  
  I’ve still never heard a bunny honk. You would think with 4 I would hear it some day. *cry*
- 05/19/2010 at 1:37 PM
  yes
  Participant
  22 posts
  I have four, too! The only other bunny that sounds out is one of my males. He makes a kind of ooh, ooh, ooh, noise. It`s so funny! Usually it`s when he`s talking to one of the girlie-buns, or if he really wants something really badly, like one of the cats. (He`s a chaser).
  Otherwise, they`re pretty quiet.
- 05/19/2010 at 1:49 PM
  Elrohwen
  Participant
  7318 posts
  My husband makes the mm mm mm noise to me when he’s annoyed. He heard Otto do it a few times and decided it was a good method of communication. lol
- 05/19/2010 at 2:25 PM
  yes
  Participant
  22 posts
  LOL LOL
  That`s too funny! Does it work?
- 05/19/2010 at 4:13 PM
  RabbitPam
  Moderator
  11002 posts
  LOL Now you have a Husbun.
  
  They don’t necessarily stop making noises after being spayed, it just depends on how vocal your bunny likes to be. Spockie talked, Sammy doesn’t. I heard a tiny squeek one morning and was concerned since it was so out of character, but she had just woken up from a nap so it was her moment of alertness.
  
  I love Pinky. I think if it were a complaint, she would attempt to free herself. Therefore, she’s just making conversation. If it sounds like complaining, maybe she’s telling you she had a hard day.
- 05/19/2010 at 8:41 PM
  bunnytowne
  Participant
  7538 posts
  Ruby is spayed. She makes a squeaky or humming noise sometimes when I pet her. Very seldom tooth purrs.
  
  This usually doesn’t stop when a bun is spneutered. It may come back
- 05/19/2010 at 10:55 PM
  LoveChaCha
  Participant
  6634 posts
  Posted By BunnyOHara on 05/19/2010 11:59 AM
  Oh, you mean they stop after spaying? Oh no, I hate that, already, lol!
  I always take it as she`s talking to me in her own special way.
  Awww, I`m gonna miss that too.
  
  Some do, some don’t. Mine does very little now! I’ve noticed she has calmed down a little more, and PURRS more when I pet her Thats enough for me!
- 05/19/2010 at 11:16 PM
  MimzMum
  Participant
  8029 posts
  Fiver burbles at me when I’m grooming him. Squeaks and honks and small grunts. I know he doesn’t like to be touched, so I just make the same noises back at him. Seems to calm him. We ‘communicate’ with one another this way.
  Mimzy used to hum at me. He’s only done it once since being neutered and it was recently when he found the love of his life in a plush bunny on my bed right after one of his first dentals this year. ^_^ It was so cute to hear him making his ‘dragonfly’ sounds again!
  
  Pip grunts and hides when I have done something she doesn’t like. But then, that’s just about everything I do, so…lol…I get lots of grunts! ^_^
- 05/22/2010 at 2:13 AM
  BinkyBunny
  Moderator
  8776 posts
  Posted By BunnyOHara on 05/19/2010 11:59 AM
  Oh, you mean they stop after spaying? Oh no, I hate that, already, lol!
  I always take it as she`s talking to me in her own special way.
  Awww, I`m gonna miss that too.
  
  Not necessarily. Jack is a big honker….honks every single day at his gal Vivian, and he’s been neutered for over six years.
  
  My female bunny Bailey (RIP) used to honk and/or make little gentle squeek noises when she would eat something really good. She would also give a little honk/whine followed by a thump or a bolt (she’d run) if she didn’t like something. She had also been spayed for years.
Author

Messages