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- This topic has 12sd replies, 11 voices, and was last updated 13 years, 5 months ago by
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Last night I was having my evening snack of banana with peanut butter. Bunnicula, a rather shy rabbit that has been in the house hold for just a couple months, caught whiff of the yummy smell. She cautiously came across the room, nose twitching. I handed her a small chunk and she ran off to eat her bounty. A moment later she leapt straight into the air with foot wiggles. My husband was perplexed, what’s that?
That was Bunnicula’s first binky in our home!
It got me to thinking about the various ways my rabbits have to say they are happy. The boys (Gary, Houdini, and Panda) all do the more typical running binky with crazy twists and turns, each with their own signature moves. The girls have more variation. Apparently Bunnicula prefers to jump from a stand still. Sophie is our big girl and she does a high hop with a head twist. Becky is special needs with mobility issues, but she will do a head twist with a full body shiver.
Don’t forget the tooth purring, nose bonking, and kisses.
When Sophie came to our home over the summer she was not a people bun. Houdini had just lost his first bunwife and was in a deeply grieving state. We let him pick whom ever he fancied at the rescue. He picked Sophie. She loved him but hated us. She had good reason to distrust people. Her first “owners” were children who would pull her ears and tossed her away when she got to big. Then she was put in a small cage with little human interaction other than being tossed pellets.
I practice pet massage, so even though it was only a minute at first, she got a gentle therapeutic touch for the first time of her life. She would flinch if I touched her ears, but I just kept with daily short massages. Now I like to think she looks forward to this interaction. She will sit on my lap for an hour or more while I stroke, kneed, and massage her whole body. She likes to lay her head down in the crook of my elbow and tooth purr, eyes closed, legs outstretched so I can get her paws. What girl doesn’t like her feet rubbed? While it is more of a sleepy contentment with life, I have to admit I love seeing this quiet expression of joy just as much as the more exuberant displays. 
How does your rabbit let you know they are happy?
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My buns won’t let me massage them anywhere, but their heads. They loveeee jaws massages though!! I just take a finger and work it in circles with light pressure on their cheeks and they hunker down and start tooth purring
My easy going bun likes being rubbed everywhere, but he only likes an actual massage on his forehead or cheeks -
Both of my bunns love their cheeks rubbed. They could sit for hours, I’m sure, if I would let them.
Dizzie binkies quite a bit. Cupcake doesnt very often, but when she does, its one of the greatest feelings in the world for me! I remember the first time I saw Dizzie binky. I had never seen a rabbit do it before and i laughed for so long after seeing it finally. its the cutest thing! she jumps up and kinda twists in the air. sometimes i call her wiggles because she does the cutest little wiggles when she is excited. Cupcake does a lot of the sideways hops. And of course, the zooming!! i sweat they are going to wear a hole right in my carpets! (but i love it when they do it, so i wouldnt mind!!) -
That is a beautiful story
Pippa loves to race around the room and binky. When she hears plastic bags (meaning she’s getting veggies) she races into her cage if she’s out and hops up and down the levels, then sits by the front. She pokes her nose through the bars and shakes them and tries to climb up the walls sometimes too. Such an impatient bun when it comes to treats!
She loves getting pets from me (not my boyfriend! haha). I love seeing her flop when she’s out having playtime. Today she did something that completely made my day though. When she’s out she likes sitting under the desk chair while I’m on the computer, which of course makes me paranoid about where she is. Sometimes she flops against her cage nearby, but today she flopped underneath the chair! Squee!!!
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