My bunny doesn't want anything to do with me

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BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

This topic has 10sd replies, 6 voices, and was last updated 5 years, 6 months ago by LBJ10.

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- 08/26/2020 at 4:56 PM
  Alaska'sMom
  Participant
  12 posts
  Hello!! I have been in need of some serious help with my bunny Alaska. Ive had her for 4 months now. She’s definitely improved but there are some things she does that concerns me that she will never seem to fully trust me. She’s very shy and doesn’t like people at all. Barely even me. She will take treats from peoples hands but then run back in her tunnel. I’ve tried asking for her “permission” to pet her but she either runs away or nudges me to move my hand. Then follows up with a nip if I don’t. She gets really scared or nervous if I get too close to her while I’m standing because she’s worried I will pick her up. She HATES being picked up. I have had to pick her up for vets appointments and for brushing or clipping her nails. I have struggled a lot with trying to pick her up because she just doesn’t like being touched at all. She also free roams my room so at times I’ve had to kinda chase her which I feel awful about. I’ve slept on the floor with her, I spend a lot of my days on the floor with her, and I have been doing clicker training with her. Sometimes she even gets worried about me picking her up if I give her a treat. I have only done it 4 times since when I got her. She is happy though. At night she does binkies or zoomies and even comes on my bed to lick my pillows. Sometimes when I am sitting down on the floor she will lay down just a few inches from me but that’s it. I think she really prefers to be ignored. I tried giving her attention or playing with her and rolling her willow ball with her but she doesn’t want anything to do with me. Its all been extremely frustrating because I have been doing everything I can and I have had a bunny previously but he was completely different. It’s all incredibly disheartening and has really stressed me out because I just really want her to like me. I don’t know what else to do.
- 08/26/2020 at 5:51 PM
  HipHopBunny
  Participant
  640 posts
  Hi @Alaska’sMom
  
  Sorry, you are going through this difficulty. <3 In truth though, 4 months isn’t that long at all. Could it be that she has been in a scary home, or is it that she is just timid? Timid rabbits tend to take more time to form a bond with you, but when they do, it is a beautiful bond. Some buns bond right on at the start, and others, like Alaska will take a lot of time to get used to you, and their new surroundings.
  
  Don’t feel discouraged, or that she will never form a bond with you, she will, but it may take a while. One activity I like to do to calm my rabbits down is to play some soft piano, they LOVE it, and will listen to it happily. Another method that some other members on here like is to read aloud to them so that they get used to your voice, that could help with her, too. 🙂 You are doing great, spending all of the time that you spend with her, is sure to win you a loving bond in the near future. 🙂
  
  A lot of buns don’t like to be picked up. Or touched in the very beginning, but after a while, I find that my buns really enjoy being petted, and I think Alaska will too. Binkies are good, zoomies are good, shows she is very happy in her new home. 🙂 Don’t give up, all good and memorable bonds take time, she will form a great and beautiful bond with you, I am sure of it, as for right now though, she is still getting to used to the way things run in her spoiled new life. Wishing you luck! 🙂
- 08/26/2020 at 6:33 PM
  DanaNM
  Moderator
  9064 posts
  It sounds like you are doing a great job so far, my only suggestion is more patience, maybe try a little LESS (play hard to get! LOL), and possibly train her to go into her carrier. The fact that she will relax near you sometimes shows that she is starting to trust you. 🙂 That way when you need to catch her for nail trims you don’t need to chase her around.
  
  Also, if she is very skittish, she might actually feel safer with less space to roam. Also, does she also have her own space that is only hers? Like a pen or cage that is her “home base”?
  
  . . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.
- 08/27/2020 at 12:40 AM
  Alaska'sMom
  Participant
  12 posts
  Thank you for the support @HipHopBunny !!! I really appreciate the help. I think she’s skittish and she grew up in not the best environment. I adopted her from a bunny rescue in my area and they received her from a couple that found her with her sister and mom in a parking lot. They have been living out there for awhile. I am not sure what age she was when they were rescued but I believe young. Then she was brought into a foster home. I think she’s been through a few because she looked really young in the pictures I saw her in on the adoption website and she had a different name from a previous foster. She’s 5 years old now so she really has been through a lot. I don’t blame her for being scared of humans. She was practically a house bunny that has only known the outside world. She seems to really love nice calming music. Ill have to give the reading out loud a try but she really doesn’t like being petted. She always dodges my hand or gets super freaked out. Even if she does see my hand and if I approach her slowly. But I really appreciate the tips and the advice. 🙂
- 08/27/2020 at 12:57 AM
  Alaska'sMom
  Participant
  12 posts
  Thank you @DanaNM for the reply!! I really appreciate it. And ya patients is really hard. I think it’s just even more frustrating because my other bunny was the easiest ever. No troubles at all but I can’t really compare them. Every bunny is different just like humans. It just all really caught me off guard since the adoption center said Alaska was a cuddle bug and that she loves attention when she obviously isn’t!! lol I just wish they would have been more honest. I still love her to death but man she’s a tough cookie. She free roams my room which isn’t too big. I started her off in a Xpen and she found a lot of comfort in that but I wanted her to feel comfortable roaming my room. She eventually got comfortable running around. I still have her Xpen up with everything still inside from when I first adopted her. I have her litter box, water, lettuce, and pellet dish in there. As well as a hidden house to make her feel more comfortable. If I have company over sometimes put her in the Xpen and she doesn’t seem to be too happy about it. She will chew at the cage bars and throw a little tantrum. I just leave her cage open 24/7 now and she continues to roam. I think training her to get inside the carrier is the only option I have at this point. I just don’t want to continue to worsen our somewhat of a relationship. Or stress her out more than she needs to be.
- 08/27/2020 at 1:09 AM
  Bam
  Moderator
  17029 posts
  I agree with the others, you are doing a great job. My first rabbit Bam who I found outside in the woods, sat under a coffee table for a year before he warmed up to his humans! I didnt know what to expect of a rabbit, so I just let him do his thing, like. He only let me pet him when he was deeply concentrated on eating a treat. After about a year he gradually became a very cuddly rabbit, albeit on his own terms. (Meaning he decided when it was cuddle-time and when it wasnt, which is normal for rabbits).
- 08/27/2020 at 5:04 PM
  Alaska'sMom
  Participant
  12 posts
  @Bam Thank you for the response!! That’s actually really helpful and comforting to know that I’m not alone in having a bunny that was once a stray bunny. Alaska only lets me pet her very gently on the side and for just a few seconds when she’s eating. Hopefully within a year she will warm up to me a bit more and realize I’m not going to eat her. Lol
- 08/27/2020 at 5:08 PM
  HipHopBunny
  Participant
  640 posts
  You sound like a very nice person, who radiates such positivity and love, that is would be hard for a rabbit not to warm up to you. 🙂 I’m sure you will get a beautiful bond with her in no time at all, but the things that we cherish and appreciate the most, are the things we worked hard to get. 🙂 Keep us posted!
  
  Wishing you luck!
- 08/27/2020 at 6:20 PM
  DanaNM
  Moderator
  9064 posts
  Yes I’m sure you’ll get there! My skittish bunnies are most receptive to petting after meal times (maybe because they are in food comas?). If they are already in a lounging position, I will sit or lay down next to them for a little while. If they don’t move after I’ve been sitting there for a few minutes, usually they will accept a few nose rubs. 🙂
  
  . . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.
- 08/28/2020 at 6:25 PM
  Jadeo09
  Participant
  83 posts
  My rabbit was nervous when we had her on laminate flooring an lino. She’s become much more relaxed since we got carpets. Also my rabbit likes to be stroked by my feet. She sits in between my feet regularly and doesn’t have the trust issues of being picked up or mithered woth medication vets etc. She also appreciates nose to nose snuggles and forehead to forehead snuggles after vets trips. This soon sorts her out.
- 08/29/2020 at 12:08 AM
  LBJ10
  Moderator
  17228 posts
  She sounds like a normal bunny to me. It certainly isn’t usual for some to be skittish. I agree with the others, you’re doing great working with her. Keep it up and, as Dana said, try playing hard to get. 😉
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