Bunny Training!

[FluffyBunny]

Is anyone else here training their bunn(ies)?

I’ve been training Mr. Bunny with hand signals – no clicker or voice commands – for a few weeks now, and he already knows two tricks. I’m really exited about it because I never had any success with voice commands or clicker training, but with just hand signals, Mr. Bunny has already mastered two tricks. Right now, the tricks he knows are putting his paws on my hand (the signal for that is me making a fist) and running over to me (the signal for that is me making a loose fist while shaking my hand). I’m also working on teaching him to lie down and a trick where he spins in circles. He’s also been super affectionnate since I started training him.

I’m quite curious if anyone on here is using the same training method as I am too.

[Elrohwen]

I find that using hand signals is the first step – you can’t teach voice commands until the animal knows the trick, usually with hand commands. I’ve also found that Otto does not understand voice commands and works totally on visual commands. My theory is that bunnies aren’t very vocal creatures – being prey animals, they’re more likely to communicate with each other using body language, so I think it’s easier for them to understand our body language. They seem to understand generic sounds, but not specific words. There are many smarter bunnies than Otto, so this theory might not apply to all, but it seems true of him. I do use the clicker, because I found he got the idea of tricks much faster. The clicker is basically a communication device, and using it allowed me to tell him when he was doing what I wanted.

I have yet to train Hannah, but I need to get on it because she’s smart as a whip. I know she would learn quickly, I just haven’t gotten around to training her yet.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

I would strongly strongly suggest clicker. Clicker works differently then voice, and has nothing to do with voice commands -it works through the amygdala and is a marker….well it’s awesome and any animal can learn this way. It’s not the click, but it’s a UCS that they can recognize. Totally totally the quickest way to go (up to 80% quicker learning then without).

Rupert can go through a hoop, they can all beg (stand up) and Rupert can do target (touch with nose) and spin. And I don’t train them often (treats cause tummy probs) -this is quick and easy learning with a clicker.

I totally recommend reading Karen Pryor’s Clicker training and what it teaches us about the animal mind-to get a good idea of what your doing

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