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[Sirius&Luna]

You’ve only had her for four days. She’s a baby, been taken away from her family and is in a brand new place, of course that’s overwhelming for her. Some rabbits take weeks or months to get used to people, you really have to just be patient.

Try and avoid picking her up, and keep spending time on the floor with her. It doesn’t sound like you’ve been through anything particularly traumatic together, it will be fine. Just give her time.

[kurottabun]

I recommend you take a deep breath and relax

4 days is really, REALLY short and it’s definitely not enough time for most bunnies to adjust themselves to a new environment. Are you able to get a cage that has a side door rather than a top one so you don’t have to lift her up? It’ll be better in the long term too as it’s way more convenient for the bunny to hop out on their own. Most bunnies don’t like being picked up anyway so it’ll be quite traumatic for them to be lifted out every single day and then put back again. Either that or you can ditch the cage and opt to house her in the pen instead. How big is your pen? If it’s small she will need more space to run and exercise eventually, once she settles in.

Sit with her but ignore her. Don’t touch her. You can read up on more stuff under the BUNNY INFO section, that helps a lot

[sarahthegemini]

Don’t worry, bunnies are actually pretty forgiving. Just give her a bit of time to settle, continue not picking her up and eventually she’ll realise that she is safe around you

I too tried picking my rabbits up when I first got them. I think it’s a mistake everyone makes, especially if they are new to rabbit ownership. Don’t beat yourself up about it. She’ll come round in time

[Sofia]

No need to stress it’s completely normal for every rabbit to be a little scared when they come to a new place. You just need to spend a lot of time with them. I’ve had my bun for about 8 months and she still doesn’t like me that much. It can take a while to gain their trust.

[Wick & Fable]

I always like to share my experience with Wick in these scenarios. I got Wick at 8 weeks old and at 11 weeks old, I took him to the vet for sneezing. He had a URI, so twice a day, every day for three months straight, I had to force feed him gross antibiotics via syringe. I’d also harass his face to clean nasal discharge with towels.

Despite all this, he has really bonded with me because there’s no reason outside those situations that he has to dislike me. So take a deep breath and remember that as long as you’re giving him the best conditions and love, your rabbit will warm up. Some rabbits take a lot longer than others, but just be patient.

Also, it’s very hard to correctly sex baby rabbits, so if they are younger than 6 months old and do not have distinct testes, it’s a toss up that they could be a male or female.

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.

[Deleted User]

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[kurottabun]

You. Must. Resist.

Lol it’s difficult but it’s really better long term and more worth it. Each time you pick her up, you may be extending the wait for her to trust you by another day (or week – think about that!).

Even when she fully trusts you, you shouldn’t really pick her up unless it’s necessary as 90% of rabbits don’t like to be cuddled that way. She could be the 10%, but by default, probability will be against you. Rabbits are not cuddly animals and as a responsible owner, we should always respect their boundaries  Always remember that rabbits are prey animals and in the wild, and the only reason why they will ever be lifted off the ground is when a predator gets them (and eats them after), so although rabbits have been domesticated, this will still be their natural instinct when someone picks them up.

[sarahthegemini]

Posted By loppielop1 on 6/23/2018 10:02 AM

She got her first whiff of manderine today and it was the cutest thing! I still am not going to feed her any fruits or veges yet but it’s nice to know she is interested and that I can possibly use these treats for training and as bribery to like me haha. I’ve been hearing her teeth grinding while being pet lately which makes me really happy and hopeful so fingers crossed she trusts me more in time! I think i’m just super impatient and can’t help but wanting to pick her up (admittedly i’m still doing it lol…..) and hold her because she’s so darn cute

Erm, what?  You already know she doesn’t like it, what’s your excuse? I’m sorry but you have just proved that you do not respect her boundaries or take them seriously. 

[Bladesmith]

It’s taken us a year and a half to get Dawn to tolerate us. Patience is REQUIRED. Every time you violate the rabbit’s bounderies, you not only go back to Zero, you end up in the negatives.

If you want the rabbit to trust you, STOP breaking it’s trust. I know it sounds ridiculous, but the more you try to love on it, the less it will love you. Back off, let the bunny set the pace, or you’re going to end up with a rabbit that will never trust you and will fight you every step of the way.

[GlennTheLionhead]

Like others have said resist picking her up and instead when she’s looking cute and you want some bunny love, just sit next to her and pet her on the floor. Bunny’s love to be pet and if she starts associating you with nice pets rather than scary hand picking her up your much more likely to build a good relationship

[Deleted User]

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[kurottabun]

Is there any specific reason why you want her upstairs? Since she’s quite new, it may be better to keep her in the same area for a while so she gets used to it. Constantly transporting her up and down may confuse her and she will take longer to warm up that way.

Yes you can let her hop into a big cat bed and carry her if that’s necessary (but in this case it doesn’t sound necessary), but make sure she’s not the kind who would jump out of it as she would hurt herself if she did.

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