Help:'((

[Cupcake~]

It took forever (over a year) to build the bond that I had with my rabbit Cupcake and she was starting to like me, our bond was becoming strong…
But a few days ago my brother FREAAKKEDD OUTTT and made SO MUCH NOISE screaming yelling throwing things I begged him to stop and it lasted hours.
Now Cupcake is down right TERRIFIED of me and I feel like I’ve lost our bond completely :”(( what do I do? It took forever to get to the point we were and now she’s even more scared of me then when I first adopted her. I’ve been balling my eyes out.. if our bond isn’t completely destroyed I think it’ll take just as long if not longer to get back to where we were

[Wick & Fable]

I’m sorry to hear that this happened! Some people are not as considerate to prey animals as others. You’ll need to start from the ground up to rebuild the trust. Rabbits are forgiving and no bond is broken forever as long as you have kind intent and food to provide.

In the future, you may want to assimilate Cupcake to louder noises. Maybe have the TV playing slightly louder for periods of time when you can console her (not blaring so she’s scared, but so she habituates to some volume of noise consistently). I watch a lot of comedic Youtube videos, where people have edited their videos to spontaneously include the loud horn sound or goat screaming. This used to jolt Wick when it started, but now he’s used to the Youtube shenanigans, haha.

Be calm and know that Cupcake will come around as long as your patient. Although it’s tempting, don’t be too aggressive with rekindling the bond. Go at Cupcake’s pace.

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.

[Krayl]

Rabbits are very social animals and they have a tremendous capacity to forgive. I’m sure that if you stay calm and offer her treats and love she’ll come back around pretty soon. As long as she didn’t get physically hurt by you, I believe she’ll soon realize that a year of calm happiness was the norm and this was a one time disturbance. Bunnies thrive on patience and affection and it sounds like you have a lot of those to give 

[Cupcake~]

I know every bunny is different but how long do you think it would take.. meaning do you think it takes as long for a bunny to forgive and re-bond then as if starting from square one?

[Cupcake~]

And there is a whole lot of loud noise and anger in my house very often (not to this extent but..) she’s never been //this// way before

[Krayl]

It’s just my opinion, but I really don’t think it’s going to take very long. In the grand scheme of things you’ve been WAY better for her over a year of her life than one day of shock. As long as you don’t physically harm them, and you don’t shock them often, then I believe a one-off incident like this will normalize pretty quickly. Honestly, I’d be surprised if she isn’t coming around within a week. The important thing is not to force it. Don’t reach in and pull her out of her safe place to pick her up and hug her. She needs to calm down right now and remember that most of the time, you’re a great person to hang around. And whatever that craziness was… it’s gone now. And it’s time to get back to treats and cuddles. Just be patient, spend time near her, let her see you from her safe place. Speak to her gently and offer treats and I think she’ll come back to you pretty fast.

[Bam]

I agree it probably won’t take very long.

[Author]

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