I need help picking up my rabbit!

[Comet-and-me]

I have had my rabbit for 2 months and he is 5 months old. He is neutered.

I have his cage in my room so he is very familiar with people, noise, and my dogs. He is very social, seems to enjoy pets and crawls into my lap. However, he hates being picked up. I understand that he is probably just the kind of rabbit that doesn’t like being handled off the ground, but I need to find a way to pick him up out of his cage without hurting himself or me (Not because he is aggressive, but because he flails and scratches himself)

I could really use any suggestions in how to handle him without him panicking, Thank you! 

[KatieP]

Hey there!
Rabbits are prey animals and therefore do not like being picked up. That is an instinct and at best a rabbit will tolerate it but they don’t like it. It is really best if you can find ways around picking him up (now obviously there are times when you NEED to and he’ll just have to deal with that but I would try to keep that to a less often occurrence rather than an everyday thing). Depending on your cage setup, you can either rig it so that all you do is open a door and he can hop in and out or if the cage is elevated, make him a ramp/steps. I have used cardboard boxes with cheap low pile business

[KatieP]

(Whoops on phone and hit submit) – business carpet glued to the top for traction. So one or more next to each other can act like stairs. For a ramp, you can get a pine plank from HD or Lowes and staple business carpet to it. Super easy to do! . Hopefully something like this will work out for you!

[LBJ10]

Are you wanting to pick him up for the purpose of getting him and out of the cage? If so, then I agree with Katie. You should find a way for him to get in and out unassisted.

However, I’m a firm believer in trying to get bunnies accustomed to being picked up every once in awhile. There have been cases where people have been completely hands off and then they had difficulty grabbing their bunnies during an emergency situation. You also need to be able to pick them up for other things like nail clipping, grooming, medicating, etc. They are never going to like being picked up, but it’s good to have a little bit of tolerance built up.

With mine, I practiced picking them up and then giving them a treat. I put my hands on their sides when they are sitting on the floor and I scoop them up so one hand is on their chest and one is supporting their butt. I turn them so their paws are on my chest and I hold them close to my body. Being able to look over my shoulder seems to help. This is very brief and then they get a treat. To put the down, I have come up with a way that reduces struggling. I crouch down while still holding them to my chest and allow my thighs to form a little platform. I let them slide down until they are sitting on my thighs and let them go. They will turn around and hop down to the floor on their own. No more struggling or thrashing.

[Author]

Messages