I’ve got a Thumper… how to deal with it.

[So Fluffy Bunny]

So last night, while me and my fiancee were cleaning out the rabbitat, he decided to pick up both of our bunnies.  Laurana is used to this and is allowed down by my fiancee setting her down on the floor.  However, he picked up Tanis last night for a quick snuggle.  I was sitting on the floor and after Tanis got down, he decided to go on a thumping spree and came out of the cage and close to where I was and while looking at me, thumped several times in a row and then moved off to another area within our den and then continued to thump.  While this was going on, I was looking at him, going “its okay, no one is going to hurt you” to our bun. 

Both my fiancee and me have been working with him since he is our rescue bun and we don’t know the full background other than he’s a year old bun but has trust issues.  I can get him to eat some pellets from my hand however its not all the time that he does this.  Is there anything other than not picking up the bun so we don’t cause the thumping to continue and for him to not be so anxious whenever we make a move within the den.  He does however run to the end of the pen whenever we come into the room, and want pets as does Laurana, however he’s more skittish of the two than she is ( she’s been with us since she was eight weeks old). 

Just any suggestions to help decrease the amount of thumping ( or him feeling anxious) would be appreciated. 

[Stickerbunny]

Stickers is a thumper also. She was from a pet store, purchased for a child with disabilities and left in the child’s care.The behavior therapist that worked with the family talked them into letting her rehome the bun, which is where we got her! How exactly she was handled we aren’t sure, but she was in a tiny pet store cage (which is now a litter box for them), wood shavings all over, being fed garbage pellets from wal-mart that looked more like cereal and sticker glue matted to her fur (that we had to get the vet to shave off). When we first got her, I let her out of her cage and coming within arms reach of her caused her to cower low onto her belly and wet herself. So, probably was pretty roughly handled by the kid.

What has worked with her is just letting HER choose what happens. To get her out of an area / into an area, I use food. I let them out to play, then at dinner time, I feed them and they go home (I say they, cause she is now bonded to my other bun). No having to pick her up unless I absolutely need to. Which, I have had to, for grooming and medication (she gets a lot of URIs), so she’s used to being handled, doesn’t fight me too much, but she doesn’t like it, either. Any time I pick her up though, first thing she does is run off, foot flick me and thump to let me know she’s not happy. Craisins tend to help, when she’s like that.

It took probably 2-3 weeks before she’d come anywhere near us. And it’s taken YEARS for her to become able to trust us. So, just be patient. And reassuring. And try to not do anything that will be seen as a threat.

[So Fluffy Bunny]

That makes sense. Both of ours is pretty well bonded and both like treats. I don’t invade their space and well, I get invaded but that’s because I sit on the floor with yummy stuff for both of them. I pick up Laurana for grooming and I try my best with him to brush while he’s interested in whatever I have got for them that night ( mainly lettuce or sometimes half of their pellet serving for the day).

It has taken him nearly two months before he would take anything out of my hand and he does come up to me and most of the time tugs on my jeans while I sit on the floor. Also if I am petting one bun, the other comes up and squishes themselves next to the other so they both get pets at the same time. And we (fiancee and I ) are being patient and reassuring with the buns. 

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