My deaf rabbit has become nervous

[Charlotte]

I have two rabbits and generally speaking my girl (who is deaf) is most affectionate. She’s always liked being stroked and is generally fairly easy to pick up. Recently I’ve been trying to bond her with my boy but she has been extremely nervous with me and runs off when I try to stroke or pick her up. I can’t think what may have caused it as it was going on before the bonding started.

I’ve been trying to pick her up everyday to put her in a shared run for bonding. The bonding has been going pretty well and she does lots of binkies when she’s in there – she only seems to have a problem with me!

Could anyone give me advice on regaining her trust?

[Wick & Fable]

Did you recently get the male rabbit?

The nervousness may be stemming from a new rabbit. Even if you were not actively bonding them yet, she most likely immediately sensed and smelled once he entered her space. If you have been trying to pick her up every day to put her in a shared run for bonding, I can definitely imagine she’d want to run away from you now — while we have good intentions when trying to bond rabbits, it is very often a pretty stressful experience for two rabbits to work out a relationship.

There is a template created by BB Forum Leader DanaNM which can give us a better idea of the dynamic between the two. If you’d like some guidance on bonding, it would be helpful to have that information. You’ll find it pinned at the top of the BONDING forum section. Depending on how this topic progresses, I may move it over to that forum section, but we’ll leave it here for now!

So yes, my inkling is that nervousness stems from the male rabbit. Remember that even if they are not physically together, rabbit senses are crazy good.

For regaining her trust, I’d say just continue carrying on as you do, keeping in mind that every time you approach her, try not to limit it to only times you pick her up.

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.

[LBJ10]

I agree with Wick. This probably has nothing to do with you (“personally”) or the fact she is deaf. Sensing an unfamiliar rabbit is enough to put a bunny of edge. In fact, there have even been stories of a bonded pair suddenly fighting because a new bunny was brought home.

[Charlotte]

I have had my male rabbit the longest and they have been in close proximity for quite some time now.

Although thankfully she seems to have relaxed a bit more around me and is becoming more affectionate again.

All seems to be going ok with the bonding at the moment but appreciate the process is stressful on them both. I’ll take a look at the guidance you suggested 😊.

Thanks for the advice!

[Charlotte]

I’ve filled out the template, if there’s anything else you suggest then please do let me know 😊

Spay/Neuter
Are your bunnies spayed/neutered? Yes
If so, for how long (for each)?
Male: 1 year Female: 6 months

Housing
Please describe your bunnies’ current housing set-up (living together, as neighbors, etc.).

Living as neighbours

Bonding background
Did you allow the bunnies to “settle-in”?

Bunnies have lived as neighbours for a few months now

How would you describe your bunnies reactions towards each other (answer for each bunny): shy, scared, curious, calm, aggressive, excited, affectionate, etc.?

During bonding they are both fairly calm. They have been laying down in close proximity to each other and eating together. On a few occasions they have mounted each other but this is usually very brief.

Have you done any “pre-bonding” (cage or litter box swaps, etc.)? No

Have you started sessions yet? Yes

How long have you been working on bonding your bunnies? Consistently for around 2 weeks. I had previously tried bonding them a few months ago but this was put on hold after my female needed vet treatment

How frequently do you have bonding sessions, and how long are they? Almost everyday, sessions last around 30 minutes.

Have you tried any stressing techniques?

None at the moment

[DanaNM]

Agree with other’s that her nervousness was likely due to the smell of the new rabbit! I actually just had something similar happen with my rabbit Myra. We are fostering another rabbit, so she has been kind of on edge already. Then I had left a cat bed in an area that was close to her condo door (actually to block her line of sight to the new rabbit), and for whatever reason she became terrified of my husband! Any move he made would spook her. I had no idea what was going on until I noticed the bed. Moved it somewhere else and she was back to normal. So yes, rabbits are very smell oriented!

It sounds like your bonding process is coming along well given that they are calm and laying near each other. The only thing I might do is start swapping litter boxes or cages every day or two. This can help the rabbits get REALLY used to each other’s scents and lose track of who’s territory is who’s. This might help with her nervousness too (although she might be MORE nervous for a couple days).

 

 

 

. . . 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.  

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