Nature vs Nurture

[marina]

Hi everyone!

I am bringing home a very young dwarf bunny (will be about 9 weeks) from a rescue. 

I am a dog and horse trainer, but I have never owned a rabbit. To cut to the chase, I am very excited, but also worried because I have no idea what to expect. I have read articles of people having very outgoing rabbits, to bunnies that hide or show aggression whenever they walk in the room.  It seems that many people attribute this to the rabbit’s personality instead of how they were raised and socialized. Interestingly I know that with other domesticated prey animals, socialization is key to a well rounded confident animal. 

 I have done lots of research on rabbit behavior, from people saying to handle them regularly and interact to get them socialized, but also obviously going at the animal’s pace here and not overwhelming them. But I’ve also heard an overwhelming amount of bunny owners on the opposite end advising to never pick up the rabbit unless you have to because they absolutely hate it due to being prey animals.  

I would be very interested to hear from people who have had their rabbits from a young age and which approach that they took in raising their rabbit and the behavioral outcome of that rabbit.

Thank you everyone in advance for your input!

 

[Q8bunny]

Upon arriving in a new home, buns should get at least one week to themselves to adjust – be near them (preferably floor level) and let them hear your voice, but try not to handle them unnecessarily. If they want to hide in their little cardboard box, let them.

Socialization and handling to prepare for necessities like grooming and wellness checks is vital. But ‘train’ them at their own pace. They’ll let you know how much is too much. Essentialy with buns, it’s always better to let their curiosity make them come to you in time

I don’t know if this helps, and I’m assuming you’ll be getting a juvenile bunny.

Bunnies often have very strong personalities. Some are putty and others scrappy when picked up. But even though most buns don’t enjoy being held, there will guaranteed be situations when you’ll need to safely pick up and hold or carry your bun in your arms. So it’s best to try and practice as much as possible. My guy still hates it and we have to groom at the vet’s. And I’m convinced it’s because for the first three months of his life, he was barely around humans, let alone touched.

[Sirius&Luna]

I have three bunnies. I’ve had them all from babies, and have obviously treated them all the same. They all have ENTIRELY different personalities. One will stand on his hind legs and ask to be picked up whenever you walk past. Then he’ll hop up and sit on your shoulder, lick your nose, generally want a lot of interaction. One has an absolute panic whenever I try to pick him up but is happy to hop up onto the sofa and interact with you and hop all over you. One tolerates it but sulks after, but will also snuggle up to you for pets when she feels like it. I really think it is a nature thing, and they definitely do have their own personalities. That said, I think bunnies that people call aggressive are normally scared bunnies. You can definitely help them to feel confident about humans being around them.

[kurottabun]

NIMBUSSS <3 (Sorry @marina, I got distracted for a bit but you should totally check out S&L's Instagram @sirius_the_bunny)

To answer the question, I think it’s really about striking a balance and also learning to let go of any expectations you have. Often lots of people have a preconceived idea of what they expect the bunny to be, but I think it’s important to steer away from that and just focus on how “your” bunny is, instead of how bunnies “should” be. Try focusing on objective rather than subjective facts, but also allow some room for adaptation according to how “your” bunny rolls because there are always exceptions. I hope that makes sense lol.

I had three bunnies when I was younger and we brought them home at the same time. One of them absolutely loved to nap or cuddle on our lap and didn’t mind being picked up at all. One of them was more independent but also didn’t mind being picked up that much. One of them just preferred loafing all day long.

Fast forward till today, my bunny is not a lap bunny and totally hates being picked up. But since it’s necessary to do that sometimes (e.g removing him quickly from a dangerous area), I had to learn which method makes him tolerate it the most – putting his all fours firmly against my chest instead of a “cup” position that most people recommend when you google “how to pick up a bunny”. That said, Kurotta is still the sweetest thing and is generally a relaxed, curious bun who enjoys pets.

I do think that interaction is important though and prevents the bunny from being skittish around humans.

[Bam]

I think you’ll be fine if you train dogs and horses. The basic principles for learning is the same. A rabbit is more like a horse than a dog, obviously. They are flight animals, they have a very wide field of vision, they turn their back to dangers etc. The major difference is l, apart from the obvious of course, that rabbits are less domesticated, i.e. they retain more “wild” behaviors and instincts. This makes them extra interesting to observe, and rather a lot of what they do doesn’t make sense to humans.

I’m pretty sure you will figure out your bun’s personality pretty quickly, because you’re used to other animals. A baby bunny is different from an adult bun in that it’s much more trusting. Many baby buns like being held and don’t mind being lifted and carried around. Few adult buns accept the same treatment. In very very short, young (wild) animals tend to be neophiliacs, when they mature they have a period of neophobia (“spook age” in dogs), then they remain primarily neophobic but it’s coupled with various degrees of neophilia. You often see a dramatic change in buns around age 4 months.

I too believe social interaction is key, rabbits live in colonies and they interact socially in complex manners. One thing I’ve noticed though, and I think most here agree, is that rabbit’s as a rule need more time to trust you than cats and dogs do. Some individuals require LOTS of time.

Oh well, this is all madly interesting and I could go on and on. Won’t do that ? We have a lovely member, Pink’nwuffy who clicker trains her bun Olaf. You can check out their Instagram @olafbun, it’s very cool and Olaf is ridiculously cute ?

[Azerane]

I just thought I’d add to some already wonderful comments, that buns can also be largely hormone driven. So while a bun may have a particular personality, hormones really can turn some rabbits into defensive, lunging, biting, demons, lol. When they are spayed or neutered that calms way down and allows their real personality to shine through.

Certainly handling while young helps, my previous bun I had from around 12 weeks I believe, he enjoyed being petted but he hated being picked up and handled and would kick and scramble to get away like there was no tomorrow. So I had to train him and work with him to accept being held. And we reached a point where although he still didn’t like it, he would allow me to pick him up and sit quite calming in my arms while I carried him where we needed to go. This was important for me to be able to do. So I do believe they can be trained out of it, and that’s no matter the age. And of course some buns are simply going to be harder to train than others.

As Bam said, as you’re a horse and dog trainer, you’ll be fine. You’ll be used to looking at and reading body language, and picking up subtle cues.

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