Rabbit is scared of me (and everything else)

[Mirth]

I adopted Daisy (female, maybe 2 years old) around 4 months ago.  The lady at the adoption shelter said that nobody wanted her because of how timid she was.  I got her because my male bun Casper needed a friend, and they did well on the two bunny dates, and I didn’t want to see her be at the shelter forever.

Good news is that I got her and Caspter to bond after about 3 months, they really seem to love each other.

Bad news is she is scared of absolutely everything.  If I walk 8 feet in front of her she runs under the couch or in the bunny hutch.  And if she hears any noise like my roommate coming down the stairs or the dishwasher her ears perk up and the look of in her eyes screams of imminent death or something and runs off.  And she usually stays there,  The only time I can get her near me is when she hears the treat bag, but she’ll grab the treat and retreat!  Casper is nothing like her when it comes to fear and shyness.  

Note: When she was in a smaller area before I had them bonded, 25% of the time she’d let me pet her.  And I think she loves being petted because if I stopped, she would nudge my hand then lay down and let me pet her some more.  But now that they are bonded and she’s free roam (well, she only stays in the carpetted areas of the living room and dining room; she’s too scared to go further onto the wood), she doesn’t let me get near her anymore.

Anyways, now that I got her to bond with Casper I’d like to get her to bond with “me”,  Are there any tips that I can do to slowly gain her trust?

[Mikey]

The space might be too big for her. My Bombur loves small areas and isnt that scared at all in about an 8×8 foot area, but anything bigger than that and every little noise will put him on edge until he calms down. Since you mentioned that she was pretty comfortable in the smaller area, she sounds a bit like my bun. Consider getting a pen for your buns for a while (if your male is ok with it) and increasing the size of it week by week until she grows accustomed to a larger area?

[princessbookworm]

This is probably the most basic, pedestrian technique but when I first got Jake, I immediately began training him to come to me with the command “zup zup!” Initially, I would just say it and then give him a treat (in the beginning that’s how he got all his greens). Then I would have him come farther and farther away from where he was. Then, I did it a few times without treats. Now, he just comes at the command and starts periscoping. Sometimes, he’ll even lay his little head down–anticipating being pet.

I think once Daisy begins to really associate your scent with food and kindness, she’ll be a little less timid. Then again, I’m very new at all this so don’t take my word for it

[LittlePuffyTail]

When I got my Olivia she was very scared of people and everything as well. She hated being touched. Took about a year of me being at her level often (sit on the floor and read, watch tv etc…only pet her when she comes to you. And you can have small treats or pellets on hand for when she comes over to check you out) for her to enjoy my attention. Some rabbits take a long time learning to trust their new person. Don’t get discouraged.

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