rabbit restraint

[Sunny]

i think this could go here? i don’t think it would quite fit into behavior, so i guess i’ll just put it here.

today i did a bit of extra reading on nail trimming and decided i would try to trim Sienna’s nails. i didn’t get very far.

my plan was to make her into a bunny burrito using a blanket, but ever since i got her she’s been terrified of blankets and towels. i think it’s because she associates them with being picked up – her last owner would set one over her face or over her back to calm her and/or prevent kicking. i’m not sure if it’s the handling itself that made her afraid, or if it’s the way the owner held her that made her fearful. all i know is that rabbits generally don’t like being handled.

point is i couldn’t get her to be calm while i was putting the blanket over her. i had tried to introduce her to blankets in a better way once, but that was just once, which is probably why she still didn’t seem too excited to have one on her. when i managed to put on the blanket that one time i completely covered her back with the blanket and she sat there with it on for a few seconds before crawling out. today she would jump every time the fabric touched her and would run away from me. i chased her for a few minutes before deciding that wasn’t going to work. 

my next plan was to make a bunny burrito the “right” way. i lured her onto a blanket with pellets and while she was there i would place my hand over her eyes and head and hold her there so i could start tucking the blanket around her. after a few tries she knew what i was doing and would start kicking. i’m a bit of a wuss when it comes to animals being in distress (despite hoping to be an exotic vet in the future) and so every time i would let her go. i’m just too afraid to hold her in place. i’ve also never tried to pick her up, so i’m not sure what i was even expecting to get done. 

after i struggled a bit Sienna wouldn’t even let me pet her. she would jump out of my lap or flinch every time i touched her. i let her hop away from me before i put the rest of the pellets in her cage and put everything else away. i haven’t really tried to pet her since, but i’m not sure how she’ll act.

does anyone else deal with the same sort of fear of hurting or scaring their pet? does anyone have useful tips on restraining a rabbit?
 i would get Sienna’s nails clipped at a vet’s – i have before, and it wasn’t expensive at all – but i would rather do it myself and save 15 dollars that i suppose don’t really need to be spent.

[LBJ10]

Burritos never worked for either of mine. Leopold is fairly easy when it comes to nail trimming. I set him on my lap, rock him back so he’s sitting on his rump with his back feet sticking up… all while curling my body forward so he’s squished between my hand on his chest and my boobs. LOL His back feet are just right there, so it’s snip snip snip. The front feet, I have to kind of hold them up while I’m snipping.

Wooly, on the other hand, does not want his feet touched under ANY circumstances. ANY. My best option is to place him on top of the washing machine and try to pull his feet out one by one. All of this while practically having to look at his nails while upside down. So yes, if he happens to be at the vet, I don’t hesitate to ask them to cut his nails. WAY easier. But then it takes 3 vet techs to hold him down. *sigh*

[Sunny]

sounds like quite a bit of trouble to go through just to trim Wooly’s nails, lol.

maybe Sienna’s completely intolerant of blankets like he is with having his feet touched. 

[Author]

Messages