Scared after flopping…?

[Wick & Fable]

Wick very rarely flops — perhaps once a month? And when he does reach that pinnacle “C”-flop shape, it’s not usually like you see with videos of rabbits who sort of spontaneously fall on their side — Wick needs to be laying in full relaxation, and with the help of a petting hand, he’ll eventually curl up on his own. So, he always flops from already laying down, instead of the dramatically cute twist to the ground flop.

I’ve noticed that Wick gets very spooked after he flops though. He’s in the position for a couple seconds, then stumbles and sits back up and always hesitates to lounge back down, as if he’s afraid of it happening again?

My initial thought is perhaps because he’s a single bun, he doesn’t realize that that’s a normal rabbit behavior? For additional detail, Wick does not turn over onto his back, so he is not accidentally trancing himself, and it is not anything like a seizure. It’s a simple, “Man, I’m so relaxed and just chilling…….” and then he’ll curl up, snap out of it, and breath heavily and sit wide-eyed until I console him.

Any ideas, thoughts, or similar experiences?

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.

[Asriel and Bombur]

Asriel does this too! He does very dramatic dead flops, but sometimes he will actually roll over almost. The roll over ones freak him out and he has a panic attack the whole way up like omg what did I just do ?

[Q8bunny]

Maybe he gets vertigo and it weirds him out??

[FlemishDad]

Mine does this too! I assume his subconcious is scared something’s going to eat him once it realizes he’s flopped and wakes him up. Gotta watch out for the plush animals loose in the house!

[Dface]

Mine are bonded and Yumi does this. Its like she forgets herself, becomes totally relaxed and chill, and then remembers she is a rabbit, and danger is everywhere. Will often give a displeased grunt and stamp after a particularly gorgeous flop.
Then back to normal, not Peep though. He’s dead to the world when he’s fully flopped.
I think it’s just too do with your rabbits on personality

[DarthVadar]

Rabbits, being prey animals, are almost constantly on the verge of being terrified. Being on his back is an extremely vulnerable position for a rabbit, so flopping, as the rabbit sees it, could be dangerous. After flopping, the bunny remembers this, so sits up quickly and looks around to be sure its safe. While domestic rabbits are domestic, they still have instincts.

[Author]

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