strange foot movments

[bunnycutie]

 what does it mean when buttons flicks his back feed out while he hops? and im noticing this after handling and showman ship pratice(for 4-h shows) and ummm…all the time. also, his behivor changed again. gahhh! he WAS my baby, always there, always happy and sweet and he loved me. then it was humpy, and now ignorance? what next?SUICIDE? now he wants NOTHING to do w/ me. no kisses anymore and he doesn’t want to talk to me at all. or be with me. nothing. the only thing i get is a foot flick. he gets good food, fresh water, clean housing, toys, playtime…. what am i doing wrong???

 

will the upcoming neuter fix these mood swings? 

 

will my sweet baby boy ever come back? i never thought he would never make me feel like this. i feel like a crappy owner.  he HATES me now.

[Balefulregards]

He was giving you the equivalent of the rabbit “Finger” with the foot flicks.

Not to worry – I got them today too for checking the neuter to make sure everything looks good. Coco rarely gives me flicks – except when I have tranced her to do anal glands and she is VERY, VERY offended.

Jackson gives them to me all the time, but we are only a week plus into our relationship – which has included looking at his now neutered genitals daily for healing. He also feels very, very offended by this.

I’m not sure if foot flicks are influenced by hormones – or just the human doing something the rabbit finds irksome.
But the other stuff? Yeah, the neuter will help. Remember – he is a total Teen rabbit right now. Totally Emo.

[katie, max & penny]

yeah, foot flicks mean “i am NOT happy with you right now”. today, i leaned over to say hello to max and some of my wet hair dripped on him. and voila, foot flicks.

i might venture to say that he’s not as into showing as you may be… i know you loved it, but his body language may be saying that he didn’t enjoy it.

[bunnycutie]

thanks for the definition of foot flicking. but there’s got to be some other answer (if the answer is showing, he is getting neutered soon, so, that will be done with). it was very hot today (90 degrees) maybe the heat made him upset. because tonight it cooled down alot and he was licking my face and cuddling. all the norm.

 

and bagelful- yea. maybe he’s turning emo on me LOL. if it is hormones, he’s getting neutered as soon as possible(im savin up my money) so that should fix it!

[bunnycutie]

anu other opinions? help?

[bunnycutie]

*any*

[Monkeybun]

He may be expressign hsi dislike for the daily “practice.” He might just not be as into it as you are. Does he flick his feet and ignore you if you dont practice for showing at all?

[bunnycutie]

usually it is after practice(sitting still doesn’t upset him, the flipping does. totally unnatural) sometimes he ignores me even if we didn’t practice at all. we might cut out the showing if he hates it that much.

[Beka27]

Are you still bringing him inside the house during these hot days? I live near you and it’s been way too hot outside for bunnies.

[Monkeybun]

If its right after practice, then yeah, he’s not impressed with it. My monkey HATES being picked up and prodded and flipped and… yeah. She flicks her feet at me if I even go to pet her when she’s not in the mood lol.

[bunnycutie]

maybe thats the problem.

[kralspace]

catching them in the wrong mood will do it. I can see Pringles out and about and just call her name and her royal highness will turn and flip me off before shooting under the bed….lol. Somedays they just can’t be pleased.

[bunnycutie]

ohhh i totally agree. *hmmmm* sorry just cant think of anything else to say.

[Sage Cat]

I sometimes get the foot flip when my buns are being mischievous.
Like when they have just discovered a blueberry in their salad – they run away, foot flipping, to hide under the chair & et in safety.

But, I also get it when I have caught them “not in the mood” to play.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

I get the foot flick too (I’m sure we all have) I usually get it after nail trims/anal gland cleanings or plucking/brushing. Anything that isn’t worshiping at their feet or providing treats pretty much

Here’s a wonderful site that explains a ton about how rabbits communicate and what they are saying to you. Not only does it help you understand but it helps you communicate back, and really strengthens your bond with your pet http://language.rabbitspeak.com/rabbittalk.html

[bunnycutie]

kokaneeandkahula- thanks for the links it very interesting and i am sure it will help alot in the future

[QueenThumper]

I love the Language of Lagomorphs website! It’s especially fun to try to use rabbit body language to better communicate with them!

Ditto all the above about the foot flicks. Your bunny will become more affectionate after the neuter, but don’t expect those foot flicks to be ending anytime soon! It’s their way of communicating their disdain with you, hormones or not. Thumper was spayed a month ago and she still flicks at me after I’ve handled her or after I let her out of her cage (she probably thinks I’ve left her in there too long or something). However, she has gotten a lot more affectionate toward me and others since the spay. She’ll groom my friends in addition to me and no longer lunges or grunts when I try to pick her up.

[bunnytowne]

Ahhh bunnycutie the good ol foot flick.   Sign of an irritated rabbit.  lol. 

Neuter will help however they still give foot flicks when annoyed and running away from you.  IT should settle down 2 months after spay I mean neuter.  

[Kafrn]

I cant believe this!!! I have been so wrong for so long about my bunnies
my rabbits are let out of their pens for about 4 hours a day. they are allowed inside and also outside on our back yard. as soon as we let them out they race outside to the lawn, and tear around doing these foot flips that you guys are talking about here. I thought it meant that they were happy I thought the foot flips were binkies.
they do it for hours, running and prancing and flipping their feet. Stu even does backflips sometimes on the lawn. Does this mean they are unhappy?
And if the foot flips arent binkies, then what are binkies?!?!?!?!? Im so confused.

[QueenThumper]

They’re not really foot flips so much as foot flicks. It’s similar to when a person is trying to flick the mud off their shoes, and bunnies only do it with their hind legs while they’re trying to get away from you….

If your bunnies are racing around and doing backflips, this definitely means that they’re happy. Binkies are when bunnies are running or hopping and twist their bodies, and if this foot flipping you’re talking about involves running and prancing then I’m guessing they are binkies and not foot flicks.

[Balefulregards]

Yeah – I got flicks after a bonding session today. It is definite, small Flicks. I usually see them in chunks of Three – As in Flick, Flick, Flick. Sit down and ignore you, bad human.

The running – that sounds like full on binkies.

[shlbysmom]

ok what is anal gland cleaning i havent been doin that y is that nessecary (sorry im a horrible speller) and how is it done i have never herd of it lol

[bunnycutie]

i would suggest making a whole seprate post of that- so you can get all the info you nedd! and yes, its pretty important!

[Lara]

Kafrn, imagine that your buns are standing in a big puddle of mud… When they do whatever it is that they’re doing, if you can imagine being directly and deliberately splashed with mud as they run away from you, then they’re the foot flicks. If not, they’re binkies. Hope that makes sense.

[Author]

Messages