Rabbit Owner Chat V.2

[Dragonhorse]

My dogs love to lick my rabbits... Ginger will sit there and lick their ears... I don't think they particularly enjoy it.

My dog also loves to lick my rabbit! Poor Nova is three pounds of bratty Mini Rex, and Zoe is a giant pitbull who wants to lick her every chance she gets. She doesn't like getting wet. xD

[Thehellsahufflepuff]

what’s up rabbits are often considered rodents y’all

[Star_Bun]

what’s up rabbits are often considered rodents y’all

They are actually lagamorphs(idk if I spelled that correctly)!! As their digestive system and body plan is different than rodents. A big factor of telling the difference is that rabbits eat their own special poop to get the most nutrients out of their food and most rodents don't eat hay. So while people call them rodents they are anything but!

And a question to my fellow rabbit owners, its been months since I got Curie and I've made almost no progress with being able to pick her up (to get her in her carrier or move her somewhere) and she absolutely won't let me clip her nails even though I've tried many different approaches. I plan on getting her spayed as soon as I have enough money for it, will it calm her down ever so slightly to even just be able to clip her nails? Has anyone's rabbits had a change in behavior after getting fixed? It's a silly question I know qwq

[Ancient Frost]

what’s up rabbits are often considered rodents y’all

They are actually lagamorphs(idk if I spelled that correctly)!! As their digestive system and body plan is different than rodents. A big factor of telling the difference is that rabbits eat their own special poop to get the most nutrients out of their food and most rodents don't eat hay. So while people call them rodents they are anything but!

And a question to my fellow rabbit owners, its been months since I got Curie and I've made almost no progress with being able to pick her up (to get her in her carrier or move her somewhere) and she absolutely won't let me clip her nails even though I've tried many different approaches. I plan on getting her spayed as soon as I have enough money for it, will it calm her down ever so slightly to even just be able to clip her nails? Has anyone's rabbits had a change in behavior after getting fixed? It's a silly question I know qwq

My rabbits aren't fixed because I am breeding them but many of the sites I saw while doing research said that fixing rabbits calms them down and makes them more docile.

[.sins.]

what’s up rabbits are often considered rodents y’all

They are actually lagamorphs(idk if I spelled that correctly)!! As their digestive system and body plan is different than rodents. A big factor of telling the difference is that rabbits eat their own special poop to get the most nutrients out of their food and most rodents don't eat hay. So while people call them rodents they are anything but!

And a question to my fellow rabbit owners, its been months since I got Curie and I've made almost no progress with being able to pick her up (to get her in her carrier or move her somewhere) and she absolutely won't let me clip her nails even though I've tried many different approaches. I plan on getting her spayed as soon as I have enough money for it, will it calm her down ever so slightly to even just be able to clip her nails? Has anyone's rabbits had a change in behavior after getting fixed? It's a silly question I know qwq

I myself have never fixed a rabbit. I use them for show and breeding for food, so that's mainly why. Might I suggest always wearing long sleeves, unless you dont mind looking like you put your arm in a blender, and whenever you can always pet her, like when shes in her pen or whatever you have. Do not be scared, just wear protection layers, yes youre going to get bitten and scratched by even the most docile of animals, but constantly working with her even if just doing something as simple as if she lets you pet her, giver her a slice of carrot, or catnip, whatever... It's always going to take time, and sometimes they, just like us dont like moving to a new house and take awhile to get comfortable.

Another thing, is look up videos on how ARBA judges flip rabbit onto their back and practice on a stuffed animal. If you do it right, they wont kick too bad and it kind of immobilizes them much like dogs and cats, and ask someone to help you clip the nails. I've had to do that a few times with some of my more rambunctious babes. I know some vets should be able to clip her nails as well. I know it costs money, but if they seem to be getting really out of control, that is always an option.

Just got to show her you dont mean to hurt her, so treats are always a good thing, just make sure they're something that wont make her 'sick' or actually sick.

[beautifulglitter]

what’s up rabbits are often considered rodents y’all

They are actually lagamorphs(idk if I spelled that correctly)!! As their digestive system and body plan is different than rodents. A big factor of telling the difference is that rabbits eat their own special poop to get the most nutrients out of their food and most rodents don't eat hay. So while people call them rodents they are anything but!

And a question to my fellow rabbit owners, its been months since I got Curie and I've made almost no progress with being able to pick her up (to get her in her carrier or move her somewhere) and she absolutely won't let me clip her nails even though I've tried many different approaches. I plan on getting her spayed as soon as I have enough money for it, will it calm her down ever so slightly to even just be able to clip her nails? Has anyone's rabbits had a change in behavior after getting fixed? It's a silly question I know qwq

I myself have never fixed a rabbit. I use them for show and breeding for food, so that's mainly why. Might I suggest always wearing long sleeves, unless you dont mind looking like you put your arm in a blender, and whenever you can always pet her, like when shes in her pen or whatever you have. Do not be scared, just wear protection layers, yes youre going to get bitten and scratched by even the most docile of animals, but constantly working with her even if just doing something as simple as if she lets you pet her, giver her a slice of carrot, or catnip, whatever... It's always going to take time, and sometimes they, just like us dont like moving to a new house and take awhile to get comfortable.

Another thing, is look up videos on how ARBA judges flip rabbit onto their back and practice on a stuffed animal. If you do it right, they wont kick too bad and it kind of immobilizes them much like dogs and cats, and ask someone to help you clip the nails. I've had to do that a few times with some of my more rambunctious babes. I know some vets should be able to clip her nails as well. I know it costs money, but if they seem to be getting really out of control, that is always an option.

Just got to show her you dont mean to hurt her, so treats are always a good thing, just make sure they're something that wont make her 'sick' or actually sick.

Tonic immobility should NEVER be used for anything less than infrequent, life-saving diagnostic purposes (like radiography). It puts the rabbit into a well-documented (through both behavioral and physiological measurements) state of stress and fear, and it is wrong to do so for grooming or other general handling purposes. ARBA is a horrible organization that propagates outdated, scientifically incorrect, and flat-out inhumane care standards (I mean, they say you should never feed any greens, or even hay?? And that a 2x2 cage is "humane" for a large rabbit to spend its entire life in? And that rabbits should generally never have a companion? ALL are incorrect or even dangerous to health, and any rabbit vet will tell you that).


@Star_Bun, many have found this video useful for nail clipping! The "burrito" method is also fairly popular, but can take 2 people until you get the hang of it- I've personally never liked it, the whole wrapping process felt more stressful than it was worth. The most important thing to remember is to try and stay calm yourself (though I know that can be hard to do). Spaying does help calm them down in general, but to be totally honest it will probably not help with nail trimming/picking up that much- simple repetition to get the bun (and you) more comfortable with the process is your best bet. As soon as you pick her up, make sure to hold her securely against you, and after she is calm, you can set her down and give her a super awesome reward like banana. And I can't stress this enough, try to be as calm as possible- rabbits are really sensitive to emotions, and if you're nervous or flustered it will make the whole thing harder. It's hard, but when I started to get confident about picking my bun up and stopped stressing about hurting her, combined with frequent handling for meds, I think it really helped! In the end, your bun will probably never enjoy being picked up, but you should hopefully get to the point where you can do it if need be. Good luck!

[Blueberry]

Not a rabbit owner myself, but I have a few questions.

A couple weeks ago, I moved into my new place. It didn’t take me long to notice that several rabbits had taken over the neighborhood that I lived in. When I questioned my neighbor, she explained that during Easter (she didn’t specify which year) that several parents had bought their children pet rabbits. At somebody point, the families grew tired of caring for them and released them. Into the neighborhood. I was infuriated when I heard about it.

I’ve only seen a couple adults, but I’ve seen a fair share of baby/younger rabbits running around. Additionally, the domestic rabbits appear to have merged with a group of wild rabbits. (Fluffy caramel rabbits / Wild brown rabbits). The distinction is pretty evident. Anyway, I tried offering one of the rabbits lettuce and he didn’t seem very interested. (I want them eat something more nutritious than grass). With winter closing in, I can’t help but worry about them. Should I attempt to build/buy them a shelter? Or will they be fine on their own?

[Ancient Frost]

Not a rabbit owner myself, but I have a few questions.

A couple weeks ago, I moved into my new place. It didn’t take me long to notice that several rabbits had taken over the neighborhood that I lived in. When I questioned my neighbor, she explained that during Easter (she didn’t specify which year) that several parents had bought their children pet rabbits. At somebody point, the families grew tired of caring for them and released them. Into the neighborhood. I was infuriated when I heard about it.

I’ve only seen a couple adults, but I’ve seen a fair share of baby/younger rabbits running around. Additionally, the domestic rabbits appear to have merged with a group of wild rabbits. (Fluffy caramel rabbits / Wild brown rabbits). The distinction is pretty evident. Anyway, I tried offering one of the rabbits lettuce and he didn’t seem very interested. (I want them eat something more nutritious than grass). With winter closing in, I can’t help but worry about them. Should I attempt to build/buy them a shelter? Or will they be fine on their own?

Winter usually isn't much of a problem for rabbits. Especially free ones because they can build burrows. Also, letace isn't very good for rabbits and grass is great for them. That is what hay is, dried grass.

[Star_Bun]

@everyone
Thank you for the advice! Me and my bun have a pretty strong relationship other than picking her up. Of course I'm not spaying her only to calm her down, it'll also be for the health benefits and to one day get her a bun friend. I'll just have to keep working on everything and hopefully she'll get used to it enough to tolerate it.

@Coffee;
I would see about contacting animal control or a local rabbit rescue(a rescue may be more willing to help) and getting those bun out of the wild. They may be surviving but they are not thriving. They have different nutritional needs than wild rabbit because although they look similar they are genetically different from years of domestication(they can't even breed with wild buns) the grass they are eating now is not enough to complete their needs and they are probably suffering from fleas and mites. Romaine lettuce is actually great for them, but iceberg lettuce does nothing for them so it really depends on the lettuce.

[Ancient Frost]

How soon do rabbits usually exhibit nesting behavior? I have a pregnant doe who started nesting way earlier then I think would be normal. I put a nest box into she had a place to start building it. But I'm wondering why it was so early (Day 20).