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Jumping

Georgeypudding

Wise Old Thumper
Sebastian is quite an active bunny and I'm wondering if it would be worth giving it ago with him. How do you go about introducing a bunny to jumping, what can I use to start with? Obviously I'm not going to force him to jump but he's a but job and loves running so he might take to it :)
 
Garden canes on bricks/plantpots can be used as small jumps. You've just got to encourage them over, they should soon pick it up :) Start with short training sessions as rabbits get bored and distracted quickly
 
well, to start off with you can set up dome jumps in an area he can free range in. You can use anything really, aslong as its safe if he hits it.
See if he likes to jump over them hiself, if not you can try a reward system. So if he goes over the jump he gets a reward (a treat or something he really likes). If he enjoys the jumping he will learn fast and you will probably see him going over it of his own accourd :love:
 
Could I just lay sticks on the ground to start with then lift them once he's use to it? Do I tempt him with veggies :) he can't free range really, he has a 8x4ft run that he shares with his lady friend Mae and he's harness trained aswell. Should I start in the run or on the harness?
 
what i meant by freerange is just a large area that he can run around safely that you can also go in. but if he is harnessed it doesnt have to be as secure.

You can start with or without the harness. Dosent really matter, just some rabbits prefer un harnessed, others are alot better on the harness.
If you want to do it the treat way, you start with a pole/ stick on the ground, and tempt him over with a treat, give it to him if he goes over.
Once he does that readily you can up the height a little, sometimes you can give him a wee lift over if he needs some help in understanding the idea of jumping it.

let us know how you get on :)
 
Well we started on the harness :) I was tempting or trying to ;) him over the canes with pellets but the dandilions and things were to interesting ;) so we went in the run and MAe did really well and sebastian just tried to eat me :p he did a couple of jumps when I balanced the poles onthier food bowls :) for a first try they did great :)
 
Well we started on the harness :) I was tempting or trying to ;) him over the canes with pellets but the dandilions and things were to interesting ;) so we went in the run and MAe did really well and sebastian just tried to eat me :p he did a couple of jumps when I balanced the poles onthier food bowls :) for a first try they did great :)

That's a good sign :D Some take longer than others to pick it up (Over 2 years with Flash! But two of my Thriantas picked it up in minutes)
 
Glad to here you want to start training your bunny. :) My buns find it great fun! :D This was how I started training Jasper:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GduDEqwjPEY

I had him jumping over tunnels, spades, skate boards and anything else I found in the garden. :lol: I rewarded him with grass and veggies. ;)

This is him now:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lToSqlX6APk
No reward needed, he enjoys it but he still gets one! :lol:

And this is a video of him with my other 2 rabbits, Tinkerbell and Mischief :love:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byBChyF-uVs

It really is great fun for them and you as an owner. :D Jasper was jumping high within a week. Tinkerbell is still getting used to the harness, and Mischief was jumping in his today! :D

Good Luck! :thumb:
 
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Thanks for the videos :) I'll have to upload a video of my two when I get the laptop back from repair ( :'( ) I'm very proud of them, I was so surprised with Mae as she is so nervy and not keen on me still so her co-operating was great, I should of realised that food isnall sebastian thinks of though ;)
 
if you want to see more videos you can check out my channel
http://www.youtube.com/user/Elmbankrabbits

Sounds like a good start. I think you may even find that your nervey bun may become better with you while you work with her.

Thanks I'll look in a bit :D sebastian just jumped his first mini jump :) I did have to steal the carrot top out of his mouth to lure him over though :/ he keeps just knocking them down or just stepping over, what can I do about this?
 
Thanks I'll look in a bit :D sebastian just jumped his first mini jump :) I did have to steal the carrot top out of his mouth to lure him over though :/ he keeps just knocking them down or just stepping over, what can I do about this?

its ok if he is just stepping over it. You just want him going over it, and only rewwarding him if he does, he will soon get the idea and do a proper jump
 
Okay :) I'm using a clicker, do I still need to say 'jump' or 'over' or something similar?

when using a clicker you first what them to asociate the click with a reward. So click and give the reward alsmot similtanliosy, so they get the idea. Then you can start to click and reward whenever he goes over the pole. Might take a while for him to understand but eventully you will probably see him thinking about it and doing it to get the treat. Then you can add a voice cue, first just saying it the moment he jumps, then you can try saying the word and seeing if he jumps for it.
Whenenver they hear a click they must get a rewad so this means you can only clicker train with one bunny at a time. So if you want both rabbits to be clicker trained you would have to seperate them off into different rooms were the other cant hear the click while training/ using the clicker. Now some rabbits wont be too happy with that so if not you will have to decide which one you want to clicker train.
You dont have to use a clicker though, you can just reward when they jump over, or have a treat or something ready at the other side of the jump that they can get.

oh here is a helpfull website
http://www.clickerbunny.com/
 
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