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Rabbits and mirrors

Pie

Warren Veteran
I have just got a new full length mirror and Pie just seems mildly interested but pretty aloof with it. She is a single house bun so thought she'd be alittle bit more unsure of who the (rather pretty) other bunny was. But it got me thinking about my equine behaviour courses - can they tell that that is their reflection or do they just not care if there is potentially another bunny in their territory?

How does your rabbit(s) react to mirrors? Would like to see any pictures or stories. :wave:
 
Will a Siamese story do?? When my old Siamese cat,Lloyd, saw himself, he bushed up like a bog brush!! Hissed and spat.......he was only a baby at the time.
 
Flash was completely fascinated by it. He used to love it, laid by it, looked at it, everything.

None of mine get to see one anymore though.
 
Both my rabbits have sat in front of my floor mirrors admiring themselves :lol: they don't seem to act like they've seen another rabbit so maybe they do recognise that it's them? I'm sure I've read somewhere before that young rabbits might think it's another rabbit though, only when they're a bit older that they recognise that it's them but not I'm not sure if that's true or not? I've recently started using mirrors behind my cage as Peanut is deaf (pretty sure she is), this seems to really help as she can see us even when she has her back to us, no more jumping when we move off the sofa! :D

I do have a picture but it's on my computer at home so I can't post it up until later.
 
My sister's rabbits. :)

IMG00135-20101130-1843.jpg


Love this picture. :D
 
The first time Pie saw a mirror when she was a baby she wouldnt go near it for ages and eventually crept up and gave her reflection a nudge on the nose :lol:
 
Mine ignore mirrors. Personally I don't think they are able to view the reflection as another rabbit, as it doesn't have a scent. Prob the most they can do is think "ooooh, something moving, how odd".

I think I read that the only animals capable of recognising themselves in mirrors, are dolphins :)
 
Chimps, gorillas and elephants can too.

Actually I think that, along with dolphins, they're the only ones who can, as far as it has been demonstrated by research. Other animals usually think it's another animal of the same species.
Mango and Maia usually don't think much of the mirror. They give it a brief glance in passing and then scurry away.
 
After reading this I bought a mirror down for Oscar. After his initial stomping at his reflection and sniffing at it, he decided it was much more fun to chew the wooden frame :roll: :lol::lol:
 
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