Spenser very timid?

Spenser has never liked being handled, but has got worse than ever. For a while he was doing better, and in fact when I have got him up he is OK at least for travelling from hutch to run, but it's taking longer to pin him down (not literally) in the hutch. He runs between all four side walls, upstairs and downstairs. This is absolutely fine if he is playing a game, but from his wide-eyed expression I think he is actually frightened of me. He still likes being petted, but only if all four paws are on the ground and he is in the mood.

Cutie-pie hates being handled.

She runs like mad if I happen to be in the hallway at the same time she is. Even if I put my hand under the bed she will hop to the other side of Sunshine.

I thought I had a break through a few weeks after I got her. She started following me around the flat, in the bathroom and everywhere. I could hand fed her too.

Then I got her spayed. Its like she never forgave me for it. She won't come anywhere near me now. That was 3 months ago.

Barn Yard Bunnies said:

Cutie-pie hates being handled.

She runs like mad if I happen to be in the hallway at the same time she is. Even if I put my hand under the bed she will hop to the other side of Sunshine.

I thought I had a break through a few weeks after I got her. She started following me around the flat, in the bathroom and everywhere. I could hand fed her too.

Then I got her spayed. Its like she never forgave me for it. She won't come anywhere near me now. That was 3 months ago.

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Aww that's sad. Neutering is supposed to make them more relaxed, but it seems not to have worked for Spenser and Cutie-Pie. I didn't have Spenser as a baby, and suspect he wasn't handled much in his early months. All the same, he's been here over a year now and you would have think he might have worked out I'm not going to do anything bad to him.

Roger has been with me for nearly three years (September the 5th) and when he arrived he was absolutely petrified and literally ran in a bland panic. Over the first few months he learned I could be trusted, learnt to hand feed, etc, but he has retained he fear of hands, and that is what it is for him. I'm never going to beat that few, we're just going to work around it.

I'm found that the calmer I am and the more definite I am, then the better it is because the first time he runs, that's it, he will run in a panic. So I always make sure that I handle him in a situation where he is unable to run away from me. I have to make sure I'm calm and not worried about his reaction or anything at all, and just be positive about what I do. He doesn't like it, but it doesn't prompt the panic reaction and he deals with it much better.

Roger is also defintely better whenever he has a friend or two. He's only ever had friendly friends, but I imagine a nervous friend would be detrimental to him.

I also think breaking the habit is important too, uch as blocking off the ramp, the bed area, if appropriate, etc, so that there is only a smaller space available to move in.

Sox WON'T be lifted/handled, its physically impossible. (I was soooo shocked when Lilah actually snuggled up into my neck while I was cleaning her bum:shock:NEVER before have I had a bunny cuddle.) I've had him since he was 8 weeks old and even at that age I couldn't lift him I tried everyday and it just made him more frightened of me every time I try he runs into the corner, thumps his feet madly, starts breething really fast and looks like he's having some sort of bunny panic attack But neutering did make him more friendly, he'll now voluntarily sit on my knee, EVEN when I don't have food! :shock::lol: and he licks me an awful lot more .

Sky-O said:

I'm found that the calmer I am and the more definite I am, then the better it is because the first time he runs, that's it, he will run in a panic. So I always make sure that I handle him in a situation where he is unable to run away from me. I have to make sure I'm calm and not worried about his reaction or anything at all, and just be positive about what I do. He doesn't like it, but it doesn't prompt the panic reaction and he deals with it much better.

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I agree with this completely. It's how I have to deal with Bunny. When I first got him, I used to dilly-dally around, not wanting to upset him, but the longer I spent trying to catch him, the more panicked we both got. I have since learned that doing it quickly and firmly (by 'firmly' I mean determinedly, no messing around, just doing it). It may be a bit scary for him for a moment, but he is so quickly into my arms and able to be calmed that I think he is much better off this way.

My 2 are very unkeen on it too. Nena will sit still for about 10 secs before wriggling like a mad-woman and Tapla just gets terrified. So I try not to handle them

When are you catching Spenser? If it's something like moving him from hutch to run, could you get a tube to do it? mine love their runaround tube and it stops me having to stress them I also have the normal tube on and it's flexible enough for me to position it in about 4-6 different places, so no worries about ruining the grass

If it's to go into his carrier, I know it's obvious but can he see it? Mine get extra scared when they see it, so now I have someone standing round the corner with the carrier and I can just plop them in.

Spose both of those are obvious but still

Not sure what to suggest sorry but sorry to hear you think that Beano is terrible for being lifting, but not in a timid way in an agressive way. She will grunt, lunge bite and when my hands are near her to lift her she'll spin round and put her front paws up and scratch/bite my hands away. Once she has been put down again she'll sit and wash, kick her back feet at me for ages with a face of most disaproval at the previous perfomance. I'm trying to work on her terms to see if there's a way she will let me pick her up, she's fine once she's in my arms. I wouldn't say Gordon likes being picked up, but he's fine with it. Will sit nicely and just let me pick him up and put him down again no fuss. xx

Susie-bun will Spenser let you give him nose rubs?

My foster bun Connie is very skittish about being held, so I do all the things Sky-O suggests - block the ramp, behave confidently etc., and then slowly stroke her head and talk to her. As I stroke her nose I cover her eyes while I'm doing it then use my other hand to slide underneath her and pick her up very quickly!

It takes a bit of practice but this works ok for us

I'll try blocking the ramp. What's puzzling/upsetting me is that we had been making progress. :? I am much more comfortble at handling him, and he was beginning to be more accepting. I've never been able to check his bum. Any attempt to do so turns him into a furry dervish - he's a very strong rabbit and kicks furiously when you try to turn him over.

I think she may have had a scary experience that gas unsettled her (visitors, a fox sniffing her run....?). Both of ours are skittish - one more so than the other, and their bahaviour changes when sth unsettles them, such as noisy children coming to the house. At some stage we were coaxing them onto our laps with food, and the shy one was clambering all over us to get the pellets. Then summer came along and we started putting her in the run once a day, so she started running away from us. Then we decided to give them a permanent outdoor home, so that they don't have to be moved. They went into the shed one week ago and our shy rabbit found this move quite unsettling: now she thumps and hides as soon as we appear. Getting better though.