Harnesses & Problems when cleaning cage

I was just wondering.... is it too dangerous to put your harness on a lead? I bought this H Harness and it fits my bunny perfectly but he doesn't enjoy it that much. He doesn't struggle or go crazy but I can see that he doesn't exactly LOVE it........ is it worth getting him used to one if it will hurt him???? Do any of you guys use one? He is a house rabbit so he doesn't really spend that much time outside.
Also, does anyone have problems that when you are cleaning your rabbit's cage they get a bit aggressive? I've heard they don't like it when you move around their stuff...
Thanks

Harnesses are not natural, many bunnies will refuse to go near one (i have one) but then others will be fine with it (i have one of those too, but would never use one).
Afraid i can't condone their use.

Regarding the cage, yes, rabbits are territorial creatures many of them will detest their cages being re-arranged. Is your rabbit spayed (female) or neutered (male) ? If not, their territorialism will be much stronger as they are hormonally driven. Having them done by a rabbit savvy vet should help with that.

I have a pro-harness & lead bunny but stopped using it when I learned that if something spooks them they can jump up quickly and snap their neck / back :shock:

That scared me too much! Getting them an outdoor run is the best bet. If you want to "walk" them like a dog, you won't stand a chance anyway. Rabbits don't really walk they just explore their immediate area then hop a few feet to the next part to explore. They won't run around when restricted by a lead in my experience.

In respect of the hutch, yes they will be a bit terrotorial about their stuff being moved. I put mine in their run before I clean out their hutch, that way there's no nipping / biting when I'm removing stuff. It's also much less stressful for them.



PS welcome to the forum! :wave:

Thanks! I think I've made up my mind that I won't put him on a lead! Yes, he is neutered but he still goes a bit crazy (he is an active bunny though, only 7 months). The only problem is that I live in a house but my garden wouldn't be suitable for him.... do you think it would be possible to use a portable rabbit run just for about 2 hours every day???? Also, does my rabbit need to get something against bugs or insects outside?
THis might sound silly but oh well:
I'm going back to Europe for about three weeks....... do you think hell forget who I am?

Heres a good recipe thats also healthy for rabbits and gets them hydrated on a hot day!

- half a tablespoon of their pellets
- 2 tablespoons of warm drinking water
- 1 and a half tablespoons of hay (the powdery particles at the bottom of the bags are best)

Mix it all together and feed it to them on a spoon or just like that. My bunny absolutely LOVES it!!!!!

LilRabbit25 said:

Thanks! I think I've made up my mind that I won't put him on a lead! Yes, he is neutered but he still goes a bit crazy (he is an active bunny though, only 7 months). The only problem is that I live in a house but my garden wouldn't be suitable for him.... do you think it would be possible to use a portable rabbit run just for about 2 hours every day???? Also, does my rabbit need to get something against bugs or insects outside?
THis might sound silly but oh well:
I'm going back to Europe for about three weeks....... do you think hell forget who I am?

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I think it would be ok for him to go outside for about 2 hours a day, but could he be exercised indoors as well? Rabbits need lots of exercise but it doesn't really matter if they exercise inside or outside, so could you let him have a room to run around in whilst you're there with him? I sometimes let my rabbits run around my room when I'm doing my homework so I can watch them, you'd have to make sure there weren't any wires or anything that he can get to and chew though However the temperature change could be a problem, putting him inside and outside isn't very good for him because of the change in temperature, so if he's a house rabbit it might be best to just let him exercise indoors and then put him in a run outside on warmer days when the temperature in your home and outside is quite similar. Is your rabbit vaccinated? If not, it's a good idea to get him vaccinated against myxomatosis and VHD I don't think he'll forget who you are, I went away for 2 weeks last year and my rabbits didn't forget me.

Has he had his myxi and VHD jabs? Make sure he has those otherwise fleas from other animals can be transferred and he might end up getting sick.

How much room does he have to romp around inside? As long as your cage is plenty big enough for him and he's getting exercise he should be OK I would think. It's best to let them get as much exercise and have as much space as possible. I have limited space so mine get free run of the kitchen when I'm home. I don't like seeing them in their hutch for long. It's big enough for them but it's nice to see them binkying around on the grass or in the kitchen

Yeah, my rabbit has my whole house to run around in (which is a lot of space) I'm just not letting him up the stairs because he is a VERY active bunny and the last time he went up her started whizzing around and almost fell down is there a way to make it safer for rabbits to use stairs? He gets around 5-6 hours every day when i'm at school and at home to hop around (and binky of course ) I just feel guilty of not taking him outside to see some grass
I live in Hong Kong (I'm european though) and apparently there is myxamatosis but there are a few mosquitoes......

More info: I've only had my rabbit for a few months, his name is Mozart (I call him Mr. Mo) and he's 7 months old and very, very, very active (almost too active, just kidding!)

He's getting plenty enough exercise so I wouldn't be too concerned! I wouldn't let him on the stairs if he's active like that. I let my Bluebell on the stairs because she's fairly slow moving and doesn't really throw herself around much. Bramble's a little psycho :lol: there's no way I could let her near stairs I'd be too scared of her falling.

I would make sure he's vaccinated before letting him outside anywhere. You never know what he'll pick up. I didn't risk it with mine.

I know what you mean about letting him see grass, I couldn't wait to get mine hopping around on the garden. It's not a problem for him though I mean he's getting lots of exercise inside!

Thanks! I just can't help feeling guilty sometimes about the grass thing. I'll talk to my vet about the vaccinations and stuff! I guess once my rabbit gets older he'll be less active and calmer so then I could try the stairs.
Thanks again for your advice!