I need reasons and proof that trancing is stressful!

Long short short I found a picture of a rabbit laying on its back on an art website I'm on. So I posted a comment. Afterwards I find out that its a American Breeder :shock:

I didn't get the hell fire fury reply I was expecting,rather a nice well thought out reply, but he did say he was skeptical abut the whole thing and quoted a lot of breeder Associations and the such. Also saying that it might be 'over-pampering propaganda'.

If anyone has credible sources or anything I'd love to be able to hand them to him as he was rather concerned that if it was true he didn't want to harm his buns!

Well, I've read some papers online about putting rabbits in a trance. Then papers saying the sample size is too small/the bunnies used in those tests were lab rats unaccustomed to handling like regular bunnies/other factors/etc. Long story short, the paper with the 6 bunnies who showed physiological signs of stress after trancing is just too small a sample and as far as my research classes go, I count it as inconclusive.

Of course, it's not a rabbit's natural orientation to lie in supine (on their backs) and will most likely stress them. Unless you have tried other methods of handling your bunny and you're sure you will most likely end up injuring the bunny, don't use it.

I use it for clipping Levi's nails. I buffer it by feeding him some of those treats from pet shops and keep the sessions short. Say one paw at a time then rest before moving onto the next toes.



PS - Research requires funds so it may take a while before a more controlled test pops up. Try sitting with your bunny and get his/her resting heart rate and breathing rate for 1 full minute. Try trancing him/her and test heart/breathing rate during and after the procedure. Significantly increased heart rate, bulging eyes and other signs of stress will be evident if your bun's stressed.

Mine just shrugs it off, but all rabbits are different. Just to be safe, please don't do this procedure to your rabbit just for fun. Try using it only as a last resort/you don't have help available.