Rabbits!

[Bunnylady]

Quote: Once again, you are displaying your ignorance. . A rabbit that is being held/carried on its back has its spine supported. If you want to talk about a chance of injury, how about the rabbit digging its claws into your belly and rocketing itself out of your arms and right over your shoulder from the position you prefer? I've seen it happen, you could even get clawed in the face and neck as the rabbit goes flying by. And what do you suppose happens to the rabbit when it falls from that height? Much greater chance of getting hurt than from squirming a little.

 

[Silkie2]

Once again, you are displaying your ignorance. . A rabbit that is being held/carried on its back has its spine supported. If you want to talk about a chance of injury, how about the rabbit digging its claws into your belly and rocketing itself out of your arms and right over your shoulder from the position you prefer? I've seen it happen, you could even get clawed in the face and neck as the rabbit goes flying by. And what do you suppose happens to the rabbit when it falls from that height? Much greater chance of getting hurt than from squirming a little.

Actually, if you hold the rabbit properly it doesn't go jumping out of your arms. One hand under the butt to support it and the other slightly pushing its stomach on my chest. I scoop the bunny up and bring him to my chest and he has NEVER jumped out of my arms or "clawed my face"

And what do you mean by it falling from height?? I'm talking about when you carry
The bunny to different places (in its enclosure outside, different rooms, etc.) what does carrying it on its back have any less chance of it falling????? Like I said, Andy has never jumped out of my arms and he does not run away when I go to pick him up, probably because he feels comfortable at the way I pick him up!


Also your comments make it seem like I have no clue what I'm doing, by calling me ignorant. After all of my years of owning bunnies I have NEVER HAD ONE INJURED.

 

[balloonflower]

Whew--I am sorry I brought up holding bunnies! I only meant to say that the bunny size is a big part of DD's wanting the little hotot. She can't hold our silver foxes.

We are going to go ahead and allow her to get the hotot, but are going to wait until one of the breeders kits grow, so she has 6 weeks to show me how she'll step up responsibility and help me care for all the buns.

 

[Bunnylady]

I have been breeding rabbits for over thirty years. Any time I think I have "seen it all," a rabbit shows me something new. If @Silkie2 understood how the rabbit is being cradled, confined and supported by the owner's hands, arms and other anatomy while being held and carried on its back, they wouldn't be saying the things that they are. That's what I meant by "ignorance."

Any rabbit, but particularly young rabbits, may very suddenly decide they have had enough of being held. Anyone who has never dealt with an "explosive bunny" hasn't handled many rabbits. I have seen a young child get scratches from neck to waist through their shirt when a rabbit they were holding suddenly wanted down. I have also seen a child, maybe 6 or so years old, holding a young bunny, maybe a pound or so in weight, and the bunny suddenly wiggled out of their arms and hit the ground. It was a fall of less than 3 feet, but the bunny's back was broken. Unless a person is seriously vertically challenged, most of us are taller than that - it can take surprisingly little to do irreparable damage.


This is a picture of Jackson Brundage and my rabbit Cupcake in their respective roles as Jamie and Chester on the show "One Tree Hill." We certainly didn't want either the child or the rabbit getting hurt; we chose this particular rabbit because she had a very laid-back personality. Anybody could hold her any old way, and it was all pie to her - she just loved the attention. Unfortunately, she was an unspayed doe, and about 3 years old at the time of her first appearance on the show. It was supposed to be a one-off, but when the writers decided to make Chester a semi-regular, I started trying to breed an "understudy." During the two years or so that she was on the show, I was unsuccessful. When Cupcake died, we tried 3 different rabbits, but none of them worked out - they were more normal, "pet me but don't pick me up" type rabbits.

Cuddly bunnies do happen, but they are a combination of "born that way" and handling. Until you have the track record with an animal to know that it will remain calm at all times in your arms, you need to be prepared for the rabbit to try to get away (maybe very suddenly and without warning), and hold it in a way that will prevent a fall, should that occur.

@balloonflower - have you met the Hotot breeder and their rabbits? The reason I ask, is some people focus pretty closely on temperament, and they may have an entire rabbitry full of cuddlebunnies. Most of us aren't that lucky (or have other things we breed for), but we usually have some that are friendlier than others. Cupcake's parents, Madison and Rover, were both very sweet bunnies, and all of their kits were people-oriented from the moment they stumbled out of the nest box. When Madison had a litter, if I had someone in the rabbitry that was looking for a special family pet, I would just open her cage door and say, "pick one, any one. They are all gonna be great" - and mean every word of it. Unfortunately, they were also mostly too large for their breed (they were pedigreed Holland Lops) and in the course of trying to get the size down, I also lost the amazing personality. If personality is more important than looks, you should tell the breeder that; they may have animals that they know will better suit what you and your daughter have in mind.

 

[balloonflower]

@Bunnylady I have not met the breeder in person yet, but we have been talking on the phone and email contact. Am hoping to go see the bunnies soon to make sure they will be a good fit, and have been clear about what we are needing--a pet-grade calm bunny personality for a young girl. That's part of the decision to wait until May for a kit--right now he only had one left, a little male that he thought could be good, but we don't really just want to grab the last available and will wait. He has several litters due this and next week, and said that after May 1 he will be able to really evaluate the buns from all those litters and pick a good fit. Through all contact, I get the feeling that he is knowledgeable, and not just trying to say the right thing to make a sale. I did find the breeder through Craigslist, and the ad speaks of 30 years breeding experience and arba judging as well. I realize that an ad can say anything, but I'm paying attention for scam.

 

[Bunnylady]

@Bunnylady I have not met the breeder in person yet, but we have been talking on the phone and email contact. Am hoping to go see the bunnies soon to make sure they will be a good fit, and have been clear about what we are needing--a pet-grade calm bunny personality for a young girl. That's part of the decision to wait until May for a kit--right now he only had one left, a little male that he thought could be good, but we don't really just want to grab the last available and will wait. He has several litters due this and next week, and said that after May 1 he will be able to really evaluate the buns from all those litters and pick a good fit. Through all contact, I get the feeling that he is knowledgeable, and not just trying to say the right thing to make a sale. I did find the breeder through Craigslist, and the ad speaks of 30 years breeding experience and arba judging as well. I realize that an ad can say anything, but I'm paying attention for scam.

Sounds good!

 

[User395221]

I have been breeding rabbits for over thirty years. Any time I think I have "seen it all," a rabbit shows me something new.

I think the same is true of all animals. I'm old enough now where I've "gone through" pets and had new ones. What I thought I knew is challenged with every new adoption.

My original "thing" was with cats. I've always had cats, ever since I was a little kid. I didn't get my first dog until I was much older. I consider/ed myself "good with cats". Years ago, there was a guy at work having to give his cat pills. Oh, said I, "that's easy, you just need to do this and this, the vet showed us years ago what to do" blah blah, I'll come over and show you. Yeh, right. I went over and the cat showed me that some cats are not going to submit to taking pills. LOL All of our "you just have to do this" or "this is how it is" don't apply to everyone.

My cousins used to have a budgie that they could grab from above. Pretty much no bird will allow that, but their bird, like Cupcake, was an individual, and "special". I have one "good-looking" cat, but her personality wouldn't win her any awards. She's a cranky-pants. I'll always go by personality over looks, that's why I always adopt adults.

My (four) bunnies are individuals. The first 2 are very docile, they never tried to jump down. The other 2 are not so much, and I haven't handled them much. As far as I'm concerned they can do their bunny things and not get manhandled if they don't want it. When I got them, they definitely tried to get down. I had the scratches to prove it. I looked like an extra from a slasher film.

 

[Yoako]

Lol. My bunny had a big biting issue. Luckily she doesn't do that anymore. e.

 

[BirdsNRabbits]

I haven't been here for quite some time, but nice to see people still talking here. Another way I've found to keep a rabbit calm while holding them is to keep their face covered. Not smothering them or anything, of course. Just placing a palm or some fingers over their face. I've also draped a towel over them while trimming nails sometimes for some of the more fidgety buns and the ones more likely to start kicking. Or when I'm carrying from place to place when need be I use what I've heard called the "football hold", where you literally hold the rabbit like a football. The head goes in between your elbow and waist (Also, I try to cover their face with my arm) and your hand goes around the hindquarters. Your whole forearm is used to support underneath the rabbit and if it's a rowdy rabbit you can use your other arm to support as well.

I think a lot of it is just knowing your buns and how they react to being held. Some love it, others don't. But for the ones that don't it's especially important to make sure you have a firm hold on them. I myself have had rabbits slip out and fall (thankfully, without injury) and have seen many be dropped. Some can jerk and squirm so much they somehow catapult themselves over your shoulder. Learning how to handle a rabbit, or any animal for that matter, is definitely one of the most important factors when being around them.

 

[balloonflower]

This "football" type hold is the one I teach my girls and allow them to use with our kits. The buns feel secure, and the girls feel comfortable with it too. All four of my older kits are mostly calm and friendly. I am curious as to whether my week old kits with a cranky-pants mom will be as friendly.