Why is my new mini lop rabbit scared and still only in her cage?

Hello, and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Something may have recently startled Alice that she's feeling a bit jumpier than usual. Give her some quiet time alone (30 minutes or so), and try again, being careful to approach slowly and quietly, talking softly to her. She may just need some time to settle down. Good luck! Hope this helps :-)

Thanks for reaching out about Buddy. One of the keys to keep on mind regarding rabbits is they are easily stressed. So changing things slowly is best. Once she is introduced to your home, allow her a quiet place to recuperate for a few days, with limited interactions. Monitor water and food intake, and urine and fecal production. If is recommended she be kept away from other pet, including rabbits, until she is more comfortable. Take it slow. Good luck.

I recommend introducing Fluffy in a large clean cage with plenty of room for her to move around and clean soft bedding such as Care Fresh or soft wood shavings with plenty of food, toys and ideally a sheltered portion of the cage where she can hide/not be visible. Rabbits are prone to overheating and should be maintained at a temperature of about 15-21 C (60-70 F). If moving her in the winter, be sure to put her cage far from heater, if moving her in the summer (now I assume it is summer in Australia), just make sure that her room is air conditioned /does not get too hot. Offering fresh veggies and treats daily will likely minimize the stress of the move. In addition, try to keep Human/pet traffic/noise in her room at a minimum. Good luck!

Your rabbit was probably frightened by what happened. You will have to slowly work with him to regain your trust. Just be patient with him and use lots of treats and he will go back to normal soo. Additionally, when you take him outside if the cage, only allow him into a safe area where he cannot sneak under the furniture and hurt himself. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.

Glad to hear you have added a bunny to your family! They are definitely very rewarding pets to have and certainly have some of their own individual challenges. In terms of just general information, you'll want to make sure Nznz is getting an appropriate diet of leafy greens, timothy hay, occasional small amounts of alfalfa, and other fruits / vegetables. Rabbits have teeth that will continually grow throughout their life so they should ideally have something to chew on to keep them from growing inappropriately. Sometimes, they will require manual teeth trimming if they do not take care of this themselves. As far as when to keep him in and out of the cage, that will ultimately be a personal preference. If you intend to litterpan train him, I would wait until he is regularly using the litter box before allowing him to roam freely, just so he makes claim to a certain area. Rabbits are also very sensitive to stress, noise, and heat so make sure that she is in a cool, calm environment. Hope this helps!

This sounds potentially quite dangerous as Bun Bun could suffer trauma or predation while out on her adventures. I would recommend keeping her in a rabbit enclosure or a closed room inside your house, especially when you’re leaving the house and not supervising her. She can free roam when you’re there to keep an eye on her, but if you’re opening the door to leave or having people over, she should be confined. This will prevent her running out the door again. As for not remembering your sister, she probably does but may still be on high alert from her outside events and may need some time to calm down and respond more normally to people. As a prey species, rabbits are always on high alert for dangers, and the chemicals in her body need some time to adjust to the change in scenario.

I wouldn't feel too bad. Rabbits are born scared; it's in their nature to be constantly on high-alert for predators, because they are a prey species. Unfortunately, humans are some rather scary predators and the rabbits' reflex will always have them scared of you. While there are some rather social rabbits out there, I'd say the vast majority of them are not that interested in people and prefer to do their own thing. They naturally like to hide, because it makes them feel protected. All rabbits have their own levels of anxiety and ability to form bonds with other animals and humans. It sounds like Leo is one that does not bond easy and may be a bit more anxious than the others. You can help him feel comfortable by providing him plenty of places to hide. If you want to get her more comfortable with you, then it will take a great deal of time. Essentially, you need to be in the same area as the rabbit for hours before they start becoming more and more comfortable with you. I don't think she has a very bad quality of life from what you're describing. She will be happy enoug to have plenty of space to hop around, food and shelter. Having a bond with another rabbit would be good too, as they are usually social creatures. However, sometimes they won't bond with particular rabbits, so you can't force it.