Handling

Rabbits are relatively fragile creatures that require proper handling techniques to restrain. Because their spine is relatively brittle compared to their strong back legs, panicky struggling can lead a rabbit to break its own back when kicking out.

Most of the time, you should interact with your rabbit while their feet are on the ground. Let your rabbit come to you for attention rather than going after him to force cuddling. Rabbits are prey animals and being lifted off the ground instinctively gives them the feeling of being captured by a predator. However, it is still important that your rabbit learn to tolerate handling for necessity such as going to the vet, giving medication, or trimming his nails.

Teaching a Rabbit to Accept Handling
Unless your rabbit has been well-handled as a baby until you have received him, your rabbit will most likely not appreciate being grabbed and picked up in your arms. As a result, to decrease the amount of stress the rabbit will undergo, we recommend that you train your rabbit to tolerate handling in gradual steps.


 * 1) Start with your rabbit on the floor and get him used to you touching his body everywhere. Begin by placing your hand underneath his front arms and gently lifting up his front feet while petting him.
 * 2) Once he is comfortable, try lifting your rabbit into your lap while you are sitting. Place one hand under his front arms and the other to support his hindquarters. If your rabbit is small enough, you can also place a thumb around his shoulders for more support. Hold the rabbit with its head slightly higher than his bottom with the bottom slightly tucked in. This will prevent the rabbit from kicking out backwards or trying to do a forward somersault. Use quick and confident movements to scoop the rabbit. If you are nervous, your rabbit will detect it, and he will be nervous, too.
 * 3) Hold him securely next to your body while petting and talking to him. If he begins to struggle, immediately place the rabbit back on the floor. If you are successful at holding him, reward him with an extra-special treat food.
 * 4) When your rabbit is comfortable being held in your lap, up the stakes by beginning to slowly stand up while holding your rabbit. Hold your rabbit close to your body for a firmer hold to prevent escape. At any sign of struggling, quickly go back down to ground level and carefully place him down. If he struggles the wrong way or jumps to the floor while in your arms, he can easily injure himself.

Have these training sessions short and dispersed but repeat them often. Make sure that you don't try to only handle your bunny whenever you approach him, or he will slowly learn to become hand-shy. Have positive experiences such as just as feeding food and petting sessions in between these handling sessions. Your rabbit should slowly learn to tolerate handling once he realizes it will cause no harm, and some rabbits may even enjoy it.

Never pick your rabbit up by the scruff of his neck or his ears. The scruff may be used to grasp a rabbit to hold him still against the ground before scooping up his hindquarters, but the skin on their neck is too fragile to completely support a rabbit's weight. Rabbits are not cats, and it will be very painful for your rabbit to be held this way.