Bunny won't come out of cage>>

[Luluznewz]

Hello, I'm new here. My new bunny Lulu is adorable. I rescued her. She is about a year old, spayed and has had some human interaction. The person who I adopted her from took care of her well (litterpan trained, ect) but didnt spend much time with her.

Anyway, she won't come out of her cage. She has been here about 4 days, and she seems to be more or less okay with us being around her. Shes spooky, but doesnt seem totally scared when I sit next to her cage.

However, she will not come out. I havent tried to grab her or force her out because I know you arnt supposed to do that. I leave her cage door open all the time, and she just will not leave. I know shes probably very scared of everything new, but I think its strange she wont come out at all.

She let me pet her on the head but wont come all the way out. Should I leave her in there or what?

 

[Maureen Las]

She probably will come out when she is ready; I would sit by her cage and talk to her and pet her until she becomes more comfortable with you.
Wait at a least a few more days to take her out

Ihave to congratulate you on your restraint. It indicates that you have a lot of respect for her feelings.

 

[Korr_and_Sophie]

You could take her out (you have to clean sometime) and see how she does. Let her wander around and when you are done cleaning, leave the door open.
She may not have had the opportunity to come out of the cage on her own before and so won't know how to do it. The breeder I got Sweets from lets her rabbits out, but they are usually lifted out of the cage. When I was there, the cages were on the ground and the doors were opened (males and females were not out at the same time), but most of them didn't realize they could come a go as the pleased. So she may need to learn that she can go in and out of her cage without help.
The cage door could be too high for to to use comfortably. Putting a box or something so the door is level can help. A ramp may also be useful.

 

[Luluznewz]

Do you think she can get out? she puts her front paws over the door and looks around but always pulls back. Its one of those extra large super pet cages with the door that opens down to form a wire ramp. It has an extra deep pan, so im not really sure. Do you guys know if most rabbits can get out of those.

 

[SweetSassy]

I would lay a towel or rug over the door. Thats what I use to do. She may not be comfortable jumping out.That way theres some traction there.

 

[elrohwen]

I have a similar cage to yours and I didn't like the wire ramp at all. I covered it with a piece of fleece (I use those binder clips to keep it on) and actually put a little wooden box under it so that it is level and not a ramp (I got the unfinished box at a craft store). Now it's a flat surface that my bun can hop up and sit on which he loves. I was always afraid he'd get his foot stuck in the wire door. Plus, he's a little guy (4lbs) and I think it would be tricky for him to hop in and out without that little platform to jump on. So maybe try rigging up the door so that it's more inviting to jump on and easier for her to manage. Making a blind jump from inside the cage to outside is tough for the more timid buns (like mine) who like to know what they're jumping up on.

On getting her out: my guy wouldn't come out at first, but I think it's because he didn't know how (he came from a breeder and probably wasn't allowed to come out of a cage on his own). I picked him up and brought him out a few times, and he learned to hop back in. Once he could hop in, he made the connection that he could also hop out! Haha. So waiting them out is good, but sometimes picking them up and showing them that it's possible to get in and out is a good idea too if they're not totally afraid of you.

ETA: It took my bun months to learn how to jump up on the shelf in the cage and even longer to jump up there regularly (I initially had to cover it in fleece to make it inviting). So just get creative with making her feel comfortable with it!

 

[missyscove]

When I had a cage with a wire door like that, I used pliers to take it off and reattach it so that the hinge is at the top. Then I just used a carabiner clip to hold the door open. I was worried about the possibility of getting a foot stuck between the wires.

 

[Stanza]

Just give her time.
She will warm up to you eventually if you continue to spend time with her.
Treats are always a good friendly gesture too

It took my rabbit a long time to warm up to me but he has come a really long way since I got him!
It just takes time and patience

 

[Luluznewz]

Thanks everyone! She came out! She is pretty timid about being out of her cage, but she just started coming out fairly regularly. Its strange, but she seems to really only come out if I'm sitting there on the ground with her. Im not letting it go to my head, I think she just thinks i'm interesting.

Do you think I should put some stuff for her to do outside? I dont want my hall to turn completely into a bunny playroom because other people live here too, but I dont want her to be bored.

She refuses to use the door. Thats okay, its too small and freaky looking anyway. I tried putting the cover and a box under it, but shes jut not going for it. I ended up unclipping one of the short sides of her cage and flipping it up, so now she just can hop out the open side. It seems to work okay. When i need to lock her in i just close it and use a plastic clip to hold it shut.

 

[MikeScone]

Luluznewz wrote:

She refuses to use the door. Thats okay, its too small and freaky looking anyway.

Scone has one of those cages, too. I was concerned about him catching his feet, so I zip-tied a piece of cardboard to the door to make a solid ramp. As it turned out, he's never set foot on the ramp. He just jumps completely over it, whether he's going in or out.