Love Daisy, But Frustrated!

[SweetSassy]

I love my Daisy, but everytime I try to pet her or touch her she RUNS from me!! I don't understand. I got her and her brother, Rascal at the same time. Their half brother and sister and Rascal is the total opposite. I can pet him &snuggle him. Daisy is so hard to catch when I let her out for run time. NO JOKE... it can take me an hour to catch her. LOl. Its funny but frustrating.

Cansomeone give me some advise on bonding with her? I want her to trust me and let me atleast pet her. She won't even smell my hand. :XShe just turns and runs/walks away. I want her to be social and not be so grumpy with me.

I feel like I favor Rascal over her cause he don't run from me. And I don't want to feel like that. I love them both!!! And I want to show both of them. Daisy is just making it harder for me. PLEASE HELP!!!Thanks, ......:biggrin2:April

 

[CKGS]

I would say this is personality at work here. I am not sure this is sex related (male or female) as my lil Abby didn't have a problem with being loved on. It was always just her terms.
The Abby my friend has is somewhat the same as my Abby was, only not as hmmm...'attitudey' about it. Lol- is that even close to a word?
Maybe Sassy is just not a cuddler or a lover and has a totally different personality than her brother. I'm not an expert by any means but I do know that each and every animal (regardless of species/breed) is an individual and personalities differ.
I don't know about bonding exercises you could do with her but I do want to offer a good ol' cheering section. Lol. I can't offer much but I think I could be a good cheerleader for your cause.
Seriously good luck. I hope you are able to get connected with Daisy in some way. ((((((April))))))

 

[SweetSassy]

Thanks Janet. I've been trying on my own with no luck. Send some prayers. LOl. She's still young but I hope she doesn't go through her whole life like this. She just seems grumpy, independent maybe. IDK. I know every bunny is different. Hopefully I can get some advise I haven't tried. :biggrin2:

EDIT: I just want to be able to pet her and her not run! LOl. I would be happy with that.

 

[CKGS]

I will send up prayers for you. I know it can't be easy having a bun you can't even pet without restraining. I had a cat like that when I was younger. He was soooo independent and just didn't like anyone bothering him much whether it be petting or just a quick kiss. He seemed to almost hate it.
Maybe you should sit in a playpen type area with her and not let her have as much space and area to be able to really run from you and then slowly introduce her to the idea that petting isn't that bad really. Maybe she still won't care for it as much but at least let you pet her on ocassion.

 

[BethM]

Will Daisy take treats or other food out of your hands?
I've had Nick and Amelia for almost 3 years now, and Nick is just now warming up to being petted. (They were rescues, so I wonder if they were mis-treated or not socialized when they were young.)
I find the best times to pet Nick are when I'm giving him a treat. I can usually get one or two pets in before he runs away, and I think it might help him to associate the petting with a good thing.
The other good time to pet Nick is when he's snuggling with Amelia. He trusts her, and feels safe right next to her, so he doesn't mind being petted when she is with him, being petted at the same time.

Although Nick is more tolerant of being touched than he used to be, he still doesn't like it much when he's having his run time.

My newest bunny, Ben, is extremely shy, so I'm working with him, too. Again, I can get a few pets in when he gets a treat. I try to stop before he runs away, so I'll pet him maybe twice, then stop before he gets too upset.

Also, will Daisy "investigate" you if you're sitting on the floor? Since my bunnies don't seem to enjoy petting or snuggling, I find a good way to interact with them is to just sit on the floor, reading or watching tv, and allow them to sniff and bump me as they wish.

 

[SweetSassy]

Their NIC cage is big enough for me to sit in. So I sit in there with them. Which I've done from the beginning, so their use to it. Their not territorial. But she always sits in the corner. Or runs to her litterbox in the corner. It seems hopeless...

 

[SweetSassy]

I just started them on veggies like 2 weeks ago and she won't take them from my hand. Neither will Rascal though. Their still unsure of it still though.



Their both getting fixed this month so maybe when I re-bond them, Daisy will see me petting Rascal and know it's ok.

 

[CKGS]

Awww (((April))). Maybe she just isn't a love-on-me type bun. She would hate me with the way I hug and love on Tony. Lol.
Does she seem panicked when you are near, like shes scared? Or is she just looking annoyed? I've seen the annoyed look my buns have given me and it's worse than some looks I've gotten from humans. Lol. I'm just wondering if it's fear based or just her preference.

 

[SweetSassy]

Daisy doesn't like me petting her but if I stick my forehead to her cage she'll lick my forehead. I keep my hands out of sight. Silly girl.



That's the only attention I can from her. Positive behavior.

 

[SweetSassy]

CKGS wrote:

Awww (((April))). Maybe she just isn't a love-on-me type bun. She would hate me with the way I hug and love on Tony. Lol.
Does she seem panicked when you are near, like shes scared? Or is she just looking annoyed? I've seen the annoyed look my buns have given me and it's worse than some looks I've gotten from humans. Lol. I'm just wondering if it's fear based or just her preference.

IDK. I'm new to bunnies so I'm not sure. I don't think she's scared. It would be more annoyed. She knows she's running. LOl. I can catch her and she will sit on my lap good for a while but I can tell she's tense so it don't last long. I really don't hold her. It's been awhile cause she scratches the heck out me when I put her down.

 

[CKGS]

How old is she again? I forgot.

 

[SweetSassy]

young, 4 1/2 months.

 

[CKGS]

Okay. I couldn't remember but thought she was a little older, not much. I thought around 6 months for some reason. Lol.

 

[Flashy]

Here's the bonding with your bunny article in the library. http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=33995&forum_id=17

I think you need to be aware that, like people, all bunnies are different, show their affection different, have different needs, etc. Follow her lead and that should get you further than you trying to force her to be something she is not.

You haven't built any trust with her, by the sounds of it, which is probably due to you chasing her to get her away. Maybe try and train her to know when its time to come back (food can be a good stimulus) and keep her in a smaller space until she understands this.