1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011.
Rabbits have been domesticated for around 200 years while domestication of dogs began anywhere between 20,000-40,000 years depending on different civilizations (Varga 2015; Briggs 2017). Domesticated rabbits are so much more than just cute, fluffy creatures that hop around all day. Sure, they are not known for having many facial expression but each bunny has loads of personality and some have more attitude than others. Aside from their natural poker faces, they hide their feelings especially when they are sick or in pain. Being prey for many predators, it’s wise for them to hide any signs or symptoms that makes them an easy target. However, this makes it exceptionally challenging to know when they need a vet’s attention. You’ll have to look for signs of teeth grinding and hunched posturing since they’ll often do these things when they are not feeling well and it’ll be time to see a vet who specializes in exotic pets! The confusing part is they may also grind their teeth when they’re content. The latter sounds more like a chattering of their teeth or a rabbit’s version of purring. One of the many challenging aspects of being a rabbit owner.
Faces of a bunny: Clockwise starting with upper left: 1) Anger: post first vet visit and not a happy camper. 2) Annoyed: "What do you want?" after knocking on the door of her house. 3)Surprised: "What are you doing on the rooftop?!" 4)At peace and in a deep sleep.
Another challenge for some will be dealing with rabbit thumping. That’s when rabbits use either one or both of their hind feet to hit the floor and signal danger. For many, rabbits will live in the comfort of their owners’ homes but they’ll forever be on alert. Some articles suggest that rabbits may hear up to 1.8 miles away and have 100 million smell receptors which makes sense when my bunny starts thumping out of the blue (Harris 2022; SIRC, unknown). She clearly has a reason, but I just can’t hear or smell it. Humans have about 6 million smell receptors and dogs have rabbits beat at 220 million (SIRC, unknown). While rabbits have a larger range of frequencies they can hear compared to dogs (Carter and Stardust, 2021).
Placed a bed in one of her go-to corners and she did not appreciate it. Using her head bobbing skills to check out the new object and if you hear closely, she thumps before taking off.
Aside from their amazing senses of smell and hearing, they are amazingly cute. At least from my perspective, rabbits are forever cute. It makes all the more sense why most terms related to rabbits are associated with some degree of “cuteness.” For example, their version of a cold is called the snuffles. A gaggle of geese, a herd of buffalo, a fluffle of bunnies…what? Zoomies, binkies, and flops, oh my! More cute terms to describe an ecstatic bunny. Just like it sounds, zoomies refers to rabbits running near light speed. Some will look like their teleporting like Nightcrawler from the X-men or they’ll fly into a blur like the Flash. Binkies may be done at differing degrees from a small shake and twist of the head and/or body to flying through the air like Superman with a body twist. Flopping is the bunny version of quickly falling onto their side. Think of a human slamming themselves onto the floor toward one side and then quickly falling asleep. This last move often gives first time bunny owners a heart attack because it looks like your bunny just had heart attack and dropped dead onto their side. If you get to experience any of these, give yourself a pat on the back because your bunny is happy and expressing their joy and contentment. If they don’t, please don’t get discouraged since it doesn’t necessarily mean they are unhappy. Those behaviors may not be part of their personality.
Speaking of fun times, play is an important part of owner and bunny interaction. Stackable toy cups, treat puzzles, chew toys and obstacle courses are a few activities to keep your bunny occupied and mentally stimulated. My bunny loves all these things. She’s such an interesting bunny because of her curiosity and desire to explore new areas and new tasks. Even though she was probably 4-5 years old instead of 2 when I first got her, she’s always been highly interested in learning. The fact that she is highly treat motivated doesn’t hurt either. She’s probably 7-8 years old now and continues to be active and inquisitive even into her elder bun years.
Showing off her level of athleticism.
Whoo-hoo! 2023 is the year of the rabbit and for those of you who already have a bunny or two or more, please give them an extra pet, gentle hug and/or a treat for me. Whichever they prefer, of course. If you are considering adopting a rabbit or two or more, I hope this article provided more insight. Happy 2023 and hope this year has good things in store for you and your family!
References:
1. Varga M. Rabbit Basic Science. Textbook of Rabbit Medicine. 2014:3–108. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-7020-4979-8.00001-7. Epub 2013 Oct 10. PMCID: PMC7158370.
2. Briggs, Helen. (2017, July 18). “How did dogs become our best friends? New evidence. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-40638584. Accessed 24 Dec. 2022.
3. Harris, Steve. (2022, Sept 20). “Why do rabbits have such long ears.” Discover Wildlife. https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/mammals/why-do-rabbits-have-such-long-ears/. Accessed 21 Dec. 2022.
4. Social Issues Research Centre. (Published date unknown) “The Smell Report.” http://www.sirc.org/publik/smell_human.html. Accessed 21 Dec. 2022.
5. Carter, L., & Stardust, Z. (2021, May 7). How well can rabbits hear? Rabbit hearing frequency range. Rabbit Care Tips. Retrieved December 25, 2022, from https://www.rabbitcaretips.com/how-well-can-rabbits-hear/