Explorer Bunnies

After a frantic weekend of unpacking and bunny-proofing, the bunnies finally got some time to explore their new backyard.

Bunny really enjoyed the new plants

I tied chicken wire to the wooden fence around the yard so hopefully it's bunny-proof enough and I won't find myself running down the street after a wayward bunny. Bunny and Toby had a blast running around and seeing which plants made good hiding places.

Toby likes hide and seek

They settled on this bush as their favorite place to hang out.

You can't see us. We're part of the bush.

Unfortunately the hiding part doesn't really work so well for Toby since his white coat makes for poor camouflage. Cricket made it as far as the edge of the patio step before deciding that she'd had enough adventure for the day.

That doesn't look safe

I'm sure she'll be braver in the future but for now it was nice to have a bunny to hang out next to while watching the other two crawl through bushes and the like.

The bunny room is coming along nicely. There are some shelves to put up and some bunny-proofing boxes to put everywhere but hopefully they'll have some space to run around soon. I feel pretty bad moving them from our apartment - where they were free-range - to a muchmuch smaller x-pen arrangement but it's made catching Cricket for her antibiotics much easier. I have been debating keeping them in side-by-side x-pens until the bonding process is complete so that they don't have the chance to territory mark the new bunny room. Clicker training to resume soon and hopefully will speed up the bonding process.

Moving Day!

Things have been pretty slow lately training wise. All three bunnies definitely know a click means that something is coming deliciously and they all perk up. Today we're moving into our bigger house so we can start with individual one-on-one training.

But I'm comfortable here

I started clicking only when Toby stands up so now he knows that trick while the other two still just associate it with food though Bunny has started trying to copy Toby to get food faster. Unfortunately since I have a clicker in one hand and a treat in the other, it's hard to get pictures. I'll have to think of some way to fix that problem.

Toby has always been very bright to pick up whatever skills he needs to get food fastest. I'm not sure if he's picked up the standing up trick so quickly because of the clicker or because of the food lure but there was a pretty quick transitional period.

The final result that I'm looking for is currently to be able to clicker train Cricket and Bunny into liking each other. Animosity has been increasing so they're now separated. Cricket alone and Bunny and Toby together. I'm hoping to put them in joined x-pens for a the first week or so in our new place and start the bonding process over before I move them into their permanent room.