Rescue Tails / The Nature of Nugget

Back in February, a small tan rabbit was found under a bush in a neighborhood and brought to the shelter. Her history was unknown but since so many stray rabbits were one-time pets, we had to assume she had either escaped or been abandoned. Unfortunately, both of those scenarios are very common to those who work in rabbit rescue.

We named her Nugget. She wasn’t in bad shape physically, but her behavior was a whole different story. Nugget brought to mind the Monty Python rabbit chasing all those armored knights out of the cave. We often assume rabbits are all soft and cuddly until we see their potential. Nugget would respond to any outstretched hand by grunting, charging, and biting. It became quickly apparent that she was not a rabbit people were going to stand in line to adopt.

Given the choice of rabbits we have available for adoption, we were shocked when we saw Narcy’s application for Nugget. Typically, when people come looking for a rabbit to adopt, they gravitate towards the more outgoing friendly rabbits. We were mystified by Narcy’s choice since Nugget did not fit that description, not even a little bit. But surprisingly, it was Nugget’s behavior that appealed to Narcy; she “liked her attitude.” Narcy seemed to understand Nugget, knew that building trust can take a long time and that patience would be a critical ingredient in that process. She believed her family could accept Nugget as is and work with her.

Feeling vulnerable and unsafe can lead to aggressive behavior. We see this in both human and non-human animals. Nugget apparently had learned along the way that human hands were not kind and people were not safe. Her offensive behavior most likely stemmed from fear as is so often the case. But when an animal begins to feel safe, a shift in behavior can occur. The need to defend can lessen. Once in Narcy’s home, Nugget may have sensed that she was in a good place and her feelings of safety grew. As the family gave her more space and respect, new behavior began to emerge. The pictures and updates we started to receive showed us a very different Nugget. Although Narcy said they are taking baby steps, the photos of daughter Hailey and Nugget show how well their efforts are paying off!! We couldn’t be more grateful to this special family who gave this special rabbit a chance.

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