# Do you think bell collars are bad for a bun?



## PixieMillyMommy (May 3, 2007)

[align=center]I wantto get my bun a cute little collar with a bell on it and attatch a nametag to it. Is this ok to do?
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## FlopsnWills (May 3, 2007)

No, it's not okay. I've heard horror stories of buns freaking out and breaking their own backs trying to get them off.


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## kathryn303 (May 3, 2007)

I saw these at the petstore and I was wonderingabout this too. I'm guessing that the bunny wouldn't like itvery much at all though, and I don't know if it's exactly neccesary.


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## AngelnSnuffy (May 3, 2007)

Yeah, I don't think it's a good idea.Unless you want to get your bun used to it in the house and see how hedoes. Otherwise, I have to advise against it.


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## m.e. (May 3, 2007)

I'm too much of aworrywart to leave a collar on a rabbit, and since I can't think of asingle reason why they would _need_ to wear one, they don't


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## MyBabyBunnies (May 3, 2007)

Even if your rabbit seems ok with it on, neverput a collar on a rabbit unless you are with them ALL the time. It's soeasy for them to snag on something and rabbits are flight not fightanimals meaning they run away if feeling threatened. This also meansthat if a rabbit gets a collar snagged, they will not sit still andwait, they will try to run and this is when most break their necks.

Personally I'd never use one, even if I am with them all the time. It'stoo easy for them to struggle before you could come to their aid.


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## PixieMillyMommy (May 3, 2007)

[align=center]Ithought they would look very cute with a collar on. They dont need it,I thought it was cute. 
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## Raspberry82 (May 3, 2007)

I have a collar on my bun, BUT- itdid take time for him to get used to it.In the beginning hewore it ocassionallyonlyindoors and only whilesupervised in a safe room.He started wearingitregularlyaround 16/18 monthsonce he'dbecomelaid back (he's used to being around abunchof different people/locations, settings). This is alsopartlybecause he and I move aroundpretty oftenand itkeeps things easier for me.. with taking him for his daily outside"romps/walks" via leash,putting his leash on and off almostevery day and not losingthem, getting him used to new indoorsurrounding via leash first, etc. 

With the colllar -Itmade me feel morecomfortable that in the veryunlikely event that he gotoutside without his mom (me)or withouthisleash&amp; got lost, that it would be obvious who hebelonged to (have my phone number on hislittlecollar).Max _hated_ theharness'sand only liked the ones connecting to his collar..go figure . Buti'm thinking abouttrying theharness againjustbecause itsmuch safer ingeneral.

I picked the most lightweight tiny/basic collar icould with the"*break away/quick release*" feature.. Hasplastic clip closurethat willunclip thecollarif it istugged, etc.. ibelieve it is made for kittens and he's never had any problemswhatsoever with it. The bell idea sounds reallynot so goodbecause yeah, i'm betting it'll drive 'em nutso. (it'd drive me nutsotoo, haha) especiallyconsidering they have such *excellenthearing*!

I think it really depends on your bunny/bunny's livingarea.. the higher they're wound up and skittish the more acollar could be dangerous. Max is a lotlike acatthese days (+ bunny cheeky tricksterish fun ) and alsomainly indoors in his own safe"room". (yeah, he's spoiled)


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## MyBabyBunnies (May 3, 2007)

*Raspberry82 wrote:*


> I picked the most lightweight tiny/basic collar i could withthe"*break away/quick release*" feature.. Has plasticclip closurethat willunclip the collarifit istugged, etc..


Unfortunately even those are not good, the rabbits neck is more fragilethan the collars and the collars will most likely not break before theyseriously injure themselves. I'm against collars for any reason, evenharnesses I don't like unless supervised the whole time. I've heard waytoo many stories of serious injuries caused by them. There are otherways to identify your rabbit -- a tatoo in the ear or a microchip aremuch safer alternatives.


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## Raspberry82 (May 3, 2007)

I've been thinking about microchipping himactually. Does is require surgery to be impanted though? Or is it afairly minor ordeal for the bunny?


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## Raspberry82 (May 3, 2007)




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## missyscove (May 3, 2007)

I often help out while we microchip dogs catsand rabbits at my shelter. The microchip is about the size ofa grain of rice. It is implanted under the skin, usually between theshoulder blades with a large, hollow needle. It looks scary,but it's over quickly. Sometimes, if they hit a vein, they'llbleed a bit, but not usually. It's not all that much worsethan an animal getting a vaccine. 

My Timmy has one. Our shelter does them for the public for$25. His came with him when I adopted him. Thereare 2 different types of chips that are common. Ask yourlocal shelters what kind of chip their readers can read. Someread both, some don't. 

The way it works is they scan the animal. A number comes upon the scanner. They call the microchip company the chip ismade by and ask them for your information and then call you.It is a permanent form of ID. 

The only problem is, you don't know if the animal has a chip until youscan. Sometimes people will find an animal, and keep it foryears before they learn it has a chip- and a family. 

I would definately reccomend that every dog and cat is chipped, bunstoo, but I feel like it's a little less likely that they will be caughtand brought in. 

Our shelter scans every animal when it comes in and before it leaves or gets PTS, just to double check.


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## naturestee (May 3, 2007)

When they implant a microchip, the just do itwith a large syringe. Also, keep recent pictures of him foruse in "lost pet" posters.

I agree with MBB, those break away collars are not meant for fragilerabbit bones. Cats have a much higher bone density.The collars my cats wore when they were babies are much too strong totrust on one of my rabbits.


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## Raspberry82 (May 3, 2007)

Good to know about themicrochips.Collar's going byebye. Safety for my baby faroutweights convenience when we're moving around. :/


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## Fashy (May 3, 2007)

Toby wears a kitten collar when we travel. Butnot one with a bell on because that would probably annoy him .Rabbits go missing as well so I dont think collars are a problem.


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## Flashy (May 3, 2007)

I would never risk putting a collar on my buns having seen the mess they got themselves into with a harness.

Nibbles Mommy, it might look cute, but a rabbit can look cute by itselfwithout a collar. Putting something on it to make it look cute, butthat could potentially kill it is probably not the most sensible thing.Most rabbits don't look cute when they are dead :/

(not to be blunt or anything)


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## mezeta (May 3, 2007)

I did have a collar for Jess and she was finewith it but I read another post with the dangers of them so I took itstraight off as Jess looks just as cute without the collar and Iwouldn't want to risk her health over it


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## ~Tracey~ (May 3, 2007)

I would be worrying about the bun trying to getit off and getting his paw caught in it or even back leg, it's notworth the risk, even my cat when she wore one got it caught on a rosebush branch and nearly choked herself to death so i have never usedthem on my pets.


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## bluebird (May 3, 2007)

No,rabbits do have fragile bones.or just put it on too take a picture.bluebird


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## MicksMom (May 3, 2007)

I used to put a cat collar on the rabbit I hadbefore Shaker, but only when I let him out to play. When hewas in his cage, the collar was off. Shaker fussed at it whenI tried to do the same thing with him, so I don't.


> I've been thinking about microchipping him actually. Does isrequire surgery to be impanted though? Or is it a fairly minor ordealfor the bunny?


Microchipping is no big deal. It's just like gettinga vaccincation. I had my previous rabbit chipped because Itook him "out &amp; about" with me (shopping at pet supplie store,photo ops, etc).


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## Happy Fluffy (Jan 6, 2020)

Is there any other alternatives to collar? I need a bell on my rabbits so that when it run around in the house, I know where it is and won’t accidentally brush against him


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## Blue eyes (Jan 6, 2020)

Best to start a new thread for this question rather than posting on a (over) 10 year old thread.


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## Diane R (Jan 7, 2020)

Yes, there is an alternative, always be aware of where your bunny is.


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## Catlyn (Jan 7, 2020)

Having bells jiggle around a rabbit's neck is never a good idea. The rabbit may try to pull it off, get stuck with it, or get stressed as the bell jingles and the rabbit couldn't groom its neck either. Just be aware of whre they are and what they do at all times....


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## Liung (Jan 7, 2020)

10/10 would recommend microchipping. It’s safe, easy, cheap, and forever. But as mentioned... it only works if someone thinks to scan for it. 

Whenever I bring Delilah outside I always put her in a Y front harness that has a name tag with my phone number, as well as a tag indicating that she is microchipped. I’m not a fan of the H style harnesses marketed for small animals, the idea of tension being put on their neck is not good to me. The Y style harness distributes tension across their chest—and, I can pull her dewlap up through it, and then her own fluff blocks her from being able to chew on the straps!

When I was younger and a lot more thoughtless and ignorant, I got my buns stylish leather buckled collars! I sat with them to supervise, and while they hated the collars as they do all things I put on them, and tried to chew at them, all seemed well. After a couple hours they even seemed to settle down and stop caring. 

Hah, no. I went looking for Lahi when I realized I hadn’t seen him in a while, and found him hiding in one of the boxes. He seemed okay. Eventually I noticed ... he wasn’t okay. In the process of tucking his chin down to chew on the collar, he’d gnawed it down thin enough that it slipped behind his teeth, where it promptly became stuck, held in his mouth like a horse’s bridle bit. His head was trapped with his chin against his chest, and had been that way for god knows how long before I’d noticed. 

I totally understand the “I wanna have them wear cute things” but there’s options that are less dangerous. Lahi actually had to wear tiny shirts to prevent Delilah from plucking him bald, which was HELLA cute. It took a lot of trial and error to find out which shirts would fit a rabbit, and stay on comfortably, but I figured it out and after checking with my vet to make sure it wouldn’t cut off his circulation or anything bad, Lahi accumulated quite the collection of tiny pet shirts. It’s nearly impossible to find shirts too small for a 4 lb dwarf rabbit (though it did happen once—who the hell has a dog smaller than my 4lb dwarf rabbit, seriously?!), and if they were too big or didn’t fit well he would easily wiggle out of them. A bit of supervision was necessary at first for any new shirt, but once I knew what style had the right design to fit, it was easy to find new ones. 











I definitely wouldn’t recommend having your rabbit wear shirts full time like Lahi did if they don’t need to, but for occasional periods and photo opportunities I can assure you that it’s safe within reason.


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## Leo the Lop (Jan 8, 2020)

Diane R said:


> Yes, there is an alternative, always be aware of where your bunny is.


Lol. Impossible if your bunny is free-range.


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## Leo the Lop (Jan 8, 2020)

Catlyn said:


> Having bells jiggle around a rabbit's neck is never a good idea. The rabbit may try to pull it off, get stuck with it, or get stressed as the bell jingles and the rabbit couldn't groom its neck either. Just be aware of whre they are and what they do at all times....


This isn’t practical! Who can follow their bunny around all day?


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## Mariam+Theo (Jan 8, 2020)

Leo the Lop said:


> This isn’t practical! Who can follow their bunny around all day?


You wouldn't have to follow it around _all _day. Just be _aware_ of where it is, as Catlyn said. When you take a step back look on the ground so that you don't accidentally step on it. Or you could block off areas where you can't see it. You could make it where it can only go in your living room, and not allow it in your kitchen. It will be easier to keep an eye on if you give it less room to roam.


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## Preitler (Jan 8, 2020)

First thing to learn when you've got a free roam house bunny is a zombies shuffling gait, just check that you don't have paranoid preppers as neighbours 

One get's used to bunnys around, although I do find it comfortable that mine are rather large. 
Since my buck had sore hocks I covered the 2 rooms where they spend most of their time - kitchen and living room - with rugs and cardboard - you can hear them pretty well on cardboard. At doors they are not allowed to cross there are knee high pieces of fence or pallet. I'm sure mine wouldn't appreciate a collar.


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## Catlyn (Jan 8, 2020)

I find it easy to track my bunny, he's a big boy about 10 pounds, he goes nowhere expect our living room even when we're not in the same room as he is. And when he decides to hop o and dig at my blanket, bed or whatever is on that spot(his fave, it seems) he usually stays there. We have to shoo him to the floor so we wouldn't have all and any blanket, sheet or duvet full of bunny bite marks or occasional pee squirts. The latter, fortunatrly hasn't hsppened lately. He is a couch potato anyway so he will spend most of his free-roam time in or under his cage, or on the floor in a cool corner. We don't have to block off anything.
See? Being aware of your rabbits' usual whereabouts helps both of you. Thanks to that, i won't have to do the zombie shuffle gait although i often feel like a dead-brainer.


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## Leo the Lop (Jan 8, 2020)

I’m not worried about stepping on Polish, I’m aware of him in that sense. And I wouldn’t put a collar on him after reading this thread so I’m not arguing for that. But it would nice if there was an easier way to find my 2-pound polish when I need to put him up for the night.


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## Diane R (Jan 9, 2020)

Leo the Lop said:


> Lol. Impossible if your bunny is free-range.


Of course it's possible. I have lived with free roaming bunnies for 25 years.


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## Hermelin (Jan 9, 2020)

Leo the Lop said:


> I’m not worried about stepping on Polish, I’m aware of him in that sense. And I wouldn’t put a collar on him after reading this thread so I’m not arguing for that. But it would nice if there was an easier way to find my 2-pound polish when I need to put him up for the night.



Myself just call my bunnies name and give the command ”jump into the cage” and for Odin, I just open the cookie jar and he comes running then give the commando. So really easy to find them and get them to the cage. 

If they don’t come they are stuck in a room, a cabinet or sleeping. That’s when I will try to find them or lure them with treats. No one come for the treats they are stuck, that’s when I look in all places they can get locked into.


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## Leo the Lop (Jan 9, 2020)

Diane R said:


> Of course it's possible. I have lived with free roaming bunnies for 25 years.


And you’ve always known exactly where they are every second?


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## Leo the Lop (Jan 9, 2020)

Hermelin said:


> Myself just call my bunnies name and give the command ”jump into the cage” and for Odin, I just open the cookie jar and he comes running then give the commando. So really easy to find them and get them to the cage.
> 
> If they don’t come they are stuck in a room, a cabinet or sleeping. That’s when I will try to find them or lure them with treats. No one come for the treats they are stuck, that’s when I look in all places they can get locked into.


Wow that’s really cool, Polish is only 5 months old and I’ve only had him for two, he doesn’t know his name yet. How long does it generally take to learn their name?


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## Hermelin (Jan 9, 2020)

Leo the Lop said:


> Wow that’s really cool, Polish is only 5 months old and I’ve only had him for two, he doesn’t know his name yet. How long does it generally take to learn their name?



Odin learned the commando after one week up to a month, while my other bunnies just picked it up later on. Didn’t teach them, I just taught them to come when called. Quite easy learning bunnies that are food motivated. There are a few videos on youtube how to teach your bunnies tricks. Some take it up faster than others for example Toste the master of running away picked up spin in one day and coming being called in 3 days. I had him run into the forest a few times but when I called him, he came running towards me [emoji5]


The easier tricks are: come when being called, spin, stand, jump up and down, also the cage command. I also learned Odin stop, so he will stay still a short time, which truly helped a lot so he stopped getting doors closed on him and he won’t run out the door. 

I always use the pellets ratio as treats when I train my bunnies. 

When you train a bunny you do the same way as you do with dogs and cats, best it’s with a clicker. But you have to also respect they are bunnies with quirky personalities.


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## Donna Standar (Jan 9, 2020)

I think bell collars are very unsafe. They could choke on that bell, or get the collar hooked on something and choke to death.
I don't even put collars on my dogs. I've seen dogs get hung, when unsupervised .


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## Liung (Jan 10, 2020)

Lol Delilah is deaf so will learn her name precisely never. But she has a sixth sense for when the food bin or the fridge is opened, so that’s as good as calling her name—she ZOOMS over. 

Lahi, though... his favourite thing was to find shadowy corners to hide in so he could poke your ankle when you least expected it. We also made a GRAVE mistake in our choice of carpet runner... he was stealthy to begin with, he didn’t need the help!!

There are TWO bunnies in this picture. Find Lahi!



Neither of them would step on hardwood or tile if given the choice, so keeping them out of places we didn’t want them to be was as easy as only laying down carpet where they were allowed to go.


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## Blue eyes (Jan 10, 2020)

Leo the Lop said:


> But it would nice if there was an easier way to find my 2-pound polish when I need to put him up for the night.



Mine aren't as trained as Hermelin's, but I do put them up each night by making noise with the pellet container. They get their daily pellets before bed so it makes it easier for me to lock them up for the night. 

I start by refilling their hay and then jiggle that pellet container. They learn those sounds and know what is coming.


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## Shubox (Jan 10, 2020)

It's not worth it especially if it's just to be cute. Rabbits are easily injured, and the collar can snag on something, or they can hurt themselves trying to get it off.


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