Fight or Flight
As promised, the tale of bunny capture. It's been so long since my last post, I don't remember the specifics of that particular rabbit wrangling. Seeing as how they always follow the same basic pattern, however, I can still share with you the basic details.A little background information -- as you might remember, Cinnamon and Brinco have a multi-level NIC cage. Each level has a door for easy access -- unfortunately, the second shelf door is against the wall. The cage can be rolled away from the wall to access the door in an emergency, but most of the time, I'd rather not futz with that because the rabbits would find some way to make my efforts unnecessary.
Naturally, the bunnies -- particularly Cinnamon -- have learned that the back corner of the second shelf is not as easily accessible as the rest of the cage, so that's where they go to hide from the big mean monster (me). Never mind that I can just as easily get Cinnamon to move off the shelf by poking her butt through the cage bars. Still, I'd rather not have to chase them around the cage, opening every door in the process -- and it's a given that I will have to open every door. So the first step in bunny catching is to close the cage when the bunnies are out in the room.
The bunnies know what this means now too, and the closing of the cage door signals panic followed by an immediate dash to the cottage. Which I pick up every single time -- for some reason, they never remember this.
Anyway, this is where the difference in behavior comes in. Brinco tries to elude capture for as long as it takes. He will run until the bitter end, searching for every possible hiding place, no matter how many times I chase him out. Cinnamon...well, she has a unique approach to the situation. As soon as she realizes that I mean business, she just gives up. She hunkers down to the floor -- or under the litterbox rim -- becoming as round and flat as possible. I would describe her shape as a partially deflated basketball. It's especially amusing when she gets a couple of quick digs in before hunkering down in the litterbox -- like she's making a last ditch attempt at creating a quick getaway burrow.
If you look at this in terms of wild rabbits trying to avoid predators, it's obvious that Brinco fits the image quite well. He would lead the predator on a merry chase before getting eaten or escaping to his burrow.
On the other hand, I'm not quite sure where Cinnamon would fit in. Is there some sort of "Crap, I'm screwed, I might as well not waste my energy" instinct that I don't know about? Or can rabbits actually avoid being eaten by becoming flat and round? I'm admittedly not an expert on wild rabbit behavior. It's possible that this has nothing to do with primal instincts, and that Cinnamon has invented her own neurotic behaviors. Knowing Cinnamon, this would not surprise me.
Speaking of neurotic behavior, next time, I'll write about the saga of the soft pink bed, and how this relates to more rabbity weirdness I just don't understand.
