Last Updated on February 21, 2023 by Marjon Ramos
It’s a common myth that rabbits are considered stupid and fragile due to people assuming they are untrainable (just cute!). But, rabbits are actually intelligent enough to be trained. They are able to memorize, solve problems, and react to cues that trainers use to train pets.
Most people also compare the trainability of cats and dogs to rabbits. But cats and dogs are predator animals, while rabbits are prey creatures.
Prey creatures like rabbits have more anxiety than predators. Their intelligence and training approaches should be tackled differently.
Now that I’ve given you the gist of the article, read on as I explain in more detail why rabbits are not stupid:
Table of Contents
Are rabbits intelligent?
Contrary to popular belief, rabbits are actually quite intelligent. Rabbits are able to memorize and respond to cues, which means they can be trained.
The myth that rabbits are stupid likely occurs due to the fact that rabbits are not popular pets. Rabbits were only seen as a source of meat until recently.
Unlike dogs and cats, which have been trained ever since humans domesticated them.
Another reason why people would think that rabbits are dumb is that they have an anxiety towards everything that moves. It’s kind of hard to train an animal when they’re anxious all the time.
That’s why it’s important that rabbit owners gain their rabbit’s trust before attempting to train them. Your rabbit should also be comfortable in your home before attempting any training.
After that, you can pretty much train your rabbit to pee in their litter box, sleep in their bed, or do any other trick using the positive-reinforcement “clicker” method.
Finally, rabbits are actually emotionally intelligent. They are extremely social with their kind (and with humans once they trust them).
Rabbits also feel a wide range of emotions, including love, irritability, insecurity, jealousy, anger, fear, and grief (some even die after the death of their partner).
Can rabbits be trained?
Contrary to popular belief, rabbits are trainable. They respond well to positive reinforcement methods like clickers. This means you can pretty much train your rabbits to do any trick you want.
Rabbits can also be litter-trained. But to make it a little easier to litter train them, you must get your rabbits neutered first..
Unneutered rabbits are harder to litter train. They have the instinct to spray their urine everywhere to mark their territory. You can lessen this behavior by getting your rabbit neutered or spayed.
Here are some examples of tricks you can teach your rabbits:
- Come.
- Beg.
- Spin.
- Sit
- Stay
- Kiss
- High five/shake
Here’s a great guide on how to get started on training your rabbit:
Are wild rabbits smart?
In the wild, only the toughest and smartest survive. When it comes to rabbits, it’s no different. Wild rabbits are extremely clever and quick to react to any potential danger because one mistake could lead to their death.
Anyone who hunted cottontails would tell you that rabbits are very, very fast at reacting and are great at running away to safety. Wild rabbits can also remember where to quickly hide if they’re trying to flee from danger.
Pet rabbits have us to protect them from danger, so breeders are not looking to breed the most intelligent rabbits, but more for looks or meat. So I would say when comparing wild rabbits to domesticated rabbits, wild rabbits would win when it comes to intelligence.
Summary
Contrary to popular belief, rabbits are not stupid. Rabbits are capable of using logic to solve problems, memorizing, and can learn tricks because they can respond to cues that trainers use to train pets.
Rabbits can also be litter-trained quite easily compared to other animals because rabbits are creatures of habit. But you must first get them neutered to remove their natural instinct to spray urine everywhere to mark their territory.
Finally, rabbits are also emotionally intelligent. They can feel a wide range of emotions like love, irritability, insecurity, jealousy, anger, fear, and grief.
Some rabbits would even die right after their partner’s death due to extreme grief.
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