Everything You Need to Know About the Sport of Rabbit Hopping
Amanda Greening shares three tips that will help rookie rabbit trainers get their competitor ready for the sport.
Photograph courtesy of the Rabbit Hopping Club
Rabbit hopping, the sport of training rabbits to hop over obstacles through a track, first came to Calgary in 2005 as part of Amanda Greening’s 4-H project. Under Greening, the project took on a life of its own to become the Canadian Rabbit Hopping Club. In preparation for the club’s performance at the Calgary Zoo’s Easter Eggstravaganza on April 3 and 4, we asked Greening for her top tips on how to train your bunny.
Pick personality over pedigree
“You’ll want the ones that are naturally running around and investigating; you don’t want ones that just sit there,” Greening says.
No carrots on sticks
“They really like getting their heads rubbed. It’s like a massage for them, so, after they’re done, rub them on the head and they flatten out and really enjoy it,” Greening says.
A few snips can improve their skills
Rabbits have some famously hormonal habits that are detrimental to their focus, so the equation to keep in mind is less breeding equals more hopping. “It’s easier to have them run if they’re spayed or neutered,” says Greening.
See the Rabbit Hopping Club, April 3 and 4, as part of The Calgary Zoo’s Easter Eggstravaganza. For more information, visit calgaryzoo.com.
