Odd behavior in rabbit

Question
Hi, I have a three year old neutered male English lop.  As of late, he has picked up some odd behaviors.  He makes a high-pitched scream (sort of a Maahh Maah sound) whenever the phone rings (the phone itself isn't new, and he's heard it ring without doing this before).  Second, he makes a somewhat similar sound whenever offered specific treats (rolled oats for example) or when we shake his papaya pill jar.  We also caught him making this noise when grooming our other rabbit and while being shown his reflection.  My wife has also said she has heard him do this after drinking or during various other activities.  We've had him checked out by our local vet (who has close to 21 years worth of rabbit experence) three times, and on each visit nothing was found to be wrong.  Aside from making this noise, he eats, drinks, poops and does everything he has always done.  He also has never been a timid rabbit.  I'm not sure what is wrong or what we can do.

Answer
Dear T

Okay, there is one word for that.  Weird.

I know of only one rabbit, Gypsy, who did *anything* like that in our household.  She would start to do these weird, lazy screams whenever we brought the vaccuum cleaner close to where she was lying.  

She wouldn't act scared or anything.  She wouldn't even stand up.  She'd just open her mouth and start emitting these wailing, wavering medium-pitched screams.  It was the weirdest thing EVER, and she started doing this only when she was about five years old and starting to show the degenerative signs of a congenital GI tract condition that eventually took her life.  That always made me wonder.

But since your vet has checked out your boy and found nothing wrong...well...that's just weird.

It might not be a bad idea to as your rabbit vet, or find one here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

who can do more diagnostics (bloodwork, radiographs) to make sure there's nothing cryptic going on that's making your boy more easily stressed or emotional.

But maybe he's just now discovering his Inner Opera Singer.  

I really, really hope you can get a video (with sound) of this behavior, because it is extremely unusual (and might get your bunny a spot on Tosh.O).  I'd sure be interested to see it!  Might make it easier to try and determine what this is and what's triggering it.

Sorry I can't be more help...at least not yet.

Dana