My Rabbit is Only Scared of A Particular Room

Question
Hello,

I've had my rabbit for 4 years, and I originally adopted her from a friend. Though she doesn't like to be picked-up, she is extremely affectionate and I give her plenty of attention and proper care every day. My bunny runs around my home freely, and is fully house-trained. However, I've recently moved into  a new apartment and my rabbit absolutely refuses to go into the living room! She will literally sit outside the living room looking in, but when I approach her she will run away. The only thing I can think is that I bought a new wool rug for this room and she must have some kind of aversion to it? When I pick her up (she doesn't particularly enjoy that) and actually place her in the room, she will act very scared and quickly move off the carpet onto the wooden floor (hardwood floors throughout the apartment, but obviously the carpets don't cover everything). I am at a loss for why my rabbit would not want to come into the living room? Do rabbits have any kind of natural aversion to wool or maybe the smell of the new carpet? Either way I really want my rabbit to be able to spend time with me in the living room; she has no problems with any other room in the apartment (but we do not have any new rugs in other areas of the apartment).

Thank you so much for any help you can offer!

Autumn

Answer
Hi Autumn,

it could be a number of things.  She's in a new living space.  She may be reacting to smells in the living room.  She may be freaked out by the new wool rug.  The smell of wool (another animal she may not know) could be bothering her.  The new carpets will smell like formaldehyde and she may be picking up on that.  Colors in the living room, the layout of the furniture, the way sounds bounce off the walls in the living room, maybe scents of prior pets that were in the living room.  It could be more than one of these in combinations.

The fact she immediately did not like being on the wool carpet makes me believe she is having problems with the rug.  Take it out of the living room and see what she does.  That will help to determine if it really is the rug.

Lee