Rabbits are not stubborn about recall; they are accountants. A rabbit comes when the evidence says coming pays, ignores calls that historically led to being caught, and decides in about three repetitions which kind of name she owns. Training therefore means stacking the evidence deliberately, in tiny steps, until her name becomes the most reliable good news in her day.
Make Her Name Worth Running To
Her name must predict something wonderful, every single time, while the habit forms. Choose one high-value treat reserved for recall only, a favorite green or a small piece of something she truly loves, and pay with it the instant she responds. Say her name once, in the same bright tone, rather than repeating it into background noise, and pay at the moment she turns or hops toward you, because early payment for a turn teaches the direction of the game.
Work at her active times, morning and evening, in her own territory where she already feels safe. Kneel or sit at her level so approaching you never means approaching a looming figure, and let her eat the treat and hop away freely afterward, since a recall that ends in freedom gets repeated, while one that ends in capture gets audited.
Grow the Distance in Tiny Steps
Follow the sequence without skipping: name, then a treat at your feet, repeated until she arrives quickly and confidently at close range. Then name across the room, standing or kneeling visibly at first, paying the moment she reaches you. Only when the room is reliable should you try name from another room, where she must choose to leave what she is doing and travel to find you, and that bigger ask deserves the same instant, generous payment.
Always paid during training is the rule that holds the ladder together, and a few paid repetitions a day, not drills, is the right dose. Two or three successful calls in a session, then stop while she is winning, because drilling a rabbit past her interest teaches her that the game ends in pressure. Add mild distractions only after distance works, one at a time, and drop back a step after any failure instead of repeating a failed call louder.
Build the game into ordinary life once the close-range step is solid: call her out of her pen for free time, call her across the garden run, and call her to a favorite spot for grooming she enjoys. Recall practiced inside real routines survives the day you need it urgently, because it has never belonged only to formal training sessions.
Protect the Name From Unpleasant Jobs
Never call her for unpleasant things while the habit forms: no name for medicine, nail trims, vet trips, or being put away. Fetch her neutrally for those jobs, or use a different cue entirely, because a single call that ends in a nail trim can tax the next twenty honest calls. This protection matters most in exactly the homes where recall matters most, where a rabbit who comes quickly can be gathered up safely in an emergency.
Once recall is strong, keep paying often enough that the name stays valuable, with praise and a favorite green replacing the special treat on easy calls but the jackpot still appearing sometimes. Use her name for greetings and games, never as a scold, and recruit the whole household to the same rules. KinsLe helps the household stay unified because Family Sharing holds her recall stage and reward, and helpers practice exactly the version she knows.