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BUNNY 911 – If your rabbit hasn’t eaten or pooped in 12-24 hours, call a vet immediately!  Don’t have a vet? Check out VET RESOURCES 

The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

Forum BEHAVIOR I can’t take it anymore!!!

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    • Doodle Doo
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        I have a 4 year old lionhead doe that I got when she was about 5-6 months old. She bonded with my other bunny who was only about 2 months old at the time. They became completely inseparable. He died several months ago when he was 3. He had always been sick and I was really only delaying the inevitable. My lionhead though did get a chance to go through the mourning process, but it just hit her really hard. I let her mourn for as long as it seemed she needed by keeping the body out on a towel for her to groom and guard. I sat in the room with her so that she could see that I was mourning too. It was a very sad day for the both of us.

        She never really recovered from it, but the few weeks after my little buck died, she was completely inconsolable. She wouldn’t eat, she wouldn’t drink. I had to mix up the emergency food and basically forcefeed her so that she didn’t get sick. But, that was literally the only nourishment she was getting. I also took to sleeping on the floor at night so that she could come bother me when she got lonely. She doesn’t sleep in a cage, so she has free roam of my apartment and a litter pen to mess in when she feels so inclined. I was expecting it to get a little better with time, but she seemed to only get worse. Sleeping on the floor was a huge help for her (not so much for me), but she was still alone during the day, which was hard.

        So, I took her to an animal shelter with a good reputation for a “bunny speed date”. She really wasn’t into it and didn’t get along with any of the bunnies there save for one. There was one buck that she seemed to tolerate pretty ok, so I took him home and set about bonding the two of them and litter training him. I knew he had a rough life before I got him, so I did my best to stay patient with him even as he started destroying everything I hold dear. I took to keeping him in a pen for parts of the day, but that seemed to make my doe upset. She’d come up to me, stomp her feet, tug on the pen, stomp, and even headbutted me a few times.

        She isn’t nearly as close to this one as the last buck. She would sleep next to her last companion, happily share food with him, and only tried to kill him once a month tops. This one, she just gives him the cold shoulder most of the time. She tolerates his presence and sometimes plays with him, but she generally seems disinterested in him.

        The buck, on the other hand, is a complete nightmare. He’s not aggressive AT ALL, but he is so incredibly destructive. My doe just isn’t accustomed to being in a cage, so I haven’t found any good way to deal with them. I don’t even OWN a cage. I have two pet carriers, that’s it, and they’re too small for either of them to actually LIVE in. I’m at my wits end with this buck. He has destroyed my chaise beyond repair, stolen toys I’d bought for charity (that I STILL can’t find), and now he’s absolutely destroyed my couch.I had a very nice sheet set that he’s destroyed. He’s also destroyed a rice cooker, vacuum cleaner, dust buster, three large area rugs, parts of my wood floors, and several books. My doe has gotten her chompers on a few things in the past, but never to this degree. I just can’t take this anymore. I can’t stand this rabbit.

        Waterbottle sprays seemed to work at first, but that just stopped working (he’s also destroyed three water bottles). I’ve tried flavored sprays to discourage him from eating wires, but that doesn’t seem to deter him in the least. The problem is he HAS toys, tunnels, chews, food, fresh greens, pellets, blocks of wood all his own, and PLENTY of room to run around in. I’ve tried everything I can think of to get him to chew on his toys. He likes the toys, just to clarify. He loves playing with the tunnels, he absolutely loves that the junk mail and cardboard boxes I give him. He just seems to like destroying expensive things so much more.

        I’ve never had a rabbit this destructive before. I am so incredibly frustrated that I’ve wanted to just dump him off in the woods to let a fox get him. I’m just venting. I would never actually do that. I’m just so incredibly angry and frustrated. I don’t know what to do though. I don’t want my doe to get really depressed again if I take this buck back to the shelter. I also would feel kind of bad taking him back to the shelter after adopting him. What the heck do I do? My doe can’t handle being caged and she hates it when he’s caged. Has anyone had to deal with something like this? What should I do?


      • LoveMyMoMo
        Participant
        97 posts Send Private Message

          The only thing I could suggest is bunny proofing more.

          Maybe buy some cord protectors for the cords, and possibly some x-pens or NIC grids to block of areas you don’t want the bunny to access. Even if you could block of an entire room to contain the bunnies just for the time you cannot be there to supervise.

          Best of luck, I know it can be hard at times!!


        • Doodle Doo
          Participant
          2 posts Send Private Message

            He eats the cord protectors too. I’ve tried that. I’ve also tried double-wrapping them with absolutely no positive results. The gates I put up to keep them in the living room, he just knocks over. The next step would be to cage him. He’s the only one causing issues. I don’t know what else to do. If I had a hutch and a yard, he’d be an outdoor rabbit by now.


          • BunnyBrigade
            Participant
            203 posts Send Private Message

              I suggest trying to bunny proof the house more. If he chews through the wires I would try to find a way to get the odds out of his reach. For instance, taping them to the wall etc. I have to echo Brittany. I would set up NIC pens to block off areas that you do not want disturbed.


            • Leeza
              Participant
              12 posts Send Private Message

                First of all, so sad to hear about your bunny passing away, and great job taking care of your doe while she’s mourning. You are so attentive to her needs, it’s great

                I’m not sure if you mentioned – is your new bun neutered yet? Destructive tendencies usually decrease after neutering.

                As for his housing situation for now – even bunnies have to learn that we can’t always get what we want. He should be kept in a pen (or safe room, space, etc) when you can’t watch him until he learns better what he is allowed to play with. It is also dangerous for him to be chewing on things that are not safe for bunnies to eat. Even if it upsets your doe, it’s what’s best for now. Trying to teach them what not to chew on by discipline generally does not work with bunnies. They can be so stubborn! The only reliable method of preventing bunnies from destroying your things is to take them away or cover them, which can be an enormous hassle, unfortunately. I hope someone chimes in soon with more suggestions. I was lucky that my bunnies just so happen to not be particularly destructive.

                It’s understandable that your doe is not warming up to the new guy very quickly. She is still hurting from the loss of her previous partner, and she may never love the new bunny as much as the previous one, but it sounds like they still have the potential to have a great relationship with time.


              • Stickerbunny
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                4128 posts Send Private Message

                  My bun was Powder, perfect little boy and not destructive, good at litter box habits and would even sleep in the bed. He was free roam from the first week at home.

                  Then, I got Stickers. 4 months old when we adopted her, a total destructive crazy rabbit. She’s wrecked carpets, the wall has a hole in it, baseboards, cords, water bottles, anything she can get her teeth on is destroyed.

                  Powder is cage phobic.. if he is in a cage, he flips out and will hurt himself. They were bonded and won’t leave each other. She couldn’t be free roam. So, what I did was clear one room of EVERYTHING and use baby gates to block off anything she could destroy more (the closet, mainly) and made that the bunny room. They are only out when I am home and can block her from destroying the house. If your female isn’t phobic, you can build a nice NIC condo for them.

                  For cord covers, I got the vacuum tube stuff they sell for cars – it makes a lot of noise if touched and spooks them, plus it’s thick and the noise will alert me that they’re eating it. Wires are covered in that and behind a baby gate panel blockade. Multilayer protection! You can use NIC panels for small areas.

                  Stickers has calmed down with age, she’s nearly 3 and she’s not as destructive anymore. But, some buns just cannot be free roam. Powder adjusted OK to being restricted and I have tried to let him out without her but he won’t leave his girl. If he’s that destructive, restricting them is the only real option. With some training and time he may calm to be free roam capable, but he doesn’t sound like the kind of bunny you can just put in a house without slowly adjusting him to that much freedom.

                  If he knocks over baby gates, you can get ones that attach to latches screwed into the walls or doorways that cannot be knocked over. I just put some wood screws into the doorways and attach the small holes to the screws for mine (I can just rotate the screw a bit to take the baby gate off). Or, for ones where I didn’t do that, I have 20lb weights I lean against them so she can’t push them over.

                  Edit: And I understand the “OMG I CAN’T EVEN LIKE THIS RABBIT” feeling. After she broke down every barrier I put up and destroyed my DS charger, my tablet charger, my modem cords, my ethernet cables, an entire room of carpet, put a hole in the wall and even ate her own water bottle I wanted to strangle that little creature (Ok, not literally, but it’s so frustrating to have an animal break down every protection you have and destroy hundreds of dollars in stuff). lol I like her much better now that we’ve figured out how to block her without her escaping.

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              Forum BEHAVIOR I can’t take it anymore!!!