Forum

OUR FORUM IS UP BUT WE ARE STILL IN THE MIDDLE OF UPDATING AND FIXING THINGS.  SOME THINGS WILL LOOK WEIRD AND/OR NOT BE CORRECT. YOUR PATIENCE IS APPRECIATED.  We are not fully ready to answer questions in a timely manner as we are not officially open, but we will do our best. 

You may have received a 2-factor authentication (2FA) email from us on 4/21/2020. That was from us, but was premature as the login was not working at that time. 

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.

What are we about?  Please read about our Forum Culture and check out the Rules

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 Why does my bunny bite my husband and not me?

Viewing 9 reply threads
  • Author
    Messages

    • hummingbird
      Participant
      54 posts Send Private Message

        Hi,

        I have a 6 month old holland lop boy bunny.  He is really sweet and friendly, though he hates to be held.  Though he sometimes bites my husband – not nips, but bites really really hard til he bleeds.  He has nipped me before (but not so much anymore) but never bit me.  It was so strange, because otherwise he seems to like my husband better, like lets him pet him more, and my husband is better with bunnies.  I wondered if it was a male dominance/ competition thing?  We just got him neutered this week, though he just bit my husband again.  This really has to stop, because we are both sort of scared of him now.


      • Flopsie
        Participant
        388 posts Send Private Message

          what is happening before the bite and what do you guys do after?


        • hummingbird
          Participant
          54 posts Send Private Message

            It usually is when he is in his territory – like trying o fix something in his cage. Though before it has been him getting really excited over food he has in his hand. Though I do these same things, and he never bites me.


          • litheandgraphic
            Participant
            608 posts Send Private Message

              Is he neutered? More likely this is territorial behavior, not dominance/competition. Rabbits enjoy the company of multiple entities in the “warren”. More likely, it is because for one reason or another he simply doesn’t trust your husband in his territory as much as he trusts you. I would advise against cleaning or putting your hands inside his enclosure while he’s in there. Many rabbits become aggressively territorial when you do this. Additionally, unless you have to, you should avoid picking him up – most rabbits hate this.


            • hummingbird
              Participant
              54 posts Send Private Message

                Thanks – yes, we understood it better when he wasn’t neutered and it was territorial (though still all his relatives were very sweet bunnies who didn’t bite and weren’t neutered), but we got him neutered this week and were hoping that would change.


              • Pipje
                Participant
                73 posts Send Private Message

                  Bunnies can still be territorial even when neutered, and one of mine is food aggressive though he has been neutered. We just have to be careful about not dragging out the time between when he realises it is pellet time and when he gets the pellets, he gets wound up and over excited too much. It’s exactly the same as one of my cats and my horse, they dont mean to bite, but they want the food NOW and sometimes fingers get in the way.

                  What kind of cage is he in? Does your husband have to lean in through the top of the cage or can he walk into it? Smaller cages, especially the pet store ones that open from the top as well as the front can, can cause aggression because they are small so the rabbit is more defensive over the space. They also have a blind spot which makes hands appearing from above quite scary and therefore he may bite in fear.

                  I know from experience that when one of mine had to stay in his NIC condo for most of the day rather than the 12hours of free time he was used to he got quite aggressive when I went in there. That reverted as soon as he was back to his normal routine.

                  How do you pet him? Do you get down on the floor somewhere not in his cage and pet him on his level and he still bites?


                • rabbyrabby
                  Participant
                  25 posts Send Private Message

                    The only time my bun bites me is when he knows I have food in my hand and he gets too excited and starts biting at anything under his nose.  It doesn’t hurt me so I don’t mind.  I also know that he isn’t trying to hurt me, he’s just really excited for food.

                    Is your rabbit showing other signs of aggression?  Boxing, grunting, or making other noises that would suggest anger, anxiety, or something of the sort?


                  • hummingbird
                    Participant
                    54 posts Send Private Message

                      Hi,
                      Thanks! He is in a huge bunny cage/ house and has his run of the house. He has grunted at my husband once, but that’s the only other sign of aggression he’s showed. Also, when he bit my husband he came at him and bit him – so it wasn’t like my husband startled him.


                    • anta
                      Participant
                      4 posts Send Private Message

                        my rabbit is a rescue who i just got i want to keeep her she was going to be killed i am her last stop. m=but my husband will be laying down and out of no where the rabbit just bites jessse really hard…\or jessse will be peettting her and she will jst bite him if he stop making him bleed… i do not want to give her up.. but if i cant get her to stop jesse wants her gone beucase,, she bites him so hard for no reason any advice from anyone

                        thank yo..


                      • jerseygirl
                        Moderator
                        22338 posts Send Private Message

                          I’m locking this thread now as it is 2 years old and anta has started a new thread in BEHAVIOR now.

                      Viewing 9 reply threads
                      • The topic ‘Why does my bunny bite my husband and not me?’ is closed to new replies.

                      Forum BEHAVIOR Why does my bunny bite my husband and not me?