Bun is too cuddly?

[Anniesmom]

Hi again!

Annie is my first bun and prior to this I’ve only ever had cats, which can be very cuddly creatures. So when I started research before getting Annie, everything  I read said not to expect major cuddles, that she will not snuggle in my lap, or want my pets, and to not treat her like a cat. 

And now I own a bunny who acts like a cat. I’m not kidding, she’s super aggressive about getting attention, with head butts, always running back to me at play time, sleeping in my lap for 20 minutes at a time, eating out of my hand and running up to the front of her cage for attention every time I’m close.

She’s almost too affectionate, biting my book or climbing onto my laptop if she feels disregarded. Which is adorable, until the nipping starts. 

So what I’m asking is, did I just get super lucky with a cuddle bun, or is she trying to tell me something? Also, if I am just lucky, how do I get her to chill a little bit. I love her, but I do need to work and I don’t need another animal crawling between me and my boyfriend or biting at him when he visits. I love her cuddles, but I want to make sure this is normal, as most rabbit posts I’ve seen say they aren’t this friendly!

Also, she was spayed a month ago, just before I got her, if that matters.

 

[Mikey]

You got lucky! My Blue is the same way. My boyfriend and i will be cuddling, and Blue will sometimes hop in between us and snuggle with us. Sometimes he just jumps into one of our laps and runs accross us both because he wants our attention. Blue will also jump onto laptops or knock hand held games or phones out of your hand i you dont notice him enough. Neither of us mind it, hes one of our bunny babies Badger will do similar, but if he really wants attention he will sit in your lap and stare blankly at you until you pet him no matter what you are doing, and Bombur will just glare from across the room LOL. It is part of having a bun. If your little lady feels like shes not getting enough attention, she will bother you for it until you give her the amount she needs/wants

How much time a day do you spend spoiling her? Grooming her? Talking to her while doing something else?
Does she like your boyfriend/have they bonded at all?

[Anniesmom]

She gets at least three hours a day with as much 1on1 time as I can give her, giving her attention when she comes close and letting her sit and cuddle with me and anyone else in the room. I haven’t really had to groom her much, she keeps herself very clean (Although she destroys her cage), but I do pet her, and occasionally brush her if she’ll sit for it.

Her cage is right between my bed and my desk, so no matter where I am, if I’m home she can see me. She gets talked to and given treats and petting quite a bit due to this. She would get more out of cage time, but she still has aggressive tendencies so when she charges or nips she gets a time out before she can come back and play. Hopefully as she relaxes she can have way more time to come out and cuddle with me.

She doesn’t seem to dislike anyone, and she lets him feed and pet her, but she doesn’t run to him the way she does with me, and she doesn’t cuddle him. She tends to try and get between us and almost brush him off. It’s kinda funny, but she does nip.

I’m honestly not sure there’s an upper limit to her attention wants!

[Anniesmom]

Also, I know three hours isn’t a lot of out time, but it seems like if I let her out for long stretches, her bad behavior gets worse, so I’ve been letting her in and out in short bursts instead. And I’m home a lot, so even when she’s in her cage, she can see and hear me, and I pet and interact with her. She’s been getting more out time as she calms down, and I’m hoping to keep increasing it. Her cage is pretty big with a shelf so she can sit at the same level as my bed, and hang out with me.

[Mikey]

To me it sounds like she might be bored in her cage so when she comes out shes overly affectionate for a while as a thanks for play time, but i understand that if she is acting aggressively as well you cant have her out all of the time. Is there any way to set up a bigger cage/pen area for her to have a bit more room? or add more interactive toys to her cage? How big is her cage?

Her nipping your boyfriend sounds hormonal. Hormones can make a bunny a little possessive Keep encouraging him to interact with her and hopefully as her hormones continue to fade away, she will open up to him more

[Candle]

I also got a super cuddly rabbit. Bunita would follow me all over the house and constantly expect pets. I got her as a second rabbit to bond to my original, Unibunny, so once she was spayed and everything had calmed down I started bonding them. Now they’re inseparable. They’re adorable together and I know it was best for her to have a bun who will constantly be with her, but she doesn’t want pets or cuddles from me at all anymore Like maybe once a day for up to 20 minutes but she really has no interest in me.
So it’s something to consider, for the benefit of her if you think she isn’t getting all the attention she needs she might like a hubby but be warned they also change a lot.

I have noticed though that they haven’t done anything destructive really since they’ve been together. I think it was boredom that got them munching on the baseboards.

[Anniesmom]

Thanks everyone!
I’m currently not in a position to get a second bunny, but hopefully someday!
Can you suggest any interactive toys? I gave her a wicker ball which she destroyed, a wooden ball which she destroyed, a stuffed animal which she ignores, baby keys and a jingle ball both of which she mostly ignores. She doesn’t seem to understand “toy” its either food or ignored.
I’ll definitely try to get her more out time, although I don’t know if I can sit with her during it because she does get more hyper and aggressive the longer she is out.
Is time out an effective bunny training method? It’s all I can think of, other than shrieking and holding her head to the floor when she nips.

[Alfreds minion]

You could try a dig box. Also try presenting her veg and pellets in a way that is a bit of a challenge, like in paper bags, toilet rolls or scrunched up pieces of paper. You can stuff hay in these things too, though she should always have hay available without having to work for it. There are lots of DIY enrichment /toy ideas on the net, you don’t need to buy anything.
She sounds like a chewer, so perhaps some rabbit safe branches or twigs would be good.

My bun is not really a chewer nor a digger nor does he play much with objects. He’s an explorer so I mostly have to get creative with his food and environment. I started a thread with some ideas, I’m sure you can find it.

[josc]

She needs a bun friend! She is probably bored & bunnies are very social creatures. getting another bunny would help !

[Author]

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