Bunny destroying couch / rug (sudden new behavior)

[kbun]

Hi all!

Would love advice on why our bunny’s behavior may have changed and how to protect him!

It’s been a long time, I adopted our rabbit from a shelter in Sep 2014, how time flies! Since then, we’ve essentially allowed him to be free range of the first floor of our home. He’s been interested in going under our couch before, but recently he somehow tore through the top lining of the bottom of the couch, so he burrows between the cloth and the bottom of the couch. There are tiny beads that fall out that we are afraid he will eat (we don’t think he is) and we even found a long nail the other day that must have come out when he was tearing it apart. 

In the meantime, we’ve blocked access to under the couch with cardboard boxes and books, but he’s obsessed with getting under there, and digs at the rug next to it (to either annoy us or to try to “dig in?!”), which is frustrating too since we have bald patches where he digs in the rung. We’ve had to lock him up in his large bunny condo (25 SF of space) most of the time if we’re not able to keep a close eye on him, rather than have him free range.

This weekend our plan is to go Home Depot to get long plants of untreated wood measured and cut to length of our couch to try to block him from entering. I’ve also read about putting a toy / remote controlled so that we could have it make a loud noise when he goes under the couch, but the wood seems like a better option. Does anyone have further advice? He should be around 4-5 years old, this doesn’t seem like teenage bunny behavior!

Thanks in advance for any advice! We feel bad about keeping him locked up in his condo most of the time vs. having him free range for months and months. Hopefully this will resolve itself when we block it off with wood.

[pinknfwuffy]

Attack of the persistent bunny! I am glad you are keeping him out of there. As you’ve already found out, the undersides of couches and beds can be dangerous for pets, especially if they try to crawl inside. I think you are on the right track. A permanent board or frame to keep him out is the best line of defense.

I had a similar issue with Olaf, he loves to chew on the corners of my couch cover and I could not seem to keep him away. After blocking the area, I decided to use a distraction strategy. I got a cardboard tray and filled it up with shredded paper, one of his favorite things, and put it near that spot. After about a week of his constant scratching at the blocked area and stubbornness, he finally got the idea that the paper was for him and forgot about the couch cover. Something like this may be helpful to not only distract your rabbit from the couch but it will also cover the carpet area that he has started digging at in retaliation. If your bun doesn’t like paper, fill the box with their favorite toys.

Distraction has been my only line of defense. Rabbits don’t tend to respond to time-outs or being removed from the situation, they just don’t make the connection between that and bad behavior. Good luck!

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