My bun is nudging me a lot?

[Ciera D]

So I’ll preface this post by saying I am actually quite familiar with rabbits; I’ve raised 22 of them all for pleasure! My oldest rabbit was 12 years old when he passed away, and I’ve loved and had rabbits my whole life, so I’m very comfortable with training/bonding with/loving new buns!

Recently, I adopted an abandoned rabbit from my local rabbit shelter, Bits. She’s a 1 year old English Spot mix, and is really sweet when she wants to be. She lives in my room full time, and is allowed to roam free in my room and is very rarely shut in her cage, so she’s very well exercised and has access to hay, fresh veggies, and her litter box constantly. 

But recently, she’s been doing this thing where she will intentionally seek me out just to nudge my hands and feet out of her way. At first, I thought she was looking for pets, so I happily obliged. But when I start petting her, she only tolerates it for a few seconds before she gets bored and nudges me away again. So I try and stay out of her way until she comes over to me and actually presents herself for grooming. But lately, she’s come over to me just to nudge me in what seems like an annoyed manner.

I know I’ve totally spoiled my little bunny brat in the 2 months that I’ve had her, but I’ve always spoiled all my buns and I’ve never had this issue where they have come over to me specifically to nudge me angrily. Is there something I’m doing wrong? I haven’t had a rabbit in 5 years so I might be a little rusty, but I’m really trying my best to make her comfortable!

She also doesn’t like being picked up for held for very long, though I’ve been trying to get her used to the notion, but she clearly wants affection and wants to be near me… any tips for how to get her accustomed to being held and handled in the least traumatic way possible? Bits is my first adopted rabbit and she had a bit of a rough start in life; her previous owners were a bit rough with her, and she was abandoned in the wild when they got tired of her, but she hasn’t shown any signs of aggression and is generally an easy-going rabbit, besides the whole nudging thing. Anyone have any idea what is going through that tiny little bunny head of hers?

[jerseygirl]

She sounds like a funny little thing ! While reading your post I was thinking perhaps she was just a fairly dominant rabbit and maybe had a bonded mate in the past. But after reading about her history, maybe it is something to do with that? If she was mishandled, she may have learnt this as a defensive behaviour?

I have had mine do the nudge thing when they’re coming past. I used to sit on the back step when a pair where having time outside and my lop would nudge me in the doorway. There was a gap on either side of my but he always wanted to go through the smaller gap, so I’d get a nudge or gentle nip.

I know I’ve totally spoiled my little bunny brat in the 2 months that I’ve had her, but I’ve always spoiled all my buns and I’ve never had this issue where they have come over to me specifically to nudge me angrily. Is there something I’m doing wrong? I haven’t had a rabbit in 5 years so I might be a little rusty, but I’m really trying my best to make her comfortable!

Do you give treats randomly through the day? I wonder if its a way she’s prompting (training lol) you to give treats. If you happen to do it a few times after she nudged you, she might think this is how to get them now.

Last question: Is she desexed?  Could it be hormonally driven behaviour?

[Q8bunny]

My bun does that for practical reasons (he needs to get by) 10% of the time, and for entertainment reasons (it’s fun to boop mommy) 90% of the time. So maybe it’s a fun game?

[LittlePuffyTail]

No idea but she seems like quite the little character!!!

[Ciera D]

She is quite a character.. honestly one of, if not the most, spirited bun with a huge attitude I’ve raised so far! But I love her just the same  

She is a pretty dominant rabbit, but she’s never had a bondmate… she really just displays her dominance over me lol so I think she’d actually do pretty well with a bondmate, but I digress

Your suggestion that it might be defensive actually makes sense, and it’s something I hadn’t considered because she isn’t aggressive in any other way at all; like I said, she’s actually so well adjusted for having such a rough start! 

I also don’t give her treats throughout the day… she really just gets a wide range of veggies and sometimes little fruits but I don’t use them as a form of bribery or treating, so I don’t think she’s asking for food.

And she is spayed; she was spayed a little over two months ago now! So not hormonal in nature, no.

I think your suggestion that it’s defensive makes the most sense… it could also very well just be her personality because she is SO opinionated and expressive about all her other moods and behaviors so I would not put it being an attitude thing!

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