Bunny suddenly aggressive?

[Azure_Prince]

I’ve had my bunny friend since july2018 when she was three months old. It’s been nearly nine months since she’s lived with me, and she’s been super sweet (and maybe kind of demanding for pets/treats.)
In the last week, she has become very agressive towards me. She will ask for pets like usual, and after a couple moments of petting she will bite my hand, very hard, (she has nipped before if she didn’t like how I pet her but it wasn’t ever hard) and if I don’t move away from her she will growl and scratch at me. She’s also become aggressive in areas I normally use a lot that she also like to sit in (i.e. the bathroom) The only change I’ve made in how I treat her recently is sometimes I’ll let her free in the whole home because I finished bunny proofing it.
This hasn’t been an issue before, and I’m not entirely certain as to what I could have done to upset her or how to correct it. At this point when she bites I’ve been just placing a hand on her head because it makes her stop. Or maybe it confuses her I’m not sure.
Otherwise she is still totally normal. She plays and runs and jumps around no differently than she usually does.
Any help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated. And thanks in advance

[jerseygirl]

This sounds rather hormonal in nature. Is it Spring in your part of the world?
Rabbits have a bit of an increase in hormones in Spring – even desexed rabbits.
If she is not desexed, it’s possible she can have a false pregnancy even though she is not around other rabbits. This can make female rabbits change behaviour and even go so far as building a nest and pulling out fur for it.

At this point when she bites I’ve been just placing a hand on her head because it makes her stop.

Is she acting aggressive as soon as you stop petting her?

Be mindful that an underlying health issue could be reason for aggression also.

[Azure_Prince]

It is indeed sprimg time where I live. Since I had her fixed before winter, so the thought that it could be hormones never even crossed my mind. Sure enough when I got home and checked, there’s gotta be at least half a bunny worth of fur hidden behind the toilet where she likes to rest (since it’s cool there. Maybe that could explain her agressivness when I’m in the washroom. Is her possibly making a nest something that I should leave for her? Or would it be better to clean it up?
When I pet her, she bites as soon as she realizes that I am not petting her anymore then she’ll get mad and flick her feet at me before coming back and asking for pets again. I don’t like the feeling that i might be being mean to her, but I don’t know how to make my bunny understand that she shouldn’t bite me.

[jerseygirl]

Mmmm…. that is a place I would think fur would naturally become trapped. But if its a lot, that makes it more suspect. Can you see if she’s been pulling fur from around her hind end, tummy or chest?
If she is nesting, that would suggest her spay is incomplete. We actually have another recent thread in Behaviour section where this happened.

Does she have access to hay? They will often use some hay and paper to construct a nest. False pregnancies don’t last as long as the real thing. They are about 3 weeks compared to 4 weeks real gestation. A rabbit will lose interest in the nest they make and you can clear it away by that point.

When I pet her, she bites as soon as she realizes that I am not petting her anymore then she’ll get mad and flick her feet at me before coming back and asking for pets again. I don’t like the feeling that i might be being mean to her, but I don’t know how to make my bunny understand that she shouldn’t bite me.

That is not uncommon with some sassy rabbits! Communicating with their teeth… .
But you are right, you don’t want her thinking its acceptable to bite. The ususal suggestion is to let out a loud squeak if they bite, much like another rabbit might do. If one of my buns gets growly and bitey, I don’t retreat straight away. I try “stand my ground”. Because I don’t want to reinforce that aggression from them gets results.

[Azure_Prince]

I’ll definitely keep a closer eye on her behaviour to be certain, and I’ll look around on the other forum posts here too. Going to the vet seems to super stress her out, so hopefully it doesn’t come to that. (I’ll take her if I need to, please don’t fear for my bunny friend)
She’s always seemed like a little diva bunny, so it makes sense if she’s seeing aggression as a way to get her way, I’m at least glad I’m probably not horribly upsetting her. Thank you for the info though ?

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