destroying carpet

[Egon&Esme]

Hi I am new to the forum and in need of help!

I have 2 house rabbits that get on very well.  The male is 2 1/2yrs and neutered.  He has always been a bit of a nibbler so has to be in cage if i am not at home. He goes through fazes of things he likes to eat-furniture, books, skirting board. In the past I have found that keeping a good eye on him/blocking access to his latest project/providing an alternative project has helped and he moves on or forgets and we have long periods without any nibbling at all. 

Recently he has started tugging at the carpet-none of my usual techniques are helping and he is destroying the carpet it is also making it very difficult to have him out of his cage unless I can give him full attention. He has plenty of toys and tunnels, has piles of cardboard under the sofa that he can chew (it is the bunnies den area when they are out  of the cage) and grass mats to tug on. 

He knows it is wrong as he startles if i approach him when he is doing it which he would not normally do – he is very tame and affectionate – but i can’t make him stop.  he also knows the difference between the cardboard and mats and the stuff he is not supposed to eat as he does not startle when he is eating those.  He normally gets lots of affection and time from me and lots of time out of the cage but this is becoming a serious problem as he is causing a lot of damage – there small bald patches on the carpet and the rug I bought to go over it, I  am in rented accommodation and this going to get me in  alot of trouble.

I have looked at loads of stuff online but I am already trying a lot of it.  I live in a small apartment and there is no other space I can let them out in.  

Any help would be gratefully received!

[Egon&Esme]

I should have mentioned as well – he will be obsessed by a particular spot if he can get to it but if i cover it he immediately moves to another – I know there are suggestions of using smell as a deterrent, this has never been particularly effective with him before and I would have to cover my entire apartment in it for it to stop him at the moment!

[Jessie1990]

I have the same problem with both my buns. I just watch them at all times. Our carpet is long so it’s very “fun”.

[Jessie1990]

Also I block areas I can’t see with NIC grids

[tanlover14]

I used a towel to help deter my buns from this incredibly annoying behavior. Whenever they would begin digging or yanking on the carpet I would push the towel under them so they’d have to dig into that instead. It took a lot of persistence to get them to finally stop but now they are pretty good and usually just dig around and yank on their towels.

[Egon&Esme]

Thanks for the replies. It is very annoying as they are used to having a lot of time out of the cage – but now I can’t make it through a cup of tea without having to run interference. I also feel bad for my other bunny who is also having to have extra cage time because of it. We have lived in relative harmony (with a few short lived bad behaviors) for over 2 years so this is very frustrating.

He runs away if he is doing it and I approach him (any other time he runs too me or waits for a stroke) so I wouldn’t be able to get the towel under him but i will definitely try using a towel as a further alternative so thanks for the advice on that. He is an emotionally needy bunny so from previous experience with him I have made sure that I don’t reinforce the behaviour with picking him up or such like. Using his name, approaching him, hand clapping all work but only momentarily (and not at all if he knows there is an obstacle between me and him like a table). But really need to find away to get the behaviour under control properly.

[Sindri]

So they have access to the whole apartment I take it? Usagi went threw a stage of doing this in his bunny room. I tried tips I read but what worked was I layed down a bunch of blankets to cover the carpet and after a few days of that he lost interest. I bet that probably wouldn’t work being they have access to the whole place. Maybe you could try that in some way? I don’t know just thought I would mention what I did. I know its frustrating.

[Egon&Esme]

Hey – I am trying the towel thing now! fingers crossed as i have 2 new bald patches this evening alone
My apartment is pretty small – only 2 rooms. They are not allowed in the bedroom but have the run of the kitchen/sitting room when they are not in the cage. Only the sitting room area is carpeted – so I have 2 towels down to cover the worst area but if I have to go the whole way then it would be possible. I don’t mind putting the time into it or living with a bit of inconvenience if it helps sort the problem in the long term. Thanks for the ideas and of course if anyone has any other suggestion in case this doesn’t work then do let me know!

[manic_muncher]

Indoor/Outdoor carpeting is pretty tough. I think if I were in similar situation, that would be the first thing I’d put down (over a shower curtain in case of accidents). Then I’d add the towel thing to try to deter the behavior altogether. Hmm while typing this, I thought of something else.

Have you tried giving him an acceptable alternative? Digging is natural of course. Maybe offering a cardboard digbox with newspaper laid inside. I give Bumpy an old phone book once in awhile and he goes to town on it, ripping, shredding, digging at it. If the phone book isn’t down, he doesn’t dig anywhere else though, so not sure if a determined digger would be happy with that.

I wish you luck!!

[hattie&bear]

maybe he’s trying to suggest the room would look better with lovely stripped hardwood floors??! just kidding! 

both of mine are exactly the same, big chewers, big diggers, it’s a nightmare! 

I don’t know if this will help you but, similar to the towel idea, I bought a cheap thick-ish rug from ikea (also their sisal door mats might be fun for rabbits?) and stanley knifed it into sections, then whenever I noticed Bear going for a particular corner, I would put a section of rug over the top of the carpet. mine actually seemed to find the thicker rug more fun to shred and dig at, and it saved the carpet underneath! I watch them to make sure they aren’t chewing it. 

I seem to find, for mine anyway, that the deeper and more plush the digging area the more they enjoy it – i.e. thin carpet = not as fun as squashy rug or even better, my bed with piles of pillows and duvets. 

diversion is the key I think? and eventually the habits will break positively if they are allowed to dig, rather than them associating digging with being mischievous! 

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