Looking for Advice, Bunny w/ a Temper!

[spudsnik]

I signed up here looking for some advice.

I have a 2-year-old neutered male californian rabbit named Morgan. He’s an only bunny, and has always been extremely friendly with people, and an excellent free range bunny. He never showed any aggression until recently.

I moved into a serious fixer-upper home, and due to heavy construction I sent him to my sister’s house to stay for a couple months. She has two fixed bunnies who are free range (a male and a female), so she decided to block off her stairs and let him roam upstairs while the others were down. He was happy enough, I visited every day, and my sister was always around looking after him because she’s unemployed.

For the first month things were completely fine. He was friendly and silly as ever, and showed no visible issues adjusting to the environment, but by the second month he started showing some territorial behavior. (or at least I think that’s what it is) When we would come up the stairs and open the gate he would run up and immediately begin following your feet, as if focused on them, and nip them if you stopped walking. He would sometimes swat at you when you tried reaching down toward him, or hop off and begin thumping. All this was really strange in him, but I figured once we were home it would be fine.

Now that he’s home he has a bunny-proof room all to himself, with a cage that is always open. I visit him constantly throughout the day to play or just hang out, but he still targets the feet. He doesn’t nip as much, but when he does I say ‘hey’ in a low tone, and he seems to get the message and stops. I figured he was bored and started trying to take him to the livingroom to play, but rather than binky and have fun like he used to, he explores, then begins hiding and destroying. He’ll go into corners or anywhere out of my view and start ripping at the flooring, or he’ll crawl to the side of the couch and begin ripping it up. When I say ‘hey’ he runs to a corner and begins thumping and growling, and won’t stop. Even after I put him back in his room the tantrum continues, thumping over and over for upwards of ten minutes.

I’m at a loss of what to do, because he’s becoming less and less fun to be around, when he used to be so happy and friendly. I don’t know what fuels his tantrums, and I’m afraid he’s as unhappy as he always seems.

 Thank you if you read all of that, and any advice is appreciated.

[Zombie-Sue]

How long has he been home? Does he have any toys? Do you provide him with things that he is allowed to destroy?

One more.. when was the last time he went to the vet?

[Svandis]

I second zombie-sue’s suggestions.
Other than that, maybe he made a connection between your feet and the smell of the other bunnies? Maybe by walking where the other buns had been made their smell stick to your socks, which could result in territorial behavior?
I don’t know why it would continue after you brought him home though..

[Jessie1990]

I have a rabbit that acts this way. We just ignore the behavior and treat her the same way we do our cuddly bun. She is growing out of it. Is your rabbit neutered? This behavior usually lessens after spay/neuter, or can disappear.

[Jessie1990]

Nvm. I see neutered… So just continue to give attention.

[Sarita]

I think he’s just adjusting to the new environment. I think he nips at your feet for attention. Just give him more time to settle and I think he will mellow out again. Californians are usually a pretty laid back breed.

[Author]

Messages