Grunting, lunging, and now a bite.

[Quirkily]

Honeydew has never been a bitey or aggressive bun, but things have started to change.  He now grunts and lunges when I reach into his pen (for whatever reason, picking up a stray poo, taking his litterbox out, or even to give a petting he was begging for).  I think it has to do with him not knowing what is coming down into his cage, because if I made a very obvious effort for him to watch my arm decend completely, he seems more okay with it.  

I think WHY this started was because back in early November (about) I got a kitten.  Originally, she was perfectly fine with the bun and my other cat ignores the buns.  However, she started to climb into the pen and harrass Honeydew.  Obviously that is not okay and I immediately blocked her access to the bun room.  She’s wicked fast and sometimes sneaks in when I walk in, but otherwise she hasn’t been able to harrass him for a number of months.  Ever since though, he’s been a little more defensive.  I was hoping that since she wasn’t coming in to harras him anymore, he would realize that he doesn’t need to worry about what’s coming down into his pen.  That doesn’t seem to be the case though.

In addition, I got a second bun (a sort of pet store rescue) and she lives in a pen adjacent to his cage.  Despite being together for 4 or so months, he is still somewhat aggressive towards her.  It’s really only when she’s running around during her floor time or being hyper in her cage.  She’s still too young to be spayed (just about a month left!!) so I can’t bond them yet.

I feel like my kitten harrassing him (though this doesn’t happen anymore) and then the stress of a new bunny in his space (even though it’s been a while) has really made this aggressive behavior fester.  

Normally I could ignore it and would do so simply because I attributed it a lot to having the second bun in the area and was thinking it might clear up when I bond them.  If it didn’t I was planning on sorting it from there.

However, Today, when replacing his litter box in his pen, he lunged and successfully bit me.  He didn’t break skin, but it was enough to bruise and leave marks of his teeth.  I believe it to be a warning bite of “get out of my space!”.  I also think he’s gotten a bit more aggressive about when he wants something.  He is also binkying a LOT less, clearly he seems to be a bit stressed.  His eating and bathroom habits are normal though, so no need to worry there. 

So, advice? :/  I can’t really move the second bun anywhere and I could put a towel against the side of the cage so that they can’t see each other, but then the cantaloupe (the second bun) will be fairly blocked in with just a wall to stare at.  So preferably, it wouldn’t have to come to that.

 

Would a squirt bottle be applicable here?  I have considered them, but I’m afraid of him not forgiving me if I use it.  Many thanks!

 

edit: Oh, and he is neutered and I’ve had him for over a year now, so I can read his behavior fairly well.

[KatieP]

Yikes! Sorry you’re having to go through all this! I’d be curious to see what others more experienced say but I had a couple thoughts:
Obviously ruling out any health issues, I think you’re probably spot on with his stressors (kitten, other bunny)…I know some buns can be cage aggressive (get out of my space!), but from a prey animal perspective they probably don’t like things reaching down at them…is there a reason you have to do this? We don’t have an aggressive bun but even so I open his door and he hops in and out on his own…and I clean his area when he’s out binkying around so he’s not in the cage when I clean etc….maybe something like that would help?
As far as the other bunny goes….I’m not saying this is the case but an experienced rabbit vet told me that not all bunnys are compatible…it could be that even after she’s spayed they still might not become the bonded pair you’re hoping for and in that case you’ll need to make some decisions. Again, not saying this is the case here, just a thought.
I don’t know about the spray bottle thing…I’d defer to someone else on that…I think I’d try to remove the stressors first….
I think it’s great that you are able to read your bunny well and that you’re reaching out for help! Keep us posted!

[Chrystie]

I am having the same problem with my spayed female Nutmeg. She has started lunging and has now bit me twice hard enough to break skin etc. She lunging at the hamster that she used to just ignore and she’s pretty much got Moose, neutered male sibling , bullied into submission. She didn’t do this before.
I know that most of it is being space territorial and I already remove them while cleaning house but now it’s grunt and lunge even when we reach in to pet Moose, remove a toy, fix something etc. I respect her need for some personal space but at the same time, I can’t have this behavior globally. I am the boss, she is not.
There aren’t any stressors in her life, nothing new and no small children that I can attribute this behavior to. It seems like she has decided that SHE wears the pants and we can all comply or get bit. She displays this behavior both in and out of the cage and I’ll give it to her inside her personal space but not outside…… That’s MY space.
I feel like we’re caught in a battle of wills and she’s seeing me as weaker because I’m nice about it and just tell her no.
Moose does not and has never displayed any aggressive behavior at all. I have never actually heard him make any sounds at all. Sometimes he sits there, head down and looks like he’s planning her demise but he has never done anything.
Nutmeg is kinda a jerk!!! And I don’t want her to be a jerk.
I saw the mention of a squirt bottle? Is that something effective? I would prefer to not do anything negative or cruel….. I have done the opposite approach by just saying no and loving on her as I have thought that maybe it’s coming from a place of insecurity.
Any suggestions would be helpful.

Chrystie

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