OMG! I’m new here, is Luey a big rabbit? altho bites like that from even a little bunny would be awful. I don’t have any advice, just sympathy and a bandaid. I’m interested in hearing how one deals with such a biter. My two bunnies are my first and luckily one’s very shy and the one I do call Monster is way down the scale on aggression, he’s just more like a mouthy teenager, all big bad attitude sometimes. Good luck, and let us know how it goes (pot, slipper, etc)

Kathy

I think time is the only cure for his biting problem. Or making yourself taste really bad!

Frankie lunged at me once when I got up too fast and bit my wrist. Luckily, he just missed the vein. It still bled a good amount, though. It’s probably been at least 3 months since he did it and I have a light scar in the shape of his top and bottom central incisors.

Just think of them as battle wounds. And you will be victorious!

Oh Dawn, I am so sorry.  No fun, no fun at all. And bunny bites can really be brutal! Well, I don’t have to tell you that, but I have gotten bad bites over the years during cleaning at the shelter.  I still have a mark on my arm from two months ago when one bunny at the shelter decided that hay wasn’t good enough, and a good ‘ol arm would be more tasty.  

I would suggest wearing gloves when you interact with him for now. Not to just protect yourself, but to let him know that biting has little affect.  Since he sounds aggressive based on territory and dominance then he wants to hurt you to get his point across.   Some bunnies bite to make a person move or get attention but they don’t want to hurt so the high-pitch scream can usually help.  In your case, he got the result he wanted, and unfortunately with rabbits, punishment (besides confinement) can make a highly dominant aggressive bunny even more aggressive. 

So though I don’t think you should wear gloves all the time of course, but use them when you are cleaning his cage or when you are interacting.  And when he bites, don’t react too much.  Just say no and put him back into his pen immediately.  If you are cleaning his pen and he jumps to bite you because he thinks you are "messing" with his stuff, then can you put him in the bathroom while you clean?

He either hasn’t been socialized or something happened in his past, and I’m sorry you have to deal with the consequence of that.  

Oh, now in your profile there is a section where you can fill out information about age, if your bunny is neutered or not, etc.   That way, you won’t have to repeat important details to new members who can help you out..  

Does he bite in any type of situation??? And is it specifically made towards your palm???

From what you mention there appears to be no sort of trigger to why. Unless theres more? And that he only attacks your palm. Unless thats not the case? As a rescued rabbit his pervious owners could of slapped him when he bite, which would cause him to bite more or attack hands. But you never know. I had a biter/nipper who liked to bite for treats/dinner/attention or more attention, and he did this 100% more with his previous owner. He was also a rescued case and was rescued by the previous owner and passed on to us cause the pervious owner was allergic. A big chewer of everything within reach. He would nip our girl bun to get out of the way or to pay attention to him. Within the first month, with loud hand clapping and spray bottle squirting and threats hes stopped nipping us & chewing on everything. He nudges us now if he wants/need something. I would always apoligize with a little treat and make up for being a meenie. Even if I pull out the spray bottle & say "spray" when hes being a big time troublemaker he knows. As a rescued rabbit some will say threats and sterness will cause your bun to be startled and prolong the problem. But if he’s that headstrong and problematic in the first place then sterness is the only option I see with a little positive reinforcement. With a little spray and a loud clap or "NO!" may deter further bites. But always make up with him right after.

Another thing you could try which may work if he only bites your palms, get the bitter apple stuff and spray your hands with it and hope that he bites you and hates it. But that may take a coule times for him to recall that hand=shi*ty taste in mouth.

My boyfriend threatens The Pot is imminent for Weeny Bean (if anyone is getting the slipper it’ll be him and not the rabbits). All i can say is stick with it. Brian has only bitten me once, and that’s only when invaded his cage, but he used to go for the boyfriend daily and for no apparent reason, he’d charge from under the bed at him. Bean however, will pounce on any bit of bare flesh, be it toes, back, shoulders, arm, breastacles (i try not to dangle too much when crouching under the bed – as you can imagine!) We have found if you approach her slowly and give her lots of fussing before you go about your business she generally then leaves well alone. Don’t give up yet. 🙂

i’ve found they respond best if you treat them as you would kiddies, reprimand them there and then, then carry on as normal…. if Bean misbehaves she gets scooted out the way – and if really bad she goes away in her cage for a bit….she soon learns not to do it again, and finds something else to be a bugger with.   

Dawn, you’ve got some great tips from BinkyBunny, I do have some additional questions though, what do you do while he is biting you and what do you do afterwards? Do you holler, do you cry, do you yelp, does he see and hear you do any of this? How does he react in turn? Do you think he may have a hearing problem?

HAHAHAHA!!  That’s so funny.  

Well I have to say you  have a good heart dealing with this!   I know it can’t be easy!

Scarlet brought up a a good point….maybe he is hard of hearing!  Also, I can’t remember but is he a  lop?  Or possibly vision impaired at all?  I know lops, because of their ears, can sometimes be startled because their ears block their view to some extent. (when you’re petting him)

I also brought your situation up with a rabbit expert who has alot of experience with bunnies that bite.  Besides asking if he was a lop, hard of seeing or hard of hearing, She said, like wordmonkey mentioned, that Luey could have been hit when he misbehaved, and with rabbits, this can make him hand aggressive. She did say that IF that is the case that using a loud voice or clapping can make him worse.  Because most people that hit usually use their voice too out of anger.

(Don’t get me wrong though, I swear like a sailor when I just stub my toe, so I know what words will fly out if a bunny is hanging off my arm, and saying "darn it and frootloops"  just doesn’t cut it..  I know staying calm is important when dealing with an aggressive bunny because he  will also feed off your tension and the tension his behavior has caused.  I really don’t have advice regarding that because I still need to work on that aspect myself. But I have found that if I walk away and express my anger away from them, then they won’t be exposed to it.  

Since we’re all not completely sure what is causing his aggression (his past, a habit he’s formed, a dominance issue, etc etc) then you may have to try different things to find what actually works, and it will take time. I asked her how much time you should try with each, and she encouraged at least a week and half (unless he gets even more aggressive.)  But it can take months once you find one that seems to work.

She asked if you tried pressing his head & shoulders gently down to show dominance.  But I couldn’t remember if you tried that.  Sometimes that can also make some bunnies aggressive while with others it gets the point across without incident.

She also suggested that if the glove and gentle method doesn’t work to try the squirt bottle, but don’t say no with it.   If you use your voice with it, he may associate you with that and learn where to show more aggression instead of just learning that when he bites water comes shoots at his face (be careful of eyes & ears) Just stay silent and squirt  the very moment he lunges or bites. The timing is extremely important so keep a water bottle with you.   If he bites and then you go and get a water bottle and squirt him it’s too late.  He won’t make the assocaiation.  He’ll just feel under attack for no reason which won’t help him of course.

Well, that’s all I can remember for now.  It’s so complicated because rabbits are such individuals with unique experiences.   So there is not just one answer for aggression.   What works for one bunny may make it worse for another, and vice versa.   I wish I had the one answer that will just fix it.

So try a method for a couple of weeks, and if in general, you see improvement, even with a few setbacks, stick with it for months.   Because it can take that long to really see the changes.   Rabbits are creatures of habit.  Prey animals are extremely habit based since once they find something that works, it insures their survival.  So mark your calendar, because what might seem like forever, may only really be a short time on a bunny’s watch.  Think months.

So I’m keeping my fingers and toes crossed for you, that you find that one of these methods will work for you.  

Keep us updated along the way.

Not sure if this was mentioned either. Come at him when petting, food or approaching in any manner low and from the side so he can see you coming. Since they are prey animals their field of vision is to the sides and not forward or behind. And if hearing or vision impaired or covered by ears then its even worse.

You’re welcome Dawn! Thank you BinkyBunny!

Dawn, are you even able to get close enough to push his shoulders down to show dominance without him biting you?  I was just thinking about that.  I would definately try that with gloves on.

How goes it Dawn?

I feel your pain, b/c I’m completely scarred up from bunny bites.  Since Jessica was spayed she stopped w/ the lunging and biting…so my wounds are finally starting to heal!

I agree w/ the hearing thing…if a sense is bad, oral is the best way to go b/c biting can be very protective.  So check w/ the hearing. 

I’m wondering if it may be something medicinally treated.  I don’t know much about rabbits and medications, but I wonder from a animal behaviorist/vet tx modality, if some type of medication can be prescribed while you continue to work w/ him.  I know that some felines & canines take valium, SSRI’s or even types of lithium to calm behaviors that are psychologically based and may impair home placement.  Just a thought that you can speak w/ your vet about.

Frankie used to lunge at me if I got up too quickly after petting. I press my hand lightly on his head when I get up and it seems to have broken the habit.

Wonderful news, Dawn! Maybe he’s realizing you mean no harm, either way, enjoy!

Hooray! I hope things will go smoother from now on!!

YEAH Dawn!!!! That’s great news! And yeah, he may have setbacks, but this is a huge step forward so that’s wonderful!!

Hi Dawn,

So so so glad to hear that your relationship with Luey is looking up and I pray that that this continues.

Barney and I are back to square one! But not amused. For two weeks he seemed so much more accepting of me with no bites at all and then the weekend before my holiday he attacked me twice with no provocation which left me with two gouged out holes on my hands. My parents were house/cat/rabbit sitting whilst we were away and Mum brought her gloves as a precaution but I so hoped Barney would be OK with her. Of course he wasn’t and left her with three nasty bites on her hands and bloodied gloves. I feel so bad over this.

Now we are back the little sod is fine with my daughter and ultra terratorial with me. I don’t think things will ever change between him and me which is bad enough for me but at least I can take precautions. I am concerned though for anybody else who goes near him as I cannot trust him.

Just wanted to say I know exactly how you feel, I had no idea rabbits could act like this. The Barney situation is extremely distressing and stressful, I mean how could anyone be frightened of a mini lop! Sadly my Mum and I are.

Good luck, I so hope you have turned a corner.

With best wishes, Vanessa.

V

That’s great news Dawn! He sounds like he has relented that you are the “Top Bun” in the house and is settling in nicely, keep your guard up though as you may need to reinforce your position. What a cutie pie once you establish your relationship!

Hi Dawn,

Hope things are still going well with you and Luey.

I have just about given up on Barney, he is perfectly OK with my daughter but obviously has issues with me! My husband and son give him a wide berth as they do not trust him and I certainly wouldn’t let anyone else try and pet him as I wouldn’t be sure how he would react.

He is really  incredibly territorial – I have had to give over feeding him and Herbie his bunny friend because if I do anything to upset Barney and he cannot bite me then he will bite Herb instead. I hate to see this as Herb is a big softie and doesn’t have a nasty bone in his fluffy body! I am sure there are no problems between them when I am not around.

This wouldn’t really bother me and I would keep away from Barney except that he suffers with ‘ a poopy butt’ which we have not managed to sort out. This means constantly cleaning up after him during the day which I have to do when daughter is not around – hence the bites. Tonight the little love tried to bite when I stroked Herb – obviously he is his territory too! I think Barney is too smart to fall for the treats and fuss trick, I don’t think he will ever take to me (or others?) and I have to accept this as his character. Snag is I am scared of him and handling him – and he knows it -which is not good when Louise is not around, and I dread to think what we will do when we next go on holiday – I am still so upset he savaged my mum. I was thinking of trying a shock tactic on him when he tries to bite eg blowing a whistle but I would hate to scare Herb. Maybe I try using thick bite proof gloves around him – he shredded my Mum’s!

Husband and others have said to get rid of him but as there are so many unwanted nuiscance buns I cannot do this. I am just getting very stressed tho with it all!!!!!!!!!! I know you can relate to this.

Thanks for replying and listening and understanding – it does help.

Love to you and Luey,

Vanessa.

Hi Vanessa,

Have you tried squirting him with a water bottle the moment he lunges at you?  Have you tried holding his shoulders down when he does to show dominance? I know I’ve mentioned this on another thread but have you tried a Bach flower essence in the water for aggression? I like to use safe homeopathic remedies (I check with my vet, who recommends it as well) on my bunnies and corrective actions too but some bunnies seem to need the extra little help. It all depends on personal choice but I thought at the very least I would mention it.  Here is their web site:

http://www.bachflower.com/Pets.htm

I’m certain that you would be able to find it in your neck of the woods as it is made (or at least based) in Oxfordshire, England. What I normally do is place about 4 drops in their water of Rescue Remedy and if its something like going to the vet I dose them directly with this amount. It seems to really help mellow them out for the vet to make a proper and less stressful exam.

So far what have you done to help curb him from biting other than gloves?  I would not suggest using a whistle, it may make him react more violently and like you said, startle his companion (that’s a good cue for you to separate them along with the reactionary biting).

If he is really acting out on his buddy, I think at this point I would suggest confining him to his own quarters to work with him one-on-one.  It’s not right he turns and bites either you or the other bunny, terrorizes everyone and it is definately not acceptable behavior either in the bunny world or human one. You have an aggressive bunny who needs to be dealt with emotionally and the way he is now is just not working. For some reason he’s just got it in his head that everyone is the enemy and a change needs to be made as I do not want to see him given away because of this. I am afraid that not everyone is going to be as compassionate as you are trying to be.  Accepting this behavior I would say is not an option and correcting it is a priority.  If you let him continue he will also and it will get incrimentally worse.

By limiting the environment in which he lives you give him limited options of "getting into trouble. Perhaps his ego has expanded so far now, he lunges and nips at everyone and everything in his joyous attempt to take over the world. Shrink his world, and it often will shrink the wgo to a manageable level so you can better work with him and let him know his pecking order in your household (you are the top bun).  There was another thread and I think MooBunnay linked to an article on rabbit hierarchy that might be a good read for you too.

How old is he? 

Thanks Dawn! How goes it with Luey? Oh and just to add, try reading to him too, someone suggested that some time ago that they did that to get their bunny used to them too. I think it was a romance novel. *giggle*