Nipping

FORUM

What are we about? Please read about our Forum Culture and check out the Rules.

BUNNY 911 – If your rabbit hasn’t eaten or pooped in 12-24 hours, call a vet immediately! Don’t have a vet? Check out VET RESOURCES

The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

This topic has 1sd reply, 2 voices, and was last updated 9 years, 3 months ago by Mikey.

Viewing 1 reply thread

Author

Messages
- 01/01/2017 at 7:08 PM
  Chelsea
  Participant
  189 posts
  Hello,
  
  I’m trying to decide on the most appropriate response to nipping. Jasper is 7 months old, extremely sweet and neutered. He’s amazingly tolerant of being held and snuggled. But after being petted for a while, he will frequently start exploring, then come back and nip us hard. A couple of times he’s broken through the skin. Most frequently it’s through clothing and it’s not clear he realizes he’s bitten a person. Other times it seems to be clearly him saying “Hey, pay attention to me, I want you to pet me!” Our response so far has been to say “Ouch!” or “No” and put him back in his pen or cage. It’s concerning because it makes us less inclined to let him out for longer then 10 minutes at a time for fear of being nailed by his super sharp teeth any time our attention wanders. It doesn’t stop our love for him though or our desire to have him be a part of the family. I have a feeling part of the answer may just be time, waning hormones, and us learning his cues better, but suggestions are welcome.
- 01/01/2017 at 7:16 PM
  Mikey
  Participant
  3186 posts
  He wont understand you putting him away the way you want him to, he may also start associating it as “when i want to be put away, i just have to nip them to let them know” teaching him the opposite of what you want. When he nips too hard, yip/yelp then turn your back to him. If he comes to your front, turn your back to him again. Ignore him like that for about a minute or two, then pet him. If it is that he wants more attention, try offering him more attention on and off, while yipping/yelping whenever he nips. Note that he still might have a slip up now and then, just keep up with the yipping/yelping so he knows he nipped too hard
Author

Messages

Viewing 1 reply thread

You must be logged in to reply to this topic.