Aggression in Rabbits

[Teambenji543]

Hello! My foster, Abi is really “aggressive”. He’s not that aggressive, he’s just very territorial. whenever I reach into his enclosure, he lunges and tries to bite. he’s actually bitten me multiple times. How can I get him to stop biting and lunging? Just to give him hay, water and pellets I have to trap him in his carrier.

[Wick & Fable]

I appreciate you acknowledging that he’s not actually aggressive, but it’s coming from a place very instinctual for him. I have a couple questions:

1. How long have you had him?
2. Do you have other rabbits/animals in the home?
3. Is he neutered? If so, how long has it been?
4. Can you describe his environment, toys, enrichment, space, and level of interaction with you/others?
5. Do you know anything about his background?

I know it’s a lot, but what I’m hearing is potentially a rabbit who does not yet feel trust/security in the environment/you, and how to build that can depend on a lot of factors!

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[Bam]

Thisis a bit tricky. Rabbits can be “cage aggressive” but still not generally aggressive.

Could you do a partition of the enclosure so that you could put in food and water (and do maintenance cleaning) in one compartment while the bun is in the other?

Another alternative that is more confrontative, is to wear thick gardening gloves while putting in food and water. It might not help if the bun has already established a set pattern of attacking whoever messes with his living area, but it could help if this is just a recent thing. The rationale is the same as for all learning in humans as well as practically all animals: Animals and humans tend to repeat behaviors that prove successful. If a rabbit wants you to go away and you go away when he attacks you, the attack has been successful. Next time you come around, the rabbit knows what to do to make you flee. And he will do just that.

By not responding to the attack (which you need some armour to do successfully), you might teach the bun that attacking does not produce the desired outcome. Animals and humans tend to stop performing behaviours that are futile -unless the behaviors have become ingrained habits.

[DanaNM]

Rabbits can become really cage-aggressive in shelter situations, but there is hope!

Is it possible for you to do the needed cage maintenance when he isn’t in his cage? And I’d also like to know how long you’ve had him.

My foster-fail Bonnie was super cage aggressive when we brought her home (that’s actually why I decided to foster her, because she was miserable in the shelter environment). In my experience rabbits become cage aggressive when they are handled a lot (basically everytime a hand reaches into the cage it’s to grab them), or when people routinely clean the rabbit’s area while the rabbit is in the cage (mostly a problem with small cages, seems to be less of a problem when the pen is large enough).

So with Bonnie I set up her pen so that I wouldn’t need to intrude much (much more space than the shelter cage). I set the water bowl near the door, so I wouldn’t need to reach way in to fill the water. I opted to clean her litter box a bit less in the beginning, and also set it up so I could reach over the side of the pen to top up hay.

I also basically ignored her for the first couple weeks (aside from feeding etc.). I didn’t try to pet or hand feed her at first, I just wanted her to feel like she wasn’t going to be messed with. Once she was confident enough to come out of her pen for exercise (after a couple weeks), I made sure to only clean her area when she wasn’t in it. After a couple weeks of this she was honestly like a different rabbit. She never lunges at hands or anything anymore and is very relaxed. I still try to avoid cleaning around her but when I do have to it’s not an issue (her pen also has two doors, so she has an exit route if she feels afraid). She still doesn’t seek out pets very often but that’s OK with me. I’m just happy that she’s happy.

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[Teambenji543]

Hello! @Wick & Fable:

1. I’ve had him for about 3 months now.
2. I have a dog (although he couldn’t care less about the bunny), 2 guinea pigs and 2 gerbils.
3. Yes he is neutered. I think it’s been awhile since he doesn’t have a scar or anything from his surgery, but I don’t really know.

4. He’s in a large playpen right now. He has lots of toys, hidey homes, and other things. He’s  really friendly, climbing onto my lap and sniffing around, he just gets REALLY aggressive when it comes to his food and people reaching into his cage. It’s almost like he turns into another bunny.

5. I know that he was handed off to multiple families until he arrived at the shelter. His previous owners decided to surrender him because they just couldn’t handle an aggressive rabbit.

[Teambenji543]

@DanaNM, I don’t know if you remember this or not, but awhile back I made a post when I first got him. He was really scared, so I kind of left him alone for a few days. Now he’s really come out of his shell! He’ll happily hop out of his cage and sniff me, and climb all over me. He’s a really sweet rabbit when he’s outside of his cage, and treats aren’t involved.

Just whenever I take out a treat or pellets, he goes BONKERS! He starts lunging and charging me. So just to give him hay, I have to catch him and trap him in his carrier. I feel bad, as if I’m terrorizing him, but I don’t want to be bitten *again* . I’ll definitely try wearing some kind of thick glove.

[Wick & Fable]

Ah, re: the food energy, that sounds a lot like Wick. Wick becomes a darting, nipping monster when he senses food (often incorrectly). A few things that have worked for me (notably, Wick’s nips are super weak, so that made things easier to establish systems with him; I realize it can definitely be more intimidating and difficult, and potentially impossible, with a different rabbit whose bites are more significant):

1. Situation: I have approached him and he thinks I have food but I don’t, OR he has finished food and is still pestering me for more when I have none.
   1. Signal: I do something like this, where my palms are facing him and he takes the time to sniff all my fingers and both hands, and then he’ll hop away as if thinking “OK, I’ve checked– you have nothing.” I do this signal on his level, and I keep it out until he has assessed both. I think this works because intuitively rabbits learn that our hands are the dispensing mechanisms for food, haha.
      
2.  Situation: Pellet time!
   1. Redirection: I usually give Wick pellets in stacked baby cups or a pellet ball, and this seems to redirect the energy to those things, rather than myself. I can tell that his eyes, nose, and attention is more so on the cups/ball that I’m holding, rather than at me.

 

Re: the aggression towards people reaching in his cage, is this entering the playpen in general, reaching in through the bars, or trying to reach towards him while in the pen? Is the pen in a room corner or out in the open (i.e. are all sides exposed or are some against a wall)? I’m thinking if he has some hypervigilance about his space, things that add security, like less exposed panels may be helpful.

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[DanaNM]

Awww that’s really wonderful!

Cooper is like that with pellets too! Wick’s suggestions are great!

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[Teambenji543]

Hello! An update, I’ve been giving Abi all of his food while wearing oven mitts and I think it’s helping! I just try not to flinch when he lunges and tries to bite, 🙂

I’ve moved his enclosure to the corner of my dining room, and I think that has helped. When I give him food he’ll only hop up to me and sniff my gloves. Now I just have to work on getting him adopted!

[DanaNM]

That’s great!

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[Teambenji543]

Good news! Abi got adopted today! I’m so happy for him, and a little sad to see him go. 😥  I’ve had him for about 4 months and I spent a lot of time trying to get him used to me. So I was really sad when he had to go. He was a real character!
I explained Abi’s behavior to the potential adopters and they agreed to adopt him. I hope he gets his forever home that he deserves! I also hope that he lives a nice, long, and happy life.

[DanaNM]

That’s wonderful!! And good job to you! I think fostering is so great for rabbits like Abi, because the foster home can really give the adopter a better idea of what the rabbit will be like in a home environment (rather than the shelter).

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[Author]

Messages