Bunny who doesn’t like being pet, and nipping

[Ms.Marshmallow]

I adopted two 2 year old bunnies. The girl loves being pet and is very bold. The male, a holland lop doesn’t appreciate being touched. When I try to pet him, he’ll put his head down and start walking away and even hiding sometimes! He sometimes lets me pet him, if he is hiding behind the female, as if for protection. He feels comfortable around me and will easily walk up to me, hop on the bed, lays relaxed etc but doesn’t like being touched. Why does he do this and What should I do to make him ok with being pet?

Also, the female, who loves being pet has a nibbling/biting problem. She will nibble me gently to get me to pet her more and will straight up bite if I annoy her. I was cuddling with her today and she turned around and bit my cheek and hopped away. How do I get her to stop this?

[Wick & Fable]

Welcome to BB! How lovely that you have two rabbits. What a party that must be. I’ll address both separately…

1) Male – Some rabbits do not like being pet by humans. That’s a fact. Some rabbits may take years to warm up and allow even a 2-minute pet session. That’s also a fact. So your make may simply be a rabbit that doesn’t enjoy human interaction. While that may be saddening, it’s in his nature as a pretty animal to not enjoy interactions with predators. Although there are many rabbits that love being pet and cuddle, there are actually many more that don’t like it. Respect your male rabbit’s boundaries, and he’ll love you for that.

2) You need to provide feedback when nipping/biting is too hard. Like puppies and play biting, animals need feedback to know how hard is too hard. A rabbit will not perceive it hurt a human unless the human indicates so. A standard method is to make a high pitch squeal and retract that body part away. Do this any time a nibble is too hard, and this feedback will help her gauge how light or hard she can nibble.

Generally speaking, even rabbits who may enjoy human interaction are not 24/7 lap dogs, so be sure to give your rabbits space and only pet when they ask you.

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.

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