Bunny with other house pets?

[Xerxes's Mom]

My boyfriend has been bringing up the idea of adopting a dog, and I was hoping someone had experience with a house bunny and a house dog. My parents have a dog that is very protective over Xerxes and growls if another dog gets anywhere close to his pen, and Xerxes hops right over her (when shes laying down) without any fear. I”m not worried about my bun getting anxious because he always does well with other pets, and hes been in contact with many big dogs when we go to the dog park (hes always on a harness). My concern is that if we adopt a younger dog or puppy that hasn’t had great training yet, they might get overly aggressive or playful and things may not go smoothly. Has anyone adopted a puppy and had experience with this? I’d hate to have to keep xerxes in his playpen when i’m not home but could possibly consider it while training a new pup.

[Mikey]

Do not allow an untrained puppy around your rabbit. If you do, youll be putting your rabbit into an unsafe situation where the rabbit could end up severely hurt.

While youre away, put Xernes in a larger playpen and put the dog in a large crate. It will keep them both safe, especially while the dog is untrained.

[Muchelle]

I would also make sure not to adopt a puppy from a breed that’s specifically tuned to hunt small prey animals. Also, is the bun used to barking/loud noises?

Generally, it’s possible to have them get along, but you need to keep the bun secured to one room where the dog has no access until the dog is trained and can be gradually introduced to the bun.

[Bam]

We have a member called Niamian who got a german shepherd-mix puppy when she already had two buns. She’s been inactive for a while, but she just recently returned. You could try PM-ing her and ask her to this thread, she might have some tips for you.

I have a dog and a bun, but the dog was 3 years old when the bun came, so my situation was very different.

In any event, always make sure there are safe hiding-places for the bun. If sth happens, if they accidentally come loose together, the bun MUST have a place to run to where the dog can’t reach it. Under a dresser or sofa or something, where the dog absolutely can’t get in under even if it were to try. A bun can still be scared to death by a dog, but some rabbits are quite resilient to scares, so ensuring that the bun can get out of the dog’s physical reach is really important.

What type of dog are you thinking about getting? Some breeds are more difficult to train than others.

[Xerxes's Mom]

Xerxes isnt intimidated by other dogs or loud barking, but I was unsure about introducing a new pup because my parents dog is 5 and well trained. We havent decided whether or not to adopt a dog yet, but this was the main concern I had in wondering how long it would take to train a new dog to not be too playful. Thanks for the top to message Niamian, Ill ask how her experience went!

[Xerxes's Mom]

Xerxes isnt intimidated by other dogs or loud barking, but I was unsure about introducing a new pup because my parents dog is 5 and well trained. We havent decided whether or not to adopt a dog yet, but this was the main concern I had in wondering how long it would take to train a new dog to not be too playful. Thanks for the top to message Niamian, Ill ask how her experience went!

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