for those who have bunnies and dogs…

[Ruffles&Daisy]

Well we have a puppy (6 month old) coming to visit us tomorrow to see if she will be a good fit for our family.  I think I want a dog (we’ve been going back and forth for more than a year), but am concerned about the rabbits.  How do I assess whether or not this dog will be the right one… .the right one meaning she won’t chase/hunt the bunnies.  Her foster people say she’s sweet, gentle, good with kids, etc., but she’s obviously hasn’t been around rabbits.  What should I do or not do in terms of rabbit/dog meetup while the dog is here tomorrow.  Should I keep the dog away from the buns?  I’m confused as to how to go about this.  Thanks in advance for any tips or info…

[Deleted User]

I would put the rabbits in a carrier and put that on a higher place like a table top. Don’t expect too much from the puppy as it is canine instinct to hunt rabbits, and it will be their first meeting. If the puppy does not go completely nuts around the crate, I would set the carrier on the floor for the puppy to sniff thoroughly. Don’t put the rabbits through this stress for too long. It is scary for them to meet a new dog. It takes time but many dogs and house rabbits have socialized successfully. I would look for a dog, though, that is not a terrier. Terriers tend to be harder to socialize with small creatures of prey.
Look for signs in the puppy that suggest she likes to please you, like bring you things or sit when you ask. These are clues that she will want to quit chasing rabbits also once you correct her. Now, having said this I have two dogs, one of them does not care if she pleases me, everything was a battle with her. She is also not fond of my rabbits, but she stopped trying to chase them also. She generally just avoids them. My other dog is the pleasing kind and I taught him to lie down when the rabbits are around. He loves to watch them, loves when they jump on him. I can bring even strange rabbits in my house and my dogs are like “yeah, whatever… ” — How long it takes depends on the rabbit, too, if the bun is very panicky and racing around in a terror it will take longer as this makes a dog want to chase even more. Just take it step by step. Once the dog acts calmer around a crated bunny, you can open the front of the carrier and have the puppy on a leash sniffing the bunny. I also recommend introducing one rabbit at a time to keep things calmer.

On a funny note, I have one rabbit who pre-neuter used to bite my dog so hard and I think this is why my one dog never really took to the bunnies!
 

It took me 6 months to get my dogs used to rabbits to the point where I can trust them. The single most important thing to watch for when allowing a dog around a rabbit is the paw swipe. Most dogs will paw at the bunny with great likelihood and it can break a rabbit’s back in a second. My vet thinks dogs should never ever be allowed around bunnies, but mine do reallly well. It is also a good idea to make a line of escape available so that the rabbit can decide when he is ready to meet the dog. See my video in this thread

https://www.binkybunny.com/FORUM/tabid/54/a…fault.aspx

where the little white kit hides behind the crate whenever my dog seems to get interested. My dog is well-seasoned with bunnies and the rabbit is young so this is not intense. It used to be, though!

[Adalaide]

I remember coming across this article some time ago. It really helped me a lot since I had been wondering if I decide to get a dog if there is a certain breed that may be better to get. Instead I just need to pick one I like and teach it and Freya to get along. Freya is pretty social with animals, she wants to play with my husband’s cat who is scared to death of her, so I don’t think it’ll be hard if I get a puppy. Anyway, I read the article and everything it says makes perfect sense and seems like a good plan to me for getting dogs and buns to get along.

http://www.wisconsinhrs.org/Articles/Bunnies%20and%20Dogs.htm

[Deleted User]

oh, that’s a great article. Nice find Adelaide! Are you getting a dog?

[Ruffles&Daisy]

Petzy, thanks for your reply. I love your videos and they give me hope. The foster family said that this dog is kind of like you described, but not quite a young puppy, so I think she will need more training and paitience.
Adelaide, that’s a great article and after I spend some time with the dog, I’ll take her up to the cage to see what my buns do. My guess is that they will be terrified, but then again, I don’t really know.

We are all getting excited at the prospect of a dog, but I just don’t want to make a mistake about this decision.

[MissDora]

I’ve only owned 3 buns in my life, but so far they’ve all easily became friends with dogs! I take my buns to the park & to work with me (where there are lots of dogs!) and my bunnies & the dogs just sniff each other out for a bit until they’re bored. However, anytime they’re introduced to a new dog, they’re either in their pet carrier to sniff safely, or I’m holding them securely (if I know the dog is harmless). Maybe I’ve just gotten lucky with my bunny/dog relationships, but I think most dogs are just curious, as are my buns. I’d say if it’s a puppy you’re bringing home, you shouldn’t worry about a thing.

PS. My roomate owns an English Springer who sleeps/plays with my buns, sooo cute

Best Wishes! 

[lesleyc]

i’m new to the bunny world, but i do have to dogs as well.

we took it slow with the dogs and Chubb. At first it was thru cages and pens and then we started letting the bunny and dogs out together. I’d give the dogs something to chew on so they were occupied with it and not the bunny hopping around them.

so far so good. they’ll lie together and everyone is ok with everyone else.

lesley

[Adalaide]

No, we decided not to get a puppy. “We” means my husband. He thinks dogs are too much work, mostly because they have to actually leave the house. I only want a little bunny sized dog. I’m rather fond of Scotties. Oh well, one day I’ll talk him into it.

[Deleted User]

Posted By Adalaide on 10/22/2009 12:19 PM
No, we decided not to get a puppy. “We” means my husband. He thinks dogs are too much work, mostly because they have to actually leave the house. I only want a little bunny sized dog. I’m rather fond of Scotties. Oh well, one day I’ll talk him into it.

 

I have the solution! Here is a “Scootie” rabbit (my Mops)

[Ruffles&Daisy]

Well we met Sugar last night and fell in love with her. After we got to know her a little, we kept her on a leash and let her check out the rabbit cage. Of course the buns were terrified and Daisy started thumping. Ruffles just sat there trying to disappear or blend into the cardboard box! Sugar did that cute little thing dogs do when they want to play, but the rabbits would have none of it. BUT on a positive note, they said that Sugar is very eager to please and responds very well to positive reinforcement, so I think she can be trained. I’m not even sure we’ll get her since she has to meet another family, but we definitely want her. Our bunnies are in the office, but it doesn’t have a door, so my husband said we will get one of those retractable baby gates to keep the dog out of there until we get them accustomed to each other. We’ll see what happens…

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Great stuff!!!

I have to say, it can come along. Mikey was TERRIBLE when he first met the buns. He spent evenings running down the hall to cry and drool at the doorway to their room. He wanted to eat them-just thought it was very cool we had live food in the house *rolls eyes*

It’s been a lot of work, slowly introducing to the smell then seeing them etc. But he’s certainly come around. I wouldn’t leave them unsupervised for long periods of time(Bunny running could get hiim to grab it) but I do trust him with them already and it’s only been a few months He knows he’s not allowed to eat them, and is VERY gentle with them-kissing their ears, peeking under bums for poops, and laying down to let them come up to hiim.

[Ruffles&Daisy]

Well we are getting Sugar, the cute pup. She is coming tomorrow. So I bought a gate that would enclose the room that the buns are in. I think the plan will be for a while to let the rabbits out in this room only until they get used to each other through the gate. Once the bunnies stop acting so terrified of the dog, I will put Sugar on a leash and let the bunnies out and take it from there. I won’t leave the buns and dog alone together. My husband is more worried than I am, but I am certain that we can make it work, it might just take some time and patience. But we are all excited about the puppy, she’s so gentle and trainable, I think she’s the right fit for all of us, including buns.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

WOOT!!! That’s so exciting!

It may work out early, but likely you’ll need some time let everybody get used to everybody else’s smells

[SophieBun]

AAw it’s so nice that you got the puppy! Congratulations!! I have two yorkies and love them soo much! When I brought Sophie (my bun) home they just wanted to sniff her and play with her, and Sophie has such a queen personality that she didn’t care about the dogs at all She wasn’t scared of them or anything, in fact she used to bite their legs when she wanted to hop through where they were standing O_o I think it all depends on the buns and the doggie’s personalities. Mine are terrier and they just wanna play with her even though she ignores them, and one of them grooms Sophie and Sophie’s babies lol

[Lintini]

Congrats on the puppy! I have a Pomeranian and rat terrier and I don’t trust them at all with Bun. I tried letting the pom meet Bun and she attacked him and he’s scared of her now, so that took care of that. The rat terrier is about 6 months old now as well and she def shows hunting interest so they just are in closed cages and when they run around its under my supervision and closed doors. They hardly pay attention to them anymore but I would rather be safe then sorry and just keep them separate. It’s really neat seeing people’s dogs and rabbits getting along, I really hope it works out great for you!

[Deleted User]

Posted By Lintini on 10/28/2009 09:53 PM
  The rat terrier is about 6 months old now as well and she def shows hunting interest so they just are in closed cages and when they run around its under my supervision and closed doors.

You have a rat terrrier? That is so cool.  — Post a picture of her, will you?

I’m a big fan of the Manchester Terrier, another rat-baitor. For now,  my female mastiff X though catches mice with reliance.

[LoveyBuns]

How cute that you got the dog! I wish I had seen this thread earlier, but I think its great having other animals around with bunnies. Under supervision of course. We have our pug/lab Ebony, and we haven’t really introduced her to the buns too often, but I think it will all work out in the long run. Milo, our first bun, has met Ebony several times, but has put her in her place by biting her :S (Mind you this is a 2 pound dwarf bun, protected by a pen and a 30 pound mixed breed, lol). Lola seems pretty skittish around Ebony so we’ve kept her away entirely, but Ebony is definitely learning to behave around the buns.

The key thing I would say is training. We did professional dog training with a great trainer (for other issues as well) and Ebony graduated top of her class Since then, I would feel much more comfortable introducing her to the buns. But first Lola and Milo must bond…

[DeVaStAt0r]

I have a Puppy and a Bunny that are 2 weeks apart and they are allowed to play together (supervised) but there are rules.

if her paw raises she’s corrected, if she gets too hyper she’s put in her kennel during the rest of gizmo’s free time. she’s also not allowed to follow him into corners, if he goes under something she has to sit and wait not try to climb under herself.

we don’t want him to feel cornered because he could hurt both of them at once with a nice kick.

if he’s really hyper she stays in her kennel so he can comfortably run without setting off her chase instincts until she’s a bit older to know better.

they visit each other cages though, and gizmo will groom her and do binkys around her kennel and lay down next to it. As long as he knows he’s the boss he’s okay with her presence in his house haha.

[Ruffles&Daisy]

Tomorrow morning I’m taking our new puppy (Sugar) to the vet which is my bunny vet too. So I’ll ask her how I should proceed next. They do look and sniff each other through the gate, but I can tell Sugar really wants to figure them out, chase them or whatever. I just don’t want her to scare the bejeezus out of the buns. After living with a dog for about a week now, I def appreciate the simplicity and sensitive nature of the rabbits more. When I come and hang with the bunnies, they have an understatedness about them that I really like. I can’t describe it, but I still love my bunnies a lot.

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