Hares and Hounds

[ilovemylittleman]

Hey everyone

I have been thinking about adopting a dog and I was wondering if there was a breed that would be most likely to get along with Little Man. OR if there is a breed that is least likely.

Any suggestions?

[sweetbluebun]

I’m getting an australian shepherd soon (from a friend’s litter) and I’ve been worrying about how the interaction with the buns and puppy might be. She’s got a huge flemish giant that she keeps near her dogs but I would say it just depends on the individual dog. I’ve got dwarf bunnies that might be considered food/play more than a threat, so I do plan on keeping the dog away most of the time (bunnies in the basement and puppy on the middle floor). Of course stress is a major factor as well, so a hyper, yappy dog would bother the buns more than a mellow quiet dog. I’d look for dogs with less prey drive, terriers obviously seem like a bad choice (but then again I’m sure there are calm mellow ones too). Personally I’ve had good luck with herding breeds, they tend to be highly intelligent and trainable and not as hyper as some other breeds. I had a German Shepherd that would chase squirrels but he loved the neighbor’s cat. I think the House Rabbit society has an article about bonding buns and dogs. Basically trust your instincts and I would never leave the dog and bunny unsupervised no matter how they may act in front you. I’ve had dogs that would never dare to stick their head in the trash while I’m around but would dig in the moment I’d leave. Dogs are very smart animals, so you have to be careful in that respect.

Like with bunny bonding, I’d start with very short visits to see how both animals react, preferably through a gate with the dog on a leash. If the dog starts getting excited, maybe do a “no” correction and walk away. Come back and try again to see if the dog can be calm around the bun (it’s hard for most unless you’re getting a young puppy and even then it’s hard!) I’d keep that up along with regular training of the dog, then gradually increase the time spent together until the dog no longer cares/notices the bunny or is at least very gentle when buns are around.

[Lion_Lop_Lover]

I would definitely avoid any ‘hunter’ dogs – like Beagles, Dachshunds, those types bred to chase rabbits.

I have 2 Shetland Sheepdogs who get along wonderfully with my bunnies.

[KatnipCrzy]

I have an 2 Aussies (Australian Shepherds) and they get along great with the bunnies.  We did get the bunnies when the dogs were already adults 2 yrs old and 1 1/2 years old.  My dogs do have a high herding drive although they have never been trained or worked livestock.  So I do advise caution especially if your puppy is a “pawer”- one of our dogs uses her paw a lot to touch and move objects, and that could be very frightening and harmful to a bunny.  Or other dog uses his nose to try to get the cats to run by “beeping” them.  Which is annoying to the cats but not harmful.  These dogs are so, so smart that they know that the bunnies are supposed to be in the house and they MUST be nice to them.  In fact they are way more interested in their poo than the bunnies themselves.  I joke around that the dogs have their own personal Pez dispensers.

So you definitely must use your own judgment on your dogs temperament and bunnies personality.  But my bunnies are able to hop within inches of our dogs face when our dogs have rawhides with no response from the dogs.  Our dogs are not rawhide or food aggressive and do not see the bunnies as a threat.

Many people I work with were surprised that my dogs are so accepting of the bunnies.  Before we got our first indoor bunny- our male dog Molson had “caught” 3 different wild rabbits in our yard.  The first one he picked up in his mouth- so the bunny lost a huge patch of hair on its back and I had to catch it and put it over the fence.  The second one completely froze in place and refused to move no matter how many times he “beeped” it.  And the third sadly enough did die as it tried to exit the fence thru a space that was too small.   But since then we have devised a way to keep the wild bunnies out of the fenced back yard where they panic and can not get out.

Aussies are smart- and they KNOW that the bunnies inside belong there.  Even when the bunnies go crazy running around they leave them alone.  So they are able to ignore a behavior that would normally trigger a chase and herd response.

[sweetbluebun]

That is so adorable PEZ dispensers! I hope my puppy is as nice as your dogs. I agree though herding dogs are so incredibly smart, it’s just amazing!

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

If your adopting, it may be possible to bring little man with you for meeting the dog-that way you could see (although it’s a shelter situation and not necessarily an accurate picture) how the dog reacts to little man.

[ilovemylittleman]

That’s great! I always liked aussies and border collies. Maybe now I can get one and I won’t have to worry. Thanks

 

Also, great idea- taking him to a rescue with me…. as long as he makes it away from the dogs that obviously aren’t going to work out.

[Moonlight_Wolf]

DON’T GET A TERRIER OF ANY SORT!

[bunnyfofo]

I disagree with the not getting a terrier. I have a pitbull terrier who loves the rabbits. she will groom them and when she is laying down they jump all over her and cuddle with her. my dobermen is scared of the rabbits and aviods them whenever possible. the cat enjoys chasing them as well as being chased by them, its pretty funny to see the cat chase the rabbit down the hall and then the rabbit chasing the cat back up the hall. I would never leave them unattended with the other pets but I think it doesn’t matter what breed of dog you get but the dogs personality.

[Crayon]

I would just avoid sight hounds. They are too stimulated by a hopping Bunny.

[jerseygirl]

I think the breed isn’t the main indicator of how it’ll interact with the rabbit. Many have posted here about rabbit/dog relations with breeds you would normally think is a no-no. It’d be more about the personality of the dog. By adopting, you have the benefit of seeing this and looking at dogs that may have been socialized with other animals.

Another factor is the health of the dog. For example, an anxious dog due to imbalances, will often be too high strung to cope with other pets and may have unpredictable behaviour. So if it were me (wish it were me!) I’d look for a dog past the puppy stage that has a calm personality and has had some interaction with other animals.

[2lops]

I find lil dogs are more “RABBIT RABBIT RABBIT!!! *panting panting*” then larger dogs. I guess it depends how you train it though.

Here’s something fun..

http://animal.discovery.com/breedselector/dogselector.do
 

X)

[BinkyBunny]

http://www.rabbit.org/journal/1/dogs.html This is a good article about dogs and rabbits bonding.

[Crayon]

obviously every dog is different and has their own personalities. But I think it is smart to research different breeds and their tendencies towards small prey animals. It would be silly to ignore that certain breeds are hardwired certain ways. Dog breeds were created by humans to serve different purposes. So a hunter dog that is breed to chase rabbits should be looked at with a weary eye.

I personally have never had a dog/rabbit combo but I would think a retreiver would be a good choice. They may be hunting dogs, but they are not the type that chase or kill the animals, just fetch them, and gently no less.

[MarkBun]

Like others said, it depends on the temperment of the dog. However, IMO, you should avoid any dog that when you give them a squeaky toy the first thing they do with it is shake it hard from side to side with their heads.  For example, the below would be a VERY bad choice for buns:

 

[xParadise]

I disagree.. my dog goes CRAZY for her toys, especially ones that squeak. She shakes them like crazy, growling and running like a maniac sometimes. She’s still really young, so she has a lot of energy. But she would NEVER hurt Nixon. She doesn’t think of him as a toy, she thinks of him as another animal. Of course, I would never leave them alone together, you shouldn’t with any dog. Sometimes she gets confused and wants to play with him like she would another dog. But she listens when she is told no. It’s different in every situation. But there is no way Heidi would ever do that to Nixon. She’s happy just following him around, sniffing his bum and eating bunny poop.

[sweetbluebun]

Well you could also end up with something like this!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3EuVHJq2AE

[jerseygirl]

Sweetbluebun – you’re killing me! That was too adorable!

xParadise – you obviously have a terrific dog that recognises Nixon as a companion. The head shaking is one of those primal instincts and you never can tell what’ll trigger a dog into that. Once they’re in it….there’s not much hope of diversion. I lost a chicken to a dog. She was mainly curious and playful toward it but the chicken stuck it’s head through the fence. The dog got it’s jaws on it and that was it. I could not get her to release – she was 100% primal mode. As you said, never leave them alone together, I think this is KEY! (You have that cute little terrier type dog don’t you? Angel if I ever saw one!)

Breed, personality aside, a dog is wired a certain way. A rabbit is wired a certain way. Supervision is paramount! Lovemylittleman, be sure to update us on who you bring home with you….I’m so jealous!

[Beka27]

everyone had excellent suggestions. i asked a similar question awhile back just for future reference. i think as long as you are aware that regardless of what dog you get, what breed, what age, what temperament, they may NEVER be allowed to have ANY interaction, and this will not affect the playtime or safety of either, it can work. make sure your home can be set up to accomodate both safely and happily, separately. even if they can eventually get along supervised, they will still need separate areas for playtime when you’re not around.

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