Intro from Malia and Jett!

[Malia]

Hi everyone,

I just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Malia and I just got my first baby bunny yesterday. His name is Jett. He’s a french lop so he’s going to be big but right now, he’s a little baby.

His ears droop adorably to one side. His current set up in a big cage. I was surprised that he took to it right away. Almost as soon as I put him in the cage, he started exploring, eating his hay and sitting in his litterbox. Then he was running around, going in the hidey hole and he figured out how to jump up on the ramp. His next move is learning how to jump out the cage. When I open the top he sticks his nose out and looks all around, like he’s calculating. But no jumping out yet! I don’t want him to. I think I even saw him binky and he’s done a couple of flops.

So he’s not a shy rabbit! He lets me pet him and pick him up so far. But he doesn’t want to sit on my lap for long, he wants to explore! He’s already looking at me when I call his name and stretches himself up to see me when I approach his cage. He loves to eat. Loves his hay and his pellets. I’m transitioning him from the feed at the bunny farm to the stuff I bought for him, which is oxbow young rabbit feed.

I hope these are all good signs. It’s only been less than 24 hours! So I’ll keep a close eye on his adjustment. I’m already working on litter training.

My only concern is that he’s a bit of a nipper. Before I got him, he bit my finger so hard it bled and it still hurts. It wasn’t like he lunged at me. He was nipping my finger and I was like awww this is cute like a baby puppy and then he bit HARD. I did not know bunnies could bite that hard. So no no no cute nipping. Since he’s been home with me he’s nipped my thumb a couple of times. It seems playful. This time I yelled OW in a high voice loudly and he seemed a bit spooked by it. Gotta break him of that habit.

I had a rabbit as a child and it seems like we broke every single rabbit rule out there with him! (Though he was a very happy bunny and lived almost 10 years) This is my first rabbit on my own and I’ve been lurking here and other places, trying to read as much as I can. I look forward to learning from you guys!

[Luna]

Hi! That’s got to be a new record for fastest time settling into a new home . It sounds like he may have been demanding attention when he was giving you tiny nips, and then gave you a hard nip to say “Hey I’m down here!”. It’s good to let out a high pitched squeal when he bites; and as you stated it seemed to work.

[BanditCamp]

Sounds like your doing fine to me, bandit was aorenhensive about jumping out of his cage ad there’s about a 3 inch clearance . I built him a ramp and he uses it for a bit but then figured out ‘wait. . .I can jump 3 feet high!’ And hasn’t used it since. I still am anxious about the day he jumps on the couch cause I’ll have to revise my proofing.

Other than that baby rabbits nip to taste things your rabbit might nip you for attention which is ok but if you bleed make a loud noise as eek and it will curb that behavior. Welcome to the forums and we hope to see pictures someday and if you have questions ask because I’m a phone lurker and I watch the boards if I’m bored.

[Vienna Blue in France]

If he’s anything like my cross French lop, he’s a stomach on legs and was probably wondering if the thing you put in front of his face (your finger!) was tasty. The first thing Henry did to me was ‘taste’ a finger….

He still bites my thigh through my jeans when im kneeling in the xpen if i forget to move myself as he approaches. As you say , its not done aggressively, its more like enthusiastic tasting !!

But yes,a big loud immediate “OUCH!” should pass the message on to him.

Photos pleeeeease.

[Malia]

haha yes! He probably thought my finger was a treat!

Thanks guys. I will have to post some pics. When I got home, Jett finally did the thing he’s been dying to do… jumped out his cage! He’s already a handful but a cute one.

[Wick & Fable]

As people have said, letting out a small squeal lets your rabbit know that hurt you; you want to let Jett know how far he can go with nipping. It’s great that Jett is so curious and ready to explore his new environment.

Welcome, welcome Looking forward to pictures as well, haha!

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]

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