Is there a difference between does and bucks, when it comes to personality?

[Barush]

Hi,

Me and my partner are thinking about buying a new rabbit after our previous sadly died of cancer. We had a lovely doe, that loved to be petted and was very affectionate, however the rabbit we found now and would be potentially interested in happened to be a buck, so that kinda brought us to a question if there really are differences between the sexes? We tried to search a bit online but found some conflicting answers, so that’s why I thought to ask here.

We would again like to have a rabbit that is as affectionate as our old was but are there some significant differences about this when it comes to the sex? We unfortunately don’t have the option to go and see the rabbit beforehand, so that’s why our only option is to ask
online.

Thanks for your insights!

[Wick & Fable]

You might be able to make broad generalizations about females being more dominant, but when it comes down to an individual rabbit, sex will not tell you anything. Sex nor breed will be informative when it comes down to an individual rabbit.

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.

[Bam]

I have only had boy rabbits. I can assure you they have all been very cuddly, although it took quite a while for one of them. Since he was a fully adult rabbit that had been abandoned outside, I suspect he was perhaps not very used to cuddling before he came to me.

I do think personality matter more than sex or breed when it comes to rabbits. They’ve never really been  bred for certain personality traits. (Dogs are bred for certain tasks, but rabbits aren’t, so it’s a lot more difficult to generalize about rabbits’ personalities based on breed).

 

[DanaNM]

At this point I’ve had 3 boys and 2 girls. All had pretty different personalities! Who knows what gendered personality traits I subconsciously projected on to them, but it seems like my females have been very gentle, loving, but perhaps less needy than the boys when it comes to begging for attention. Very much the queen of the castle. Bertha was very sassy. 🙂  My boys have all been a range of personalities, but once they bonded with me very adventurous, opinionated, and greedy for pets. 🙂 I’ve always had bonded pairs as well though, so hard to say if those traits ended up getting chosen in the bonding process.

As a larger sample, at the shelter I volunteer at, there are outgoing and immediately friendly rabbits of both sexes, and shy rabbits of both sexes. So it really doesn’t seem to matter too much. The only real difference I know is with territoriality towards other rabbits: females are more territorial, whereas males are more open to females coming into their territory (for obvious reasons!).

 

. . . 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.  

[pinkiemarie]

My personal experience, which I doubt is universal, is that my 2 neutered males are pretty docile towards me and my spayed female is SASSY. Oh man she’ll throw things at me, grunt, head butt me to get me to do what she wants. Meanwhile my little boy just stands on his hind legs and looks adorable.

 

Honestly it really could just be Clover’s personality to be bossy and I definitely wouldn’t say that all girls are just because she is.

[Author]

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