Lick then Dig at me

[Vivicloud]

After giving me a few links she will start digging at my shorts or my shirt. What does this mean?

[Bam]

I’m not sure anyone knows why rabbits do this, but they very often do. It is a friendly thing though, even if it can hurt when they dig on you. Sometimes they bite your clothes too, and they can make holes in them, so it’s wise not to wear your best clothes when you hang out with your bun.

It could be that human clothes are “unnatural” for rabbits, so they try to find out what clothes are about. It’s not fur but it’s not skin either. The behaviour tends to subside with time if you spend a lot of time with your rabbit.

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

Yes, it can be anything from attention to wanting to cuddle up to your skin. Our previous bunny Breintje loved skin contact, I found out when I was wearing shorts and he pushed back the fabric to lay against my leg.

I guess it’s a thing that bunnies get as well when they snuggle up: skin contact releases happy & relaxed hormones in all mammals. From then on I often rolled up my sleeve when I cuddled with him, or got into my nightgown early in the evening. He fell asleep against my leg really quickly and had long happy bunny dreams 🥰

If it hurts while she’s digging or if it ruins your clothes, you can use bunny language to tell her to stop. Give a soft high squeak when she does it and withdraw. That usually gets the message across. Reward her with lots of pets and kind words if she does something right.

You can also make purring sounds at your rabbit, and they’ll likely purr along with you. Thus far all rabbits I’ve met started to purr back when I did it, and they warmed up to me quickly.

I wrote about learning how to purr in a topic here on the forum:

Does it take this long to bond with a rabbit?

[Vivicloud]

Ok thanks for the replies. Another thing I’ve noticed is she’ll lick me then turn around and pee in front of me.

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

Is she spayed yet? (Sorry, I find it hard to remember those details with new bunnies)

 

[Vivicloud]

Not yet, getting it done next month. When I got her first exam done a few days ago the vet asked if i wanted to spay her when i brought her back in for the 2nd vaccine shot. Ive setup a appt towards the end of July to get it done.When I let her out to play I usually have a stacking cup full of poop.

[Bam]

The turning around and peeing in front of you is likely to go away some time after she’s been spayed. Intact rabbit pee mark those they want to claim ownership of. It is a compliment, but its kind of difficult to fully appreciate it unless you’re a rabbit yourself.

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

@Bam: I really had to laugh at your phrasing and showed it to Bas. Then he said: “That’s exactly what Molly did to me yesterday!” She started to spray urine and poop again now that Owen is unwell.

It’s funny that she likes him so much, because she mostly interacts with me. Bas prefers chocolates over fragrances though, when it comes to romance 😆

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

Yup, it means she really digs you 😉

I’m glad that she has an appointment scheduled, and I can imagine that you’re looking forward to it as well. Hormonal rabbits can get so crazy and very very pushy.

Our girl Molly was peeing and pooping everywhere too, but that wasn’t the worst. It was the constant humming and tooting sound that she made. It was cute for the first 5 minutes, then it drove us bonkers. She was like one of those one-man-band clowns: step-toot-step-toot..toot-toot-toot… 😞

She was 4 months old when she got her puberty (that’s dwarfs for you) and the clinic doesn’t spay rabbits under 6 months. She was spayed exactly at 6 months, to the day. By that time we were more than ready for it 😆

Wishing you a lot of patience and sanity for the next few weeks. Things will improve drastically after she’s been spayed!

[Vivicloud]

Looking forward to yet but also nervous. The minute I let her out there’s a trail of poops. Atleast I can find if I need too. Haha By the end of August she will be fully grown and ATM she eats her pellets but little hay. It’s there if she wants it. I throw some topper mix which encourages her to forage threw her hay for it. Also I’m looking at trying a different litter vox. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated, maybe some pics. I understand it’s a complement but your laying at her level and you watch her do it. Oh and don’t get me started on her angry stare face. Lol You all know what I mean.

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

There are several options for a litter box, but it’s always handy to hang the hay rack over it. Bunnies love to eat when they’re on the John, and some bunnies prefer the hay that’s in their box.

We put wooden cat litter pellets on the bottom, topped with a layer of hay.

When we’re bonding them we have a large litter box, it’s the lower half of a cat carrier.

For everyday use they have a storage box with a hole cut into it. You can easily modify these storage boxes with a saw, as long as you file the edges. We’ve also put tape on the edges to make sure that they aren’t sharp. (And to make sure that the bunnies don’t chew the edges: they hate chewing the tape.)

Here’s baby Owen doing a little stunt, with baby Molly in her litter box:

[Vivicloud]

Right now I got her a BumBox which has her hay hanging near it but her food and water bowel are across so she basically poops in too spots. I was thinking of getting a storage tote big enough for me to place her food bowl in. I was going to try what 101rabbits does. Using pellets on the bottom then a layer of carefresh on top. Or I could just wait another 2 months when her pellets will no longer be unlimited.

[Vivicloud]

@Ellie what are you using as litter?

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

The basic wooden kitty litter that supermarkets or pet shops sell. Any wooden pellets that are unscented will do. We use the generic brand of our supermarket, it will often say “suitable for rabbits” too.

These pellets fall apart as they absorb liquid, so you can sift out the unused pellets. Our bunnies always go in the corners, so I put most of the pellets there. They’re quite economical: I need about 2 handfuls a day per box, so a bag lasts for weeks.

On top is a layer of regular hay: the rabbits like to munch on it and it keeps their feet dry.

[Vivicloud]

Ok I use the tractor co pellets. I just need to remind myself she’s got a month till sh gets spayed then another month after and she will be a fully grown bun bun and hopefully will be a good girl and eat her hay while she no longer will have access to unlimited pellets.

[Author]

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