My bunny does not accept being in the playpen

[jjanenol]

My bun hates being closed in. I’ve got a playpen for him now to stay in at night because he jumps on me when I sleep and because he need somewhere to be if im outside.

He wont accept it. He just got it but I know because when he freeroams the kitchen he takes the compost grid we’ve closed the room off with and tosses it away. He gets really mad.

When I put him in the playpen he digs at the carpet trying to dig under the pen and he bites the bars and I dont know why hes so upset!He has toys and food and hay and water and a transport cage as a house and a box he can sit on. How can I make him accept being there??? Will he accept it more when hes neutered? Did anyone else have this issue?

[Wick & Fable]

Well, he’s probably upset because he’s being blocked out of part if his territory for no apparent reason (to him)! It’s probably even more frustrating because he literally sees what he can’t have access to. He seems to be reacting very naturally and how any rabbit would react to this situation. Imagine if you were told to stay within a taped square I placed on the floor, giving you no reason. You’d probably protest too!

Night time also coincides when rabbits can be most active. Something that can help is putting a visual barrier around the xpen so it doesn’t seem so apparent that he’s being blocked out of space. I clip a bedsheet to my rabbits xpen, and that stopped their protesting against the bars.

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.

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

I read your other topic about his neuter, he’s probably extra grumpy because he’s full of hormones and crazy puberty antics. Wick gives a really good suggestion for blocking off his view! 🙂 My boyfriend used something similar when he wanted to keep his bunny in the bedroom: he lowered the ironing board and put it across the door frame. She was a tiny Nethie, so she couldn’t see over it. Not being able to see it deterred her from leaping over it.

If he rattles the bars you could also put something on the inside of the pen, so he can’t get a grip on the bars with his teeth.

[DanaNM]

I noticed that Cooper was REALLY un-satisfied with being in a pen in our old place, as well as all the motels we stayed at on our drive (constantly rattling the bars and trying to jump out), but in our new place he is in a NIC cube condo when unsupervised, and he seems much more at peace with it all.

There are a lot of variables that changed, including a larger roam area during play time, no more un-bonded bunnies as neighbors, and more time past since his neuter. But I also think that having a solid pen that doesn’t shift around when he pushes it has helped him calm down with the situation and think of it more as his burrow.

Just something to consider if he doesn’t calm down in a few weeks! A cube condo or some other more solid enclosure might help.

. . . 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.  

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