Questions about rabbit behavior!

[Lacey]

I got a rabbit about a year ago because I had one as a child and loved it. She lives in the barn in a converted 12×13 horse stall. She has a hutch and other things to hide under and climb on as well as toys. I tried to look up everything she needs and provide her with a good habitat. She isn’t in the house because we have dogs and they wouldn’t be ok with her. We go out and visit her daily, sometimes missing a day here and there because I am busy with two young children. But for the most part I try to go see her everyday. We are currently building a shop and plan on building her a very nice indoor/outdoor rabbit run so she should move to that within a month. She has always been very sweet and social and runs to you every time you go in her stall. She likes her face petted and will sit and munch while you pet her face and back. She begs for treats and try’s to climb up the front of me and my son. She does fast laps around us and seems playful. She sometimes gently nibbles the tips of our fingers when we’re feeding her fresh grass or alfalfa. She has always seemed very content. I’m writing because recently she has started displaying some behavior that seems unusual. She has started making quiet grunting noises when she comes up to greet us, and sometimes runs at us so fast it’s almost startling, like she’s charging at us while she’s making the grunting noise. She still seems content to be petted and is still always trying to climb all over our laps. I did some reading and found that charging and grunting can be a sign of aggression, but I was just a little confused cause she has always seemed so content. I read that spaying her is necessary to curb any behavior that may be turning aggressive and I plan on doing that for sure. Unfortunately we just had a $1,300 situation with one of our dogs so we can’t afford another vet bill at the moment. So I will have to wait a couple months probably until I can spay her. Long story short my question is what types of behavior should I be looking out for so I know when she is mad and wants me to leave her alone? And what kind of things can I do to keep her attitude to a minimum until she gets spayed? If she does seem to be displaying aggressive behavior how should I approach her? I still want to be social with her and make sure she doesn’t feel neglected just because she’s being a little fiesty, but I also don’t want it to turn into her getting so mad that she bites me. Any advice is appreciated! Thanks!

[DarthVadar]

Love the idea of a “bunny stall” btw. Unspayed female rabbits can be some of the moodiest animals on the planet. Its fairly normal for them to seem all aggressive and then be friendly again in the span of about 5 seconds. I have 2 bonded does, one spayed and one unspayed. The difference is huge. The unspayed one is really sweet, but grunts all the time (sometimes she grunts to get pets, which is hilarious); I don’t think I’ve ever heard the spayed one grunt unless I was picking her up. While grunting and charging are signs of aggression, they do not mean the bunny doesn’t like you or wants you to go away. If a bunny hates you, you’ll know. She will put her ears back, nip, lunge at you with her paws, scratch, and bite. A true rabbit bite will draw blood. If she grunts and charges, but then melts into a sweet marshmallow bunny, its just hormones and will likely go away with spaying.

[Asriel and Bombur]

To be honest, leaving her alone is also probably why she’s doing it. She’s probably lonely and depressed, especially when you don’t get to see her. Bunnies need interaction, and without it they become depressed.
Until she’s spayed, yes, she’s going to show aggressive behaviors, and sometimes getting bitten is a part of the package. You’re essentially invading her space, and unspayed does, and does in general, are typically very territorial.

[sarahthegemini]

You need to make more effort to interact with her:

“We go out and visit her daily, sometimes missing a day here and there because I am busy with two young children”

She’s lonely, outside and doesn’t even get human interaction every day. I understand you’re busy with children but part of being a responsible animal owner is providing everything they need which includes interaction. It doesn’t matter if you’re tired, you need to make the effort.

In regards to her behaviour – it’s very normal. Best thing is to avoid ‘invading her space’ so when you clean the area out etc have her in a run so she’s out the way. When you ‘visit’ her, do you put her in a run to play or do you stay in her area with her?

[jerseygirl]

Hi Lacey

Was she a baby or an adult rabbit when you 1st got her? Do you know her breed?
I think larger breed rabbits sexually mature later then smaller breeds. Around 9 months old. So hormonally driven behaviours can appear around then. It does sound like the typical things you’d see with this. Is she running laps around you when making the grunting noise?

Do you have cats that visit the barn? Could any have caused her to want to defend her territory?

Some other possibilities:
-moulting. This can cause some rabbits to be cranky.
-false pregnancy. This would normally happen if she’s been mounted by a desexed buck or another female. But it can occur with an intact female rabbit living on their own.

[DanaNM]

Hi Lacey, welcome

Sometimes Bun Jovi will run at me so fast for pets I think he’s about to attack me, but I think he’s just excited. Or he thinks I’m an invader (his vision isn’t great), but gets closer and realizes it’s me.

Maybe you can give her a little “warning” that you are about to come in to visit, so she isn’t startled? Spaying should help, and since she’s not actually biting or attacking you, it might just be excitement, or being startled.

. . . 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.  

[Bunny House]

I also wanted to ask about the diet she is getting. And bunnies can get sick at the drop of the pen so unless you can monitor her at all times during the day, she might be better in a home where she is an indoor bunny and can get the proper attention and care she needs. Bunnies are like dogs, they need interaction, they shouldn’t be left alone since they are great prey for animals to get.

And are you planning on getting her spayed? Females have a 75% chance of uterine cancer by age 3

[jerseygirl]

Hi BH
I believe the OP said they are saving for a spay. Just recovering financially ftom an expensive vet bill.

[Bunny House]

Jerseygirl. Okay! I didn’t see that, so much to read haha

[Lacey]

I’M THE ONE WHO POSTED THIS TOPIC. Couldn’t log into my account for some reason so I made a new one ??‍♀️New to forums, unsure of how to reply to everyone at once.
Thanks everyone. I see a comment about rehoming her to an indoor home. I won’t be doing that. I have done plenty of research on what it takes to make sure she is happy and healthy. I’m on a bunny forum in order to gain more knowledge about her needs, I would definitely consider myself a responsible pet owner. I rescued her from a Craigslist ad that had her advertised as a $10 meat rabbit. She is loved and well cared for. I’m hoping it won’t be more than a month or so before I can spay her. I also plan on going to our local shelter to find her a companion rabbit after she is spayed. They allow you to bring your bunny in and help you select a good friend for her as well as helping you with the bonding process. I see others mentioning their rabbit runs at them fast to greet them, she could be doing that because sometimes the charge ends in her trying to climb into my lap. But she’s also been doing it at my feet just when I’m walking around her stall cleaning, along with the new grunting noise. I don’t think she’s depressed as she runs circles and jumps all crazy when I’m hanging out with her. She seems very playful and energetic. I got her when she was tiny and that was just a little over a year ago. She is a Californian rabbit I believe, white with black ears, nose and feet. So it seems like all arrows are pointing to her reaching sexual maturity. My question still, are there certain things you can do to make a hormonal rabbit more comfortable? Certain ways I should approach her when I’m giving her treats or pets or cleaning her stall? Or should I just give her space when she seems fiesty? I’m basically just looking for tips on how I should interact with her while she’s hormonal until I can get her spayed. I’ve been pregnant twice, I know my husband could have used some tips on how to approach me during those intensely hormonal days lol. Thanks again!

[DanaNM]

I haven’t spent much time around unspayed females, but I have had unneutered males around, and they circle around and nibble at your feet like crazy when they want to mount… it’s pretty ridiculous!

One thing that might help if she is getting territorial, is to make a sort of buffer when you enter, so you aren’t just “barging in” on her space. I know when buns get cage aggressive, it’s best not to clean or reach in while they are in there. I wonder if you could set up a pen inside the stall around the hutch, and then when you’re cleaning, have her kept separate from you? Then swap which side she’s on to do the other side? You could lure her to the other side with a treat. It seems like my buns get less concerned about their space being invaded when they aren’t actually in it, even if they can see what’s happening.

That’s great you are planning to eventually bond her. I saw in your first post you are planning to upgrade her housing. It sounds like you have lots of space to work with, so neutral territory for bonding sessions might not be an issue, but if I were you, I would save the final housing upgrade to the new run for when you are ready to move the bonded pair in together! That way they have a nice neutral space and you might have an easier go of it (the final move to non-neutral turf is often nerve wracking!). Sorry if that’s like 10 steps ahead of where you are.

. . . 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.  

[DarthVadar]

Posted By Lacey on 1/16/2019 4:34 PM

I’M THE ONE WHO POSTED THIS TOPIC. Couldn’t log into my account for some reason so I made a new one ??‍♀️New to forums, unsure of how to reply to everyone at once.
Thanks everyone. I see a comment about rehoming her to an indoor home. I won’t be doing that. I have done plenty of research on what it takes to make sure she is happy and healthy. I’m on a bunny forum in order to gain more knowledge about her needs, I would definitely consider myself a responsible pet owner. I rescued her from a Craigslist ad that had her advertised as a $10 meat rabbit. She is loved and well cared for. I’m hoping it won’t be more than a month or so before I can spay her. I also plan on going to our local shelter to find her a companion rabbit after she is spayed. They allow you to bring your bunny in and help you select a good friend for her as well as helping you with the bonding process. I see others mentioning their rabbit runs at them fast to greet them, she could be doing that because sometimes the charge ends in her trying to climb into my lap. But she’s also been doing it at my feet just when I’m walking around her stall cleaning, along with the new grunting noise. I don’t think she’s depressed as she runs circles and jumps all crazy when I’m hanging out with her. She seems very playful and energetic. I got her when she was tiny and that was just a little over a year ago. She is a Californian rabbit I believe, white with black ears, nose and feet. So it seems like all arrows are pointing to her reaching sexual maturity. My question still, are there certain things you can do to make a hormonal rabbit more comfortable? Certain ways I should approach her when I’m giving her treats or pets or cleaning her stall? Or should I just give her space when she seems fiesty? I’m basically just looking for tips on how I should interact with her while she’s hormonal until I can get her spayed. I’ve been pregnant twice, I know my husband could have used some tips on how to approach me during those intensely hormonal days lol. Thanks again!

Calis make great pets! They are also one of the most common meat breeds, so since you got her from a meat rabbit ad, thats most likely what she is. Over a year old seems a bit late to be reaching maturity, though. Many breeds are capable of reproduction at 3 months. 

When approaching any rabbit, but especially a hormonal and territorial doe, move slowly. Show her what you are doing; in her eyes, you’re messing with her stuff whenever you clean out her cage or refill a water bowl. Sit down on the floor and let her come up to you. Rabbits usually bite only when they feel threatened, such as when someone is touching their stuff. Petting from ears to butt in one long stroke might also help her chill out. Doing that can calm down even downright mean bunnies. 

[Lacey]

Thanks! That all sounds like solid advice. I’m excited to make her a super nice indoor/outdoor home when our shop gets built. She will have an indoor area where her hutch will be, and then a little door to a enclosed run outside where she will be next to our mini horses and chickens. That might be a couple months so hopefully the timeline will work out to where I can get her spayed, and then find a friend, and then move them out there. I’ve noticed she really only charges my feet when I’m walking around the stall cleaning and moving things, if I’m sitting or crouching to call her over she doesn’t do it.

[DarthVadar]

That’s such a cool bunny habitat idea. She’ll be pretty lucky! If the friend you get her is used to living in a house, she may need to acclimate to being outside, especially if winter gets cold where you are. Outside bunnies have thicker coats and more hair in and on their ears, which is kinda weird, but makes sense. But if you make the transition in the spring/summer/fall it should be ok.

[Author]

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