suddenly biting me…

[jungkook]

i adopted my bunny on the 7th and never once had he bit me or nipped me too hard. he was always so friendly and curious and started to let me pet him all the time after a few days. yesterday, i took him to the vet for the first time… they were nice and like let him walk around the room to get comfy and then they put him on his back to check everything out and clip his nails. he did fine (despite being put on his back) and i brought him home with no issues. but things seems to change later that night :/ i left him alone after i brought him home because i didn’t wanna overwhelm him but before bed as i was cleaning his cage, he nipped me hard enough to leave a mark. no mark or broke skin but a pretty hard nip. i didn’t think much of it though. in the morning just now, i opened his cage and he ran up to me and let me pet him like usual. then as i was cleaning the poop in his cage, he nipped me twice and then suddenly bit down and wouldn’t let go. never has he done that.. he’s never made me bleed or hurt me but now he did… i thought maybe it could be because i was putting his poop in his litterbox because i feel like he thinks his litter box is his bed (still trying to litter train him but it’s hard since he’s unneutered, which is what im hoping to get done soon). after he bit me, i put on thick clothes and continued to clean his cage but after he nipped me again, i didnt wanna risk it so i picked him up and put him in a cardboard box so i could finish cleaning (a big one that has a lot of running space. also he still doesn’t like being held). i finished cleaning his cage and went over to him (i noticed that he kinda followed me.. whichever side i was closest to of the box, he would go there) and sat down to pet him for a second and bam. hr bit me again and even went all the way through my skin. two ugly bites now and the saddest owner ever now lol. i used his carrier to put him back in his cage because i didnt want a third bite. now he’s back in his cage and everything… and he now sits near me and stares at me…. idk what happened. he used to love being pet, he didnt hurt me while i cleaned his cage but now he bit me during both those things and now i can’t even touch him anymore. im scared to even go near him cause i dont wanna get bit anymore. i just adopted him on september 7th and im worried he’s gonna keep this behavior up and never be like he used to, but im too scared to try and get close to him again because the bites are really bad. i dont know what to do… im wishing i never took him to the vet because now it feels like he hates me. become the vet, he was doing zoomies and everything, all happy and loving being pet but now he stays still most of the time and is unfriendly.

[DanaNM]

It could be a combo of hitting puberty and also being annoyed at you for the vet visit! He should get over it with time (and treats lol).

Many rabbits do not like things in their cage rearranged (they are very particular!), and most do not like being picked up. Try not to do anything in his cage while he is in there, and adjust his set up so he can come out to play without you picking him up.

Hormones kicking in can make bunnies territorial. How old is he?

. . . 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.  

[jungkook]

He’s almost a year old.

Whenever I go to clean his cage, he always would run around me a lot and shake his head and I felt like maybe he didn’t like that i was cleaning it. He would nudge me too but he never nipped or bit me while I was doing it until now.

[DanaNM]

Hmm well he is def an adult then!

I will also say you have only had him a short while so your relationship is still building. Keep working on building trust with him. Floor time, hand feeding, and generally playing “hard to get” are tried and true methods for earning bunny trust.

If he nips or bites again, you can also make a loud squeal (similar to a bunny scream sound) to let him know he is hurting you. Bunnies nip each other through fur, so they don’t always realize they are hurting us when they bite.

With a little time he should come around.

. . . 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.  

[kurottabun]

Basically dittoing what Dana said.

If he’s almost a year old now, that would mean he had already hit puberty when you got him on the 7th. Nipping is a rabbit’s way of communicating, but a hard bite that breaks skin is usually out of fear or extreme displeasure. It sounds like he was extremely displeased about going to the vet (don’t blame yourself for taking him there because it’s part and parcel of responsible pet ownership), and it further aggravated him when you touched his cage since the cage is usually viewed as a “safe” place for the bunny. He might’ve have felt threatened and felt that his safe space was being compromised. Coupled that with being picked up and the overall short time you’ve had with him, it probably was a combination of everything that made him bite.

Most rabbits don’t ever get used to being picked up. Few like it, some tolerate it, but most detest it. This is because in the wild the only time their feet are off the ground is when a predator has gotten them. The action of picking them up mimics that and instincts will tell them it’s fight or flight, so try not to do it unless it’s necessary (e.g. you need to remove him from danger).

If you want to clean his cage, try luring him out with pellets or treats and distract him while you’re cleaning. You can scatter some pellets at a distance so it keeps him busy until you’re done.

This sounds like a one-time incident and it won’t be forever Bunnies are pretty forgiving (especially if you have food), so continue to work on your relationship with him and it will soon get better! Neutering will usually help reduce aggressive hormonal behaviours too.

[jungkook]

when i got home today, i noticed he ate none of his food from this morning, hadn’t drank water and had a lot of runny stool (and seems to still be having it). he still seems very aggravated and he’s gotten jumpy.. the only thing he hasn’t been doing is hiding in his little hut. he shakes his head and ears a lot. i also noticed he’s been making a wheezy/grunting noise when he eats like really loudly and also every now and then when he’s sniffing, he’ll make the noise. are these also signs of ongoing displeasure or could something actually be wrong with him? i worried he might’ve picked up something from the vet. i just don’t know what to think because ive never owned a rabbit before ??

[DanaNM]

Those definitely sound like he is sick. Maybe he was coming down with something and that why he was acting out towards you?

With what you described he needs to be seen by a vet ASAP. Not eating for more than 6-8 hours gets you into bunny emergency, and runny stool can also be very serious.

. . . 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.  

[jungkook]

since ive gotten home and gave him new food and water, he’s been eating and drinking. his stoll also seems to be more normal now? like it’s not runny and back to being little balls. he’s been sleeping quite a bit… but unlike normally, he’s been sleeping up where his food bowl is with his head leaning on the edge of the bowl. he seems to be doing better than earlier so i didn’t take him to the vet. i dont really know what’s going on but when i called the vet, she told me he could just be stressed out which is making his body react like that. for now, it seems im just going to give it more time. hopefully he’ll be better tomorrow. thank you for the advice and help! if he keeps this up tomorrow, i’ll definitely bring him to the vet as soon as i can.

[kurottabun]

Hmm, sometimes a bunny can turn aggressive when they are sick or feel discomfort as well. Stress can and will definitely also lead to a bunny not eating or drinking and having weird poops, so it really depends on how bad the situation is. The situation you mentioned in the previous post did sound quite serious but if he’s getting back to normal then it could just be stress.

A good way of testing if anything is wrong is by giving bunny his favourite treat and see if he comes running for it.

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