dogs and rabbits peacefull coexisting

I've always loved dogs and wanted a dog since I was about 2 years old. I've spent most of my life reading all about dogs (different breeds, dog rescues, dog training, dog nutrition, etc) and am looking forward to one day having one. My boyfriend agreed that we can finally get a dog when we live somewhere decent sized with a fenced in yard. We currently do have a fenced in yard, but our apartment (it's actually the end unit of a triplex) is pretty small and the landlord doesn't allow dogs anyway. We'll probably be ready for a doggie in about 3 years or so.

I know that a lot of our forum members have both dogs and rabbits. My question is, how do you keep your bunnies safe from your dogs? I know of course that rabbits and dogs shouldn't be left alone together without supervision, but just how do you go about protecting the rabbits when you aren't home? Do you keep the rabbits in their cages in a closed room or what? We will be adopting a dog from the animal shelter or a rescue when the time comes, so luckily we will be able to "try out" the dog with our rabbits first.

I have thankfully never had a problem with my dogs and the rabbits, but when i am not home the dogs are locked in the kitchen and the rabbits are in thier cage in the living room. My one dog did try to kill our hamster many years ago by clawwing at the cage until it came open , tha nk god the hamster ran behind the wall unit, but otherwise she doesnt bother t he rabbits. I would just say that any safety precaution is wise. I think that if a dog is determined enough to get to buns they will, but proper introductions and t hings like that would be a good idea.

I was a tad nervous when we got our new doggie, but he doesn't bother the animals at all. He is curious about them, but that is it. We have a "NIC gate" across the bunny/rat room door, and he knows he can't go in there. When I go in there, he will sit and whine at the gate because he wants to come in.

It all comes down to the individual dog. I would highly suggest working with a rescue and fostering until you find your perfect dog. If you adopt from the HS, then it would really stink to bring the dog home after paying the adoption fee...then have to return him the next day and lose the money and have heart break.

My dog - a mixed breed who looks like an Australian cattle dog/Dingo cross - could never be fully trusted with smaller animals unsupervised. I have taught her as much asI could that the rabbits are not to be eaten, drooled upon or otherwise looked at as an alternate food source, and she does understand that...but her instincts could definitely kick in if I ever left her alone with them (not that she would actually kill them intentionally, but if one of the rabbits approached her and started getting on her nerves, she definitely could lash out and accidentally kill. I also dogsit for my sister at times, and her dog cannot ever be trusted with the rabbits. So whenever I am not there, the door to Yofi and Anna's room is tightly shut. And when my sis's dog is in the house and I'm not home, I take an extra precaution - both dogs are locked in my bedroom.

I've had my dog for 11 years now, and I still remind her from time to time, "Do NOT touch!!" when she's near the rabbits. Have had to do that with my sister's parrot as well, since Kaya (my dog) goes over to her house with me and Polly is loose. And reminding her every so often seems to have helped, because we had an incident happen a few nights ago that could have turned tragic. My sister and I were at her computer booking a flight, and the dogs were wandering around. For whatever reason, Polly the parrot decided he didn't want to be in the living room alone, so he left his perch and was walking about (unbeknownst to us). Apparently he was going to enter the bedroom where we were sitting, but Kaya was standing in his way. Polly got upset and suddenly flew up in the air, landing right on Kaya's back, digging his claws into her, flapping his wings and screeching. Kaya whipped around, but my sister (who saw what was happening before I did) shouted out "NO!!!!". Kaya stopped in her tracks from trying to grab the bird, then instead bolted straight for us with Polly still attached - looking somewhat like a little feathered jockey on a runaway mount. We managed to dislodge him from her safely and, after it was over, breathed a sigh of relief.

So my point in this story (sorry, I tend to write stories when I get carried away) is that even though you will always intend to supervise your pets, it's a great idea to reinforce some things, even if you don't know whether the dog will actually listen or not. And some dogs are as gentle as lambs with other animals...my last dog wouldn't have hurt a flea, even if we tried to get her to...but still take some precautions anyway. Once you get to know your dog too, you'll know just how much will have to be enforced.

I believe there is a great section on introducing rabbits to other pets and vice versa in the book A House Rabbit Primer. I think that it talks about putting the dog in an ex-pen or some sort of secured pen and then allowing the rabbit in the same room to be introduced or something like that. That way the dog can't charge the rabbit etc. and if the rabbit is scared it can get away because the dog is in the kennel. Also I think there is some good sections in the House Rabbit Handbook on this too.

Shannon

What Undergunfire said about fostering until you find the right dog is an excellent idea. I also agree wtih Bassetluv, that a dog, especially a large one, can kill a rabbit by accident, even if said dog has no ill intentions. Before you bring in any dog, do some breed research, and try not to adopt/foster one that is bred specifically for hunting. That rule doesn't always apply, I once had a beagle (bred to hunt rabbits) that was totally in love with my rabbits and even tried to nurse a litter of babies once, LOL. But usually, if a dog is bred for hunting it will make the odds higher that it will want to go after a rabbit.

Thanks for all the advice, everyone! I know animal shelter doggies are often mixed breed, but we're hoping to get a dog that's medium sized (like the size of a Sheltie), has enough fur to be comfortable outside during our bitter winters (my roommate has an Irish Shepherd-Greyhound mix that looked more like a greyhound and was very slender with thin skin and really short fur, poor girl was in misery every winter because she had so much energy, especially for living in a one room cabin, but would get too cold after being outside for a minute), and doesn't seem to have a high bunny killing instinct. Our rabbits were here first and I want them to be comfortable and safe in their own home!

I was just thinking about a dog we used to take care of a lot. Daisy was an 8 year old black lab and her owners were our next door neighbors, but she stayed with us whenever she was out of town (which was a lot). She's the closest thing I had to my own dog, we loved her a lot, even my mom, who actually let her sleep on her bed! My mom doesn't like dogs and is a huge germophobe, so that's pretty darn amazing. Anyway, I was about 12 at the time, and Cinnabun lived in a cage in the living room. When we were out of the house, we'd let Daisy free roam and she could have killed Cinnabun if she wanted to! I cannot believe I didn't think that I should make sure Cinnabun was safe from her... I was always careful when Cinnabun was out of his cage when she was with us (it took a while before I'd let him out when she was there), just didn't think about what could happen when we were gone. Daisy was an exceptionally polite, low key, and non-threatening dog, we have pictures of her cuddled up with Cinnabun, but I'm amazed neither I or my parents (since I was really a child still) didn't think that she could hurt him while we were gone. Luckily, that never happened and they were always buddies. Slightly off topic, but I thought it was interesting how Cinnabun knew which animals were threatening. Our other neighbors had a rather hyper yellow lab, and Cinnabun would thump and get scared whenever he saw her through the window. Once my brother brought her inside and Cinnabun saw her from about 30 feet away and started thumping and jumping around the cage. My brother immediately brought Nicky outside and all was well, but I'm willing to bet that Nicky would have had an unhealthy (for Cinny) interest in him. Yet he was completely fine with Daisy, even the very first time she came in the house. Daisy had never been around small animals and actually hated puppies (she would snarl and lunge at puppies for some reason), but he apparently felt safe around her.

Good luck with your dog hunt! Obviously instinct does have a lot to do with it, but I think personality, behavior and training can do a lot more. We have a German Shepherd mix who has been around the bunnies since we got him, which was when he was around 4-6 months.

Baxter is so good with the buns, I actually trust him with them way more than the cats. However, as a general rule, I dont leave them out alone together. Occasionally I've left the room for a moment to get something, but I wouldnt just leave the bunnies' room door open all the time I dont think.

pics of my guys together!

Awww, those pictures are so cute! Is Thumper the lop? I love him! I need to steal him, he'll look so cute with Rory :inlove: He looks so cuddly, I want to smush his fat little cheeks! You should submit the picture of the buns with the dog and cat to Disapproving Rabbits, Thumper looks VERY disapproving in that one :thumbup

Thanks for sharing about your rabbits and dog, it's great to hear from others who have both!

I love those pics, so cute! That last one you could submit to Loldogs and Lolbunnies both, it's great!

http://ihasahotdog.com/

http://www.lolbunnies.com/

I think its all down to the individual dog too. I have a Staffordshire Bull Terrier, which most people would think isnt the best breed to get a long with small animals. But ive never had one problem with him, my cats or rabbits, they all live in harmony

Hmmm when i think about it the rabbits are the one's that cause any problems! Milly used to terrorise one of my cats to hump her all the time. And now Hope does the same to my other cat and jumps on my dog to dig on him.

Thumper is the lop, Simba is the lionhead. They are both great, but Thumper was our first pet and we love him so much. so sorry, im going to have to fight off any bunny nappers! :duel

I took up that suggestionhere

I am always open to suggestions for bun photosto feature on my site.