Bunny biting me

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Sweetie

Sweetie

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While I was gently cleaning Prince's ears today he was biting me. Nipping me actually. Is this normal? What could be making him bite me? He does this all the time when I put my hand in front of him to get him to lick me, when I hold him(he is used to being held and he does let me). Could he be aggressive towards me for some reason? They are not really hard nips, just enough that I feel them. Could he just be a nippy rabbit?

He is a Netherland Dwarf, 3.2 Lbs, white with black around his eyes

Also what can I do to stop this behavior?

I really don't like it when he bites me. I am wondering why he is doing this and how I can stop it.
 
Interesting, are these painful nips or are they more like he's trying to pull something off of your hand?

*edit*

Also what are the position of his ears.
 
His ears are straight up. These are nips that hurt, he is not pulling something off my hand or shoulder where his head is when I hold him.
 
Is he grooming you before he bites?
 
Hmm, when you put your hand infront of him does he lunge towards it or does he just move forward and start biting.

I'm just trying to work out whether this is aggression or something else.
 
He doesn't move forward at all, he just starts biting. I put my hand like I want him to lick me. I just thought of something, maybe he is expecting a treat. I am going to try that and see if that curbs the behavior. I remember giving him treats all the time. Maybe he is expecting a treat.

Any other suggestions are greatly appreciated.
 
Its pretty understandable that he is nippy when you clean his ears because that will be very uncomfortable for him and possibly even painful, so his only way to communicate is to nip you to let you know he doesn't like it.

Why do you put your hand in front of his face to be licked?

I don't think it sounds like he wants a treat because he would know by smell if one was there, I think he is being dominant and showing you he won't groom you because he is a boss. Not sure if you've ever seen bondings before where the bun has put his/her nose under the other bun and the other bun has gone nip crazy on the head of the bun wanting to be groomed. Its sort of a 'no chance mate, you're supposed to groom me' type thing. Does he ever lick you or just nip you?

I would also be aware of the smell on your hands too. Do you have other pets? Another possibility is that he may think your hand is another animal.

Are those the only two times he nips? If they are I would suggest that you stop tyring to get him to groom you and also that when you cleazn his ears see if someone can help you and hold him and you clean, or else find a position where he can't get to you to nip you.
 
He doesn't nip Sweetie just me. He has never licked me since I have had him. I do have a cat, but the cat is at my mom's and I am house sitting. It could be that I have other animal smells on me. But Sweetie is just fine with that. Yes those are the only two times he does bite me.

Sweetie bites me also but I know why she does. It is when she is in pain, when I am holding her and she lets me know she has to go potty(she scratches me and nips at my clothes, sometimes she get skin).

So how can I stop him from biting me? Anymore suggestions?
 
I would suggest stopping asking him to groom your hands because that seems to be a trigger, and also, experiment with ways to clean his ears.

Not all bunnies are licky bunnies and he may see you as a threat to his dominance or maybe even to his relationship with Sweetie. I was just using the bunny example as an example to show you what his language would mean in the bunny world and that is how we have to interpret it. He nips you because he doesn't want to groom you, he probably wants you to groom him.

How do you clean his ears at the moment? Can you explain the process, like his position, your position, what you do when, etc.
 
I have him in my lap when I am cleaning his ears. His ears are straight up as you can see in my avatar. I do try to stay calm and talk to him calmly like I do Sweetie. It could be that I am stressed when I am cleaning his ears. Could he sense that I am stressed?

I am sitting on my couch with him on my lap while cleaning his ears.
 
Yup, he could sense your stress, and also your anxiety about him nipping you.

Where does he nip you when he sits like that? your legs and knees?
 
I can sympathise. Whenever I cut Sunny's nails I use a similar position and end up with little bite bruises all over my legs. Friendly :p

How about sitting him on a towel that is folded over many times, so that if he nips he only gets the towel.

Or is there someone that can hold him for you while you clean him?

Or maybe try putting him on a towel on a table so he is supported by the table, not by your legs.

Another option is to give him food to eat because if his mouth is full of food then he won't be able to nip you, however, if he is a wriggler this isn't advised because of the choking risk.

For your hands, gloves are an option but would probably make the whole process harder so you'll probably just have to read his body language and be fast moving and thinking if you can tell he is going to go for you. You will be able to feel in his body when he is going to go.

I would say experiment and try a different positions each time until you find one that works for you.

For you, you need to be calm and relaxed because he will sense that. Is there anyone around that could tazlk to you while you do it to help keep you relaxed and distracted? (and also maybe that could help you do it?)
 
I could ask my aunt if she is willing to help me with him.

I will try the towel thing and see if that works.

There is one other time he nips me, when I trim his nails. But I have him on his back when I do them.

I will try to talk softly to him when cleaning his ears and also when I trim his nails. I am not so stressed when I trim his nails, because I know that I won't clip the quick, his nails are clear and I can see the quick. I also clip Sweetie's nails but I am more nervous about clipping hers because her nails are dark. I do have quick stop right next to me when I do her nails.

Yeah I will try the towel thing and see if that works. I will also try to talk calmly to him. Also see if my aunt will help me with holding him.
 
It sounds really like he doesn't like being messed with and that's how he is telling you. Unfortunately, when it comes to ear cleaning and nail clipping you can't really not mess with him, so he probably gets annoyed that you don't listen to what he is saying. Not your fault, not his, just be creative with what you do.
 
I was just going to say, I usually bunny burrito my guys if I have to do nails. I kneel on the floor, and pop bunny between my knees. That way, they're on the ground...

If Nate is around to help me, we do a bunny burrito. He holds the bun, and I take out one paw at a time.

Just my own experience. My guys certainly wouldn't lay on their backs or sit for their nails :p ... it would make things a lot easier!
 
Well today I cleaned Prince's ears and he is still biting, but I managed to get him to bite the blanket that I had him on and a ball that rabbits can chew on. I think he may be in pain, because when I asked him if he was in pain he bit the blanket and dug at it. So I put a heating pad on low on him and he was comfortable. I even massaged his body, he enjoyed that and was comfortable. He felt better after the massaging and the heating pad. He didn't bite me after I did these two things. Could this mean that he is in pain? What pain is he in, muscle pain?
 
That's really creative, well done!

My may be in pain, he may just be frustrated and not like to be messed with. It may also be to do with how relaxed you were when stroking him and giving him the heat pad.

I imagine though, if he has ear mites that his ears will be sore and a bit painful so that might account for it.

Maybe try the same things next time and see what happens.
 
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