cage aggression?

[kdubbz117]

Is it possible for a rabbit to have some sort of cage aggression? I recently got Chocolat a new cage, as her old one got rather small for her. I read somewhere that it's possible to get a cage that's "too big". I didn't really catch when a cage is too big, though. I don't know the exact measurements of her new cage, but it also has a shelf, which she immediately took to the second she was put in the new cage. She loves to hide under it when she isn't lounging on top of the shelf.

I went to take her out a couple days ago, and she clawed at my hands. It's the first time she's ever acted that way toward me. Just last night a friend went to take her out (cuz he loves her), but she clawed at his hands from under the shelf.

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It would seem Chocolat is my trouble-maker out of my two bun-buns. She also has this horrible habit of digging at the corners of her cage.. It's only the two corners on the right, too. She did it in her old cage, and she's started it up in this new one now. She always does it at night when I'm trying to sleep, which is even worse. Sometimes she even gets so bad with it that she wakes me up out of a dead sleep. She throws her bedding everywhere, back and forth. It's like she can't make up her mind where she wants the bedding to be. It's driving me nuts and frustrating me; I don't know what to do about it either. Sometimes she gets so bad with both the corner scratching/digging and the bedding digging that I have to sleep in another room in the house.

What's the cause for this? For the longest time, she'd stopped doing these two things, but now she's doing them again. Last time she got so bad with it I was literally chased out of my room.

 

[funnybunnymummy]

Yes, rabbits can become cage aggressive. Let her come out of her cage on her own terms and don't reach in to grab her. Is she spayed? Unspayed rabbits can be even more territorial than spayed rabbits.

As for the digging, sounds like she's bored and is entertaining herself by digging her bedding. Digging is a natural instinct for rabbits. Lots of people give their rabbits "digging boxes" to fill this need. Has she got any toys in her cage?

Also, consider replacing her bedding (I'm assuming shavings?) with fleece blankets. Shavings are expensive and, unless they're aspen or kiln dried, produce phenols which can cause respiratory problems in rabbits. I've found cheap fleece pet blankets at the local dollar store for $1.50 each. They're easy to clean (just pop them into the washing machine!) and cheap to replace when they get worn out (after about a year or so).

Hope that helps!

Rue

 

[kdubbz117]

She's not spayed. I haven't a clue how much that would even run. She's already cost us about $1300 or so due to an infection she had months back. She wasn't like this until she got her new cage though... with the exception of the digging and scratching and throwing bedding all around the cage.

I've given her toys in the past, but she never bothered with them... Not even the Nibble Roller I got her. She never chews on anything or plays with anything. She has a carrot rattle that she's taken too. It's basically the only thing she's ever taken to. I've tried tons of toys and she never seems to like any of them. I'm going to have to look around and try things over again. Most of the time she soiled them. :/

Plus, she's been completely defiant towards using the litter pan at all times, which is why I've yet to ever invest in getting any kind of material to put in place of the bedding. Would she be more likely to take to using the pan if I were to use the blankets or something on the bottom instead?

The thing is, whenever she comes out to run about in my room, she always digs at my carpet... and I can picture her still digging at it.

 

[funnybunnymummy]

It's also possible that because she's in a new cage, she's feeling vulnerable about it and feels she needs to protect herself. Or she's becoming more hormonal. Or she's just decided she's had enough of being grabbed. The best solution is just to give her her space and let her come out on her own terms.

As for the digging: What sort of toys have you tried? I'm thinking basic chew things like wicker or willow baskets or ballsandtoilet paper or paper towel rolls. Also, plastic baby toys can be quite popular with rabbits. Things they can pick up and toss around.

How much time does she get outside her cage? Getting more out time will also help alleviate some of her boredom.

As for litter training, I noticed you've got a male (also unfixed?), so that's probably part of the reasonshe hasn't taken to using the pan.

Since you're in New Jersey, a spay is probably going to cost several hundred dollars. Neutering your male will cost a bit less. I'm a firm believer in spaying and neutering as much for the bunny's mental health as much as to remove unwanted behaviours and to prevent unwanted pregnancies. (Believe it or not, rabbits can breed through the bars of a cage!)

Hope that helps!

Rue

 

[kdubbz117]

Now there's something I've NEVER heard before. ...And their cages are next to one another's. Her cage is higher up than his though. o_o

She's had the nibble rollers, the Flip N Toss (the rattle), cheweez or whatever they're called. The cheweez ended up being the one thing intended for chewing on that she actually chewed on. She's had the pumice stones. I've gotten her tossable toys and stuff, but most of it she ignored.

On her good days she gets about 2 hours to run about, but she has a habit of peeing on the floor. I've been under the impression it may be a hormone thing with her, since there was a stretch of time she wasn't so obsessed with digging and scratching the corners of her cage. She started up with it around this time last year. :/

And Caramel isn't fixed either, though he seems like he doesn't care when she pokes her nose at his cage whenever she's out and about. He'll acknowledge her being there, but he just doesn't seem to care too much; I'm sure it'd be a different story if she somehow got into his cage. ^^;

 

[Nancy McClelland]

As to the cost of a spay, it can run anywhere between $100 to $400, you just have to do a search. Maybe try some of the rescue orgs around you for a recommendation.

 

[MiniLopHop]

I can highly recommend Radnor Veterinary Hospital in Radnor, PA. It would be a long drive though. A spay costs $350 with some critical care (my rabbit didn't want to eat after her procedure at first). Dr Bowers was fabulous with her though.

 

[elrohwen]

Rue pretty much covered it - everything your bun is doing is very typical of an unspayed female and I'm not sure there's much you can do except get her spayed. For the aggression, just let her come out on her own terms and don't mess around with things while she's in there. Not much you can do about the peeing as she's hormonal.

The digging is a very rabbit thing to do. If she likes to dig (which it sounds like she does since she digs on carpet too) no toy you give her will make her stop digging. She's doing the digging as fun and unless you can find a toy that's more fun, she'll continue to dig. Since she enjoys it so much, maybe try to set up a place where she can dig to her heart's content. Also, a larger cage could help as she'll have more room to run around and burn off energy.

 

[kdubbz117]

I just recently got her a bigger cage. She's about 6.5lbs or so, but since getting her the bigger cage she's in now she's burned a bit of her weight off. She seems to hoard everything under the shelf in the cage though. ^_^;; I mean, she seems happy; she's just rather bratty. And stubborn. She's gotten a couple new toys I figured I may as well try out with her; any of them she could move around, she put under that shelf. She does the same thing with the treats she gets.

Anything she can dig at, she digs at. I'm thinking about throwing an old t-shirt or something in the cage for her to dig at without making insane amounts of noise since she loves it so much. I just don't know if she'll avoid using it as a bathroom. :/