He Growled At Me!

[Bright Eyes]

I went to take Panda from his NIC Condo yesterday and he growled at my hand. He didn`t bite me, but still... I don`t like that attitude much!

He`s never done that before! Sometimes he runs when he thinks I`m going to pick him up, but he`s never scared, he`s just stubborn.

He also thumped at me while I was cleaning his litter the other day.

I think that Panda is getting too territorial over his Condo. What can i do to discourage this?

Also another unrelated question:

I try to give Panda his three hours of free run time a day, but often after two hours he climbs back into his condo and lounges. This means he`s only getting two hours of exercise daily (and that he really loves his condo i guess...) Is that ok?

 

[mdith4him]

Is he neutered?

 

[Bright Eyes]

Oh yes!

Before he was neutered he was absolutely out of control. A very dominant bunny. But I chose him because he is not timid at all.

 

[silversky2668]

As asked above, is he neutered? Sometimes hormones can make a rabbit territorial. If he is neutered, then it's not the hormones making him territorial...he simply doesn't like the idea of your hands being in "his" space. You could try gently pushing his head down with your hand, as this shows dominance, but there might not be any way to really stop the behavior entirely, as the condo is his home and he's telling you to back off.

Personally, I try to stay out of Honey's cage as much as possible when he's in it (which isn't that often, as he has an xpen attached to it all of the time), but he likes to go in and lay in his litterbox sometimes. I only change his litterbox when he's out and about, and I never pick him up and take him out of the cage, as it's supposed to be a safe place for him to go. And I never put my hands in while he's eating, as he gets very grumpy if I do so--the little stinker doesn't understand the idea of "don't grunt at the hand that feeds you" :rollseyes

Instead of taking Panda from the condo yourself, maybe you can just let him come out on his own--as long as he's not getting territorial over YOUR spaces, the issue of his condo could be worked around. It is his home, after all, and he knows it

 

[Ape337]

Can you give him his exercise time while you clean his condo? That way he won't be in there. And maybe distract him with some yummy stuff too? My Humma isn't agressive at all, but he's nosy and feels the need to supervise cage cleanings so I give him his favorite oat hay to munch while I clean. I use oat hay as a treat so I can give it to him whenever I want, he feels like he's getting a treat, and it will not make him pudgy. :biggrin:

 

[LakeCondo]

Could you divide his free-time into 2 smaller periods?

The territoriality can be lessened by moving things around, like the food & water, so one spot doesn't mean "this is where my food goes," etc

 

[Bright Eyes]

Yeah, he is neutered.

Is it possible that the super hot weather has made him more grumpier than usual?

He hasn't been acting himself lately, I've noticed he is a bit less active in this heatwave.

Maybe bunnies get irritable in the heat like we do. I hope he returns to his laid back self soon.

 

[Samara]

The heat could be doing it. I know my buns get a tad antsy when it's warmer in the house.

My Atticus became super territorial of the upstairs when he was free-ranging. He would lunge and growl at people coming up the stairs. He's now in a NIC condo and I change everything but the litter box around very often and it's working.

One thing to consider is it might be time for a check up with the vet. Sometimes when they have something going on internally they act out. He could have a molar that's pokey or something similar.

Keep us posted!

 

[Nancy McClelland]

Some of ours act like that and others act like they don't know how to grunt. Lilli grunts every time I put my hand in her hutch and then comes over and grooms me. Rabbits are goofy!