rezbeck
Well-Known Member
yesterday snowy bit me twice on the leg, i hadjeans on thankfully but after that i was pretty miffed, she hadnt doneit before???!!
wasnt impressed!!
- Thread starter rezbeck
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pamnock
Well-Known Member
Perhaps you were not paying enough attention toSnowy -- or had done something wrong. Humans are verydifficult to train and sometimes rabbits will resort to biting 
Pam
Pam
MyBunnyLovesMe
Well-Known Member
oh dear lol. It happens to the best of us, don't worry!!
Yesterday I was wearing a tank top and had Peppy sitting on my chestand he decided he was going to try and dig his way to Jade and Jez lol.Boy did that ever hurt! Now I have big scratch marks all over my chest.It's a good thing his nails were recently cut or else there would'vebeen blood! ouchies!
If your bunny starts biting you.....bite 'em back lol
Yesterday I was wearing a tank top and had Peppy sitting on my chestand he decided he was going to try and dig his way to Jade and Jez lol.Boy did that ever hurt! Now I have big scratch marks all over my chest.It's a good thing his nails were recently cut or else there would'vebeen blood! ouchies!
If your bunny starts biting you.....bite 'em back
lol rezbeck
Well-Known Member
maybe it was cos she hadnt been handled for acouple of days, my hubby thinks i shouldnt bother with her but just lether have babies and then get rid of her, but i got her out for a cuddleearlier and she was quite alright, i think little and often thenperhaps she wont bite me, what do you guys think? I really dont wannagive up on her!!
QTbunnies
Well-Known Member
Some bunnies have their moments. Buster has tantrums and I laugh them off because hes okay at other times.
Dont give up on her!! Maybe she does need to come out more?
Siobhan xxx
Dont give up on her!! Maybe she does need to come out more?
Siobhan xxx
rabbitgirl
Well-Known Member
rezbeck wrote:
I bet... she thought it was funny that she got you to yelp and jump....
I had one that did that. She thought it was such a fun game--but mean!When she does that, don't run, turn around and stomp one foothardright in front of her.
She might be hormonal too...bunnies have those days!
Rose
I bet... she thought it was funny that she got you to yelp and jump....
I had one that did that. She thought it was such a fun game--but mean!When she does that, don't run, turn around and stomp one foothardright in front of her.
She might be hormonal too...bunnies have those days!
Rose
rezbeck
Well-Known Member
hormonal? i think she may be a bit too young forthat! she was sitting on my lap at the time when she bit me. she was okyesterday with me tho, weird!! maybe she was having an off day lol
gjsara
Well-Known Member
bunnys somtimes bite and nip as well asnuge you with their head when they want to be groomed (petted) here issome good info from the websitehttp://www.muridae.com/rabbits/rabbittalk_hierarchy.html
Unlike most cats, but like dogs, domestic rabbits are very socialanimals. The domestic rabbit comes from Europe, where its wildrelatives typically live in colonies of up to several dozenindividuals. They share living space and food, warn each other aboutdanger, and establish a hierarchy in which each rabbit knows his or herplace. Unlike rabbits in the wild, rabbits who are neutered and livingin human homes don't necessarily form two separate hierarchies formales and females, and who is dominant may depend little upon theirsex. Somewhat like chickens, where the hierarchy is evidenced by whopecks who (the infamous pecking order), rabbits demonstrate dominanceby establishing who grooms who (the licking or grooming order). Don'tworry, though. You are permitted to groom with your hands rather thanyour tongue.
Although a royal (dominant) rabbit will sometimes groom one of his orher vassals, including licking you, it commonly goes only one way. Thetop rabbit in the group must be worshipped and obeyed by all, and maypresent him or herself for grooming to any other rabbit, who mustcomply. Although grooming does help keep those hard to reach placestidy, it's very much a social activity, and a critical one for mostrabbits' happiness. Who would guess that getting a little forehead rubnow and again could be the key to self-esteem, comfort and well-being?Oh...you might enjoy it too.
A rabbit will present itself for grooming by coming right up next toyou, maybe nudging you a bit with its nose or poking its nose underyour hand or foot, then lowering its chin and chest to the ground, andstretching its head forward while keeping its rear up a bit. While theears may get laid back a little, this is quite different from thesignal for fear (in which the head is never stretched forward) or anger(which is almost always indicated while standing).
This is not generally a request for grooming; most often it is morelike an order. Disobeying this order can lead to unhappiness, chewingon your clothing, or even an annoyed nip. Repeatedly ignoring arabbit's invitation for grooming will lead to insult and frustration,which can in turn result in having your rugs shredded, your baseboardsremoved, and your pillow peed upon. It's way easier to provide at leasta few strokes on the forehead upon request to support your rabbit'sself-esteem.
As mentioned, an invitation to groom is not just a polite request, andrefusing can have unpleasant consequences. Another way to get yourattention for grooming, popular if you are sitting in a chair at a deskconcentrating on work, for instance, is to "dig" on top of your foot byscratching hard. This makes for a real surprise if you don't know therabbit is down there and you aren't wearing shoes or socks. Aninvitation to groom is serious business.
Some very aggressive rabbits may use biting even more than grooming toestablish and demonstrate their dominance. A rabbit establishingdominance by biting typically won't just nip, as rabbits may do to getyour attention or even because they're excited, but instead may bitedown hard and even hold on tight. Obviously you will want to break therabbit of this habit, and quickly! Thebibliographyat the end of this guide includes some references for dealing withoverly aggressive bunnies.
Some lordly rabbits will lay across the necks of subordinate rabbits toconfirm their dominance. This may be why holding down a rabbit with afirm (but not too firm!) hand over the neck and shoulders will oftencause it to quiet if you need to settle it down for nail trimming orear inspections.
Some rabbits are less tied to the necessities of hierarchy, and mayequally come to you for grooming and lick you in turn. Other rabbitsmay not participate in establishing dominance with other rabbits,refusing to provide grooming but not demanding they be groomed. Everyrabbit is an individual with its own personality that you'll have tolearn for yourself. All rabbits like being groomed, though, unlessthey're scared, angry, or too insulted to have anything to do with you.
Some rabbits will lick objects around you, rather than your body or theclothes you're wearing. This is used to indicate that they like youvery much even though you're a subordinate. It will be performed veryclearly in your view and while watching you. They seem particularly tochoose objects that have your scent, such as places where you sit orclothing you're removed. I think it's fair to interpret this as givingyou the gift of being groomed, though indirectly.
You may wonder how you're going to get your rabbit to obey you inanything (e.g. going back into her or his cage) if you aren't the boss.The answer is that rabbits are perfectly capable of believing severalthings at once. As long as you demonstrate they're the big boss byobeying the licking order, you get to be the little boss and be obeyedin everything else. That should give you some idea of a rabbit'spriorities. A rabbit can be completely secure in its high status andstill obey your commands. It's great that human and rabbit prioritiesare completely different, so that all of us can get what we want andneed.
Unlike most cats, but like dogs, domestic rabbits are very socialanimals. The domestic rabbit comes from Europe, where its wildrelatives typically live in colonies of up to several dozenindividuals. They share living space and food, warn each other aboutdanger, and establish a hierarchy in which each rabbit knows his or herplace. Unlike rabbits in the wild, rabbits who are neutered and livingin human homes don't necessarily form two separate hierarchies formales and females, and who is dominant may depend little upon theirsex. Somewhat like chickens, where the hierarchy is evidenced by whopecks who (the infamous pecking order), rabbits demonstrate dominanceby establishing who grooms who (the licking or grooming order). Don'tworry, though. You are permitted to groom with your hands rather thanyour tongue.
Although a royal (dominant) rabbit will sometimes groom one of his orher vassals, including licking you, it commonly goes only one way. Thetop rabbit in the group must be worshipped and obeyed by all, and maypresent him or herself for grooming to any other rabbit, who mustcomply. Although grooming does help keep those hard to reach placestidy, it's very much a social activity, and a critical one for mostrabbits' happiness. Who would guess that getting a little forehead rubnow and again could be the key to self-esteem, comfort and well-being?Oh...you might enjoy it too.
A rabbit will present itself for grooming by coming right up next toyou, maybe nudging you a bit with its nose or poking its nose underyour hand or foot, then lowering its chin and chest to the ground, andstretching its head forward while keeping its rear up a bit. While theears may get laid back a little, this is quite different from thesignal for fear (in which the head is never stretched forward) or anger(which is almost always indicated while standing).
This is not generally a request for grooming; most often it is morelike an order. Disobeying this order can lead to unhappiness, chewingon your clothing, or even an annoyed nip. Repeatedly ignoring arabbit's invitation for grooming will lead to insult and frustration,which can in turn result in having your rugs shredded, your baseboardsremoved, and your pillow peed upon. It's way easier to provide at leasta few strokes on the forehead upon request to support your rabbit'sself-esteem.
As mentioned, an invitation to groom is not just a polite request, andrefusing can have unpleasant consequences. Another way to get yourattention for grooming, popular if you are sitting in a chair at a deskconcentrating on work, for instance, is to "dig" on top of your foot byscratching hard. This makes for a real surprise if you don't know therabbit is down there and you aren't wearing shoes or socks. Aninvitation to groom is serious business.
Some very aggressive rabbits may use biting even more than grooming toestablish and demonstrate their dominance. A rabbit establishingdominance by biting typically won't just nip, as rabbits may do to getyour attention or even because they're excited, but instead may bitedown hard and even hold on tight. Obviously you will want to break therabbit of this habit, and quickly! Thebibliographyat the end of this guide includes some references for dealing withoverly aggressive bunnies.
Some lordly rabbits will lay across the necks of subordinate rabbits toconfirm their dominance. This may be why holding down a rabbit with afirm (but not too firm!) hand over the neck and shoulders will oftencause it to quiet if you need to settle it down for nail trimming orear inspections.
Some rabbits are less tied to the necessities of hierarchy, and mayequally come to you for grooming and lick you in turn. Other rabbitsmay not participate in establishing dominance with other rabbits,refusing to provide grooming but not demanding they be groomed. Everyrabbit is an individual with its own personality that you'll have tolearn for yourself. All rabbits like being groomed, though, unlessthey're scared, angry, or too insulted to have anything to do with you.
Some rabbits will lick objects around you, rather than your body or theclothes you're wearing. This is used to indicate that they like youvery much even though you're a subordinate. It will be performed veryclearly in your view and while watching you. They seem particularly tochoose objects that have your scent, such as places where you sit orclothing you're removed. I think it's fair to interpret this as givingyou the gift of being groomed, though indirectly.
You may wonder how you're going to get your rabbit to obey you inanything (e.g. going back into her or his cage) if you aren't the boss.The answer is that rabbits are perfectly capable of believing severalthings at once. As long as you demonstrate they're the big boss byobeying the licking order, you get to be the little boss and be obeyedin everything else. That should give you some idea of a rabbit'spriorities. A rabbit can be completely secure in its high status andstill obey your commands. It's great that human and rabbit prioritiesare completely different, so that all of us can get what we want andneed.
