Why is she biting me? :(

[Sophie's Humble Servant]

This past week Sophie has "bitten" me on three occasions. Each time I was sitting on the couch. She jumped up on the couch, came right up to my hand, nudged me, then nibbled on the top of my hand by my thumb. It didn't hurt and it didn't break the skin. I yelled OW really loud then scooted her off the couch, then made her go back in her condo and shut the door.

First thing, am I handling this correctly? Secondly, why is she biting? Is it for attention? I would like to mention that I'm not encouraging her to be on the couch because she has peed on a blanket on the couch and so what I've been doing is man handling her a lot while she's on the couch to try and get her used to it. So basically, if you want to be on the couch, you're going to get petted and picked up lol. If this is a bad idea, I would like to know that too!

Thanks for your help

 

[missyscove]

It might be that she's grooming you or that she just wants you to move out of her way.
Timmy was a nibbler when we adopted him and he'd bite, but not hard enough to break the skin, or nibble little holes in my shirt. I've found that making a high pitched noise when they bite lets them know that they're hurting you (not just a gentle grooming) and they'll usually stop.
I'm not sure that I'd lock her up afterward, I like to make sure they think their cage is a safe place, not somewhere where they're punished. I'm also not sure that that kind of punishment would be effective for a rabbit. Something immediate as they're doing the negative behavior (squealing as they bite you) is probably the best negative reinforcement and otherwise I'd use positive reinforcement.

What you're doing with her on the couch sounds kind of like what I do with my bun when they jump up on my bed where they're technically not allowed to be.

 

[Sophie's Humble Servant]

Ok that's good to hear, I felt bad for putting her in her condo.

 

[sappyditz]

I'm having the exact same problem with my 8 week old female bunny! Is she grooming me, and should I allow it if it doesn't hurt too much? I don't want to offend her and reject her attempt to bond with me by stopping her from nibbling on me.

 

[Jayombie]

Same here, with our Dwarf Lop.. She is 9 weeks old and right now will lick you then nip unexpectedly.

I put this down to either,

"hmm I smelt something nice then was that food"

or

"Hey look what I am doing, appreciate it"

 

[mimosa]

Harriet nips occasionally. I think she just wants me to get out of her way; I just push her away and she hops off and gets into some other mischief.

Before she was spayed she would really bite. She drew blood on a few occasions and I was starting to get a little scared of her.

 

[whitelop]

I think there's a huge difference in actual biting and grooming nibbles. Ellie nips me all the time, on the back if I'm sitting down because she wants me to move out of her way or she's licking my pants and nips my leg or is sniffing my hand and nips my finger or nail. I think she's just grooming me or telling me to move. I think nipping goes a long way in bunny communication.
But my past rabbit Foo, bit the crap out of me twice and drew blood and did damage both times. That was REAL biting.

That being said, when Ellie nips me, I squeal and tell her no! When she nips my back, it hurts! She's really calmed down with it, since she was a little baby. I think she's finally understanding what no means and now she just nudges me instead of nipping me.
She also nips the cats in the same way, a nudge, sniff then nip. I think she's communicating with them but they don't understand because they don't speak rabbit! Its all similar non-aggressive nipping. But I still tell her no when she nips the cats because they get irritated with her.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

:yeahthat:If your not bleeding they're not really biting.

 

[Bunnylova4eva]

Every once in a while one of mine will do that. Ripley mostly will just nose bonk, but Taffy definitely nips; generally with Taffy she's wanting food, me to move, or to go back in her cage.

 

[isabelwhatx]

My bun used to do that-- it was the scariest thing! I would be petting him, he would be grooming me, and I would suddenly feel teeth. I realized that it was just a love nibble, and it's something bunnies do to each other a lot. Because they have thicker skins, it doesn't hurt them, but it sure can hurt us!

What works for me is gently but firmly pressing my bun's head down when he nips me, after saying no in a low, deep voice. I do this until he stops squirming. This is what a mother does to her young. It has been incredibly effective and he never nips anymore. Ever. We just cuddle and groom now to our heart's content.

However, that tactic isn't for everyone and some people disagree with it. Keep that in mind.

 

[Sophie's Humble Servant]

She hasn't dragged her teeth on me for awhile now. The last time she did it, I pushed her head down and held it there. Now she just nudges me lol...which is just fine.

 

[Kittiebot]

My guy nibbles me when he wants me to move my hand out of the way or if he thinks he needs more pets. They aren't very hard nibbles, just more of a "hey, pay attention!" type of nibbles.