Attacking Female

[Nutmeg]

Once upon a time, my sweet Nutmeg bunny was veryloving to everyone she met. She would bounce out of her cageat every opportunity in hopes of getting her back scratched and maybesome papaya treats.

But then it became necessary to get her fixed as she had developed thehabit of binkying and spraying at the same time. Highlyeffective for marking everything within a four-foot radius, butundesirable for a house/lap bunny.

My daughter accompanied me to the vet's office on that fateful day,holding Nutmeg (about 8 months old)while I filled outpaperwork. Later in the day, after it was all said and done,we picked up Nutmeg and took her home.

She hasn't been her sweet self since. It's like the vet tookout her loving personality and what's left is crabby andaggressive. She wasannoyed with my daughter tostart with, butit has continued to getworse.Now she will run to attack and bite mydaughter whenever the opportunity presents itself.

HELP! Is there some way to bring back the loving bunny shewas andwill she ever befriends with mydaughteragain?

 

[dajeti2]

Hello and Welcome.

Oh my gosh. I feel so bad for you but you tell a really goodstory. I apologize but the way you described the binky/spray had merolling.

The only thing I can think of at the moment is perhaps haveyour daughter be the only one to give Nutmeg treats. That way she willassociate her with yummy treats. It must be so frustatring for all ofyou.

How long ago was her spay? It can take up to two months to get rid of all those nasty residual hormones.

You may have to go back to square one and start as you wouldwhen first bringingher home. Restict her space and put her incage time outs when she acts agressively. Restart the whole bondngprocess again.

Your poor daughter. Tell her I feel bad for her but hopefully this won't last long. Poor dear.

Tina

 

[Nutmeg]

Hi and thanks for the welcome. It's good to know there's support somewhere to depend on.

The last time my daughter tried to give Nutmeg treats, she got bit forher effort. She has since tried giving her treats and headpets, but gets the same aggressive behavior in return. Nutmegwill even run after her to make her point.

She was spayed on February 22nd, slightly over two monthsago. I had hoped she would sweeten up some, but it doesn'tseem to be the case. I keep her to a small binkyspace. If she gets more area, she becomes very independentand doesn't even want to be picked up. I try to hold her asoften as I can, so she will get used to being handled and consequentlybecome friendlier.

I feel like I'm at the end of my bunny rope! I'm the only one she truly likes and trusts.

 

[JimD]

Welcome to the forum!!

It may get better with more time.

We have 7 bunnies and they all have different personalities. Some havealso gone from aggressive to sweet....and some the opposite, from sweetto aggressive.

Binkie was the sweetest little bunnie when we got her. She was 3 monthsold. She is now 5 months old and terrorizes everybody except my oldestdaughter. Binkie has not been spayed, so I hope that doing that willcalm her down some.

Chippy was quite aggressive and skittish when we got her. She was 9months old. She slowly adjusted to her new environment and is now sucha sweetie. She also has not been spayed. I'm hoping that getting herspayed does not affect her demeanor, but it's a chance I'll be takingin consideration of her future good health.

~Jim

 

[Nutmeg]

I bought Nutmeg at a rabbit show at about sevenmonths old. At that time, she was scared of everything andeverybody. When I would open the door to her cage, she wouldrun to the farthest corner and brace herself against the bars, hidingher face as best she could. It took about five days for herto realize that I only had good things for her and she completelyrelaxed after that.

It wasn't until she was spayed that this nasty behavior surfaced. I miss my sweet girl. *sniff *

 

[JimD]

Don't give up on her, yet!

I will always pour affection on my bunnies in the hopes that theextroverts will come around. However, I accept my bunnies for who theyare and I understand that they are not all cuddly little balls of furthat love to snuggle.......although I wish they were. Even if they wantto be mean, they're still stuck with me!!

 

[Nutmeg]

Oh, I'm NOT giving up on her. She'smine until the end of time! I love and understand her like noone else ever will.

 

[Beckers]

I know how upsetting an "attack" bunny can be!It took my little guy more than two months to trust me again--he wasneutered at the end of November and only in the past month has hebecome the sweetest little boy. He still pounces and hisses at myfiance, but I have faith they will eventually be friends again. I workwith both of them every night--Floppy sits in his recliner (yes, he isa spoiled little boy--no one else can sit there but him), and my fiancesits on the floor and talks to him at bunny level. He actually got afew pets in last night before Flop bounced away. Keep up the hope andit'll take time! Good luck!

 

[Nutmeg]

*Bump*

 

[JimD]

How's Nutmeg?

 

[Buck Jones]

Beckers wrote:

I know how upsetting an "attack" bunny can be! It took my little guy more than two months to trust me again--he was neutered at the end of November and only in the past month has he become the sweetest little boy.

I just wanted to add that one should recognize that bunnies are prone to insult and capable of holding a grudge for a long time.Spaying could have been perceived as abandonment, followed by pain and suffering, so Nutmeg may still harbor suspicion about your daughter's intention(s).

They all are so different in personality. Has your daughter changed anything personally, like soap, perfume, powder, laundry detergent, her appearance? Any and all of which could incur negative bunny responses.

How does your daughter approach Nutmeg? Is it by sticking her hand into the cage and pushing toward the bun? Buns don't see well close up, nor from straight on and if themovement is quick, cannot smell the object as being friendly, hence might attack the monster (hand) out of fear. Your daughter might do better by announcing her presence in a cooing, high pitched voice, then approaching from the top if Nutmeg's cage has an opening top.It is one of the reasons I prefer cages with opening tops (for me) and opening side doors (for the bunny).

Having said all that above, I have a doe that has seemed to get nastier as she ages. It certainly isn't me that has changed, and maybe her mate has become too dominant over her, but she has bitten on rare occasion. I just make sure to talk to her, approach from the top, and not stick dangling fingers in front of her nose.

Her mate, a buck, used to really go after me. Just me, no one else, until I learned to assert my dominance over him by grasping him behind the neck and pressing him to the floor of the hutch until he stops struggling each time he attempted to bite me. Attempts to bite me became fewer and fewerthe moreI repeated the process. Now, it is only necessary on very rare occasion.

I must add that I verbally informed him of my dominance while the process was going on. Some of us feel buns have the ability to understand more than credit is given them for. If not on a verbal level, then, perhaps, on some kind of mental "picture" level. This training is not a pleasant act, and some would disagree with my use of it, but it has made for a "safer" bun in my estimation. You have to make your own decisionsas towhether your situation warrants its application or not.

Buck

 

[Nutmeg]

Nutmeg is becoming sweeter by the day - tome. Still hates my daughter, though. She kissed mefor the first time since I've owned her. So Precious! She isable to stay on my lap for longer periods of time than before.

 

[Nutmeg]

Hey Buck!

Lot's of good advice in your post. I guess Nutmeg still hatesmy daughter because she was with me on the day I took her to thevet. She wasn't all that happy with me, either, but I pliedher shamelessly with her favorite treat - papaya. We're bestbuds again.

I've had my daughter give her treats through the bars of her cage on atoothpick. This seems to work better than offering them byhand with no protection. Nutmeg patiently waits for anotherchance to bite her. The other times my daughter approachedNutmeg with her handwas when she was being held by myson. It was once from the side and once from thefront. Neither one worked.

I don't know if holding her on the floor would work. Shemight hate my daughter even more, feeling as though it was an act ofaggression. However, it certainly would end the issue ofdominance. Thanks for allyour advice.