Biting cage bars

[zekapeka]

Hi everyone!

I need help, my dwarf bunny is biting the cage bars to the point of waking me up 5-6 times every single night. Usually when i wake up i try giving him food but he just gets occupied by it for a moment or two, and gets back to work. He has unlimited access to hay at all times and clean water every day, his cage is about a meter, also having chew toys of different kinds inside and he gets free roaming around every day.. he usually does it in a specific spot, but when i put something on it he unsurely but eventually changes it. I even put a walk up to the cage space leaving the door open so he can come in and get out whenever he wants to, but he just gets in and immediately goes to his biting cage spot to chew the bars... i don’t know what to do anymore, i usually just shout as a crazy person and clap my hands but he refuses to stop, when he gets up leaning on the cage to chew it, i gently move his paw from the bars so he gets kinda confused and stops for a moment, i also tried bopping his nose gently which also makes him stop for only a second. i cannot let him roam around the whole night and day unsupervised, i have a lot of furniture and sofas i want to save, and he’s not 100% used to his litter box yet, as i moved recently. i even tried letting him sniff a very small amount of vinegar when he starts violently chewing the bars, but he just approached it and started licking it.

i have no idea what to do i am loosing my mind i cannot sleep or focus on absolutely anything else than him, someone please help

 

[Madelyn L.]

It means he does not want to be in the cage AT ALL. Luckily, there is solutions! X-pens are really cheap and some can even fold down for storage during the day. You can keep this forever. If you want to free roam him when he gets potty trained, that works to. Still, make sure he gets plenty of excercise during the day (3-4 hours). Make sure he has many enriching toys too. When my bun was younger, he chewed the bars to, and so one night, I moved all my stuff to my closet and locked him in so whenever he got to chewing, I would move him to my closet. Eventually he stopped biting the bars. Now he just sits in his pen until morning, waiting until he can free roam the whole day.

 

[Blue eyes]

Try attaching a piece of cardboard to the area he is chewing. It will be better if he chews on that. If he continues to chew on the bars, it can misalign his teeth which will cause plenty of expensive vet bills!

You can punch a few small holes in the cardboard so that you can thread twine or zipties to attach it to the cage. Eventually the cardboard will need to be replaced, but at least he won't be able to get to the bars. Shouting or bopping on the nose is not advised. Rabbits have no desire to "obey" or please you (as a dog might). So punishments are futile.

 

[Diane R]

Ideally bunny proof a room for him or at least make sure he has lots of space. RWAF guideline is 60 square feet 24/7. To stop chewing on bars, attach a perspex sheet.

 

[zekapeka]

Thanks everyone, i tried putting cardboard on the bars and it worked, i need to attach it better since he removes it, regarding the free roaming and a lot of space, he owns the room he’s always out and only sleeps in the closed cage, as i mentioned i put furniture in a way so he can easily get in the cage to drink water or eat, and he usually gets in (on his own) and immediately starts biting the bars although the door is still open right next to him (as i don’t close it all day), knowing that he can get out whenever he wants to, so i don’t think its about the space that he’s in..

 

[CamelNewt528962]

Hi everyone!

I need help, my dwarf bunny is biting the cage bars to the point of waking me up 5-6 times every single night. Usually when i wake up i try giving him food but he just gets occupied by it for a moment or two, and gets back to work. He has unlimited access to hay at all times and clean water every day, his cage is about a meter, also having chew toys of different kinds inside and he gets free roaming around every day.. he usually does it in a specific spot, but when i put something on it he unsurely but eventually changes it. I even put a walk up to the cage space leaving the door open so he can come in and get out whenever he wants to, but he just gets in and immediately goes to his biting cage spot to chew the bars... i don’t know what to do anymore, i usually just shout as a crazy person and clap my hands but he refuses to stop, when he gets up leaning on the cage to chew it, i gently move his paw from the bars so he gets kinda confused and stops for a moment, i also tried bopping his nose gently which also makes him stop for only a second. i cannot let him roam around the whole night and day unsupervised, i have a lot of furniture and sofas i want to save, and he’s not 100% used to his litter box yet, as i moved recently. i even tried letting him sniff a very small amount of vinegar when he starts violently chewing the bars, but he just approached it and started licking it.

i have no idea what to do i am loosing my mind i cannot sleep or focus on absolutely anything else than him, someone please help

i feel the SAME EXACT WAY OH MY EFFING GOODNESS ITS INSANE

 

[CamelNewt528962]

Eyyyyy cardboard worked

 

[Freedom]

Ours is almost 2. His cage is left open and there are still times he bites the cage bars. Definitely drives us insane.
We try to distract him. But at night it's not very fun.

 

[Diane R]

Ours is almost 2. His cage is left open and there are still times he bites the cage bars. Definitely drives us insane.
We try to distract him. But at night it's not very fun.

When mine started biting the bars on the playpen I removed the playpen - not because of the inconvenience but because of worries about dental damage.