Charlie hates my boyfriend...I think

[pintobean90]

so, it seems like my holland lop only likes me. My boyfriend will come and try and pet him like i do and charlie will run to me and bury his face in my lap and if my boyfriend doesn't leave he will dig my legs and bite me. Is this just because he is bonded to me or what? And is there anyway to help him like other people and my boyfriend more?

 

[dollface]

That is funny I was just posting about my male having a similar issue with acting out and not liking anyone but me. Maybe a gender thing?

 

[elrohwen]

It sounds like he's just not comfortable with your boyfriend yet. How does your bf act around him? Is he more assertive with petting and going after the bun than you are? Sometimes bunnies are drawn to those who are calm and ignore them, rather than those who follow them around trying to pet them. I think your boyfriend just needs to spend more time with your bun and he will develop a bond.

Also, unneutered bunnies exhibit a lot of territorial behavior, so that should help as well.

 

[pintobean90]

yeah i let Charlie come to me when he wants to and If he walks away when I pet him i don't follow after him. My boyfriend will try to be patient but the rabbit just doesn't want anything to do with him even if he is calm and just sitting on the floor. He does follow Charlie around a bit though. That is probably why he dislikes him.

 

[elrohwen]

It also takes bunnies a *very* long time to fully bond with people. I had my first guy for at least 8 months before I felt like we had bonded, but even then our bond grew again after getting my second bun (over a year after I got him). With my second girl, I've had her for almost 10 months and I don't consider myself 100% bonded with her. Your bond with your rabbit will constantly grow and change, and your bf's bond with him will too.

My husband follows the buns around more than I do and we joke that he "tortures" Otto (by following him around to pet him, while I just let Otto go). We have different bonds with each of the buns, but at the end of the day Otto only kisses DH on the nose, even though DH "tortures" him. So who knows with crazy bunnies! They'll have different relationships with different people.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

Some bunnies only like one person but will tolerate others on a limited basis. I came home one day to find Bonny in our front yard. I said, "come here bunny" and she came right to me and let me pick her up and hold her. She used to figure eight around my feet and bump my legs, even after she was neutered. Nancy and Daniel could feed and take care of all the bunnies too, but, if I was in the room and Nancy came in she would screech and attack her legs and bite. One of us thought it was funny.

 

[Byfuzzerabbit]

It took me over a year for my rabbit to tolerate me. She didn't want to have anything to do with me or my parents. I couldn't hold or pet her it was quiet depressing. Now she is the most friendly bunny I have ever had. She'll love you as long as you scratch her nose. She gives lots of kisses even if I don't scratch her nose. She follows me around to but I think she just wants food at times.

Maybe some treats and a good nose rub will help?

 

[elrohwen]

Treats are a great idea. My two act "friendly" most of the time because they think I'm going to feed them. I know they love the food more than me, but I look past their motivation and am just happy that they run over to me and climb on me