Chewie has discovered thumping.

[ChewieLop]

Well, I think I figured this one out, but I thought I'd run it by you guys to see what you think.

Today Chewie (an intact "teenage" mini lop) came to my house for an overnight visit. The place where we have her nails trimmed is near my house, so we figured we'd have a sleepover instead of more car riding.

Chewie's "hotel" is a cage I set up in my bedroom. As it is 5am on Independance Day, I'm not too thrilled with this decision.

All night she was making tons of noise - tearing up cardboard, digging in her litter box, and - from my best guess - thumping.

Around 2:30am, I had enough. I thought maybe some personal attention might get her to settle down for the night. Nope! That was how I realized she was thumping - it was totally dark, so I couldn't see her, but I knew she was motionless right before the loud bangs I heard. I was surprised how loud it was!

I don't know much about thumps (it was one distinct thump, not rapid-fire thumps). I thought I read that they will give a thump to express disapproval at something. I thought she was unhappy with her cage and wanted to go home.

I decided to pick her up and put her on the bed with me. She proceeded to hop around like crazy, nipping at me. She was even grunting very quietly - which I had never heard her do before.

I decided to try to "play the towel game" with her. I was a little concerned it would get her more excited, but by now it was 3.30am and it was either that or drive her home. So, I took a pillow (normally I drag around a towel), wiggled it around, and she was on that pillow like white on rice!

She had her way with the pillow for a few minutes before rolling off my bed in a fit of passion with the pillow. Once I caught her again, I put her away and she was finally quiet!

Moral of the story, I guess Chewie thumps when she needs some lovin'! I am also guessing she grunts for the same reason.

Does that fit with your experience?

Anyway, once she was away and quiet at 4am, I was up. Not to mention I was worried of getting her riled up again with any slight movement!

So, here I sit at 5am, writing about my lustful bunny.

Waiting for the EC to clear so we can have her spayed.

 

[Watermelons]

Thumping fits the experience all right. But its usually a warning sign, or a sign of displeasure. For our house bunnys, its typically the displeasure one Sounds like she didn't like her Hotel among other things lol.

 

[ChewieLop]

That is a definite possibility! I'm always redesigning her living quarters and she occasionally stays with me. My guess is bunnies like predictability. It is just difficult coming up with a large enough living area for her with no hazardous things to chew (like carpet) that is easy to clean. It's definitely a learning curve! I'm really glad for the help on this forum.

 

[majorv]

Yea, i think she may have been ready for some lovin' lol! Intact bucks will thump when they're with a doe, but it's not unheard of for a doe to do it, too.

 

[ChewieLop]

Oh, maybe she could actually be male. The vet never checked, only the guy at the pet store checked. I don't exactly know how, but I do know the difference between males and females is not a drastic one. Would that explain this stuff?

Last night was an even worse night for us. Chewie was back in her home, but this time when things quieted down for the night, she was thumping like Thumper from Bambie. Plus she was making very vigh pitched noises vocally. I got worried and got up to check on her, and found an unrelated pest in the bathroom. Turned the lights on everywhere in the apartment so the pest wouldn't come back, but proceeded to have a second sleepless night. I'm not sure if her noises continued through the night because I went to another room.

A couple of things to note: it was 4th of July. Could she be upset by really far-off fireworks that I couldn't hear? She didn't seem bothered by the ones I could here.
Also, there is a chance she has been doing this for a couple of weeks. My boyfriend said he couldn't hear her during the night.

Whew! I'm tired! Spent today cleaning up for the exterminator. Now I need to figure out what to do with Chewie until extermination is over. Can that harm her even after whatever the exterminator does dries? I highly doubt they'd bomb. Probably just spray.

 

[ChewieLop]

Scratch the high pitched noise part. I just thought I heard the same noise and she is not near me. It is something in the building. Whew!

 

[majorv]

If she/he is about 4+ months then you should be able to tell the difference pretty easily. Look for a YouTube video on sexing rabbits and do a compare. Then you'll know. I'd be very leery of exposing your rabbit to whatever chemicals they use. Try to ask the exterminator what they're using and if it's safe for small animals.

 

[SweetPeasMom]

Now My girl thumps if there is danger around her, I swear if she think there is a mouse she thumps and I have to reassure her she ok.

 

[kagerod]

I find my bunnies thump a lot if I sleep in the same room as them, but as soon as I had them moved to the living room, no more thumpin! Well, more or less - there was the very occasional time.

Once s/he gets spayed, and she has toys and settles in, life will be well. Until then ... give her a bit of room so you can sleep even if she thumps.

 

[ChewieLop]

So, how smart are bunnies? If I put up a cardboard barrier, will she still know I'm in the same room?

I'm trying to avoid the inevitable... One of us is going to have to sleep in the living room the next time she visits.

 

[Margarita]

I have a 1 1/2 year old fixed doe. She thumps and grunts, usually when I’m about to feed her pellets. she also thumps a lot when she is jumping on my bed or couch to cuddle. she does it more of an excitement because she knows she will snuggle. Sometimes when i stop petting her shell lunge at my face and give me a little nip on my nose to keep going. I guess it depends on the rabbit’s personality. My bun does it when she’s happy a lot but she also does it when she gets startled.