rabbit wont stop biting

[earsnted]

does anyoneknow why our rabbit may be biting us??

we got him neutered about a month ago, he just wont seem to stop biting.

its not only when our hands smell like food either, its pretty regular, atleast 1-2 times every 2 days. and their not nibbled. they're hard enough to draw blood just about every time.

he can be a very calm and compassionate rabbit, but out of nowhere he'll bite crazily hard. he latched on to my girlfriends arm in the middle of last week for about 5-10 seconds and wouldnt let go.



hes a 4-5 month old thrianta rabbit.

and its not just because hes hungry, he has unlimited pellets & alfalfa and oat hay at all times.

any ideas???

 

[ams1786]

Hi. First, hormones might not have settled yet post-neuter so give it a few more weeks. Second, I have a biter too. All the advice pages say it's fear, hormones, etc., but honestly I think she just thinks it's fun. They're definitely real bites-not the little grooming nips-but they're usually through clothes though they've left some pretty spectacular bruises. If bun isn't exhibiting territorial behavior (lunging, growling, attacking when you put your hands in his cage) I wouldn't worry too much and just try to train him out of it. The key-annoying as it is-is to not give a response. If bun learns that biting makes you go away, or move the hand that's in his face, he'll keep doing it. Instead try talking sweetly -maybe a gentle "bad bunny"- and placing your hand gently on his head. This sounds strange, but instinctively it seems like if I gently cover her eyes or scratch her head after she tried something like that, my bun seems to realize that she did something naughty and that her tactics aren't working. I had much more success doing that than nudging her head away - which you're supposed to do - because then shed just come back and it would be a battle of the wills. The whole high pitched squealing thing (which you're supposed to do to indicate pain or something) didnt work either.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

You need to emulate an alpha rabbit. If you get bit immediately pin your bunny down. I give out a definite "ow" to let them know I'm hurt and pin the little buggers head and body to the ground for half a minute. Some that were more recalcitrant got rolled over onto their backs and pinned, and do it aggressively, not halfway or half hearted. That cured all of my serious biters--by serious I mean bleeding and flesh hanging. The scratching at your clothes and nipping is another behavior altogether and not meant as an attack on you directly but more of an exploratory with clothing. I don't have a single pair of pants that don't have holes around the lower, cuff area.

 

[ZoeStevens]

The most important thing here is how you react to the bites. My rabbit isn't a biter so I don't really know but with my conure if I tell her "no" she keeps biting but if I let out a loud squawk of pain she will stop and be contrite. Nancy's advice seems perfect to me - do that and see if it works. You will need to train your brain to operate on two levels - one to experience the pain in silence, and the other to react appropriately to the bite.

 

[mochajoe]

Has he always been a biter? Or is it since his surgery? Is he acting normally for him? We had a biter and unfortunately NOTHING worked...she was viscious about it I have a scar on my thumb from one of her "attacks" so she had a "beware of attack bunny" on her cage. I periodically reminded her she was in fact a prey animal NOT a predator! Having a bunny that bites is NOT fun. We loved her till the end...but as a mom of 4 young children and a long time bunny owner and lover...part of me was relieved when she was gone...as all my kids had been bitten as well as a few kids from the neighborhood...Good luck and I hope and pray you found something that worked!