help with biting rabbit, i got my first bunni, last saturday,its still getting used to me but keeps nipping me

Question

Im guessing it was the cardigan that i was wearing when, it nipped me, but gave me a right nippy one.
Any suggestions on what i could do?
Also any help on house training, thanks

Answer 1

My rabbits usually nip to emphasis a point they want to make, like when they've had enough handling and I haven't picked up the signs.

You mentioned a cardigan. Rabbits are great organisers and she may not have meant to nip you, but was actually rearranging the material to her liking. I know that sounds strange but one thing I do to keep my rabbits amused is toss newspaper and cardboard rolls into their run area. They spend hours sorting it out.

There's some good suggestions for litter training here

http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/litter.html

If you're new to rabbits, keep the site bookmarked as you'll want to refer back to it later. Also

http://www.muridae.com/rabbits/rabbittalk.html

will go a long way to helping you understand why your rabbit does certain things.

Answer 2

I work for a rescue and his is their advice. Never clean a hutch while the bunny is in it as they hate that. Get it a neutered partner, from a rescue who will bond them for you, to help distract from boredom and give it's mind another focus.When going to get it from it's hutch, wear heavy gloves. When it nips do NOT remove your hand, allow the nipping to continue and scoop it up and hold gently but firmly. The bunny will realise it can't get rid of you by biting and will slowly become accustomed to being stroked and handled. After this, remove the glove and perhaps offer a reward after it has allowed you to handle it. Also the other advice on litter trays are great and also restrict its space in the house until it is reliable, increasing the space but restricting again if it makes mistakes. Also give more toys, loo rolls stuffed with hay, bunches of keys, boxes to climb up on and dart into if scared and plenty of out of hutch time. Hope this helps. Good luck

Answer 3

Whenever he bites you, make a high pitched eeeee noise to let him know he's hurting you. Also, you may want to put him back in his cage to let him know that it's not okay. If it continues, you can push down gently but firmly on the back of his neck like another rabbit would do to him to show dominance.
If it's a baby, they might grow out of it.
For litter training, put a litter box with rabbit safe litter (I use pelleted wood bedding. Feline Pine right now which is a cat litter. The pine is kiln dried to remove the harmful odors. You can also go to a feed store and ask for wood pelleted horse stall bedding and get a big bag of it for about $5 and it's the same thing. Never use clay cat litter and if he's eating alot of his litter, change it.) in the corner where he chooses to go. If he goes somewhere else, wipe that up and put the soiled paper towel in the litter box, then clean the area with a mixture of vinegar and water to get rid of the odor. Good luck and enjoy your bunny.

Answer 4

I have a10 month old mini lop how occasionally nips me. we are still working on it. But what I started to do every time she nipped me was say no nip in a firm voice and put her down and ignore her. When I lay beside her on my bed and she nips I say no nip, cap my hands and sit up and ignore her until she lays down. When she lays down the I lean over her and pet her and give her a kiss and praise her. She's learning. I will take time. i also suggest getting your rabbit fixed it will cut down on the nipping and scratching. Good Luck and Enjoy your Bunny.

Answer 5

My bunny would nip me when I stroked her directly under her chin - she thought my fingers were food. Also, keep your hands clean and not smelling of food.
House training, well, use a small litter box that she/he can hop in and out of easily, (we used a small dishpan) use the litter available at the pet store for bunnies, and put some of the droppings in the litter box. Show your bunny where it is and let her smell the poops. (we used to call them ploppers-no specific reason). If you can convince your bunny to pee in one place on newspapers you can put some of those newspapers in the litter box so she will learn. Also, bunnies sometimes like to pee, poop and eat at the same time - so we would put the litter box near the food...
Some rabbits are nippers and won't stop... But be patient!

Answer 6

Make sure your hands don't smell of food, wash good. Wear heavy gloves and handle the bunny frequently until he gets to know and like you. The nipping should stop. A few hand fed treats (carefully at first) will make your bunny your best friend. :)

Answer 7

rabbits can be very sensitive and startle easily. They also can not see very well close up so sometimes they will "attack", when you make movements close to them because they don't know what's there. Look at the site below. There are a lot of links about rabbit care including litter training.

Answer 8

Getting bitten with the help of a mouse hurts, so definite, i'd say getting bitten with the help of a rabbit would also damage. once you're fearful about your new animal not liking you try to ease your self into its international. enable it sit down in its cage with you interior the room for a lengthy time period, then open the door, enable it come out with the help of itself. do not attempt to pressure it to do some thing. in case you want, carry a take care of, or positioned one close to you. in case you enable the rabbit get used to you extremely of forcing your self into its convenience zone its extra in all probability to love you and reply actually, aka not chew you.

Answer 9

While this may not be the answer you want, I had bunnies for many years and they never stopped biting me and other people. They would be sweet and playful one moment, and then would bite out of the blue, and go back to being sweet and playful. I'm not a bunny fan anymore!

Answer 10

Many good answers already... Another thing to know is that rabbits nip one another when they want them to move out of the way. If you're "crowding" her, she may just me asking you to give her some space.