RABBIT PROBLEMS

Our hutch rabbits are not like wild rabbits, they have very different temperaments. Your rabbit should be friendly and  docile but bad rearing, bad handling and bad hutch conditions can turn your rabbit into a monster. There are factors that can influence the problems you may have with your rabbit. Some breeds are more docile than others, if your rabbit has previously been neglected or if your rabbit is stressed it can all affect your rabbits temperament.

There are hutch and run protectors which keep the hutch at an even temperature so that your rabbit is not exposed to too hot or too cold conditions. There also is a water bottle cover to prevent the water from freezing in the winter and going green in the summer.

If your rabbit is friendly when you get him and then becomes difficult it may be because he is either in pain, hungry, dehydrated, bored, cold, hot or just neglected and lonely.
 
Aggression

Some rabbits are aggressive as a warning. You need to find the cause of this aggression if it is unprovoked. If your rabbit is ovulating or pregnant this is a probable cause but otherwise your rabbit may be suffering in some way and unprovoked aggression must be stopped.

If you have children never leave them with the rabbit if you are not there to keep an eye on things because they may not realise that rabbits do not like being prodded and poked. Keep other pets away from the rabbit because they can get very frightened by other animals. If your rabbit is pregnant and this is the cause of the aggression you can expect the aggression to go once their hormones are back to normal.
 
  Biting

This is the way a rabbit defends itself and if it is frightened or panicked, in self defence, it will bite. If you try to catch your rabbit he may get nervous and think he is being attacked and if when you catch him you shout or smack him it will just make the situation worse. If your rabbit bites when you clean out the hutch or feed him he is probably defending his territory against the intrusion and protecting his food and space.

If your rabbit bites, wear some thick gloves and talk to him in a soothing voice to calm him down. It is easier to do this if you are not worried about being bitten. Once the rabbit is used to you, it is possible to remove the gloves and the rabbit will feel more comfortable being with you. If the rabbit bites because it wants to establish his dominance you must teach your rabbit that you are in charge. If he is out of his hutch when he bites, put him back and once he realises that he goes back into his hutch when he bites, he should stop.

If you are looking for rabbit problem information, the following links may also be of interest to you:  See also, rabbit ailments, rabbit illness and rabbit parasites

 

Chewing

Rabbits have a natural need to chew as chewing, as well as feeding helps to keep their teeth trimmed. The dried food that we give our rabbits to eat is not as good for their teeth as chewing on wood, roots and grass. Domestic rabbits will chew on anything if they are not given enough things for them to chew on so be careful if they are inside the house as they can damage wooden furniture and even chew through electric wires.

Provide your rabbit with enough things to chew such as logs from your garden which are safe so long as they have not been sprayed with any dangerous chemicals or hard fruit such as carrots or apples. You can buy rabbit friendly wooden toys for him to chew and you can make things more interesting for him by hanging some toys so he has to work harder to get them.

Kicking

Rabbits kick out their back legs as a form of defence against predators. If he kicks when you are holding him you may be holding him incorrectly or he may be in pain.

If you approach your rabbit from behind he may kick out his back legs. Try not to approach your rabbit from the rear and support his back legs when you handle him. Your rabbit may have been mishandled previously and you will need to get your rabbit to trust you before you pick him up.

You rabbit needs you to look out for his needs, if you do this you should have a problem free rabbit.
 
Try searching on the Internet for "rabbit problem information" and you will be amazed just how many pages are on offer. Try it for yourself by hitting the search button below!