• Forum/Server Upgrade If you are reading this you have made it to the upgraded forum. Posts made on the old forum after 26th October 2023 have not been transfered. Everything else should be here. If you find any issues please let us know.

just had the biggest shock ever never seen him like tht.

shadow05

Mama Doe
i have never seen scooter be tht aggressive before it wasnt very bad and i know a probs deserved and its probs due to spring fever so i didnt presue the matter and just shrugged it off.

he was walking around my room as happy as owt. then he started to have a go at the bars which i didnt mind until he started having a go at the carpet so i didnt do it to hard i just shoved him to get his attention after saying oi and no but as usual i get ignored so thts why i shoved him a bit but not to hard and i got no reaction again so i got him to turn and face me but he still had ago at the crapet.

so i tapped his head a bit nothing hard i swear it was more like a poke then anything and pointed my finger at him as i normally do when i tell him off and said no and he went straight for my hand :shock: he sort off used his paws but i think he was gonna bite me but he must have though better of it i think. now this i was really shocked at ive never had him do tht before he normally makes a noise and head butts my hand and walks off and thats it.

This time he didnt he stood his ground and was gonna go at me again and i wasnt sure wat to do so i stood my ground too and i told him off again this time without the poke to see wat reaction i wud get i also told him naughty and that he shud go away and think off wat hed done and the funnyest thing is he walked at the same time i said it as well he looked so grumpy when he did it.

did i do the right thing i really dont know how to deal with him at all in that situation ive never had him like it at all. he was total fine afterwards. so i think it was just spring fever.

and plz people i dont want anybody being nasty if ur going to correct me do it in a nice way i dont want an argument again.
 
I'm not sure how bunnies learn their behaviour. I'm not sure if any operant conditioning studies have been done (Pavlov) to see if they can be conditioned BUT I'm not sure a rabbit will be able to associate a tap with being naughty and biting becuase after all he is a rabbit.

In the wild he would be digging, so he he is just doing what a bunny is supposed to do. As for chewing he thinks they are tree roots and vines in the way of his burrow.

He is just being a bunny so may just diverting his attention would be more appropriate.

xxx
 
i have never seen scooter be tht aggressive before it wasnt very bad and i know a probs deserved and its probs due to spring fever so i didnt presue the matter and just shrugged it off.

he was walking around my room as happy as owt. then he started to have a go at the bars which i didnt mind until he started having a go at the carpet so i didnt do it to hard i just shoved him to get his attention after saying oi and no but as usual i get ignored so thts why i shoved him a bit but not to hard and i got no reaction again so i got him to turn and face me but he still had ago at the crapet.

so i tapped his head a bit nothing hard i swear it was more like a poke then anything and pointed my finger at him as i normally do when i tell him off and said no and he went straight for my hand :shock: he sort off used his paws but i think he was gonna bite me but he must have though better of it i think. now this i was really shocked at ive never had him do tht before he normally makes a noise and head butts my hand and walks off and thats it.

This time he didnt he stood his ground and was gonna go at me again and i wasnt sure wat to do so i stood my ground too and i told him off again this time without the poke to see wat reaction i wud get i also told him naughty and that he shud go away and think off wat hed done and the funnyest thing is he walked at the same time i said it as well he looked so grumpy when he did it.

did i do the right thing i really dont know how to deal with him at all in that situation ive never had him like it at all. he was total fine afterwards. so i think it was just spring fever.

and plz people i dont want anybody being nasty if ur going to correct me do it in a nice way i dont want an argument again.

in a word, no, you did not do the right thing.

i am not surprised that scooter behaved that way towards you. if someone 10 times my size suddenly came up to me and shoved me, then poked me, then started waving a big finger in my face, i think i would react the same way!
i think scooter did amazingly well not to bite you. i definitely would have bitten you!

if you want to tell him off a firm no is all that is needed. if he persists, move him away from the area. give him a treat when he behaves. positive reinforcement is much better.
you should never abuse a bunny.
they do not understand why they have suddenly been shoved or poked. he is just being a bunny. that is what bunnys do
 
wat i dont get is he has many places to go and do things but he prefers to have a go at my moms carpet which isnt a good idea as she keeps threatening to put him in pot :shock: he is on a really tight thread now with my mom and after learning that he went for me she said if he gets aggressive hell have to go and i told her it wasnt really his fault because one it is his breeding season and they can get a bit aggressive during this time and two i probably shudnt have tapped him on the head.
 
is there anything i can do to stop him from digging the carpet. either by putting something there or making something really fun to do that will keep his constant attention.
 
wat i dont get is he has many places to go and do things but he prefers to have a go at my moms carpet which isnt a good idea as she keeps threatening to put him in pot :shock: he is on a really tight thread now with my mom and after learning that he went for me she said if he gets aggressive hell have to go and i told her it wasnt really his fault because one it is his breeding season and they can get a bit aggressive during this time and two i probably shudnt have tapped him on the head.

I think the aggression is probably because you poked him to be honest with you. If you poked me I would poke you back. :?

Maybe buy a piece of lino or a carpet cut off to line his run with so he can dig and won't damage the carpet underneath.
 
wat i dont get is he has many places to go and do things but he prefers to have a go at my moms carpet which isnt a good idea as she keeps threatening to put him in pot :shock: he is on a really tight thread now with my mom and after learning that he went for me she said if he gets aggressive hell have to go and i told her it wasnt really his fault because one it is his breeding season and they can get a bit aggressive during this time and two i probably shudnt have tapped him on the head.

but he didn't go for you through aggression.
he went for you because you shoved and poked him :?
i hardly think it's scooters fault, he shouldn't be punished further and labelled as aggressive for something that was your fault :(

it's nothing to do with breeding season whatsoever.

can i maybe point you in the direction of some links about bunny behaviour? would that be of use to you?
not sure of the rules about links, but i can pm you lots of useful links about bunny behaviour that i found when i was researching before i got snowball
 
Get a cheap rug or carpet sample (these are free) and put it where he likes to dig, he can dig this to his hearts content and when it gets ruined, get another one.

Even though you did not hurt him, you did act aggressively towards him. I know you didnt mean it, so dont feel too bad but its not the way to deal with it and it may make him into an aggressive bunny. If you are aggressive towards him he will act the same back.

To stop unwanted behaviour...What you need to do is tell him 'no'. If he does not stop, remove him from the area to the furthest part of the room away from it. If he goes back, wait, if he does it again you need to move him again. And again, and again and again until he gets the message. It takes time and you need to be consistent, you need to do it straight away and every single time. This does not mean it will work, a lot of behaviours, especially natural ones like digging will not be stopped. In which case you learn to live with it and adapt the area to suit him.

I would also provide a digging box or digging blanket.
 
Last edited:
I don't think rabbits really learn from or understand being told off like in the way you would tell of a dog. I don't think Scooter meant to be aggressive, if anything is being held or done above Beanos head she won't like it and will do the same thing scooter did to you with his paws to get it away. I think you've got to just say his name and no and try to distract or move him away from what he shouldn't be doing. Does he go for one bit of the carpet in particular? Beano used to go for several areas so just as a temperory thing I used to put a hardback book over that area of carpet so she couldn't get to it, then she'd leave it alone and after a while take the book up and she'd have forgotten about it.
 
I think the aggression is probably because you poked him to be honest with you. If you poked me I would poke you back. :?

Maybe buy a piece of lino or a carpet cut off to line his run with so he can dig and won't damage the carpet underneath.

ill try tht cause i know we have some, somewhere the only thing after tht is how do i get it to stick down fully cause knowing him hell rag on it. :D
 
oh and the main thing is to offer better alternatives when he does the bad thing... for instance as I said a digging box for digging behaviour, apple sticks/other fruit sticks for chewing... for most behaviours it is generally best to distract him with yourself, either by playing with him or stroking him. eta - make sure you dont 'reward' the behaviour with these things


Oh and you NEED to get him used to being picked up. It will help you a lot.
 
Scooter is not aggressive he was simply telling you to stop, think of a giant pointing a big finger at you and poking you, nobody would stand for it.

Remember rabbits can't talk and can't tell you to stop poking or shouting.

My rabbits are never told off but they get rewarded for the tiniest bit good behaviour and it reflects when I ask them to stop they stop.


Digging is natural and I don't think anyone has the right to discipline any animal for natural behaviour its totally wrong, give him a digging box!!
 
but he didn't go for you through aggression.
he went for you because you shoved and poked him :?
i hardly think it's scooters fault, he shouldn't be punished further and labelled as aggressive for something that was your fault :(

it's nothing to do with breeding season whatsoever.

can i maybe point you in the direction of some links about bunny behaviour? would that be of use to you?
not sure of the rules about links, but i can pm you lots of useful links about bunny behaviour that i found when i was researching before i got snowball

i know he didnt do it out of aggression and that it was my fault ive already admitted that already.

as for the breeding season i thought that they do get aggresive to a certain point and have loads of other things that happen i remeber one of them is toileting problems which im having now he decided to pee all over his nice clean and dry hay.

and yes them links would be very helpful thank u.
ill probably not be able to read them tonight as it is getting a bit late for me but ill have a look at them in the morning. :D
 
i know he didnt do it out of aggression and that it was my fault ive already admitted that already.

as for the breeding season i thought that they do get aggresive to a certain point and have loads of other things that happen i remeber one of them is toileting problems which im having now he decided to pee all over his nice clean and dry hay.

and yes them links would be very helpful thank u.
ill probably not be able to read them tonight as it is getting a bit late for me but ill have a look at them in the morning. :D

Has he had his plums chopped yet? I remember you saying you were saving but haven't caught up since.

If he is still intact then he is simply telling you that it is his house so he his marking his territory.
 
I don't think rabbits really learn from or understand being told off like in the way you would tell of a dog. I don't think Scooter meant to be aggressive, if anything is being held or done above Beanos head she won't like it and will do the same thing scooter did to you with his paws to get it away. I think you've got to just say his name and no and try to distract or move him away from what he shouldn't be doing. Does he go for one bit of the carpet in particular? Beano used to go for several areas so just as a temperory thing I used to put a hardback book over that area of carpet so she couldn't get to it, then she'd leave it alone and after a while take the book up and she'd have forgotten about it.

i dont think it was either, it was more probably dont put that in my face for ill hit it type of thing. since hes been neutered his behaviour is very different sometimes its a good thing and other times its really bad or even unexpected of him. he hardly ever makes any grunting noises like he use to, i use to hear him do it all the time when he was back in his old pen now hes mostly just a mute.

its hard to get over the changes i use to love watching him play and just generally being a little terror to a certain point. didnt like it much when he use to have a go at my favourite duvey cover. :evil:

as for saying his name hes never really listend to it at all. he did use to respond to no and oi, mostly oi. i dont think the name ever even suited him, i dont know wat possed me to call him that. i think oliver would have suited him better.
 
Has he had his plums chopped yet? I remember you saying you were saving but haven't caught up since.

If he is still intact then he is simply telling you that it is his house so he his marking his territory.

yea hes had his plumps chopped. hes probably doing it for vengance now :lol::D
 
i have always got low to the ground and "thumped" and said no! when I dont want them doing something they do actually learn sometimes they grunt and thump back as if to say spoilsport grrrrrrr lol
 
oh and the main thing is to offer better alternatives when he does the bad thing... for instance as I said a digging box for digging behaviour, apple sticks/other fruit sticks for chewing... for most behaviours it is generally best to distract him with yourself, either by playing with him or stroking him. eta - make sure you dont 'reward' the behaviour with these things


Oh and you NEED to get him used to being picked up. It will help you a lot.

right ill try them too.

as for the handling i am trying with him and it is sinking in a bit i think because for him to be able to run around i have to pick him up and put him on my bed. so i think that is starting to sink in a bit hes fighting a lot less but he is still putting up a big fight. ive got large scratch marks from my collat bone to the botton of my chest plate. he did that when i had to put him back in which is always a big fight between me and him he hides i find him i coax him i go to pick him he runs off and i catch him and fight with him trying to not let him win and put him in his cage quickly cause i dont wanna drop him.

i dont like fighting with him at all. its horrible. :(. i know in the end its for a good thing but still i know myself how much he hates it
 
Back
Top