Dominant over MY bed!

Hi :wave:

I currently have a 5yr spayed rescue female lionhead who has free range of my bedroom, now she is a sweetie and she can have her grumpy days and loving days, but 1 problem is I don't like her going on my bed, she jumps up and she knows she isn't allowed as when I go to approach her she looks guilty and basically goes for me, she grows, pounces, and does nip (doesn't break the skin luckily) and I used to be able to pick her up and pop her down and she would lay on the floor looking like she was sulking.. lol now its got to the stage where she goes for me and I have to use a pillow to push her off the bed (so she jumps down) as well as attacking the pillow..

I do plan on getting her a boyfriend one day, but I am in the middle of building a new enclosure for my ferrets which is abit hectic (aswell as working) she has loooooaaadddsss of toys and can explore under the whole bed, aswell as explore my built in *small* wardrobe..

I cannot think of a solution to stop her jumping on my bed, Ive had to put a old blanket on it now as a couple of occasions shes had poo stuck to her fur and made my bed dirty of poo, and I dont want to sleep with poo on my bed, so have to change the sheets..

Ideally some kind of guard I could put up when Im sleeping, or during the day when Im at work..

Ive even tried shutting her in her cage at night, but she hates it and gnaws at the bars, and that annoys and distresses me out knowing she wants to come out. When Im sleeping and she jumps up she runs all round my face, nudges me (which I thought was really cute a couple of nights, as she used to sleep at the foot of the bed like a cat) then I would wake up in the morning to find a wee stain and smudged poo on my cover.. So gross, so THIS had to stop! now, she is a very clean bunny, and always runs back to her cage for toileting.. but it sounds like shes trying to claim my bed as hers, when its MINE! lol! that was the first wee accident she had done, and she CAN get down off my bed.

Ive tried calling her name so she jumps down herself and i treat her, she soon got bored of that idea and was bouncing around looking like a "la la la, im on ya bed and this is fun" hahaha.. Ive tried a soft approach and stroked her then picked her up, but nope!

Help me.

I understand females can be grumpy, Im used to her grumpyness, thats what makes her her :lol: and she can be as soppy as anything some days, its like jeckle and hyde once she goes on my bed.

Is there a way of rabbit punishment? ive tried saying no! but i don't want to be harsh on her as they are prey animals.

Luv esther x

I think your bunny is bored and she seeks company and attention by jumping on your bed. I don't believe in rabbit punishment. I think the best thing to do is to get her a neutered male to keep her company. In the mean time, I do realise that you need to sleep without a bunny waking you up! Perhaps, you can get a dog crate and keep her there when you are asleep. (I know that it is not ideal, but I can't think of anything else.)

Aww that would explain it better, thankyou .... she has been on her own a long time as she was 5yrs old when i got her at our rspca, 1 problem im concerned with is, I realise rabbits can mark their territory by pooing everywhere, will this be the case when i get her a new friend? And i cant find any links on here on how to introduce bunnies. (only trios) Also, (sorry all the questions) Ideally I would like another small breed rabbit, is better to get a baby to introduce (then castrate later) or to get a male all ready neutered. At our local rspca there are no smaller breed rabbits..

Luv esther x

Hello there. I can see your problem. It is not your bunny's fault, she is just behaving as most rabbits would under the same circumstances. The first point I would like to say is it isn't really ideal to keep ferrets and rabbits in close proximity to one another. The rabbit, being a prey animal, would find it stressful most likely to smell the ferrets. By keeping bunny in your bedroom she will feel lonely so should have a friend. The best way is to go to a rescue where there should be neutered small breeds ready to be bonded with her. The rescue sometimes does the bonding for you if you dont have anywhere neutral to put them. If you get a baby rabbit you will have to wait till he is 4 months old brfore he can be neutered plus he will be that much younger, which doesn't make that much different but perhaps better to get an older bun. I am surprised the RSPCA let you have a single female. A nice big dog crate is a good idea. It means bunny cant take over your space, but if you got her a friend could they not live outside where it is imo more natural....So there are solutions to the problem, you cant puniish rabbits, they wont understand what your about and as I said earlier it isnt her fault. She is just being a rabbit. If you look on Rabbit Rehome on this forum there are loads of bunnies waiting for loving homes annd some deliver to wherever you are. You can take your rabbit so she can choose a friend herself. If you introduce another rabbit to her where she is dont forget it is her territory and she will attack another rabbit which comes along so you must introduce them on neutral territory, somewhere she hasnt beren. Rabbits are very territorial. I hope this helps you solve your problem. Let us know what transpires.

curlycritter said:

Aww that would explain it better, thankyou .... she has been on her own a long time as she was 5yrs old when i got her at our rspca, 1 problem im concerned with is, I realise rabbits can mark their territory by pooing everywhere, will this be the case when i get her a new friend? And i cant find any links on here on how to introduce bunnies. (only trios) Also, (sorry all the questions) Ideally I would like another small breed rabbit, is better to get a baby to introduce (then castrate later) or to get a male all ready neutered. At our local rspca there are no smaller breed rabbits..

Luv esther x

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Always carry out bunny introductions in a small neutral space, such as a dog crate. It is best to introduce a neutered male to your female and not a baby. Please remember that the hormones can be active for up to two months after castration. If you cannot find the type of bunny you are looking for in the local RSPCA, try looking at the Rabbit Rehome http://www.rabbitrehome.org.uk/centres.asp website, or the 'Rabbits in Need' here. Some rescues rehome nationally. However, I have found that when it comes to rabbit bonding, size does not matter.

Hi, it definitely sounds like the poor bunny just wants company and attention. Maybe until you can get her a male friend you could put an old spare blanket/throw over your bed so if she jumps up it doesn't really matter, then remove the blanket before you go to bed.

I've also got a very moody, territorial girl and I know exactly what you mean when you say Jeckyl and Hyde :lol:

tonibun said:

Hello there. I can see your problem. It is not your bunny's fault, she is just behaving as most rabbits would under the same circumstances. The first point I would like to say is it isn't really ideal to keep ferrets and rabbits in close proximity to one another. The rabbit, being a prey animal, would find it stressful most likely to smell the ferrets. By keeping bunny in your bedroom she will feel lonely so should have a friend. The best way is to go to a rescue where there should be neutered small breeds ready to be bonded with her. The rescue sometimes does the bonding for you if you dont have anywhere neutral to put them. If you get a baby rabbit you will have to wait till he is 4 months old brfore he can be neutered plus he will be that much younger, which doesn't make that much different but perhaps better to get an older bun. I am surprised the RSPCA let you have a single female. A nice big dog crate is a good idea. It means bunny cant take over your space, but if you got her a friend could they not live outside where it is imo more natural....So there are solutions to the problem, you cant puniish rabbits, they wont understand what your about and as I said earlier it isnt her fault. She is just being a rabbit. If you look on Rabbit Rehome on this forum there are loads of bunnies waiting for loving homes annd some deliver to wherever you are. You can take your rabbit so she can choose a friend herself. If you introduce another rabbit to her where she is dont forget it is her territory and she will attack another rabbit which comes along so you must introduce them on neutral territory, somewhere she hasnt beren. Rabbits are very territorial. I hope this helps you solve your problem. Let us know what transpires.

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Firstly I would like to point out that my ferrets all live outside and my bunny in my bedroom (so they are noway near each other) and when ever i see my ferrets i wear an old coat to protect the smell when I handle them, as you can tell they do pong! lol.. Also, Dolly WAS a loner rabbit, she came in the centre at a horrific state, the previous owner left her in her filth and neglected her as she said she was aggressive and even made the rspca staff to go out to her house to collect her as the owner couldn't handle her.. so poor dolly came in with the runs all over legs, and matts, she was cleaned up, spayed and got her health back, I do volunteering at this centre and I fell in love with Dolly, so I homed her (in the future I would like to have got her a friend, but in the mean time I didnt want her find a different home as I wanted to home her ), I took her home she binkied for days all round my room floor (and still does now).

My friend works at the centre and I already have my eye on a small loner male lop crossbreed who I am tempted to home, I browsed on the net about introductions and I feel I can do it and I will be getting a crate soon too Just like to point out that her cage is a LARGE indoor rabbit one, so its the same width as a crate just not got the height, but I made a platform so she jumps on this to go to sleep so this isnt as small as people may be thinking :roll:....Thankyou everyone for your help xx

Luv esther x