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Spray Bottles, Wrong or Right

Inlé-rah

Warren Scout
My boyfriends mum uses a spray bottle on her cats and dogs when they are being "naughty"... I know some people use it on their bunnies too.
I don't personally use a spray bottle....I distract my bunnies in other ways when they are naughty. What do you think? Do you see it as a distraction or punishment? Wrong or right?
 
I tried it with mine but it didn't really work. It just made them confused a lot of the time as they didn't understand why I was doing it, they didn't make the connection between bad behaviour and punishment. It didn't work as a distraction either as 3 seconds later they'd be doing the same thing again! I think it's difficult (generally speaking) to discipline a rabbit in any way, as very often they don't know they're being naughty (chewing stuff etc. is all part of their instincts)
 
I tried it with mine but it didn't really work. It just made them confused a lot of the time as they didn't understand why I was doing it, they didn't make the connection between bad behaviour and punishment. It didn't work as a distraction either as 3 seconds later they'd be doing the same thing again! I think it's difficult (generally speaking) to discipline a rabbit in any way, as very often they don't know they're being naughty (chewing stuff etc. is all part of their instincts)

I agree with you there. There's no way of taking an instinct away from a rabbit!
When mine are being naughty I just distract them by laying on the floor or grabbing a noisy toy, clapping, or something to turn their attention away from whatever they were doing :)
 
Considering Charlie sometimes tried to run under the water spray when I'm bathing the birds, I'm guessing it wouldn't really work!

I don't think it's really fair on rabbits though, they don't really care enough about human rules to learn anything from it!
 
Not on a rabbit, no. Cats however - different story :lol: We're going to have to start spraying our cats when they scratch at our carpets, as they don't stop for anything else! Hopefully it'll work :roll:
 
Not on a rabbit, no. Cats however - different story :lol: We're going to have to start spraying our cats when they scratch at our carpets, as they don't stop for anything else! Hopefully it'll work :roll:

It won't! It's an instinctual thing for cats to scratch, spraying them will just scare them and compound their stress, and they will probably just do it when you're not looking! Do they have plenty of alternative things they are allowed to scratch?
 
It won't! It's an instinctual thing for cats to scratch, spraying them will just scare them and compound their stress, and they will probably just do it when you're not looking! Do they have plenty of alternative things they are allowed to scratch?

Aarggh they're so annoying though! They do - they have scratching posts and they use the tree bark outside. It's just the fact that they literally do not stop, we clap our hands, shout, psychically try and move them away (and get attacked in the process!) etc etc etc, we've tried everything bar spraying and we're at the end of our tether. Our first lounge is massive, very long and wide, so we can't put lino down instead as it'd be too expensive. They're wrecking our carpet *sigh*.

If anyone has any ideas, greatly received haha!
 
Scratching posts and tree bark are both vertical scratching outlets whereas carpet scratching is horizontal, so providing an appropriate alternative like a carpet cut off might help. Scratching also marks territory and if cats are doing it excessively it might indicate a deeper rooted problem
 
Scratching posts and tree bark are both vertical scratching outlets whereas carpet scratching is horizontal, so providing an appropriate alternative like a carpet cut off might help. Scratching also marks territory and if cats are doing it excessively it might indicate a deeper rooted problem

Ah I forgot to mention, they do have some carpet cut offs for them to use but completely ignore them! Well they're both neutered and had a vet check anyway a month ago, so I don't think it's health related :? It's only one of them that does it, but I think it's mainly to be annoying :lol: it can't go on though, he's literally wrecking our furniture and carpet.
 
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I think it is inappropriate to use a water spray on a Rabbit and I have not and would not do so

This. I've had to explain to my OH on multiple occasions that bunnies just don't think like we do, and you can't 'punish' them as they just won't make the connection. He's one of those people who's a 'spare the rod, spoil the child' type person. I soon tell him to eff off whenever he says anything about spraying the bunnies or smacking kids as a punishment :lol:
 
Considering Charlie sometimes tried to run under the water spray when I'm bathing the birds, I'm guessing it wouldn't really work!

I don't think it's really fair on rabbits though, they don't really care enough about human rules to learn anything from it!

Haha Charlie running under the spray bottle! How funny :lol:
Agreed. It isn't fair on rabbits, I don't think it's even possible to fully discipline a rabbit!
 
Absolutely wrong, I don't believe in any positive punishment methods for any animal

Agreed :thumb:

Not on a rabbit, no. Cats however - different story :lol: We're going to have to start spraying our cats when they scratch at our carpets, as they don't stop for anything else! Hopefully it'll work :roll:

I heard it works pretty well for cats (according to the boyfriend's Mother)! I wouldn't know though as I've never used a spray bottle on an animal and never will

Aarggh they're so annoying though! They do - they have scratching posts and they use the tree bark outside. It's just the fact that they literally do not stop, we clap our hands, shout, psychically try and move them away (and get attacked in the process!) etc etc etc, we've tried everything bar spraying and we're at the end of our tether. Our first lounge is massive, very long and wide, so we can't put lino down instead as it'd be too expensive. They're wrecking our carpet *sigh*.

If anyone has any ideas, greatly received haha!

This is why I don't have cats :lol:
I don't have any cat suggestions as I'm not really a cat person, but all I can think of is to distract them with plenty of toys (catnip maybe?, jingle balls? Treat balls?)
 
This. I've had to explain to my OH on multiple occasions that bunnies just don't think like we do, and you can't 'punish' them as they just won't make the connection. He's one of those people who's a 'spare the rod, spoil the child' type person. I soon tell him to eff off whenever he says anything about spraying the bunnies or smacking kids as a punishment :lol:

Yes! I agree, they don't understand punishment and can't make that connection!
Haha, my boyfriend has grown very fond of my bunnies but when they start being naughty he falls out with them :lol: You definitely need plenty of patience for bunnies :lol:
 
Agreed :thumb:



I heard it works pretty well for cats (according to the boyfriend's Mother)! I wouldn't know though as I've never used a spray bottle on an animal and never will



This is why I don't have cats :lol:
I don't have any cat suggestions as I'm not really a cat person, but all I can think of is to distract them with plenty of toys (catnip maybe?, jingle balls? Treat balls?)

They do have loads of toys, we have a box full that we regularly give them - cotton reels, jingle balls, a laser toy thing, milk bottle tops, these dangly fish things etc - but they just ignore them! We play with them loads, so they don't lack in stimulation. We can't have the toys out all the time anyway, as we'd trip over them :lol: I love them to bits, don't get me wrong, but I do wish they'd stop wrecking our house :lol:
 
They do have loads of toys, we have a box full that we regularly give them - cotton reels, jingle balls, a laser toy thing, milk bottle tops, these dangly fish things etc - but they just ignore them! We play with them loads, so they don't lack in stimulation. We can't have the toys out all the time anyway, as we'd trip over them :lol: I love them to bits, don't get me wrong, but I do wish they'd stop wrecking our house :lol:

Haha, they sound like little diva's to me. It sounds familar to be honest! My mini lop has tonnes of toys and has plenty of stimulation, he gets free time all day, and has a tonne of human company, but he still rattles and demands and acts up all the time :lol: Little drama queen
Have you tried one of those cat tree's? My sister's cat loves playing on his cat tree, climbing up it and launching himself off it like a rocket
 
Ah I forgot to mention, they do have some carpet cut offs for them to use but completely ignore them! Well they're both neutered and had a vet check anyway a month ago, so I don't think it's health related :? It's only one of them that does it, but I think it's mainly to be annoying :lol: it can't go on though, he's literally wrecking our furniture and carpet.

I didn't mean health I meant stress/behaviour related :wave:
 
I didn't mean health I meant stress/behaviour related :wave:

Oh right. I can't think of anything obvious like that - he's not stressed, as he spends most of the day fast asleep either on a bed or on the sofa and is as chilled as chilled can be! He always seems happy enough. I think it's just a bad habit, he's never been into using the scratching posts even when they're there in front of him!
 
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