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Rabbits and dogs...

kiri

Warren Scout
Just wondering how many of you who have rabbits and dogs let them play in the garden together? Does anyone have a dog that has shown aggression towards your rabbit? Or do you think that dogs and rabbits are a big fat NO! :?:
 
My dog (a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel) and my bun get on great and play in the garden all the time but my dog is very placid and has never shown any agression to anything! Even birds land in the garden when he is out because they know he is not a threat.
 
my rabbit loves the dogs, and the dogs love the bunny, they dont touch him. it depends on the dog, i dont let any other dogs near the bunny or guineas no matter how well i know them.
 
I think that my dogs would want to play too hard with the buns so they don't really mix but with my Rainbow Bridge spaniel, Harriet, and my Rainbow Bridge lop, Charlie, I did have a problem......the aggression was NOT from Harriet but from feisty Charlie!!! :shock: He used to chase her and bit her hocks, naturally enough she would retaliate and my heart was always in my mouth....several times I wrested him from her jaws but he survived all that. However, my nerves couldn't take it so I had to pen the buns off in the end. Just be aware of potential problems but I have seen some dogs live in perfect harmony with buns. :D
 
I have a very large Siberian husky cross German Shepherd called Wolf who is a big softy. Like Beaney, my dog has never shown any aggression towards anything animal or human, but like you I did have concerns when I got George my French lop, just how they would get on.
I needn't have worried, they love each other and are together most of the time. I was always fairly confident that Wolf woudl be gentle with George, but I wasn't sure if the size of Wolf woudl scare George.
I don't have any more recent pics but here are a couple of when George was younger.

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We have to keep an eye on our 6month lab. He's fine with the brave rabbits like the beetles, they come over and sniff him, but the buns that run away he thinks want to play and tries to chase them.
 
My bunnies arent bothered by the dogs whatsoever.
Benji who has been brought up with the dogs thinks he is a dog and likes to join the 'pack' and even begs for treats with them.
Evie hasnt been here long or lived with dogs before but shes taken to our house with no problems, shes such a relaxed little bun.

Harry (collie x) is fine with them and either ignores them or gets up and walks away from them if he feels bothered.

The buns are usually out upstairs in the day with me away from the dogs or in the evenings when Mich (staffy x) is in his bed. Although he doesnt bother them when in their cage he couldnt be trusted not to chase them when theyre loose.

I think it depends on the dog but still think they should always always be supervised together. Both bunnies and dogs can get grumpy sometimes.
 
having read this thread i am now more confident about trying to introduce the doggies and buns (well 2 of the dogs at least) i think amber will be fine (she used to let the rats use her as a climbing frame :roll: ) and cody sleeps in my room and quite often squishes himself against the pen bars with a bun or two laying on the other side :lol: and he will stick his nose to the pen and teegs stands up against the bars and sniffs him :love:
oooo im all excited now :D :D :D
dont think guinness would be too good as he likes to chase things (especially our cats :roll: )
 
I would never let our 18-week-old puppy loose with any of my rabbits. He’s far too excitable and what he would see as a game would probably scare the living daylights out of my rabbits.

The closest they get is saying hello through a baby gate when Ollie is upstairs supervised.

Louise
 
I think that if you know your dog well you can predict the type of behaviour it might display with a bun, mine is curious aqnd will sniff through the bars of a hutch and sometimes follows my buns around in the garden waiting to hoover up the bunny poops.
Its nice to see that as yet no one has had major problems with dogs and rabbits although I agree I would never let a visiting dog out on the lawn with my bun becasue I dont know how that dog would react.
No visiting rabbits have ever shown fear of my dog, many approach her for a sniff but I have always taken things slowly.

good luck with your introduction, 8) i think you will be fine just dont do it near any area that your dog may feel is his chill out area-away from his bed and definatly not while chewing a tasty treat. Lots of praise to the dog for any gentle and non chasing behaviour.

Some people think that dogs automattically see rabbits as prey, this may be true for those dogs who have been taught to hunt but most dogs show only playful interest. The dog-rabbit bond is not more unnatural than the human-rabbit bond, just my oppinion anyway...
 
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It does definitely depend on the dog, but they love all my rabbits. But he is definitely their favourite, they even trust him with their bones!!! Sweetie also prefers the dogs company to the other rabbits. Pam.
 
My Carrie (King Charles Spaniel) is the biggest softie ever!
When Crunchie first moved here, Carrie welcomed her into her home and showed her around, she has never, ever shown any aggression toward anything except moths! :lol:

To be honest though, I personally, would never trust a dog enough to leave it alone with a rabbit, no matter how friendly they may seem, at the end of the day, a dog is a predator, bunny a prey :? Just my personal opinion though
 
Sadie (my rottie) is pretty good with the buns - they have never been out loose together though but she will stick her head in their hutch when I am cleaning them out and they sniff each other and she licks them.

When they are in their run she licks them through the mesh and they run up to her and sniff her, Cosmos and her had a thing when he was single, she would run and playbow to him and he would do a half binky then run at her (inside his run), it looked like something from a Run DMC video. If they ran I wouldn't vouch for their safety though as she does chase wild rabbits.

Buster (the bullmastiff) is a big fat NO and once did get into the garden when Zeus, Athena and Cosmos were running free (old house) Zeus and Cosmos hid but Athena turned to investigate (that bun was fearless), he pinned her with his paw and was looking at her very confused when my OH grabbed him, Athena was perfectly unharmed and luckily nothing fazed her and she ran off as normal (this is the bun that attacked and fought the neighbour's cat when it chased Zeus).

When Buster is out he always tries to run at the rabbits and gets very excited - whines and paws at their run - the rabbits ignore him now and now he can't make them run he is starting to ignore them but I wouldn't ever trust them together.

Caz
 
dogs and bunnies

Hi I have five rabbits and three dogs, all border collies. I have never had any problems with dogs and rabbits. When we got our last dog she had never come across rabbits before, so I used to take her out in the garden on her lead. I had to do this for a few weeks and then I let her off the lead while they were out in the garden as well.

She tried to chase them but I kept stopping her and telling her no, and in the end she didn't bother any more. Now she just thinks they are completly boring and takes no notice at all. Sometimes the cat chases the rabbits though !!
It takes a lot of time and patience to get them used to each other but it does work. Any rabbits I have got since we had the dogs have been a bit nervous for a while but they soon get used to it.

Krista
 
I have a springer spaniel who is fine with my rabbits, now Bracken has become a house bun they sit together and guess who rules the house now :lol: :lol:

Never thought I`d see a springer being bossed around by a rabbit, I think she likes being bossed around :lol: :lol:

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