School rabbit behaving aggressively/in a dominating way towards me, need help ASAP!

[ImoT]

Hi everyone. I'm a bit desperate here. We have a 'class rabbit' at school called Hopkins. He belongs to the teacher I work with and he's 4 years old and neutered (although was neutered at a couple of years of age). He lives in the classroom I work in, in a dog crate but gets to have a run around morning and afternoon before and after the children are in. Recently, in the past couple of weeks he has been behaving rather aggressively towards me, it's like he is trying to dominate me. He will chase me, sniff me intently, leap and pounce on me and attempt to bite and scratch me. Today he succeeded at biting my leg which was really unpleasant I am becoming very nervous of him and it's becoming so bad that soon I won't be able to be in the classroom when he is free ranging.

We thought it might be because I recently got a rabbit, he is an un-neutered 9 month old male, so we thought maybe Hopkins could smell Winston on me? Winston is being neutered next week, i'm hoping it may help. It's just I got Winston over a month ago now and Hopkins has only started this behaviour in the past couple of weeks, and the teacher has other rabbits at home and he doesn't seem to be bothered by that smell….but I just don't know what else it can be?

I started working at the school before Christmas and me and Hopkins got on really well and I would go in at weekends to let him have a run around and give him some attention and there were no problems at all. I'm really quite gutted because my love of Hopkins is what confirmed my decision to get my own rabbit and I just feel really bad that Hopkins now hates me!

If anyone has any suggestions about what might be causing Hopkins behaviour and what could help stop it I would really appreciate it!

 

[happybun]

yes, rabbits are territorial so if Hopkins can smell Winston on you, he'll want to see you off.

 

[Mrs. Bunnykins]

yes, rabbits are territorial so if Hopkins can smell Winston on you, he'll want to see you off.

:thumb:

 

[MightyMax]

Sounds like territorial behaviour to me too ...

 

[ImoT]

Why doesn't he behave like it towards the teacher who has other rabbits at home? There is also another member of staff who has an un-neutered male rabbit at home and he is fine with her. Is there anything I can do to help the situation? Do you think once Winston has been neutered Hopkins will get better? I'm just at my wits ends and I hate that I upset Hopkins so much.

 

[Tamsin]

It can be tricky to work out all the triggers in a bunnies brain. It might be your particular bunnies smell or just the way you interact - if you spend a lot of time with your new lad or have him running about your house you'll smell more bunny-ish to him. After his hormones go down post neuter he's likely to be less stinky/threatening so that may help.

I think it probably is territorial related - moving out of the dominant bunnies way is a sign of accepting his position. If you don't move he makes you move and you giving ground says he's boss. He's just worked out a very efficient way of making you move.

My advice would be to get some welly boots for his morning exercise. That way you can stand your ground confidently and know your ankles are safe. He'll repeat behaviour that works so if nipping/chasing makes you move he'll use the same tactic next time. Stand your ground (in your wellies) and ignore him and he'll learn it doesn't work.

I'd also combine that with calling him to you to get a treat - that way you can remind him you're good to be around when he plays nice. Treats can just be his dry food or tasty greens (nothing too fattening). Only give him a treat when he's well behaved, not if he acts aggressive.

Rabbits rely a lot on smell too, so you might also like to try talking to him to help ID yourself. Some bunnies will smell a stranger, attack and not realise they've just bitten their friends hand/ankles - mistaken ID rather than dislike aimed at you.

 

[happybun]

My advice would be to get some welly boots for his morning exercise. That way you can stand your ground confidently and know your ankles are safe.
perfect!

 

[ImoT]

It can be tricky to work out all the triggers in a bunnies brain. It might be your particular bunnies smell or just the way you interact - if you spend a lot of time with your new lad or have him running about your house you'll smell more bunny-ish to him. After his hormones go down post neuter he's likely to be less stinky/threatening so that may help.

I think it probably is territorial related - moving out of the dominant bunnies way is a sign of accepting his position. If you don't move he makes you move and you giving ground says he's boss. He's just worked out a very efficient way of making you move.

My advice would be to get some welly boots for his morning exercise. That way you can stand your ground confidently and know your ankles are safe. He'll repeat behaviour that works so if nipping/chasing makes you move he'll use the same tactic next time. Stand your ground (in your wellies) and ignore him and he'll learn it doesn't work.

I'd also combine that with calling him to you to get a treat - that way you can remind him you're good to be around when he plays nice. Treats can just be his dry food or tasty greens (nothing too fattening). Only give him a treat when he's well behaved, not if he acts aggressive.

Rabbits rely a lot on smell too, so you might also like to try talking to him to help ID yourself. Some bunnies will smell a stranger, attack and not realise they've just bitten their friends hand/ankles - mistaken ID rather than dislike aimed at you.

Thank you for your input and advice.

I do spend a lot of time with Winston so I probably stink of him! I am trying really hard in the mornings to not let him lick me too much or rub his chin on me too much so I don't smell to Hopkins too much. But it's probably all over my clothes and things too :-/

I wear almost knee high boots to work so biting my ankles/feel/lower calves isn't a problem but he is a big rabbit and when that doesn't have an effect he just reaches up and nips the rest of my leg…..I would need a suit of armour to properly protect myself!

He goes mad for raisins so this morning I spent some time stroking him and giving him raisins as he let me stroke him. It's just when I stop stroking him he starts to get all territorial again and if I move he chases and pounces on me. As long as i'm stroking him he's fine though! I thought I read somewhere that licking is submissive so is my grooming him with my hands a submissive action?

It's just hard to get anything done because as soon as I get up to walk across the class room he gets all chasey and bitey!

I do talk to him throughout (i'm one of those crazy animal people who will have whole conversations with animals!) so i'm not sure he thinks i'm someone else, I think he thinks i'm now a rabbit to be honest!

 

[Tamsin]

Can you run me through how the series of events works (sorry sometimes tough to imagine the scene) he's fine with you being in his space generally but if you stop petting him he chases... then what do you?

 

[ImoT]

Can you run me through how the series of events works (sorry sometimes tough to imagine the scene) he's fine with you being in his space generally but if you stop petting him he chases... then what do you?

So I walk into the classroom in the morning, when he realises I'm in the room he hops over to me and will start sniffing me intently, then he starts nipping my feet/ankles/leg until I say ow. Usually to prevent this I will start stroking his head, he flattens himself on the floor like a pancake and seems relaxed. When I stop stroking him he will start the nipping again and when I try to move (you know to get things done around the classroom) he will just pounce on me and basically not let me move at all. I try to get around the classroom to do all the usual things but it becomes so impossible that I end up just stroking him until it's time for him to go back in his crate. Sometimes the teacher comes over to try and rescue me and push him away from me but he just comes back a second later to start the nipping/chasing/pouncing.

He used to nip when he wanted to be stroked but this is different. It's hard to explain, but it's the fact he doesn't let me move and the nips appear to have more aggression behind them and he is more pouncy than than he used to be. And he only ever behaves like this towards me. He's fine with 30+ 5 year olds and all the other staff members.

I hope this makes a bit of sense?

 

[FondueKid]

This might be a crazy thought.. but is it possible he's objecting to Winston's "ownership" of you and being territorial about you rather than the classroom?! Only I've seen my neutered boy act like this with his wifebun when he's feeling amorous. I think maybe he will get used to Winston's smell and accept him into his extended family, you might have to wait for the end of spring fever though!

 

[ImoT]

This might be a crazy thought.. but is it possible he's objecting to Winston's "ownership" of you and being territorial about you rather than the classroom?! Only I've seen my neutered boy act like this with his wifebun when he's feeling amorous. I think maybe he will get used to Winston's smell and accept him into his extended family, you might have to wait for the end of spring fever though!

It's interesting you say that…he did do something weird the other day where he was standing a foot away from me and sort of looked like he was guarding me. But he only did that once!

My colleague have been joking that it's because I dressed up as the white rabbit from Alice in Wonderland for World Book Day a few weeks ago so Hopkins now thinks I'm a female rabbit!

 

[Tamsin]

It's quite possible there is more than one motivation behind it, there might be a bit of jealously because you smell like another bun and that may be getting him a bit wound up, it's also spring which is never a good time for bunny hormones. But I think basically you are dealing with a rabbit that's got you wrapped around his little paws

He's taught you the best way to stop him nipping is to give him attention, and when you don't he just keep ramping up the aggression until you give in and stroke him. The level of 'aggression' is building because he's learnt the more in your face he is the more likely you are to stop what you are doing and give him attention.

Rabbits are quite capable of telling people apart, and the fact he only does it to you suggests it's learnt behaviour not his personality.

He won't see it as aggression (being nasty), just an action that gets the response he wants.

It's more common to see it with food, rabbits get worked up and a bit nippy so their owners give the food faster to stop them, and they gradually get more and more worked up when they think food might be available until they are very aggressive. He obviously really enjoys the time you spend with him and he thinks he's aggression is what makes that happen - and it sounds like that's true...

...he will just pounce on me and basically not let me move at all. I try to get around the classroom to do all the usual things but it becomes so impossible that I end up just stroking him until it's time for him to go back in his crate.

The only way to stop him is going to be to break that cycle of rewarding him with strokes when he's aggressive. He's like an attention seeking child, acting out to get you focused on him.

You need to set new rules - if he's aggressive then he doesn't get your attention - wellies, standing on a chair, walking out the room - just absolutely no cuddles when he's aggressive.

It's also worth thinking about why he's putting in so much energy to getting your attention. He might be bored or lonely, and you are the highlight of his day. So tackling it from that angle at the same time may help the underlying cause. Rabbit's are very social animals, it's normal for them to spend time napping, grooming and interacting with other rabbits and it sounds like having social interaction is very important to him. I'd strongly suggest considering getting him a rabbit companion to share some of the grooming responsibilities with you A neutered female (generally easy to find in rescues) would be the best match and do the introductions somewhere neutral to avoid any territory issues.

 

[ImoT]

It's quite possible there is more than one motivation behind it, there might be a bit of jealously because you smell like another bun and that may be getting him a bit wound up, it's also spring which is never a good time for bunny hormones. But I think basically you are dealing with a rabbit that's got you wrapped around his little paws

He's taught you the best way to stop him nipping is to give him attention, and when you don't he just keep ramping up the aggression until you give in and stroke him. The level of 'aggression' is building because he's learnt the more in your face he is the more likely you are to stop what you are doing and give him attention.

Rabbits are quite capable of telling people apart, and the fact he only does it to you suggests it's learnt behaviour not his personality.

He won't see it as aggression (being nasty), just an action that gets the response he wants.

It's more common to see it with food, rabbits get worked up and a bit nippy so their owners give the food faster to stop them, and they gradually get more and more worked up when they think food might be available until they are very aggressive. He obviously really enjoys the time you spend with him and he thinks he's aggression is what makes that happen - and it sounds like that's true...



The only way to stop him is going to be to break that cycle of rewarding him with strokes when he's aggressive. He's like an attention seeking child, acting out to get you focused on him.

You need to set new rules - if he's aggressive then he doesn't get your attention - wellies, standing on a chair, walking out the room - just absolutely no cuddles when he's aggressive.

It's also worth thinking about why he's putting in so much energy to getting your attention. He might be bored or lonely, and you are the highlight of his day. So tackling it from that angle at the same time may help the underlying cause. Rabbit's are very social animals, it's normal for them to spend time napping, grooming and interacting with other rabbits and it sounds like having social interaction is very important to him. I'd strongly suggest considering getting him a rabbit companion to share some of the grooming responsibilities with you A neutered female (generally easy to find in rescues) would be the best match and do the introductions somewhere neutral to avoid any territory issues.

Okay, I am going to try really hard to not stroke him when he is aggressive, and do my best to just ignore him! I will give him lots of attention when he is being nice to me though.

Unfortunately he is not my rabbit so I don't feel like it's my place to suggest getting him a companion. His owner does have three house rabbits at home and I know she has tried bonding various combinations but it just hasn't been successful.

I will be getting my own rabbit a companion soon though