Destructive chewing- Help!

My rabbits have always chewed at parts of their hutch. This has so far been fine, nothing too major. Except this morning when I went to give them fresh water only to find the door of the hutch had been chewed right through! If they had managed to do this before we built their aviary, they would've been able to hop out and go for an adventure around the yard! They do have a second hutch (which they haven't chewed a giant hole though... yet) which isn't as big, but for now I'm unsure what to do about the other one. They appear to be quite proud of their work, Petra especially likes hopping in and out of it. I'm curious as why they would've done this in the first place though? I know bored rabbits tend to be destructive, but my girls have a digging box, two tunnels, dangle toys, things to jump up on, wooden chew toys, eachother and lots of room to run? I change their toys around too. I'm not saying boredom is out of the question, but I just don't understand how they could possibly be bored in their little bunny-wonderland? I don't think a health issue is the culprit, the vet said they were both in perfect health and they're acting as happy as always.

What other reasons might lead to destructive chewing? If it is just a case of boredom, what more can I provide for them? :?


Petra posing with her work.

Are your girls neutered as this helps calm them down. I always think a rabbit is experiencing some kind of tension if they start chewing too much and try to solve the problem. Have your bunnies got plenty of hay to keep their teeth occupied, It's also a calming pasttime. An unneutered doe is more likely to chew her way out of a hutch as she is thinking of looking for a mate, or maybe there is a bit of tension between the girls. I took on a doe who had chewed her way out of 2 hurches, but the hutch was only 3' x 18" so you can't really blame her for that. Her "run" was 3' square! The people had a lovely big garden and could have done so much more but the kids wanted to move on to a puppy! She now has a husbun, a 6' hutch with free time and doesn't chew the wood. I hope you are able to get to the bottom of this pproblem.

I agree with tonibun and gosh what a horrible situation I wonder if the puppy will be an adult and turn to a kitten?

Anyway; only other thing I can think of, if it's not neutering or boredom or stresss etc then I know mines has areas of the room, just one specific which is a challenge. She wants into the bedroom and so she is forever sneaking off to the door and trying to tear chunks out of the carpet. It's a challenge, she's determined as well as its coupled with she wants in.

Maybe some food for thought?

tonibun said:

Are your girls neutered as this helps calm them down. I always think a rabbit is experiencing some kind of tension if they start chewing too much and try to solve the problem. Have your bunnies got plenty of hay to keep their teeth occupied, It's also a calming pasttime. An unneutered doe is more likely to chew her way out of a hutch as she is thinking of looking for a mate, or maybe there is a bit of tension between the girls. I took on a doe who had chewed her way out of 2 hurches, but the hutch was only 3' x 18" so you can't really blame her for that. Her "run" was 3' square! The people had a lovely big garden and could have done so much more but the kids wanted to move on to a puppy! She now has a husbun, a 6' hutch with free time and doesn't chew the wood. I hope you are able to get to the bottom of this pproblem.

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Yes, they are both fixed and they eat plenty of hay. I wondered if there was some tension between them as well, but they were snuggling up to one another when I fed them this afternoon so they appear to be on good terms?

Shrinkie said:

I agree with tonibun and gosh what a horrible situation I wonder if the puppy will be an adult and turn to a kitten?

Anyway; only other thing I can think of, if it's not neutering or boredom or stresss etc then I know mines has areas of the room, just one specific which is a challenge. She wants into the bedroom and so she is forever sneaking off to the door and trying to tear chunks out of the carpet. It's a challenge, she's determined as well as its coupled with she wants in.

Maybe some food for thought?

Click to expand...

Interesting suggestion, maybe. I am struggling to see how it's boredom with so much to do in their aviary. Maybe they do see it as a challenge? I'm not sure, they've never done anything quite like this before.

That's what I was thinking. I mean Rosie has loads of things to do, I rotate her toys, she has many hides etc etc. But her favourite is that flaming door carpet. Nothing distracts her - she picks something up, chucks it away and stampedes for the door/carpet. I've tried loads of suggestions but nope. It's all about the carpet.

Do they have full time access to the exercise space?

It's a bit hard to tell from the picture what the whole setup looks like, but I wonder if the sleeping area in the hutch is a bit on the small side for two and she's just 'extending the warren'.

The other thing is if it's usually covered up, she may want a high up lookout spot.

I would be wary about letting them access the top of the mesh there as they may drop a leg through and cause injury. But if they are enjoying the space, you could pop a board there to make it bunny friendly.

It can be tough to say when chewing crosses the line from natural behaviour to obsessive. They can chew with a purpose, and if she seems satified now she's achieve that then I'd say it's probably not boredom i.e. she wasn't chewing because she had nothing else to do. If you think we often give bunnies cardboard boxes and let them shape their own home, which is seen as acceptable, she may well be doing the same thing but it just happens the hutch is a bit more of an expensive box!

Shrinkie said:

That's what I was thinking. I mean Rosie has loads of things to do, I rotate her toys, she has many hides etc etc. But her favourite is that flaming door carpet. Nothing distracts her - she picks something up, chucks it away and stampedes for the door/carpet. I've tried loads of suggestions but nope. It's all about the carpet.

Click to expand...

:lol:

Tamsin said:

Do they have full time access to the exercise space?

It's a bit hard to tell from the picture what the whole setup looks like, but I wonder if the sleeping area in the hutch is a bit on the small side for two and she's just 'extending the warren'.

The other thing is if it's usually covered up, she may want a high up lookout spot.

I would be wary about letting them access the top of the mesh there as they may drop a leg through and cause injury. But if they are enjoying the space, you could pop a board there to make it bunny friendly.

It can be tough to say when chewing crosses the line from natural behaviour to obsessive. They can chew with a purpose, and if she seems satified now she's achieve that then I'd say it's probably not boredom i.e. she wasn't chewing because she had nothing else to do. If you think we often give bunnies cardboard boxes and let them shape their own home, which is seen as acceptable, she may well be doing the same thing but it just happens the hutch is a bit more of an expensive box!

Click to expand...

Yes, they have full access to their run at all times. We did think it was getting a little small for them both, which is why we bought another one. I plan on getting a board there, they're always getting up there so I'll make it safe for them. It is usually covered up though, so maybe she did want a lookout. Fair enough, thanks for all your advice!

I am going through this with our youngest Bun, he is obsessed with the carpet rug! I've given him toys, hide boxes, constant hay, tubes, tunnels and even bought them treats for their cage but he still chews the carpet and if he had his way would probably eat it too. Like yours it isn't the odd chew it is constant and will do anything to get to it. Will be watching this thread for ideas. I hope you get a good solution to the issue. xx