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My bunny throws a tantrum every bedtime

emzyflower

New Kit
I have recently rescued a 4 month old lop. She has not yet been spayed. She is housed in a lovely two tier hutch and we have attached a run to the hutch. At night time I would like her secured into the hutch. I have managed to succeed in distracting her with food and closing the door to the run however when she has finished eating food she runs down to the lower level and starts freaking out that she is enclosed. She scratches at the newspaper shredding it and furiously gobbles the straw until she gets bored / full/ no attention from me. Today for the first time i have noticed the opposite problem. I closed the door to the hutch while i was cleaning it out and she started clawing straw into the run and chewing at the wood at the base of the hutch. It is like she is having a tantrum at every bedtime! Is this behaviour normal? Will it stop when she has been spayed?! I have noticed shes only like this when she has an audience. If we turn our backs on her she stops, but its still distressing to see her with what looks like pent up rage! She has never nipped or bitten us on going into her hutch and she is comfortable with us stroking her in there with the doors open or through the bars of the hutch. She has been with us for 1 week but we only fitted the run at the weekend and the problems started since her living and roaming space increased.
 
Bunnies should have access to the extra area at all times. Is the hutch outside? If it isn't then you could leave the hutch door open
 
If there are predators then you could think about fox proofing the run or getting a safer one so she can have access at all times? But if it was me I would keep her in the hutch at night just to be safe even if she doesn't like it. I would say just persevere with her
 
Im just worried about something digging in to get her out overnight. Long term plan could be to chicken wire in the ground around to protect from this, but until i can find a dryish day to be digging the ground I thought id see if this has happened to anybody else!
 
It is very likely something related to her past. We don't know what has happened before you got her so I agree with you that she is safer in the hutch at night. You mention she is eating the straw but does she also get hay? This is very important for your bunny.
 
I would just start using hay as well as straw in the bedding and then you know she's getting some nutrition during her tantrum :lol:
 
Yep she gets hay. Initially i hung it from various places but she never ate any, seems she prefers it scattered about on the floor of the hutch or in her bowl!! She has Timothy, Meadow and luckily my partners mum rides horses and she bought us a bale back from the stables - thats a clear favourite (no idea on the type it is) but we mix and match for variety!! Thanks for all your comments :)
 
Distraction seems to work best with any bunny that I have had when they are mad. I find treat balls filled with pellets or a small treat that they have to roll to git the treat out or loo rolls filled treat hay and herbs. Anything to keep them busy and they usually quickly forget. My bridge bunny Julie would throw a tantrum when we went to bed. The treat ball and her pellets hidden in hay so she had to foliage for them and then lots of toys keep her happy and busy.
 
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