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Why Your Bunny Bites You

Updated on March 9, 2010

A reader asks: My rabbit follows me, kiss all my face but loves to bit me, why?

As one hubber posited, some bunnies just like to nibble and bite things. That may be the case with your bunny, or it could be the fact that you are breaking bunny rules. You see, keeping a rabbit is a little like having a mafia mob boss in a cage. They operate by a strict code that you are probably unaware of, but if you break it, they will not hesitate to let you know that you have done wrong. A rabbit's bite is the equivalent of a warning that the next time you mess up, it'll be concrete shoes and into the river with you.

This reader does not mention what he is doing when his rabbit bites him. Some rabbits will vigorously defend their cages, and if you want to clean them out, you best put bunny in another room whilst you do it. If you reach in and start messing with his home whilst he is in there, you are simply asking for trouble.

It is also possible that Don Bunnyeone has decided that he is the boss, and that means that you should groom him as and when he decides the time is right. The nuzzling and nudging are requests for grooming. If they go unrewarded, obviously you are far too stupid (in bunny's mind) to understand basic bunny language and must be punished into submitting. If you find your rabbit bites you after nuzzling and nudging you and you have failed to give your bunny head rubs, then what your bunny is doing is trying to teach you a lesson. In bunny's mind, you are a very badly behaved large, furless bunny who must be disciplined.

Moral of the story: If your bunny is nudging you for attention, give him rubs or put him away in his cage if you don't want to oblige at the time. He may be offended by your rejection, but at least he won't nip you for your crimes.

Not a lot of attention is paid to rabbit behavior and society by people who sell rabbits, and so many rabbit owners aren't aware of the fact that rabbits, like dogs, have ideas in their heads of how a proper society functions. If you see those cute pictures of rabbits with one lying over the other, you might think that one rabbit is giving the other cuddles. Instead, what is actually happening is that the top rabbit is asserting dominance over the one on the bottom.It is worthwhile learning about bunny behavior and language rather than just brushing off all your rabbit's quirks with 'that's just what bunnies do'. Bunnies are far more interesting and intelligent than you might think.

Here's a starter article: How To Tell If Your Bunny Loves You

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