TheRider'sPets: Rabbits

Showing posts with label Rabbits. Show all posts

Thursday, 24 October 2019

How to stop your rabbit from being aggressive

TheRider'sReins October 24, 2019 0

Sometimes, rabbits are handed into rescues because of normal rabbit behaviour. Unfortunately, almost every time it is our fault that our rabbit is aggressive.

If your rabbit is biting all of a sudden or has turned nervous or stressed, you need to change the way you treat her.

Here are 4 reasons why your rabbit is biting you and how you can change the behaviour.

1. Hormones

I will say this over and over again, your rabbit should be spayed/neutered. Not only does it improve their health and help to reduce the number of rabbits in this world but it also helps their temperament. Rabbits who aren't 'fixed' will have a huge amount of hormones in their bodies (due to not being able to mate) and will quickly become frustrated. This can cause the rabbit to become aggressive and 'lash out' at you. I have found that female rabbits are especially aggressive and territorial.

I have a female rabbit that would attack me when I put my hand in her cage. We got her spayed and she quickly turned into a sweet girl. Rabbits do not want to be frustrated and angry. I feel like not allowing either breeding (which shouldn't be done, there are too many domestic rabbits as it is) OR spaying/neutering is poor animal care.

Peach coloured indoor rabbit exploring outside in a garden

2. Territorial

When reaching into a rabbits cage, he may lunge, bite, kick or growl at you. If this happens, it is important that you don't pick him up or pull him out. Instead, open the doors and let him come out to play but himself. I like to feed veg outside of a territorial rabbit's cage just to get him out.

I noticed that my rabbit Bunnykins (she was adopted with the name, not my choice 😉) would attack me while I was cleaning her rabbit room. I completely fixed this by letting her come out of the room before I touched her things. Just learn to work around the aggression she that your rabbit is not seeing you touch 'his things'. Eventually, he will realise that you aren't trying to take over his territory.

A close up of a wild coloured rabbit lying down

3. Scared

This is an obvious cause for aggression but it's important that you know about it. Your rabbit can lash out at you if he is feeling nervous, scared or cornered. Your job is to find out what is scaring him.

It could be that he doesn't want to be picked up, you are moving too fast or that he is in too small of a cage (and therefore doesn't have room to run away, cage-free all the way😊). It is really important that you fully bond with your rabbit before you start picking him up of taking him out of his house. A rabbit who has bonded with his owner should not be scared of them.

An alert black and white rabbit indoors standing up

4. Hurt or Ill

If your rabbit suddenly became aggressive, it could be due to him being in pain or ill. Prey animals are great at hiding any illness or injury they may have. This will cause the rabbit to lash out 'suddenly'. Bringing your rabbit to the vet for a check-up is essential for any aggression out of the blue.

If it is due to these reasons, the meanness should go away once your rabbit is treated. There is a possibility that you have accidentally hurt your bunny in the past while picking him up. He could be worried that you will hurt him again. Build his confidence slowly from petting, encouraging him to jump onto your lap to eventually picking him up. Make sure you know how to pick a bunny up correctly.

A light brown and white rabbit with blue eyes exploring outside.

Hopefully, this will help you with any aggressive rabbit you may own.

I'd love to hear some funny stories about your angry rabbit experiences!
*Disclaimer*

I am not any type of animal expert but instead only an animal lover who wants to share her tips. Please consult relevant animal specialists and do not only take my advice.

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Monday, 20 May 2019

4 Reasons Why Your Rabbit is Scared Of You

TheRider'sReins May 20, 2019 0

1. You Have No Bond

Rabbits need to have a good bond with their owner. If not, the rabbit will always be scared of you and will have no trust. Gaining a bond with your rabbit will take a while but will be worth it.

Start by sitting or lying down beside your rabbit and let him check you out. Give him a treat when he comes up to you. Don't touch or pet the rabbit for a while until you feel that he is relaxed. Always make sure you are quiet and talk softly to him. Never pick your rabbit up during bonding sessions.

2. He's Scared To Be Picked Up

Rabbits really don't like being picked up. this is because their natural instinct tells them that being picked up means danger/a predator. So, although picking your rabbit up occasionally is fine, avoid it as much as possible. I like to train my bunnies to go into a pet carrier when asked so I can use the carrier to pick up and move the rabbit.

When you do need to pick your rabbit up you must do it properly to avoid injuring him. Apart from scaring your rabbit, rabbits have very fragile spines.

To Pick up a rabbit correctly, do the following. Get Down to the rabbits level slowly, use one arm to 'scoop' under the rabbit's chest area and the other arm to put under the back feet. Slowly pick the rabbit up and hold close to your body (without squeezing). Always support all four feet.

3. He Has Learnt From His Buddies

Rabbits are social animals and always need a buddy. So, if one rabbit is scared of you then the other one probably will be too. This is mostly because of the rabbit's natural instinct. If one rabbit becomes scared and runs away in the wild then they all will. So, it is important that you have fully bonded with each rabbit that you own.

4. Hormonal Problems

If your rabbit is not spayed/neutered then you will have a lot of problems. Sometimes a rabbit that is hormonal will act like he is actually scared. A scared rabbit can lash out at your hands but so can a hormonal rabbit. It is extremely important that you get your rabbit spayed/neutered, not only for behavioural problems BUT for your rabbit's health.

I remember owning a beautiful black rabbit when I was younger that was highly aggressive. From the day I got her until my mum got her spayed she would jump at my hands, kick, bite and grow if I tried to pick her up. Immediately after her being spayed, she was a different rabbit and was my best buddy for a long time.

*Disclaimer*

I am not any type of animal expert but instead only an animal lover who wants to share her tips. Please consult relevant animal specialists and do not only take my advice.

The Rider's Pets

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Wednesday, 1 May 2019

How To Feed Your Rabbit The Perfect Diet

TheRider'sReins May 01, 2019 0

Check the type of food you are feeding

Do you know what your rabbit needs? Have you ever checked the back of the food bag and had no idea what you were looking for? It is pretty easy.

So, rabbits need at least 18% crude fibre BUT the more the better. You will be aiming for 12-14% crude protein for an adult and around 16% for a growing rabbit. You always want to keep the crude fat/oil to below 4%.

So a perfect rabbit food should look like this -

Crude fibre 20%
Crude protein 13%
Crude Fat/oil 3%

You should also look for a forage based pellet, timothy hay pellets for adults and alfalfa pellets for younger rabbits.

Amounts for food

The main part of your rabbit's diet should be made up of hay. Offering unlimited hay and apple tree twigs will make sure your rabbit is completely healthy.

Pellets should be limited to only give him the right nutrients each day. The amount of pellets fed to your rabbit decreases as your rabbit gets older.

The amounts of pellets to feed your rabbit are as follows -

7 weeks to 7 months - unlimited pellets (unless the rabbit eats pellets over hay, then limit to encourage eating more hay).

7 months to 1 year - 170g per 3kg of bodyweight

1 to 5 years - 85g per 3kg of bodyweight

6 years + - Maintain 85g per 3kg of bodyweight unless the rabbit struggles to keep weight on. If this is the case, give unlimited pellets.

Fruits and Veg

Feeding your rabbit fruit and vegetables is great for increasing the nutrients that your rabbit gets and will help your rabbit get a varied diet. It is, however, important to feed the correct amounts and types to ensure that your rabbit doesn't become unhealthy or overweight.

Here are the amounts of fruits and veg you should feed your rabbit daily -

12 weeks to 7 months - Slowly introduce only vegetables from 14g to the adult amount.

7 months + - Feed 300g of chopped veg per day. You can also introduce up to 50g of fruit per day.

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Wednesday, 5 September 2018

6 Things You Need Before Getting a Rabbit

TheRider'sReins September 05, 2018 1

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Rabbits are now apparently the most abused pet. Yeah, not kidding. Caring for a rabbit it easy right? Not really. They need lots of time, love and patience as well as an owner who knows what they need. Here are just a few things you would need before getting a bunny.

1. Cage

The setup for a rabbit cage is similar to the guinea pigs setup. Rabbits need a lot more space than a guinea pig but I recommend using a garden shed as a hutch with a big run attached. They need to be let out of their hutch, even if they have a run for at least a few hours a day. If you keep your bunny inside, they shouldn't be confined to a cage.

A orange coloured rabbit sitting on dark wood

2. The Correct Diet

Rabbits need to eat their own body size in hay each day. Timothy hay is best as it has the right amount of nutrients for the long term. They also need rabbit nuggets every day and fresh veg. It is important that you fully research which type of food is best including hay, nuggets and vegetables.

A wild coloured rabbit and a peach coloured rabbit reaching up to a carrot being fed to them

3. Toys

Rabbits need toys to chew on and play with to have a good quality of life. You can either buy toys or make them yourself.

4. Water bottle, bowls and Hay Rack

Like guinea pigs, rabbits should have a glass water bottle and ceramic food bowls. You can also choose to use a wooden or metal hay rack in lots of different styles.

A cream holland lop rabbit sitting on grass

5. First aid and Health Care

You need to get a first aid kit made for pets before taking the new bunny home. It's also a good idea to get other essentials like wormer, grooming products and cleaning products.

6. Bedding, litter tray and litter

Choosing the type of bedding is important for your rabbit's health. If you decide to litter train your rabbit you can go with fleece bedding. If not, you have a lot of choices including shavings and paper beddings.