help

Question
QUESTION: Hi, I got rabbit 7 months ago from a pet shop and he seems like an adult bunny anyways he seems to have a bad temper. The people at the store seemed to know nothing about him. sometimes ( more then id like ) when I got to feed him or stick my hand in his cage he'll start snorting at me and try to attack my hand. I was just wondering if the snorting is normal and what I could do to try to better his temper towards people. Thank you!

ANSWER: Sheridan,

Do you let your bun out for any sort of play time? If not, I would suggest gating off a portion of the room and letting your bun get some exercise and free time. This is a good time to introduce yourself and earn some trust. You should understand that bunnies are, in nature, prey animals, so allowing your bun to get comfortable with you is important. Lay down on the floor and let your bunny sniff and explore you - gain their trust - and I think you'll see a marked improvement in your bun's temperament.

Let me know if you have further questions!

Christine

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QUESTION: Yes, I let him out for an hour or longer a day and hand feed him veggies. I've also layed down and let him sniff me it seems he has his days were he doesn't like me and days he does. He's bit me severely several times. Even If I'm just trying to pet him. maybe he's territorial towards his cage? I'm not sure but I've become frustrated with him because I'm constant being bit and my hands are very scarred from him but I don't want to give up and get rid of him yet because I think he can change.

ANSWER: Sheridan,

Hmm... that is peculiar. This definitely sounds territorial, but the hand-feeding throws me off, especially if he's comfortable with eating directly from your hand. Is he fixed?

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QUESTION: I don't know if he's fixed I got him from a store that specialized in reptiles and he came from one of their other locations they didn't even know his gender or how old he was. They were really shady, they gave me him for a really low price.

Answer
I would bet money hes not fixed, which is causing the aggressive behavior. You can use local shelters or rabbit rescues to find a recommended small animal vet to take care of that. Bonus - you remove the risk of reproductive organ cancer which reaches about 80% by age two.

Best of luck and let me know if I can help further.

Christine