Rodent Deterrent Tape

Question
We have a pet bunny that we love very much; however, he's been chewing all the corners made out of wood throughout the house and I can't make him stop. I tried giving him cardboard or pieces of wood to chew instead, but he is not very interested in these items.

I work at car dealership, and one day I saw a service news article that was related to vehicles with chewed-up wire harness caused by rodents. The article recommended to wrap rodent deterrent tape around the affected area. This tape contains capsaicin, the stuff that puts the fire in a bowl of five-alarm chili. The article does not say if this tape is really harmful or not.

Can I use this tape around the house so my rabbit will stop chewing the house without getting him harmed? I'm hoping he will only sniff the tape rather than tasting it.

Thank you so much for your time!

Sebastian

Answer
Hi,

Personally I'd try a few other things before the tape.  You haven't exhausted options yet.

Th other thing you might try before investing in this is putting sacrificial wood strips over where he nibbles.  Like the corners he goes after.  Plain untreated pine trim.  You can wipe a little vegetable oil over it to make it more enticing.  You could also give him small pieces of untreated plain pine wiped with vegetable oil.  After he's rounded off edges, just use a saw and give it fresh edges and a quick wipe and it's good as new.

One other thing to try, and that is wicker items made specially for rabbits.  Busy Bunny makes great wicker tubes and tents and balls they can not only nibble on, but run through, rest under, and play with while eating them down.  Pet supply stores carry these items.

Wood is okay for them to chew on, they in the wild eat bark and twigs.  That's why I am recommendng these things before finally trying the tape.  Because tehy can learn acceptable wood items to nibble on versus those they shouldn't.  And the basic way to do it is to make the acceptable wood more enticing than the other.

As a last resort try the tape.  If there isn't anything other than the pepper in the tape, then it could work.  You only really have to put it on corners, they lose interest in wood once the edges are worn because it's difficult to get a hold on rounded surfaces with their teeth.