behavior issue

Question
HI
i have had rabbits for 3 yrs.  i started with a mini rex and a holland lop, they lived together in the same cage for a summer the the rex ran away and my lop was left by herself for the winter.  i bought another lop buck for breeding.  My doe has some behavior problems and i was wondering if you could help me.  before i bred her and after the rex ran away she got very mean, she didnt let anyone put their hands in the cage and attacked everything i put in there (food dishes etc.)and she hated being taken out of the cage. taking her out took about 20 minutes at least (she lives in a large hutch) after she was bred and had her litter she was VERY sweet and cooperative like a totally different rabbit.  then wen all of the babies were sold and she was just living with one of her daughters she went bak to her old self but not as bad but still awfully mean.  her daughter was one of the nicest babies thats y i kept her and now after living with her mom i think the behavior started to rub off so i seperated them and now the daughter is just fine.  but the mother is meaner than ever and im wondering if this is because she is lonely or if she feels more territorial because she is alone in her cage  and how can i fix this problem
thanx Amanda

Answer
Hi Amanda,

well, there's a couple things going on here.

First, intact females generally are more cage aggressive and territorial.

Second outdoor hutch rabbits often are less friendly than indoor house rabbits.  After all they are treated like a pet dog or cat and are around people so much more (even if they are just resting.)  They will know you better, you wil know them better.  So you don't have this closer relationship either.

Third, solitary rabbits can get lonely and depressed.  they are social animals and in my opinion don't deserve to be relegated to outdoor pets that don't receive the same level of attention indoor pets do.  Often times grumpiness is due to an illness or injury they are masking, but the owner does not pick up on because they just can't read the rabbit as well as someone who has them indoors and sees them throughout the day and spends hours with them.

Normally I would suggest getting your gal fixed because it will clear up a lot of the aggression/meanness, in addition to probably doubling her lifespan.  Intact females usually die of uterine cancer by 5 or 6.  Fixed females as indoor house bunnies can live 10-12 years.  In comparison, outdoor hutch rabbits have life expectancies of around 5 years.  Fixing her and putting her indoors will double her life with you.

And to be frank, you can't have the hopes of giving her a mate and having it work well unless she is spayed and the other bunny altered too.  If she's spayed and he's not, they will fight because his sex drive will drive both crazy.  If he's fixed and she isn't when the mate she will go into 'false pregnancies' and be irritable during this couple of weeks each time.  (It never is good to put one fixed/one intact rabbit together regardless of what sex they are.)  both would need to be de-sexed.

Spaying her is really the thing to do to 'fix this problem'.  But if you aren't willing to consider bringing her indoors (because the benefit of spaying her that would double her lifespan is pretty much cancelled out by the fact she's outdoors in a hutch) then I wouldn't bother, and you'll just need to recognize that her behavior is due in part to how she is kept, and the fact the other component of it is hormonally-driven.

Lee