Female Flemish Giant

Question
I have a white red eyed female Flemish giant aka Gabriel. I believe she is a European breed due to her size. She is about as big if not a bit bigger then my moms shitzue. Before I ask my question I'll provide you with her home life. I've got a fat cat who is not as big a Gabriel. I've got two dogs, a rot/sheapard, and a black long legged lab. They all, including Gabriel, is allowed to move about the house freely. They play and get along fine. Gabriel seems to have no issues or fears of the other animals. Shes part of the pack and I think she knows that. She follows me everywhere just like the rest of the animals. She begs for the food I eat just like the rest of the animals. She jumps on top of me and expects to be petted just like the rest of the animals. She seems to constantly want attention. Now for my question, given all this info on her behavior, why does she bite me. Sometimes she bites me pretty hard and apparently for no reason. When she goes to bite me she makes this grunting noise. I understand that rabbits are afraid of heights and I've tried picking her up several different ways including putting my hand under her feet. In this case she jumps around and tries to bite like she performing a martial arts stunt. I can pet her just fine but depending on her mood, I'm guessing, she bites me while making that grunting noise. Basically I get bit if I try to pick her up and I also get bit even if I'm not trying to. What can I do to get her to trust me more. I would also like to get to the point to where I can pick her up with out getting bit. Also, she gets lots and lots of treats from special grass, to mint, to dried corn on the cob and several other things. Can you please help!
Thank you,
Christina

Answer
Hi Christina,

Sorry it has taken me so long to get back to you.  I was trying to do a little bit more research.  The origin of the Flemish giant is actually not known.. I wanted to try to give you a bit on the origin but everywhere I look it tells me something different.  They are definitely a domestic breed here in the US now.  An absolute favorite of a lot of people.  Personally they are my favorite house breed.

Ok your questions..  Usually Flemish giants are very docile that is why they are called "the gentle giant".  Gabriel is obviously well cared for.  I do know that the majority of Flemish Giants do NOT like to be picked up.  Sometimes its a 2 person job for us just to get their nails trimmed.  This is probably the reason she is biting you while attempting to pick her up.  1.  Is she over a year old?  2.  Has she been spayed?

If she is not over a year old what you have is a typical teenager on your hands.  Any rabbit any where between the age of 4mo to 12 mo, is full of raging hormones and many of them don't know how to express themselves.  If she has not been spayed yet, you should really consider doing that for a few reasons.  I can explain more about that once I know if she has had the surgery yet or not.

Why she might bite you at other times, I am not sure.  Rabbits will bite if they want a treat, or even to try to get your attention.  The grunting noise means she is expressing her dissatisfaction with you for whatever reason.

She can be taught not to bite.  Whenever she bites you tell her NO, rabbits do understand the word no if it is used continuously when they are bad.  Don't over use it or she might get confused.  Every time she bites you make a loud shrieking noise to tell her that she is hurting you and say NO.  After a while she should stop.  The main thing is consistency.  Even if it hurts really bad instead of yelling, always make the shrieking noise.  It is hard to remember when you have just been bit and it hurts like the devil but after a while it will become habit for you.

Every rabbit has their own unique personality and some will bite.  If she is attacking you on a daily basis then you really need to work diligently on behavior modification.  If its only when you pick her up or an occasional bite then she is just expressing her anger with you for whatever reason.  Try to study her language and see what she is trying to tell you.  I am going to give you a link to my site for what you can watch for and what they are actually telling you when they do express certain behavior.

If she is not spayed yet I can almost guarantee that when you get that done she will stop.  Fixed rabbits are usually much more docile.

I hope I was able to help you.  I am waiting for an e-mail back from a friend who actually raises Flemish giants.  If I get a response from her I will let you know what she says.

http://www.muridae.com/rabbits/rabbittalk.html

I put the link to the page that I think you will need most but you should try to navigate the whole site.  It has awesome descriptions of what bunny behavior means.

If you need anymore help please let me know.

Thanks

Pam


I told you I sent an e-mail to my friend who raises giants, I gave her your exact question and this is what she said...


Hi Pam,
Thanks for the compliments!  I do love my bunnies!  Honestly, the girls can get like that sometimes... she is treating her like one of the bunnies.  That is how she would get another rabbits attention.  But she is NOT another bunny!  Now SHE has teach her that this is not acceptable behavior!  When ever she nips for no reason, tap (I said tap, not smack!) her on the nose and say "NO! BAD"  just like you would a dog or cat.  Put her back in her cage and don't play with her...They are pretty smart and will learn.  It sounds like she has been bossing her around for a while and it may take some time and consistency on her part to "re-learn" her.  But she has to get the idea that every time (notice I said EVERY TIME) she nips, she gets a "NO!" and a time out!  Give her 15 minutes to sit in the cage and you can try again.  If she does it a second time, she goes in an hour... etc.
They can be trained and you have to do it to make her a socially acceptable companion animal....
Spaying might help.... it eliminates the hormones that drive her towards possessiveness and territorial attitude.  But I can't promise it'll make her less "bossy".  If she is going to have it done, please look for a vet that is experienced with rabbits.  They are not like cats or dogs and need a little extra "attention to detail".
Regarding the picking up, MOST of my rabbits do not like to be picked up.  It's a real fear of falling.  You can not leave their legs hanging for more than a split second, before they start to kick and flip out.  There are ways of picking up the bunny and flipping her on her back in your arms, where her legs don't dangle and you have full control.  And that gives you access to clip her nails.  (You hold her, someone else clips)  Also, you can try putting one hand under her belly and the other over her head (with your hand cradling her head) and rolling her over onto her back on the floor.  
Some bunnies don't mind laying on their back on your lap. (Some of my boys trance out like that and I can do anything to them!)  I put my middle finger between her ears and two fingers on each side of the skull, slide your other hand down her back and under her butt (above the tail!) and lift.  Flip her over and lay her on your lap.  (May take some practice.)
Hope this all helps!  Tell her I said good luck with her... I think they are great rabbits and awesome pets!
Cathy