my rabbit is the little chewer

Question
Hello, Okay so my rabbit is always chewing on his cage. I'm afraid the paint will make him sick. He is neutered. And he is a rex. I don't know what to do. He chews occasionally during the night. He is always chewing bright and early around 6:00a.m. when I'm not even up yet. He has chew toys, regular toys,food, hay, I have tried all the sprays. He knows he is doing something wrong because when I run over to make him stop he dashes for the hiding spot.
PLEASE HELP ME!
how do I get my little chewer to stop chewing???
(p.s. he is about 1 year and 6 months)

Answer
Dear Morgan,

If it's just his cage bars he's chewing, then he's trying to get OUT.  He's bored and needs more stimulation than he's getting.  How much running time per day does he get?  How big is the cage?  It's important to provide such a young, healthy rabbit with a very large place to run and play, and plenty of exercise time.  Please see:

http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/housing.html

Note that he's chewing at times when rabbits are most active:  dawn/dusk and nighttime.  He wants to be out playing.

If you have your house bunny-proofed and all wires away where he can't get them, you might try giving him more running time, and eventually let him run free completely, as is most natural.  

Our rabbits are never caged, and once they're out of their "terrible teens" (which is when many bunnies are destructive because of their rambunctious youth) they are not destructive at all.  At the age of 1.5 years, your bunny is out of his teens, and probably just needs more exercise and fun.  

Another thing to consider is to allow him to choose a spayed companion to keep him occupied and interested.  You can find your local rabbit rescuer here:

www.rabbit.org/chapters

to set up some "blind dates" with rescued bunnies.  Two bunnies are much more fun than one, and often much less destructive because they're not bored.

I hope that helps.

Dana