bunny turned into a biter!!!!

Question
hi . my name is kerry. me and my partner live in a decent sized unit. one day we were a the pet shop and saw a baby bunny. we felt sorry for him as he cam straight to us.and we fell in love with him.(i always wanted a bunny as a kid,we couldnt have one as we had big dogs)anyway we found out hes a dwarf rabbit.
we ended up taking him home. he was about 3 months then. 3notha 3 months past and he was the loveliest pet. he never bit us loved to jump on our lap for a cuddle. then he started spraying everywhere so we got him desexed. he was angry with me for a while. it was hard to catch him and since them he doesnt like to be picked up too often.
anyways the thing is. we went away for 2 weeks and our friend house sat for us and looked after our rabbit(nibbles). we have only been back 4 days and i have noticed a change in him. he used to binky(run and leap around)a lot. he doesnt seem to do it now.once in a while maybe. the thing is. he now is biting us. not just a nip. he will actually leap up at us and bite us aggresivly. couple of minutes ago he went for my partner so i pulled him away and told nibbles off. he then lunged at me.i left him for a while. he was chewing on his wood toy when i went to stroke him on his face(he usually loves that, will stop watever he is doing for a scratch)when i was stroking him, he lunged at my hand and bit really hard (broke the skin). he then stretched his front legs up onto the couch i told him no he pinned his ears back at me and i thought he was going to bite me again.
i dont know wat is wroong with him. tonight is the first time that i got scared of him and even considerd getting rid of him. i know i wont get rid of him as i love him so much. its upset me so much the change in him. i dont know what to do . please help. he is about 9 months old now. hes got free run of the house, is litter trained. i dont know what to do , please help.

Answer
Hi Kerry,

sorry to hear about your problems with Nibbles.

First off, about the whole picking up thing.  Most rabbits don't like being picked up too much to begin with, and I have seen as they get older many of them (if they ever did like it) can sometimes grow out of it.  And not to stereotype any particular kind of rabbit too hard, but dwarf rabbits are kind of known for being a little more aggressive/temper-sensitive than the 'average' rabbit.

So part of what you're dealing with may be more him than you.

The other parts of what you may be dealing with is the operation and the temporary sitter (abandonment issues and/or bad experiences during these times).  It almost sounds like kind of a re-bonding is needed between you guys and him.

I'd try spending more time around him, but not necessarily trying to pick him up or anything.  In fact, you probably don't want to express that much interest in him.  Read a book or magazine, but just be in the same space together.  Let him come to you.  When he does, the first time try not to pet him.  Sometimes when we 'ignore' them they get curious about us and wonder why we're not paying attention to them.

The other things to do in conjunction with this is when you are around him, when you do pet him, lead up to it, talk soothingly to him before and during, and move more slowly around him.  If he does try to nip you, you may have to exert your dominance by gently but firmly pressing his head down to the floor with your hand and a "No, Nibbles!" to allow him to learn that you, as the alpha bunny, are not going to tolerate a subordinate rabbit pulling that behavior with you.

I would also suggest in your handlings of him, if it is very bad or he randomly nips without warning, to wear sweatshirts and when carrying him, drape towels over shoulders or wrapped around arms.  Don't put him down, or he will learn that if he nips you he will get put down.  Tell him a "No, Nibbles" and keep holding him.  When the nipping or struggling stops, a "good boy" and then put him down will teach him if he behaves he will eventually get put down.

You amy also want to double-check with your sitter in case anything happened while you were gone.  

Lee