bad behaviour after spaying

Question
Hi Dana,
Thank you for answering my question. I felt a little hope after reading your e-mail. I've separated the rabbit and the dog for the few days and then I let her out and watch them real close. She has been doing a little better (I thought) and they tonite she "charged" at the dog again and this time she took a chunk out of her. I got so upset and put her back in the cage. At this time I am so disapointed and regret having her spayed. I don't know what I'm going to do. I know it may not have been long enough yet. I've rescued her and now I feel like I don't want her anymore. I feel sorry for her whey she is in the cage but I can't put my dog through this any more. I bought her toys and a tunnel to play with and she still acts like a pit bull(literally) mostly with the one female dog.
I'm sorry, I guess I'm just venting but I don't know what else to do. Thank you for "listening"
Dorota
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Followup To

Question -
Hello, I had my 1.5yr (apr) rabbit spayed 2 wks ago and she has gone nutts. She started attackin two of my female dogs for no reason. She has been chasing and attackin one of them but today she visously attacked my other female and was acting like a crazed pit bull. I had to litarally pull her of off the dog who would most likely have killed her if I wasn't there. I have a male dog also and she doesn't mind him, she seems to like him. The two dogs she attacks are 11 and 12 yrs old and don't bother her at all. She was a very sweet rabbit before spay. She just used to spray and poop everywhere and that has change for the better. I took her for the check up today and she checked out fine. The vet has given me some Metacam in case she has inflamation that we don't know about. I gave her the first dose tonite and put her in the cage. The dogs are terrorised and I can't believe my eyes. I feel like crying and can't find anything on the net about that. I will be forever greatful if you can help me.
Thank you

Answer -
Dear Dorota,

Don't despair!  You are not alone.

In some very rare instances, we do see an increase in aggressive behavior following a spay or neuter (it's more common in males, but does also happen in females).  No one knows why this happens, but it could have something to do with a hormone surge simply from having the reproductive organs handled while they were being removed.  It's awful!  

For the moment, keep the rabbit strictly away from the dogs for everyone's safety.  I hope that in a week or two she will start to calm down on her own, but even now you must start the "aversion to aggression" training with her.

Unlike a dog, who may respond to punishment, this is just about the *worst* thing you can do to a rabbit.  It will only escalate the violence and make things worse.  Rabbits are not social in the same way dogs are (who are cooperative hunters).  Rabbit social order is based on who's the biggest and baddest, and everyone gets out of the way of the meanest rabbit. If you strike her or otherwise punish her, she will start to see you, not as the "alpha", but rather as The Enemy and act accordingly.

Now.  How to *stop* the aggression.  The first step is understanding it, and what it means in a rabbit (which is quite different from what it might mean in other species).  There are several excellent articles linked here:

http://search.atomz.com/search/?sp-a=00062824-sp00000000&sp-q=aggression

that will help you get a handle on what's going on, and how to respond in a way that will get the bunny to stop.  It will take a bit of time and patience, but it should work, and get easier as her hormones percolate out of the system.

I hope this helps get you started.  Please let me know how it's going.

Dana

Answer
Dear Dorota,

Patience and love are the key.  I, too, have had aggressive rabbits, and they are a challenge.  But they also teach us so much more about patience and understanding.  

Our Maggie was so aggressive that she'd actually seek me out from another room to bite me.  And I'm talking BITE, not just nip!  She'd hang on and not let go!  Once she bit me on the wrist so badly (for no apparent reason; I wasn't even near her--she just lunged up and grabbed on!) that I thought I was going to have to go to the emergency room!

We got her a neutered male pal, and that seemed to distract and calm her.  This might be something to consider, but do this with the help of your local rabbit rescuer, so you're sure to get a mellow bunny who can teach your little pit bull proper bunny behavior.  They do learn by example.

It's also important to meet her aggression only with love and patience.  If you do that, she will calm down much more quickly.  If you punish her, she will only get worse.  Rabbits are not at all like dogs in that respect:  positive reinforcement and gentle patience are the only things that work.

One suggestion I would strongly make:  join EtherBun, a free listserve about rabbit health, care and behavior.  There are more than 4000 subscribers, and if you share your problem with EtherBun, you will undoubtedly get plenty of support and some good tips on how to stop your bunny's bad behavior.  You can join EB from here:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/etherbun.html

I hope this helps.  Hang in there.  She'll be worth it!

Dana