Dog vs. Rabbit

[iamawesum69420]

I wasn't really sure where exactly to put this so I opted with posting in the general chat.

I just got a new puppy, as some of you may know from my member introduction, and I'm having a lot of trouble with Lola and Mufasa, the rabbit I already have. I didn't expect them to become fast friends, but I didn't expect this much trouble. The rabbit is really aggressive with the puppy. If he sees her, he charges her as hard as he can. I'm really afraid that he's going to hurt her because at this point, he's about 3 or 4 times bigger than she is. I've looked for articles and things online about this, but I can only find things that talk about the opposite of my problem, dogs being aggressive with rabbits. Does anyone have any experience with this or any suggestions?

 

[stevinski]

i would say go to a rabbit forum (not to be mean)

but its just they will have more experience with rabbit aggression then us

i go to this one

http://rabbits-forums.com/

 

[iamawesum69420]

Well that's the problem. I've talked about this on that very forum and they didn't really have much to say about it.

 

[Red_ACD_for_me]

Hi welcome to Chaz! Just a question, does you rabbit have free run of your house? If so, maybe you should start containing him to one room or put him in his cage more often Also, is your rabbit neutered? I have heard from rabbit people that they can be more aggressive if they aren't fixed just as some "male" dogs can be. Spaying and neutering rabbits is becoming very common practice because they also get similar cancers to dogs and cats if left intact.

 

[iamawesum69420]

Thanks for the welcome. Yes, he is neutered. And, yes he has free roam of the house. I have tried putting him in his cage and letting them meet each other that way, but that just seems to make him more angry. If in his cage, he will ram the sides of his cage as hard as he can, trying to get to Lola. It has been only a week so maybe giving it some time, will help (I hope). If not, I will just have to keep them separated at all times.

 

[Red_ACD_for_me]

Well, where LOLA is so small right now I would definately monitor them at ALL TIMES. At least when she grows up she will be better off then now.

 

[stevinski]

maybe introduce them when the puppy is asleep and in a crate, then you wont have the puppy reacting to the rabbit and the rabbit will eventually settle down

jst a idea, thts what we did with our cats

 

[iamawesum69420]

I'm still working on crate training her. Right now I'm having a hard time getting her to stay in it peacefully. But after I have that mastered, I can try that idea. Thanks.

 

[StealthDog]

Here's another rabbit forum you can try:

http://lagomorphlounge.proboards2.com

 

[dogsarebetter]

if my rabbits would bite my puppy i would simply keep them separated.
Ryo and Alex (rabbits) sometimes have half of the room blocked off away from Ruckus (dog) if Ruckus is being too rambunctious etc.

 

[dogsarebetter]

oh yeah, and one way to get the rabbits used to the dog is to crate the dog and let the rabbits explore him/her.
i agree with the others

 

[iamawesum69420]

Just a lil update to the Mufasa and Lola situation....

It is going better now, which I am thankful for. Mufasa hasn't charged at her recently and I have been able to actually pet both of them at the same time while sitting with them on the Futon. One on each side of me, but that is better than nothing.

I do have a question for those of you who know anything about rabbits (I plan to post this on a rabbit forum as well). Yesterday, Mufasa nipped Lola's butt and I am not sure if he was trying to play or if he was being mean. He nips at us sometimes to play or show affection, but I'm just not quite sure what the intent of this nip was.

 

[skKi]

When a rabbit nips another rabbit on the rump, he's trying to establish dominance. Sounds like Mufasa is trying to make it very clear to Lola that he's top dog-- er, bunny.
As long as Lola doesn't react in a way that threatens Mufasa's dominance, the behaviour should stop, or at least diminish eventually.\
Anyway, the nip wasn't meant to cause her pain. He's just sending her a message.

 

[dogsarebetter]

^^^^^^ what skki said^^^^^

 

[iamawesum69420]

Thanks

Today we had another good day. While Lola was eating, Mufasa came up behind and sniffed her and didn't show any aggression at all. He did grunt at her as soon as she moved, but I still say it's a good day since he didn't try to do anything physical and it was only when she moved. I'd say he's just trying to get used to her and we're taking it one step at a time.

 

[dogsarebetter]

thats great. i hope you keep having good days

 

[iamawesum69420]

I think the days can will only get better. I think that another factor in Mufasa's behavior is that he has been grumpy lately because he's been to the vet for his neuter in the past month and we've been traveling over the holidays more than usual and he hates his carrier.

 

[dogsarebetter]

oh yeah, that probably has a quite a bit to do with it. i am sure you know how temperamental rabbits can be.
and perhaps all of his hormones havent died out yet either... and as with any new animal it takes time for them to get used to each other.
its odd to worry about the rabbit hurting the dog. lol, I have to watch Ruckus around the rabbits all of the time because he sometimes plays too hard. luckily its been well over a week since he tried to rough house with them. so i guess he is finally getting the idea.

sometimes Ruckus will aggravate Ryo (rabbit) he will chase her a little and lick her. she will get mad and him and go hop off to her cage. and then when Ruckus goes lays down like a good boy Ryo comes out of her cage and will stand right on top of his back. LOL she just asks for it!

 

[iamawesum69420]

Oh yes, I definitely know how temperamental rabbits are! Mufasa can be quite the handful at times. lol

And yes it's really funny to worry about my rabbit beating up my dog. I was all ready to work with controlling the dog and calming her down, not the other way around. lol

I am imagining the rabbit sitting on top of Ruckus and if they have any of the attitude of Mufasa, they are sitting up there all high and mighty like they are king of the world. lol