Giant Flemish Bit Me

[wesnmads]

Hello, we recently inherited a year old giant Flemish rabbit. He came to us potty trained and very sweet yet shy. I expected that with this change of home and family there would be an adjustment period so I have not worried about his shyness and his regression in potty training, but today as I was prepping his crate for bed he bit me! Really hard.

He is free range all day and is only in the crate at night. He has full use of the house and yard until about 8:00 at night then I put him in his crate for bed.

Now I am so afraid to touch him and I have 2 children (4 and 7) and I am afraid he will bite them. I was wearing a sweat shirt, but if my arms were bare he would have drawn blood. It still hurts and I have a slight bruise.

Could he have been protective of his crate? He doesn't love going in there so maybe he was upset it was getting to be that time? He has been so gentle and sweet until this and I don't want to be afraid of him. Any advice or insight would be appreciated.

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

Has your Flemish's biting resolved? While I've been scratched many times by my rabbits, I have (fortunately) not been bitten...those teeth are pretty scary. Am passing along this link in case it's helpful: https://pethelpful.com/rabbits/When-Bunnies-Attack-What-To-Do-When-Your-Rabbit-Bites.

 

[DutchBunny03]

He is just being protective of his new territory. Its pretty normal. Just wash it off, you'll be fine.To prevent him from becoming more aggresive, try petting him with both hands from the head to the rump. It helps calm rabbits down, and has worked or me in the past.

 

[allykay219]

We had an indoor rabbit that free ranged in the house and her crate was where she pottied. She hated it when I changed the bedding in it. She would have a fit. I started locking her out of the room when I did it but when she would use it after it was clean she would tear it up ( there would be newspaper on bottom then bedding). Shedidnt sleep in there it was just for her bathroom. That was the only time she was mean so maybe just keep him away when you do it

 

[wesnmads]

He is just being protective of his new territory. Its pretty normal. Just wash it off, you'll be fine.To prevent him from becoming more aggresive, try petting him with both hands from the head to the rump. It helps calm rabbits down, and has worked or me in the past.

Thank you. He has bitten a couple more times, but it seems more exploratory and not aggressive. Still scary though. We are getting him neutered in a week so maybe that will help. We pet him often and he is actually pretty affectionate, jumping up on us and letting us pet him. I will try this technique though, thank you.

 

[DutchBunny03]

Thank you. He has bitten a couple more times, but it seems more exploratory and not aggressive. Still scary though. We are getting him neutered in a week so maybe that will help. We pet him often and he is actually pretty affectionate, jumping up on us and letting us pet him. I will try this technique though, thank you.

Exploratory biting is better, but still not good. To discourage from biting, make a loud noise while being bitten. It startles the rabbit, so he'll stop. Eventually, he should get it and stop biting regularly. He sounds like a great bunny!

 

[Cmcavoy]

My male Flemish bites too! If I move too fast near him or do something, he does not like. He lives downstairs, so I have to carry him upstairs to spend time with us. Every time on the stairs, he bites me hard...drawing blood and leaving a bruise. I am thinking about putting him in A cat carrier to bring him up. Thoughts?

 

[EverythingDucks]

My male Flemish bites too! If I move too fast near him or do something, he does not like. He lives downstairs, so I have to carry him upstairs to spend time with us. Every time on the stairs, he bites me hard...drawing blood and leaving a bruise. I am thinking about putting him in A cat carrier to bring him up. Thoughts?

Welcome to BYC!

He probably just doesn't feel comfortable being picked up. I would definitely try using something like a cat carrier to make him feel safer.

Sounds like he's jus easily spooked to me.
How long have you had him?

 

[HollowOfWisps]

My male Flemish bites too! If I move too fast near him or do something, he does not like. He lives downstairs, so I have to carry him upstairs to spend time with us. Every time on the stairs, he bites me hard...drawing blood and leaving a bruise. I am thinking about putting him in A cat carrier to bring him up. Thoughts?

Rabbits are terrified of heights. Carrying him up the stairs is the equivalent of someone holding you down to make you face your worst fears and you fighting to escape (hence the biting). Put a towel in a cat carrier to take him up and down the stairs.