My rabbit is turning out to be nasty. Whenever I take him out of the cage he sprays at me. I am aware they normally do such kind of things in the wild, but I really want this to stop. Is there any way I can put stop to it, besides neutering.
Please comment.
Hi Allen,
Have you tried to let you rabbit come out of his cage on his own? Does he still spray? Most of the time neutering will resolve this issue and unfortunately it is the only probable solution. Have you consulted a Vet?
Let him come out alone. If you think he is going to spray, try and calm him down. My rabbit done the same. This helped.
If you do not want to neuter him, then be prepared for a good spraying whenever he gets the notion to do so. Sometimes a buck that is young will start spraying all the time as a way to exert his new found manliness. Some will lessen the behaviour as they mature but some will keep it up into old age. Neutering will help to curb the behavior but once a buck starts this nasty habit, it can be hard to break. You might try getting a spray bottle and spraying him back when he does this. Alot of times it becomes a habit they just do without thinking about it and you can lessen it by making it something they do think about - ie, a good shot in the face in return. Some bucks will also spray when they feel threatened so the prior advice about opening his cage and then letting him come out on his own is good advice. There may be something about you or your mannerisms that feel threatening to him. It is also a possibility that he really likes you and feels the need to re-claim you everytime you come near. My daughter\'s dutch herd buck is so in love with me that I have to get the lid off the garbage can to use as a shield when I approach his cage. Once he feels he has me marked, I can take him out of his cage and do anything with him. He doesn\'t react to my daughter this way or to anyone else in the family.