Having a pet is one of the many great pleasures that life has to offer. However, the same could not be said about all types of pets because of how there are certain domesticated animals and exotic pets that can be a bit dangerous due to their natural aggressive nature. In other words, some animals may harm their owners by biting them if they are not handled well and correctly.
The reason why a lot of pet owners go for smaller pets such as rabbits is that they are believed to be not as aggressive as larger pets. While rabbits indeed do not have the aggressive nature that cats and dogs probably have, a lingering question still remains: do rabbits bite? This is a question that needs a bit of explaining if you want to get to the bottom of it.
Rabbits and biting
Generally speaking, as long as a rabbit is healthy and treated well, it is similar to most other domesticated pets in the simple sense that it will not end up with an aggressive nature. So that cute and cuddly ball of fur you have should not be expected to act aggressively towards you so long as you are actually making sure that it is happy and healthy.
On the other hand, however, you also have to consider that rabbits are like any other animals in the sense that they also have moods that can very well affect the way they act and react to certain situations. The way a rabbit behaves is still dependent on what is happening around it. As such, depending on the situation and on how they react based on their mood, rabbits will still indeed end up biting you.
So, going straight to the meat of things, rabbits do indeed bite. That is the fact that you have to accept even though a rabbit has this cute and cuddly appearance due to its plump and furry appearance. But just because a rabbit bites, it does not mean that they are indeed biters that will try to bite and attack you at any possible time. Rabbits are still gentle and good-natured animals that do not have that aggressive mentality.
Why rabbits bite
If rabbits are true as good-natured and as gentle as they are, when why do they even bite? You may be taking good care of your rabbit by feeding it with the best food and treating it in the best way possible, but it might still end up biting you later on without you knowing why. Well, you have to go to the very nature and to the history of rabbits to understand why they bite you despite how they are usually seen as kind and harmless creatures.
There are plenty of reasons why rabbits actually bite. One of the reasons for such is the history of the animal. Rabbits in the wild are known to be major food sources for a lot of different predators. Large mammals such as foxes tend to eat rabbits. Birds of prey swoop down to grab rabbits out of the ground. Meanwhile, large reptiles such as snakes and monitor lizards often eat rabbits as well. Even humans actually eat rabbits that were bred for culinary purposes.
Because of how rabbits are known to be top choices for predators, they have a defensive behavior that forces them to try to defend themselves by biting. Other than running, biting is the only defense mechanism that rabbits have against potential predators. A such, if there are any instances when you seem like a predator to your rabbit such as when you startle it, chase it around, or suddenly try to handle it, there is a good chance that your rabbit will go on the defensive because of how it might think that you are a predator.
Rabbits are also animals that learn through association. What that means is that if you happen to get them in a bad mood or if they are agitated with the way you are handling them, they will bite you. And if they realize that biting you is associated with how you would leave it alone, the rabbit will most likely develop a habit of biting you regardless of whatever kind of situation it is in.
One other reason why rabbits bite is to get the attention of their humans. There will be instances when the rabbit will nip on your finger in a gentle way that may still hurt. The reason for doing such is to probably gain your attention and for you to try to play with it. But sometimes, your rabbit might be doing this because of its nature as a territorial animal.
All that considered, rabbits do indeed bite for several reasons, but none of them point to the possibility that these gentle animals are actually aggressive and dangerous. When a rabbit bites, it is generally because of its nature and history and how it was treated in the past. It can also be because of its mood and how it is feeling. In other words, when a rabbit bites, it is more likely behavior that can still be corrected.
Making your rabbit less aggressive
Rabbits that tend to bite more often than others have probably developed a semi-aggressive nature that is rooted in their trust issues. And how they probably feel fear towards humans who they may mistakenly associate with predation and other similar threats. As such, if you want to correct this aggressive nature, you have to make sure that your rabbit feels comfortable around you and other humans.
One way to make your rabbit less aggressive is to build trust with it and to allow it to actually feel comfortable and confident in its environment with you and other humans around it. This makes it think that there is nothing to fear whenever you are around.
To start, you may want to allow it to roam around freely in a certain room in your house. Just leave it alone on the floor and allow it to explore its environment. However, you have to be around it the entire time. But do not try to interact with it while it is still trying to feel comfortable with its immediate surroundings. Slowly try to interact with it but do not rush things by suddenly handling or carrying it. Once it is comfortable with you, it will not see you as a threat. Its defensive and aggressive behavior might tone done when it feels that there is nothing to fear with you around it.
This is a good video to check if you want your rabbit to be less aggressive.
Conclusion
It is a matter of the fact that rabbits may bite you. However, while rabbits do indeed bite, it generally is not out of aggression, unlike other types of animals. Fear and the rabbit’s defensive instinct all play a role when it comes to their habit of biting. But this kind of behavior really is not something you should worry about as long as you are taking care of your rabbit properly. Happy rabbits rarely bite. And if they do, it might be because it is trying to get your attention. In other cases, make sure that you actually treat the rabbit well and give it a reason to trust you so that it will not end up with the aggressive behavior that contributes to its habit of biting.
