INTRODUCTION

The first thing we must be clear about is that the rabbit is not an aggressive animal at all, it is not a predator, it is prey and, therefore, in its DNA is to flee before attacking, generating a more nervous and frightened nature than other animals such as dogs and cats (which are predators). 

Early socialisation and good genetic selection (social and friendly parents will have social and friendly offspring) is one of the great aids to our rabbit being a pleasant companion, but on occasions we may find that it has started to bite us, which may be a sign that something else is going on.

WHY DOES MY RABBIT BITE ME?

How can we act? The most important thing is to know the origin of the problem. The main causes of a rabbit being aggressive are:

• HORMONAL PROBLEMS: If your rabbit is not neutered it is likely that its behaviour will become more aggressive and territorial (especially when they are more needy or receptive). This situation occurs more frequently in females than in males and can be solved by neutering at the appropriate age (5 months of age), if our rabbit is not destined to be a breeding or exhibition animal the best thing to do is to neuter it to avoid this behaviour. 

• FEAR: They are prey animals as we have already mentioned, and when an animal is in a situation of danger it has two possible ways out: to flee or to attack (you know the saying "the best defence is a good attack"). They have exceptional eyesight (more limited in rabbits with droopy ears) with the exception of the point in front of their nose which is totally blind, if we caress or touch them without them seeing us properly they can get scared and react badly without wanting to, so it is advisable to speak to them in a soft voice before doing so, so they will know that we are there. 

• PAIN: Rabbits do not express their pain most of the time so as not to be seen as "easy prey"; but like all animals they can behave aggressively in intense pain.

• STRESS: Some rabbits tend to be more easily stressed and aggression is a way of releasing this stress. In these cases most of the stress is released against oneself (self-destructive behaviour), e.g. by tearing out the fur or biting the feet.

• WANT TO TELL YOU SOMETHING: Rabbits are unable to move things with their paws so they use their mouths to do this, which can result in small accidental bites (if wounded, just a pinch) and scratches on objects. 

• TERRITORIALITY: When we have been with other rabbits it is advisable to wash our hands before handling our own animals, not only for hygiene (as we can be vectors of specific diseases) but also because we will be impregnated with the smell of that "strange" rabbit and it can become confused, attacking us thinking that we are an intruder. 

IS THE RABBIT'S BITE DANGEROUS?

The bite of a rabbit is painful as can be the bite of any living being, the seriousness of the bite will depend on the force exerted and the size of the animal (the bite of a Netherland Dwarf is not the same as that of a Giant of Flanders), if our rabbit bites us we have to be clear that it is not going to transmit any illness, the only thing we have to do is to disinfect the wound and cover it in the case that there has been a small amount of bleeding. 

CONCLUSION

That our rabbit bites us is not at all pleasant but it has a solution 99% of the time, it is important that as responsible owners we try to find the origin of the problem and find a solution.