Previously sweet buck turned into demon-bunny overnight ???

[AmberLops]

That is weird, I've never had anything so sudden. Good idea giving him a break, you could try letting him run around in a pen over the course of a few days before breeding. I have a buck who is super skittish around me and does I put with him, so I let him out in my xpen and let him burn off some energy, after that he comes right up to me and let's me pet him and is nice and gentle with the does. Maybe this will help your buck.

That's a great idea! Thank you, i'll try that for sure

 

[Ridgetop]

I have had very aggressve does but never a buck with that level of aggression to doe. Usually if the doe is not receptive she will attack the buck. What size cage is he in? If you have a larger cage, you could try putting the doe in it for a week, then introduce him to her in her cage and see if he is still aggressive. Since you say he is shy, maybe he feels threatened in the smaller cage. Are you feeding any type of herbs? Is it possible that they could be having some effect on him?

However, if you want to try again, I would suggest you put on heavy leather gloves and introduce the doe into the cage backwards. Hold her the same way you do when you have to hand breed a recalcitrant doe. See if he will breed her but don't let him near her face. If he attacks her, remove her from the cage.

If he continues this behavior, I would cull him and replace him. Actually I would probably cull him anyway since I would not want any bunnies from him inheriting that nasty attitude. Even though he has not attacked you yet, he could always decide to do so. No matter hw pretty he is, a breeding buck that wants to kill his partners is of no use anyway!

 

[messybun]

I’ve had one rabbit hit his head and turn into a monster over night. It got so bad that I literally fed him with leather gloves he was so mean. My friend, also a breeder, has had this happen twice. Once the Flemish giant killed the doe, the other time a mini lop just injured the doe. There is no way I’d put him around another doe! He might be sick, that makes some rabbits very mean, or he might have just flipped which unfortunately happens sometimes. I’m sorry to say If he has just flipped there is nothing you can do.

 

[AmberLops]

I have had very aggressve does but never a buck with that level of aggression to doe. Usually if the doe is not receptive she will attack the buck. What size cage is he in? If you have a larger cage, you could try putting the doe in it for a week, then introduce him to her in her cage and see if he is still aggressive. Since you say he is shy, maybe he feels threatened in the smaller cage. Are you feeding any type of herbs? Is it possible that they could be having some effect on him?

However, if you want to try again, I would suggest you put on heavy leather gloves and introduce the doe into the cage backwards. Hold her the same way you do when you have to hand breed a recalcitrant doe. See if he will breed her but don't let him near her face. If he attacks her, remove her from the cage.

If he continues this behavior, I would cull him and replace him. Actually I would probably cull him anyway since I would not want any bunnies from him inheriting that nasty attitude. Even though he has not attacked you yet, he could always decide to do so. No matter hw pretty he is, a breeding buck that wants to kill his partners is of no use anyway!

I've seen does that aggressive but never had a buck like this either!
He is in a 24x24 cage. Same size as most of my others. I've had him for about 8 months now and never had an issue with him being aggressive until now. If that was his personality, you don't think he would've been acting like this much earlier? He's a year and a half old.
As far as herbs go, no! He only eats pellets and hay.
I tried letting him run in a playpen with a doe yesterday and he still went after her. The pen was big so space shouldn't have been an issue.
I will try what you mentioned...that might just work. I'll be sure to wear gloves!

 

[AmberLops]

I’ve had one rabbit hit his head and turn into a monster over night. It got so bad that I literally fed him with leather gloves he was so mean. My friend, also a breeder, has had this happen twice. Once the Flemish giant killed the doe, the other time a mini lop just injured the doe. There is no way I’d put him around another doe! He might be sick, that makes some rabbits very mean, or he might have just flipped which unfortunately happens sometimes. I’m sorry to say If he has just flipped there is nothing you can do.

That's interesting! Thank you, i appreciate any help i can get right now. I hope he hasn't just switched on me though. That would be a huge bummer

 

[Baymule]

He might be better off in a pot of rabbit and dumplings...….just sayin'. I have no room here for a mean animal-of any sort. I like me, I like me better in one piece without war wounds from fighting off any animal bent on my demise. They go to slaughter or I do it myself, but they GO.

 

[messybun]

He might be better off in a pot of rabbit and dumplings...….just sayin'. I have no room here for a mean animal-of any sort. I like me, I like me better in one piece without war wounds from fighting off any animal bent on my demise. They go to slaughter or I do it myself, but they GO.

Yeah, most mean animals go to my neighbor’s stewpot immediately(but he was my from my first litter so I tried training first.) But some lady met this monster and pet him a bit before I could warn her and they fell in love, apparently he gets along with her chihuahuas too. Lucky little brat.

 

[AmberLops]

@messybun sounds like those two were just meant to be!
I've had that same issue with a dog before...worst dog i ever had, gave him to someone else and he was the 'best dog they've ever had' and they've had no problems with him at all....i guess it's just like with people, right?
Someone might not be the right person for you, but they could be a perfect match for someone else.

I did try breeding 2 does with him today and he didn't once try to attack them. He didn't have that aggressive body language either so that made me feel a lot better. I'm still taking it slow with him....don't quite trust him just yet but at least he improved since last week!

 

[Ridgetop]

That is good. Hopefully he will continue to be calm and breedable.

Did you examine his penis? He may have injured it.

 

[Bunnylady]

One of my first Mini Rex was a buck that had a sort of Jeckyll and Hyde personality. He was very sweet with people - the sort that comes to the door and just flattens out for a good petting - but I had to watch him with the does. After he bred a doe, he'd get in her face, biting and boxing, even if she gave him absolutely no reason to. No waiting for 3 fall-offs with him; I removed does immediately after the first, to make sure they didn't get hurt. For this reason, I made sure that any doe that went in with him was at the peak of her cycle and most likely to be receptive, because I didn't want to risk damage if she turned out to be reluctant. He was maybe 2 years old when I bought him; he was like that when I bought him, and that continued to be him throughout the rest of his very productive life. If any of his offspring developed nasty personalities, I never heard about it; the ones I kept were all nice enough. I guess he was just a very aggressive breeder.

Good to hear that your little guy has backed off . . . I wonder what triggered that sudden shift? Had anything about him or his environment changed?