I'm so angry right now!!

We don't have a ton of does, so today was the first time I bred him to two different gals. He is my dutch mix buck. He's got a great body type for a meat buck if only possibly a little on the smaller side.

The second gal (Ehbunny) was just beyond uninterested. She stood in the corner and refused to participate. He's thumping, thumping, thumping. I decide to let them go a little longer than normal to see if things changed, and I fed and watered everyone, cleaned cages...etc etc.

I go over to retrieve Ehbunny from Bucky's cage and he runs over. This isn't totally odd as he's become very friendly and likes to come for pets. His ears were up in the air as they normally are. He comes halfway out of the cage and than grabs my jacket with his paws and sinks his teeth into my arm...HARD. He tries to do it again, but got a mouthful of jacket the second time. When I pulled away, I put my hand in again to try to get Ehbunny and he lunges. It took a little finagling but I ended up with him tucked under my arm like a football so I could retrieve her, and shoved him back in my cage. I think I'm VERY blessed that I put on one of hubby's heavy lined hunting jackets today...he broke the skin through the jacket and I have a silver dollar sized swollen hard bruise and with clear teeth indents on either end.


So, I'm thinking Bucky won't be with us for very long. Did I break some sort of handling rule here? I guess the only other factor was I was cleaning cages and probably had rabbit urine on my hand. But that's not really that odd, and it was from an all-female pen.

He was terribly worked up, I just never thought he would act out that way. I really can't have a biting rabbit. Scratching I can (and do) deal with on occasion. But I have muscular dystrophy, and something like this actually can make me have a flare. Any type of muscle damage can pop me in the hospital...I was in the hospital this summer for 9 days because I tore a muscle in my butt by banging it on a piece of metal in the truck door hinge.

Ugh...hoping I can get some insight here. Am I wrong in wanting to cull him?

I have a junior buck but his conformity for my purposes isn't great. I have a NZ that is too big for most of my does. I do have a bucky/nz cross litter that has one male and they might not get too big. They are at 8 weeks and the same size of my dutch 12-14 week olds. There's also a litter that's three weeks old, and possibly four bred does...so I have options.

Oh no! What a bad boy! I can't answer your questions on his behavior, but you are right that you need to cull him. I am interested to see what others have to say about him.

I don't know much about MD, but it doesn't sound like you need to be taking those kinds of risks. I'm really sorry.

Bucks will often get protective of their does. Especially if they feel they haven't finished their job. My sable netherland always starts thumping at me and carrying on when I go near his doe while he thinks he should still be attempting to breed. Some of my mini rex have gotten a little pushy as well. It's mostly just the champagnes and one line of mini rex who was the most laid back buck in existence that haven't gotten upset with me when I went to take does away. It's best if you can't reach over your buck like my little netherland to make sure you shove them in a corner first if they are having a frustrated, pissy moment.

The only time I've ever been bitten by one of my bucks was when I was trying to breed him with an uncooperative doe and got my hand between him and the doe and he backed off the instant he realized what he did. Outwardly lunging and biting I wouldn't tolerate at all and would cull.

Usually I cull a biting rabbit immediately but I think I'd cut Bucky some slack due to the circumstances, especially if he is normally sweet tempered.

Biting is one thing, sinking his teeth into you is totally different story.

for now I'd put it as a one off and see what happens another time. I tend to cut rabbits a bit of slack...like bite me once fine... Bite me twice GOOD BYE!

Generally I don't get bit because I'm trusting of rabbits but not THAT trusting. I watch body language very closely. Been doing that since I had a corner sitter come out once and grab me and it was LIKE ACK!!! she got bred immediately and hasn't looked twice at me since. Go figure. Certainly a wake up call though.

Nipped but not bit yet. Both have been bucks. I thought it was excitement or just not wanting to move. Both times it was on the way to the exercise pen. Nothing to do with mating. What do you guys think ? I wondered about it.

I have been nipped by a buck, never actually bitten. I would give him another try. I would keep an eye on him though, maybe it is NOT just a one time thing.

Any chance that hubby could do the removing of the doe from his cage? That MD sounds like nothing to take further chances with.

One of our best does took a chunk out of hubs thumb when we first got her. He reached into the cage to get something and she just nailed him. But, since she has gotten used to us, she is the sweetest rabbit around. I would give him another chance, wear gloves and see what happens.

Yes wear gloves. Yikes.. the thng with culling a "proven" buck is they are hard to get back. Leather work gloves may be in order. If not you may want to go ahead and cull anyway. Good luck either way you decide to go..I just got bit 3 days ago. It was my buck too. He bit so hard that when I pulled my hand out of the cage he came out still attached to my hand. Im sitll mad 3 days later...

We've decided to cull him. I honestly just don't trust him anymore. I still have some pretty major scabbing and bruising and it's been a week. I would be pretty angry with myself if he did that this summer to me and I didn't have a coat on and it was more serious.

I'm counting myself fortunate that he bred all of my buns before that day. I also have a 9 week old buck that is 5 lbs at todays weighing. I think he'll do nicely as a fill in if lilac jack stays on the skinny side.

I'm at a stopping point for breeding right now..I have possibly 5 does bred currently. I'm trying not to butcher during the heat of summer so I may do one more on a couple of them and than re-start in September.

I've been nipped by does, never by a buck. Any rabbit who attacks like that needs to be crockpotted, glad you've decided to let him go. Rabbits can do far more damage than people realize, its just not worth it.

It is probably for the best...no point keeping an animal that you don't trust and don't feel safe around...