We have a lion head dwarf and a cat. We bought the lion head dwarf, he is probably mid twenty's in bunny years. We have made a fine establishment outdoors, he has a lot of toys and access to grass 24/7. He has probably been visited far more times than he likes. š Not too long ago we obtained a cat. The story is long, but we had no choice and we love him. The cat we got young. Recently he (the cat) has been trying to claw at our bunny. I have heard that bunnies and cats, if together from a young age, get along splendidly. What are your suggestions? I don't know where else to post this so if this is the wrong location tell me. Also the cat can't reach the bunny he just scares him. Sorry, I don"t have a better image accessible at the time.
by Objective-Scale-6529
24 Comments
Put the bun, a prey, indoors with his own area where the cat has no access. Buns have no business outside where their lifespan will be half, nor near cats, which are predators. You cat is even trying to claw at your bun (shortening bun’s life even more)!
While Bunnies can enjoy supervised outdoor time they should predominantly be free roam in door pets.
If a predator tries to attack a prey, ever, the prey is at risk of death from fear or injury. Never let the cat in view of the rabbit or ever interact. The rabbit needs a dedicated space indoors, wild life can kill the bunny or scare him to death.
Cats and rabbits do not get along, ones that do are the exception and training a cat is harder than a dog. Predators not killing prey is an exception and the cat has completely failed. Do not attempt.
rabbits belong in the house
The bunny outside is so sad, they are social creatures and are prey animals. The cat is a predator and couldnāt care less is you socialize with it.
If you canāt keep the bunny indoors, please get someone to adopt it so it can has a good life in a loving home inside.
I love cats but the bunny relies on you keeping it safe, outside is not keeping it safe. It will die from a broken heart thinking it was once loved and now it isnāt.
Kittens and young cats are particularly dangerous to bunnies because they wanna play all the time and they can easily hurt a bunny. Even adults can but they rarely mess with rabbits once they’ve been socialized to each other, tho it’s still risky outside and the rabbit should be kept indoor to prevent risks of attacks. But you also need to get your bunny and cat used to each other, so I would recommend to do short meeting sessions in a small room where you’ll very closely watch them and can intervene at any moment. If your rabbit tries to run away you need to end the meeting session because it will trigger the cat’s instincts. If the rabbit doesn’t mind the cat too much or tries to defend itself or to dominate the cat, it’s good. You should let the rabbit have the upper hand so the cat will be less likely to mess with it. Stop the cat each time it tries to jump on the rabbit, chase the rabbit or harm the rabbit. You need to be very quick and firm and yell a loud “NO”. If your cat remains just slightly curious or chill with the rabbit, you can offer it a treat as a reward.
If the rabbit straight up attacks the cat violently and tries to bite, you need to end the session and also get the rabbit neutered because hormones can trigger agressive behaviors. If the rabbit is curious about the cat, let it interact but watch extremely closely.
Never let the two animals together without supervision, even for a minute. You should keep them in separate rooms when you can’t watch them.
I would suggest not letting them interact outdoor because cats are more likely to be predatory when they’re outside. Indoor they tend to he more chill.
Iām sorry but Iād get the cat a new home! Between the two Iād choose bunnies any day. Kick kitty out, most people unfortunately have indoor outdoor cats and this may be the case. Bunny should have their own space to feel safe that the cat canāt get to. Keep the cat far away from bunny if it doesnāt like them because one claw swipe and itās over. Iām not trying to put cat hate out there but after my personal experiences with cats (it was a nightmare) ā¦. Bunnies all the way! I want to preface I donāt hate cats but bunnies and other animals definitely place higher on the totem pole than they do as far as peaceful pets go and at least the bunny wonāt knock crap off of ledges (like tvs and plants). IMO cats are too curious for their own good and the good of others, plus cleaning a litter box twice a day is the only way the cat wonāt pee and poo everywhere Iād just never choose the cat over the bunny. Vegan cats all the way
That’s cat got to go, or your bun may end up killed by it. Honestly, I know sometimes cats and rabbits can get along, but it’s like, why take the chance?? Fun fact for cat/bun owners the number one killer in the animal kingdom is the house cat.
If they don’t get along just keep them completely separate. Rabbits can have a heart attack if badly scared enough by a predator, so this can end very badly. Also, try not to leave him unsupervised in that run as he eventually will dig out if it’s not secured on the bottom. He might also jump out if there’s no top (even if it’s too high to jump, I’d still recommend a cover to protect him from any birds of prey)
We found a bunny a few months ago and before deciding to keep it we had him interact with our two older cats. They don’t get along, the bunny is always chasing after them and they run away lol. But they coexist and sometimes they smack the bunny around so we never leave them unsupervised. If you have to keep the cat please introduce them slowly so the cat gets used to it and if you ever see that the behavior doesn’t change then just always keep them apart
Everyone saying your bun has to live indoors might be wrong depending on where you live. If you live somewhere with a mild climate they can happily live outside (with the right setup. NO time inside after it gets colder because they loose their thick fur, hiding spots, cooler areas or areas in the shade and warmer areas, secure from wind). It depends on where you live and you have to make sure that no predators get to your bun
They are super social though, so it really needs a bun friend. Poor guy is all alone.
Concerning cats and buns: you cannot force them to like each other. Up until our elderly cat died we kept a cat and bunnies, but we would never leave them with each other on their own. We were lucky enough that it worked between them, it it took time with my husband and me sitting between them, talking calmly, petting one and than the other to get to know the smell and so on. Furthermore we had specific areas for each pet that the other wasn’t allowed to step food into/ onto. The rabbits pen is only for the rabbits and the three upper floors of the cat tree are kitty only.
What really helped was when they realised that the others would beg for treats and than everyone would get something. (Wow, nice bunny just organised us a treat. So friendly!) But our issue was more of a scaredy cat and an attacking bunny. Cat and attack bunny never liked each other, but he learned to exist next to the calmer bun (took years though and they only shared their living space, they weren’t friends.
Trim claws regularly. Cats are quite intelligent and can be trained to bond with buns. You must remember their nature at all times, however, and supervise very attentively. I’m talking helicopter Mom style. Sit on the floor with the bun between your legs and encourage the cat to come and get acquainted. Then pet the bun and love on them and do the same with the cat so that the scent and interaction can be observed repeatedly.
I had many buns at the time I adopted a stray that had been outside and starving that knew of outdoor buns qualifying as food if she could catch them when she first came to me.
Throw the whole cat away
Nah but seriously supervised time out for rabbit
You could probably slowly train the cat It worked with my mom’s dog now the rabbits are his babies
Trim claws regularly!!!
Cats can be trained to accept and protect Buns even though it takes some time and goes against their predatory instincts. You must be very careful and observant at all times though. I’m talking Helicopter Mom style. The best way to do this is to sit on the floor with legs spread and bun between them then beckon kitty to investigate. Stroke and love on Bun and then do likewise to the cat. This gets them associated with scent and observing interactions. The interaction association is the most important they see you protecting and being kind to the bun repeatedly they will understand that it is not food.
I had a stray that came to me when I had many buns. You could see the question marks over her head when she was allowed inside and saw the enclosures. It took a lot of patience and persistence to get her to break the mental association of them being food as she had been outside in the wild for quite some time and had been starving. Eventually she learned and within a years time she was playing with them, zooming around the house together with them, and grooming them like they were her kittens/other cats.
She also would nab wild ones and carry them to the house when let outside and bring them to my porch unharmed. As if to say here, “I noticed you like these, and I didnt hurt it at all see? Could I maybe get a treat?”
Now this is really the exception to the rule. Especially given the fact that she was a matured cat that had been abandoned, as such she had been house trained previously, and knew to pay attn to what the person feeding her says. She was not the first cat that I personally trained for bun interaction though and I’m sure she won’t be the last as I also provide information to adopters that experience this issue fairly regularly. The same can be applied to dogs as well. You always want to be overly protective of the bun during any of these, “get to know one another,” sessions. It translates visibly to the predator animal so they understand that they are not allowed to harm it for any reason.
Also remember that some animals take longer to learn the concept than others as well. Never forget their original nature though. It can be hard if not impossible for some to override that. They will always do their best to try and get what it is that you’re asking/telling them though.
I think it’s time to pick and choose what’s a better situation, are you gonna make the rabbit suffer an avoidable fate? Or will you re-home your cat so it can have a better stress free life.
Reserve a room in your house for your bunny to roam in. That will be your bunnyās space. The cat can roam any other area of the house; just make sure he doesn’t go in the bunās room.
Occasionally you can supervise then together so that they can get used to each otherās scent. Introduce then to each other slowly and with a careful eye.
For the most part, they should be kept apart.
Please bring the bunny inside.
Let me rephrase the title for you āhow can I get a predator and its pray to like each other?ā.
Listen to the comments you are getting and donāt be stubborn or stuck in your ways because you think thatās how itās meant to be. Bring that DOMESTIC bunny inside where is supposed to be and keep him away from predators itās that simple.
I have a bunny and cats. The cats will move or hiss at Marilyn if she comes too close.
When I was introducing them, if one of the cats bat at her, Iād say no, and moved them into the room. When theh got up to move away from Marilyn, they got pets and kisses. Its about redirecting the cat.
So now when my rabbit bothers my two younger cats, they scream and hiss till I come to move the rabbit. She highkey bullies them.
Give bunny own giant space while using big dog play pens with a very tall height and a big area for just bun and let cat be outside of that pen its just bunny area not cat š you can find giant dog play pen for outdoors on Amazon or chewy yes you use the outdoors one for inside section for bunny. If interested, I would love to share pics of my layout as a reference. Do let me know.
I also have a cat, and the cat plays too rough. If you wanna introduce them, you need to be close as heck or bunny won’t see another day. I understand the struggle, but please dont leave bunny outside š Bunny is indoors unless outside under your supervision 24/7. I know you will do what’s best, and things take adjustments š You got this!
We can bounce ideas if necessary! Good luck!
Why are people so dumb?Ā
These comments are all going to biased and tell you to get rid of the cat, which is insane to me. There’s always a compromise- split your house into two sections. Let your bunny have one half and the cat have another. My dog stays downstairs and my bunny stays upstairs. My dog comes upstairs at night, but that’s when i put my bunny back in her enclosure and shut the bedroom door.
You cannot leave the cat and rabbit alone unsupervised, even for a few minutes.
Some cat care trustworthy in this respect and some are NOT. You cannot risk this, as rabbits are extremely susceptible to infections and abscesses from even minor scratches or bites.
Also one quick flick of a claw can cost an eye for the bun. This is not an uncommon occurrence in this situation.
Bunny is also substantially safer and will be happier living indoors away from temp extremes/fluctuations, mites, parasites, fleas, flystrike, other predators, etc. They live substantially longer being indoors and are much less likely to wind up feeling lonely, as they can see you go about your day to day routines, over being outside by themselves unless you happen to be out there. Plus, being outside, you are not nearly as likely notice behavioral changes if she were to become sick.
Pets belong indoors and in separate, secure environments. Thereās no āgetting alongā with a cat who is trying to claw at a bunny. Cats are predators and bunnies are prey, hard stop.