Dogs and Rabbits

Having a predator near a small prey animal can be risky. When I was young my Grandfather had an African basenji given to us. They were bred to hunt and the only way that dog could view my rabbits was as lunch. One time my favorite buck escaped, got within reach of the dog and it was all over. I tried training and socialization but the instinct to kill small furry animals was what he lived for.

In Cache Valley I had an Anatolian shepherd. While in her puppy stage during the first year, she would catch small animals and eat them. She had to be supervised around my other animals. After she matured it's like her motherly instinct kicked in and she looked at them all as hers. The kid goats would play king of the mountain on her back and she finally became safe around all the other animals around my place. Her issue was she liked to roam and could sail over a 6 foot fence and hated our neighbor. Livestock guardian breeds bond well with animals but work purely on instinct. They are very independent and don't have that "I want to please you" mindset.

Farm and ranch dogs that work around livestock do not survive if they are breaking into the chicken coop or attacking small animals that belong on the farm. Even the farm cats are typically at least tolerated. The problem when it comes to rabbits is that shepherd or collie type dogs have a lot of energy and prey drive. If anything large or small is running from them, their instinct is to control their movement and they do bite. Their attempt at maintaining control of disobedient underlings on "their" property can be deadly for a rabbit.  The great thing about these dogs is that they are very trainable and usually want to please. So if you can make it clear that you don't want the rabbits hurt, you've got a chance at a good protector.

Our current dog Jax is a mix of border collie and blue heeler. He is about one and a half years old now. He loves to play tug of war and can do battle longer than any of us can. Tons of endurance and energy. While he was young, he was fine with the rabbits as long as they are in their cage, which from past experience is all I hope for that first year. He's very territorial and protective of anything in our yard.  I put him in his crate when anyone comes to get rabbits. He doesn't like non-family messing with "his" rabbits.

Once while eating breakfast we heard a squeal. I could see that a cage door had been left open and found Jax laying on top of a 4 week old black kit. It's like he didn't like to see it run around and so thought he should control it by holding it down. Surprisingly the kit was completely unhurt. However a larger rabbit that might struggle would be met with more force. Rabbits are somewhat fragile and it's easy for them to get a broken spine. Over the last few months we've been working on obedience training and teaching Jax to be gentle with the rabbits and that it's really bad to use any force on them.  Part of it is training and partially just growing up and getting out of the puppy stage but now he's being much more relaxed about critters running around loose.

Jax (australian cattle dog X border collie) and 11 week female rabbit

If you have a dog that lives to kill small furry animals, then I'd just make sure you are able to keep it isolated from your rabbits. Puppies of any breed need to be supervised. I like the livestock guardian breeds but they are not a good choice in town due to their huge size and love of roaming. The herding breeds are not perfect but workable for my needs. Herding breeds are probably too high energy for most families to handle. Some dogs can be good with rabbits but definitely not all.

The other aspect is can your rabbits adjust to a dog running around their hutch? Even if the dog is not a danger, a high strung rabbit could hurt themselves running in fear at the sight of a predator. Some rabbits may have a hard time relaxing and the presence of predatory pets, could effect a doe's mothering. Having calm rabbits is an important trait to select for. A rabbits temperament and disposition can effect many other aspects of it's life. I suspect a lot of poor mothers have poor temperament. I like a rabbit that is not easily spooked and can calm down quickly. Temperament is definitely inheritable. Calm parents typically have calm kits.

It can take time for a rabbit to adjust if it's never seen a dog before. So any new rabbit should have a place in it's hutch where it can go hideout if it feels vulnerable. Usually it just takes a few days and they stop running and hiding when the dog approaches. A cardboard box, large nest box or partition to hide behind has worked well for me.