Why does he love my house rabbit and not us

[tammyv]

my lovebird that I have owned for a month will not warm up to us but loves the rabbit.. What can I do?

[michael]

my lovebird that I have owned for a month will not warm up to us but loves the rabbit.. What can I do?

Really, lovebirds and other animals don't mix. For one thing, this could result in an injury to an unsuspecting four legged pet, or worse yet, the death of your lovebird.

Certainly, rabbits for the most part are very docile creatures. Surely, I would not be so worried as to think one would actually harm your lovie, but then maybe more so that your lovebird could give your rabbit a heart attack. None the less, what your rabbit might normally be carrying around on his/her coat could be harmful to your lovebird. Just as well, rabbits, like cats, dogs and humans, etc, also carry around in their saliva whats called pasteurella bacteria. This bacteria can kill your lovebird in as little as 1 hour, leaving little or no time to seek appropriate vet care.

Lovebirds for the most part are very curious creatures. On top of this, they can be absolutely fearless if placed in the right or wrong circumstances. I would try working with your lovebird on an individual basis without the risk of harmful interference. Besides, your rabbit may think this is a good idea too. Have you checked out the forums yet? Behavior and taming? Please let us know how things go...............:)

[BarbieH]

Yup, you've got to be very careful about interacting with the rabbit. They can carry a bacteria called pasteurella -- it stays dormant in the rabbit, but can kill the lovebird. Cats can also carry pasteurella. They pick it up from rodents or rabbits, and transmit it through their saliva. So it doesn't even need to be a bite to transmit infection, just saliva getting on the bird's feathers; then the bird preens and ingests the bacteria.