Grunt if you love breakfast

Betsy and I get very excited when it’s time to eat – but we both have our own ways of showing that excitement. Betsy will run around in circles, while I… grunt.

Just watch this (short) video and listen carefully:

Mum and dad still get freaked out a little bit whenever I grunt at them. They’re still not quite sure if it’s a normal sound for a bunny to be making, or if it means I’m happy or excited or angry or annoyed or whatever.

Of course I kind of like to keep them confused, so I think I’ll keep grunting from time to time. After all, if mum and dad can make all sorts of noises, why can’t I?

Though interestingly, I’ve never heard Betsy make any sound before – maybe it’s just a guy bunny thing. Do any other bunnies out there grunt?

-Gus


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20 responses to “Grunt if you love breakfast”

  1. Jeni Avatar

    How cute!

    Actually, 3 of my bunnies grunt, and they’re all girls! They do the same as Gus, taking food out of the dish to eat it. I *think* it’s an ownership thing (like “THIS IS MY LEAF, YOU CANNOT HAVE IT, I WILL THUMP YOU FOR IT!!!”). Or they’re just ornery at mealtime, lol.

  2. Bunny & Karma Avatar
    Bunny & Karma

    Bunny grunts everytime I go to give them food, as they are both running circles and binky-ing around my feet! They sure do love food.

  3. andria Avatar
    andria

    my bunny grunts and she is female.
    she tends not to grunt when eating, but she will grunt her tiny face off when she’s mad about something!

  4. Jennie Avatar
    Jennie

    Too Cute! My male grunts, charges, and runs around my feet when I feed him. It is a little scary so I always warn the pet sitter, he won’t bite!

  5. Glenna Avatar

    Elvis grunts when you make him do something he doesn’t want to do (nails, hair combing, etc.) It’s quite fierce but pretty funny coming from such a little hairy bun.

  6. Shadowydreamer Avatar

    Scout never grunted – she had a ‘giggle’ tho when she was delighted with something. Completely freaked me out the first time I heard it! This little ND/Lionhead cross bouncing up and down on the back of my couch ‘giggling’ her fool head off. She also snored. 😀

    Sage grunts if I’m REALLY irritating her. Typically if I want to show someone a grunting rabbit I just have to interupt one of her naps to pet her. Unless it’s a child (weirdo rabbit LOVES children) I get grunted at and she turns her tail to me and grunts a few more times as she closes her eyes and tries to go back to sleep. (She only closes her eyes when she’s ignoring the human. 😉

    I think Gus’ noise is more of a ‘glee!’ than a ‘grunt’ .. Since you obviously never feed them and they’re starved and abused bunnies.

  7. Lisa Avatar

    Biff grunts every time I have the audacity to try to pet him at the “wrong” time. Sogna never grunts she’s my angel. My buns have never grunted around food, they just run full speed and circle and try to climb up my legs if I don’t put the food down fast enough.

  8. the bunns Avatar

    Benson did. The Princess goes in her box and coos!!

  9. Friend of the Animals Avatar

    I have a grunting bunny, she only does when food comes around and is also a bit aggressive when she grunts. Crazy buns!

  10. Crafty Green poet Avatar

    our rabbit Anya used to grunt!

  11. Fiona Bun Avatar
    Fiona Bun

    Orlando grunts AND hogs the food bowl

  12. Karen M Avatar

    Weasley is a grunter when he is irritated, especially if the irriatation is about the food not arriving fast enough. He also snores. Ginny will just circle the food dish to the point where she occassionally forgets to start eating!

  13. Emily Avatar
    Emily

    Thank you so much for posting this video!! It’s great to see the kids in action. My boy bunny only grunts at my mom (she’s the only person in the world he doesn’t like), but I’ve bun-sat for a few girl bunnies who grunted a lot when they were angry at my Peej.

  14. Nicole Avatar

    I’m not sure I can hear the grunting. (Is that Gus at 0:14, or you?) Frank grunts all the time – sometimes when I’m bringing him food, but more often when he’s ankle-chasing. (Frank is, unfortunately, unaltered.) It’s a very quiet, bass noise, I’m not sure I could capture it on video. Twice he’s grunted loudly at me (more like a growl or bark) – these were “back-off” grunts because I was holding him down for enforced grooming.

  15. Keithius Avatar

    That is me at 0:14 – they pulled the bowl down quite hard!

    Gus grunts at:

    0:00 – almost immediately when the video starts, though it’s faint and hard to hear

    0:04 – as Betsy is jumping in front of his face in the box

    0:08 – as Gus basically head-butts Betsy before the food bowl comes down. This is the clearest/loudest grunt, since the camera was pretty close to him.

    But, yeah, Gus’s grunts apparently aren’t picked up by my camera very well. I’ll keep my camera handy, though, to see if I can get a better recording!

  16. Jessica Avatar
    Jessica

    Only my girl bunny grunts/growls when I open her cage, but otherwise it’s just purring and dancing when there’s a treat. Gus and Betsy, I love you so! You are both sooo cute! Gus’ behavior is actually aggressive (ears back and ready to charge) while Betsy is bouncing all over him hehe, but he’s not actually acting out on her since she doesn’t have the food w/o him.

  17. Nicole Avatar

    Thanks for the time references – I listened closely and did hear them this time. Gus sounds nothing like Frank’s at all (neither Frank’s excita-grunts nor his anger-grunt). How interesting!

  18. Freckles and Deb Avatar

    Freckles is definitely a grunter — when she’s annoyed or angry or frustrated. Mainly in the context of food — but sometimes because we’re doing something she doesn’t like.

  19. sabrina Avatar
    sabrina

    my bunny scooter does this when mad!!! lol but he also kinda does it as a purr!!! lol <3 hes my bud

  20. Magpie Avatar
    Magpie

    My bun Osker does this too, but only when he’s angry or being aggressive. Sometimes he’ll get mad at you if you get too close to him when he’s in a bad mood (which is rare), and you’ll get a nice punch in the nose with the grunt sometimes.
    He’s very patient and polite about food though. He quietly stands on his hind legs sniffing the air when we’re filling his bowl, no grunting, no nibbling, no nose poking. He’s very well behaved for a bun.