And I also agree with the others about never saying never - I had 40 stitches in the face from a so-called “safe” dog.
Loose dogs are a big pet peeve of mine, and so many people make excuses for loose dogs. Dogs are the owners responsibility - as a dog owner I know this all to well, and make sure my dogs are not out wreaking havoc for others. It’s just as much a part of pet owenership as food, shots and exercise.
Hope bunny is doing better. He sounds like he got lucky though. I will always remember the little orange bunny I had when I was a little kid named Sammy. A beagle got in our yard, didn’t attack him, but run him to his death. I can still see that nose twitching and me coming to the realization that when it stopped he was dead. I guess I was around 8 or so. That was my first “death” of an animal that I remember. It was terrible. Let us know how your bunny is doing.
Sounds to me like the owner of the dogs needs to stop trying to fix the fence and set up a dog run or two instead.
hi-jack/
My doggie (male american eskimo) is in danger from wolves…,I should start a thread I need advise …
sorry 'bout the jacking
/lo-jack
This happened to my bunny too, only it was a dog that was a half wolf breed & bunny was in his cage which got thrown around quite a bit. So I went out & the wolfy creature was pretty placid, but then it ran away.
So I called the nice city animal control people. She showed up in about fifteen minutes with that wolf already in her truck, which was surprising.
She told me the owners were fined for letting their dog get loose.
Sorry about your bunny. I hope he makes a full recovery. I know it must have been fairly traumatic for you and Hawklette as well, knowing how much she loves him.
While it seems like a lot of work, I think a large enough hutch or “bunny run” might accommodate him. It would have to be larger than your average hutch, to give him the feel of independence he’s come to know and love, and it would have to be dog-proof, but it may be worth the effort. At least you’re assured of having nice weather in which to work on it, anyway.
I hope your poor bunny is healing well. I love bunnies, and care for orphaned baby cottontails (wild bunnies). I agree that perhaps it’s time to give your bunny more protection from the dogs, and any other predators. Your bun is a tough one; they have such delicate nervous systems, and the stress of an attack can kill them if the outright damage doesn’t. I hope the dog owners are doing all possible to contain them; they are trespassing on your property and shouldn’t be allowed to do that.
Best wishes for your poor Bun.
Just a follow-up bump to thank those who expressed good wishes for our rabbit. His Royal Imperial Bunnyness got a clean bill of health from the vet - no infection, inflammation, bleeding or internal injuries apparent. The doctor fears he may be blind in the eye that was popped from the socket, but he seems to respond to motion from that side, so I’m hoping he’s okay. He is back in The Kingdom of Bunny (the back yard) and happy to be so. The neighbor assures me that the dogs are monitored and that the fence is being attended to with impenetrable apron of sorts.
Thanks for the support and good wishes.
It only just occurred to me (and you know I’m slow on the uptake, why do you think I never got any seconds at dinner?):
You don’t have any say in the final decision, of course, but have you spoken to your neighbor about one of those Invisible Fence dealios for his pooches?
I’m sure some expense would be involved, but there’s also expense in repairing your fence constantly, and also in going to court on charges of lepucide.
The electric fence idea occurred to me, too, but I didn’t mention it. As long as he arrages some kind of fence that will work; I don’t really want to tell him how to spend his money. He’s a nice guy and aware of his responsibility. I want to be nice, too, which is why I paid the vet bills instead of handing them to him like I could have. He can use his money for his fence so this doesn’t happen again.
Oh, thats great news that your bunny is better.
What happens if your bunny runs into that electric fence?
The electric dealio was suggested for the neighbor’s dogs. Bunny has his own non-electric fence. There is no problem with him getting out of his yard.
I would always be leery about leaving a bun in the backyard unsupervised–especially a little guy like a ND (although, admittedly, their attitude probably makes up for most of the size difference 
). I don’t know where you’re located, but as has already been addressed there’s any number of predatory animals that could come by and pluck him out of your yard. Aside from loose/stray dogs, cats, in my area there are raccoons, numerous raptor species, coyotes, all kinds of hungry critters. Then there’s the issue of the possible escape, he could dig or climb out… you might be surprised at what an enterprising rabbit can accomplish.
My suggestion would be to agree with the others who suggested to build him a covered run with the fencing buried at least a foot or two around the perimeter of the run to prevent digging.
Good luck 
Peace,
~mixie
Sparrowhawk,
Yeayy! I’m so glad Bunny is fine.
Thanks for sharing.
Gaaah! Not electric fence, Invisible Fence! We’re not talking about longhorn steers, we’re talking about doggies! The little harmless-shock thingie on the collar that allows dogs to run around within a set perimeter without the actual physical boundary.
I wouldn’t want anyone to think I was suggesting incarcerating the dogs in a “Great Escape” kind of situation. But I’ve seen the Invisible Fence collars work quite well. Eventually the dog knows its boundaries and stays within them even without a collar on.
Dog-trainer here has to say something about that - and about the topic of dogs and something we call “Prey Drive”
In most service animal work (not necessarily guide-dog work, mind you) we seek out animals who have strong play and prey drive - this means they’ll chase, they’ll retrieve, they’ll play with humans. You won’t find better trained dogs than these working dogs… none of them would attack a child… but it’s very hard to stop them from “crittering” - running after rabbits, chasing squirrels - when they’re not on the job. On the job, they know they must not. Off the job, they’re dogs. Dogs with play and prey drive CHASE things. They pounce on their stuffed toys. They make their squeakers squeak. It’s hard for them to tell the difference… I once had an instructor - a police dogmaster who now trains landmine detection dogs - fabulous man - who told me that even the best of the best dogs will chase things… even with all their training. Your hope is that when you scream out a “drop on recall” down command, you just hope it’s stronger then their instinctive drive to chase prey - not kids, not other humans, not bikes or cars… furry creatures. In some dogs, it is - they’re that well trained and that driven to please. In others, they just can’t help it. Especially if they’re in their yard, unsupervised… Now, if they chase children, they have issues that should be worked on. Dogs who chase anything and everything can be helped and trained out of it - most dogs are, by their owners. But if left to their own devices, unsupervised… well…
In SAR dogs, it’s one of our common problems - dogs will like chasing squirrels because it’s fun! It’s part of their nature. We do curb the behavior, but it’s still part of the initial qualities we were looking for.
I wouldn’t make an association between a dog who attacks a bunny (though that’s such a sad story - I’m so happy the bunny is alive and mostly well! That must have been so scary…) and say he might have attacked a child.
There’s a difference between aggressivity and prey drive. A very BIG difference. In a fenced yard, a tamed family rabbit may not be able to escape. In the wild, bunnies sure as hell have given some of my fastest retrievers and sheepdogs a run for their money and have escaped unharmed. If a dog were to chase people - it would be a huge problem. It would probably have been caught EARLY in its life - as a puppy - and taught not to even DARE try. I have to do that with most of my high-prey-drive dogs. However, we do encourage them (as owners) to play tug, and to play fetch with stuffed toys… and to chase each other when they play… and to chase toys on a rope… so we reinforce the prey drive, but not the “humans are fare game too” drive, early. It’s a nifty distinction.
Anyway. As for the OP’s question:
I wouldn’t be surprised if the dogs returned, if they saw the bunny free in the yard again. Right now, your beloved pet (bless his heart!) is an easy target - no place to easily withdraw to, and certainly no previous “flight” experience from such situations. Dogs are quick and agile - a stunned bunny is not. The dogs found this fun - it’s a game - and though you scolded them, they may well return again. They’re getting something out of it - it’s self-rewarding. Ah, Skinner… (Operant conditionning, anyone?)
With regards to invisible fencing for dogs: I’ve seen it work rather well with some animals. Especially calmer dogs who are very sensitive. I’ve also seen dogs with very strong prey drives run straight through the “fence”, get zapped, and continue chasing a squirrel across the street. Of course, you try getting the dog back HOME when that happens. They don’t care about getting zapped on the way out because, well, the squirrel is far more interesting… but coming back, they get zapped on the way in, too. I had tried that with my Mika, a strong willed Malinois with an incredible prey drive. She turned out to be one of the most incredible SAR and detection dogs I’ve ever seen. She was a hard worker, a hard dog… but a sweetie with people. Still, she had a no-nonesense attitude.
She once ran after a rabbit, straight through the invisible fence. Lost the bunny, came back, and sat on the outside of the fence, waiting for someone to turn it off before coming back in. Smart dog. The draw back into the fenced area wasn’t enough to warrant getting zapped again, according to her.
As for the rabbit - I’m so glad the bunny is okay! It’s such a hard thing, really - I can understand you would want him to get some outside time, it’s good for him! I’m all for a caged/maybe even a chicken-wire fenced run for him, with a roof? It would keep the dogs out, for one, and give him some fresh air.
Hope all is well!
Elly n’ the dawgs
Dave, I knew exactly what you meant.
Elenfair, I’m with you on the dog concepts. Even though I used the word “attacked” in the thread title, I never considered the dogs as aggressive. As I said, the bunny was just picked up, squeezed and shaken (“Shoot! This crappy toy don’t squeak worth a darn!”) and dropped when we grabbed and screamed at them. No mauling or tearing. I like dogs as well as bunnies and these are a nice pair. But of course, I don’t want them in my yard again.
The only way they could see the bunny is if they got out and came around to the back of our house, which is not visible from the street. I suspect they’re smart enough and have good enough noses and memories to return if they get out again. The bunny actually does have a bolt-hole, having dug a nice little burrow for himself, with three separate entrances, under the woodpile. But if the dogs can dig under their fence, they won’t balk at digging after him and he has nowhere else to go. It would buy him time if someone were home, that’s all. In fact, that’s what it did this time, but when my daughter and I were in the yard, he seemed to assume they were okay (as you say, he had no experience with predators) and he waltzed out and sat in the grass. He wasn’t even running, just sitting there, and the dogs bolted at him.
He continues to do fine, and seems even more affectionate than usual these days. I’ve heard those near-death experiences can change your life.
My husband replaced the broken down chicken wire fencing the dogs came over with something more substantial. I hope that will keep them out should they get loose again. Regarding Mixie’s point about feral predators, we don’t really have them here unless you count the wild pigs up the mountain (never seen one come down where people live) or the mongooses. I suspect the bun would be fine with a covered run that included his burrow, but the thought of sinking another fence two feet into the yard daunts me a bit. And it irks me that I’m trying to keep his dogs out of my yard. He should be the one getting the dog run, and keeping his animals in his yard. My bunny doesn’t come over and chase his pets.
I was trying to make a point about the dogs’ owner making an excuse about the fence. I must have worded it wrong because more than one person here has taken it that I meant if a dog attacks a rabbit means the dog could attack a child. This is not what I meant.
The dogs got away from their owner’s control and attacked Sparrow Hawk’s pet bunny. The dogs’ owner then said he tried to keep them contained, but they got free. My point is that what if the dogs had attacked a child? Would the parents brush it off with an “Well, the owner had tried to keep the dogs in…” ? Probably not, and the dog owner would be up shit creek.
I certainly did not mean that if a dog attacks a bunny he might attack a child - sorry for the misunderstanding.
As a dog owner I am well aware that if my dogs got out and damaged anything it is my fault. And making an excuse about the fence not holding won’t mean a hill of beans if serious damage occurs.
Dogs (no matter how gentle) can be aggresive sometimes. My own puppy is closely monitored around little kids. She’s a big dog already (8 months old, about 40 pounds and 2 feet tall on all 4 legs) and would probably end up hurting a little Munchkin while trying to play with them. I’m a little scared that she would push a little kid down.
Needless to say, she won’t be meeting any bunnies any time soon.