Bonding a new girl to a trio(2 girls and a boy

Hi,

I was wondering if anyone could give me advice.

I recently rehomed 3 bunnies. Two girls are sisters and are now 5 months -Pansy and Mini-, the boy is yr and half and not relatedm-monty-
I have a double hutch so kept girls seperate -as they are too tiny- from the humping Monty. When they out of the cage they get on really well.

The dilema...

I own these rabbits with my cousin, and she wanted to get Monty his own companion. So we went and got a 5 month old girl for him Crystal. They seem to be getting along really well.

Pansy and mini are quite different. Pansy is always chasing Crystal, fur flying everywhere. Mini isn't too bad, sometimes shes licking Crystal and sometimes chasing her and has once pulled out some fur.

Crystal is very quiet and shy.

Is possible for all the girls to get along, or would it just not work. Monty gets along with all the girls...he's the pimp.

Can i just ask firstly, are any of thee bunnies spayed / neutered?

More worryingly is Monty neutered if he is cavorting with this 5 month old girl?

Oh, yes he was castrated few months ago. Mini and Pansy aren't big enough to get spayed yet, they'll get done around feb.

I know once they spayed it should help them with the new girl,but is there anything i can do in the meantime??

Girls are worse!

Error see other post

Girls are worse!

Hi - your trio of girls seem to be developing habits which could lead into adulthood. From my bonding experiences, once a rabbit chases - with fur flying everywhere, this can become her purpose and hobby. Bonding boy and girl is love at first sight - as long as the girl likes him!!

If bonding rabbits do fight aggressively (not just a little tussle to sort out heirachy) then the sub-ordinate (picked on) rabbit will always associate this with the other rabbit. Like wise the chaser/aggressor will always see the subordinate as something to take their boredom or aggression out on. Rosie - my dutch is a little minx and picked on Smog bunny whenever she felt bored! Thats given the fact she has tonnes of toys and a whole summer house conversion to play in and a new husbun! Along with 2 guineakids to play with!

It is better to start again from scratch. Have you done the whole 3 weeks of hutch bonding (next to each others hutch - scents swapping etc) first?

Even though these bunnies are too young to neuter they can still cause severe damage to each other. Learn the signs of aggression (watch the ears!) and nip it in the bud before fur starts flying! Try a water spray bottle - give the aggressor a squirt but don't let her see it's you. This way the aggressor will associate the subordinate rabbit with getting squirted and will stop the vendetta! It is a form of tough love but works - for the sake of your trio's long term health and happiness! It also works with stopping a male permanently mounting... our Joey doesn't bother now - he know's they are his girls and leaves them in peace! Neutering did help but it takes a while for the hormones to drop! This too becomes a habit and associated with seeing the other bunny. If living together permanently your male will stop doing this - if you are taking them away and putting them back everyday he will carry on - as if to say hello and establish his ground at every meeting!

A good reason to stop the fighting before it gets too nasty... My dutch got out into our pregnant doe's run and boy did she get it! Rosie had superficial injuries - a scratch and bite wound... but worst of all she refused to eat for 2 days and had to have steroids from the vet, because she was so traumatised... or narked at the fact she lost the fight - on of the two!

What I am saying is it can affect them mentally and rabbits need the best start to ensure their behaviour and aggression can be controlled (to a point of course!) Association with good things like treats and veggies works with bonding - as does trips in the car which for some reason turns enemies into best buddies for half an hour! There are lots of bonding tips online... but the most important thing is don't rush them into liking each other!

Sorry for the long reply - I only visit once a day ish and so thought I would blurt it all out whilst im on here!!! Good Luck!