2 bonded pairs:1 garden:access time?

Hello all,

Just after some opinions and advice really.

I have 2 bonded pairs, Zion & Fia (1) and Winter and Alice (2).

Both pairs are allowed access to the garden when I am around to supervise but only one pair at a time obviously. It's just such a rigmoral when I let one pair out so to 'hide' the other pair to avoid one pair harassing them and the pair in their own territory doing the dominance dancewith eachother, which includes a bit of circling, chasing and fur pulling, and a bit of a to do through the wire.

Ever since each pair have showed signs of doing this whilst the other pair have free range I have had to take action with something like this:

(you can see Fia fishing around on the right!)

Fia does get a bit nosey and her and Alice had a slight to do through the mesh (don't worry its cm wide mesh so little chance of injury) when she sneaks underneath the weed fabric. Winter & Zion (the boys) don't actually seem that bothered but of course its the girls getting all territorial etc.

So my question is do I keep going with the avoiding and 'hiding' tactics? Or do I just them them get on with it and get used to eachother getting used to being around their territories. OR do I then get into the possiblity of Alice and Fia turning on Winter and Zion when in their respective homes?

Just wondering what everyone else do?

Ta

Think I just had my answer:





I think Winter eventually took a dislike to Fia sticking her nose in where it wasn't wanted and so Alice and Winter went a bit mad at eachother circling and massive fur pulling. This isn't going to change is it?

So is my answer to separate the 2 buns in their house at play time for the other pair? That is what I have done now. Winter in the hutch and Alice in the run. Bless her she's a bit shaken.

Bleedin' rabbits!!

Any thoughts?

A similar thing happens when I let Jazz and Gizmo out and vice verca so now as Jazz and Giz have a massive area already I just shut them in their hutch and block it off so they cant see eclipse (this is also seperated by a fence) and now only Eclipse gets garden time for a couple hours a day.

Please note Jazz and Giz have a huge enclosure that the have perminant accses to.

My French lops have the same thing :roll: I cant have any other bunnies around their aviary at ALL ! Louis will madly attack Lottie :shock: They are fine with the piggies opposite but NO bunnies. All the other bunnies have to be out of sight :roll: I can just about get on with bonding a pair on their patio if I cover Lottie and Louis aviary with sheets and the other buns are contained within in their run. I know how you feel but cant offer any other advice.

I have the same problem with 5 pairs to exercise, which is why I spend so much time on bunny patrol in the garden!

I have to cover all the runs when each pair comes out as two pairs have this referred aggression and will fight with each other if they even get too good of a sniff of the other buns.:roll:

Its a real pain, and a problem I don't think will change.

On a windy day like today I can't take the chance with the covers blowing around either so the stroppy ones have to go in their sheds whilst the others have a run.

Not much help but I don't think it is something that you can change - just the way some of them are:roll::roll:

When I had 2 pairs of bunnies I had exactly the same rigmarole and don't think it ever changes.

I guess a 4-way bond is out of the question.................

Hi, I too sometimes have the same problem with 3 pairs to let out although oddly enough I have not had this problem with the current foster rabbits being in the Eglu run because they have not ever been out in the garden (so they don't think it belongs to them - unlike the others).

All my pairs, especially Sylvia, like to wind the others up when they are out in the garden - Sylvia's trick is to go and do a big wee and poo outside of Tilly & Humphrey's shed, I'm sure she does this on purpose! Often there will be a bit of chasing at first and the same with Paula & Trevor, but I tend to keep an eye and come over when this happens. It has certainly improved over the past 6-12 months or so I would say, but I think they will always wind each other up to some extent. When we first got Trevor and Paula it was much worse, Humphrey & Trevor would spend ages chasing each other back and forth through the wire mesh! This no longer happens.

However it's a different story when I have put Tilly & Humphrey in the Eglu run in the past (which now is reserved for foster bunnies), because it has completely open sides. This seems to create some nasty chasing and bullying so I do not use it for my bunnies any more or Paula & Trevor, only the short term fosters who do not tend to go out in the garden 'free range'.

So it seems the more 'open' the run/pen the more chasing and fur pulling it will create. It also is likely to be worse with single sex pairs. As long as the buns have somewhere to escape to within their pen, this is the best thing. Paula normally hides in the top of the hutch and Tilly runs underneath theirs (it's always the boys who get set off.. oh and Sylvia!) I think it can improve with time especially if they get used to a routine and tend to be let out in the same order each day.

Oh another thing, Sylvia sometimes chases Oli round the room if she can see the other bunnies outside but it only really bothers her if they are on the decking. With her, I tend to try and remove her from the situation and make her come and sit with us for a few minutes and then reward her for good behaviour. However Oli has got quite good at dodging her so it never comes to blows but it is unpleasant for him so I do tend to try and curb her behaviour when she does this as she can be very territorial. It only happens from time to time and again has got better over time.

Helen

Hmmmm well looks like this is it forever. Zion and Fia's Playhouse and run will be moving up the other end of the garden next to Winter and Alice's hutch/run and there will only be 4ft between runs so I think I may have to cover one side of one of the runs. Will see how they go.

What a nightmare.....

Bleedin' bunnies!

P.s. I don't think there would be any chance of a foursome! Alice and Fia were very determined to get at eachother altho Alice was in 'her' house.

I don't think I will be trying it anytime soon!