Being dominant!

i got George from a rescue around October time and he has lived with Peppa since getting him and they have always got along. I now have 2 other rabbits too. They each take turns in their bonded pairs to have free time in the garden or in their runs. However as soon as George sees another rabbit he starts bullying Peppa and she goes and hides in their hutch. This afternoon Snowy was having some free time outsid and she went near their run Peppa was hiding inside George tried to scratch and bite through the mesh and has injured Snowys ears.:evil: He was then worked up and started on Peppa. I moved Snowy straight away. He has been castrated. It is hard to not let him see another bun and its not fair on Peppa to be intimidated by him. As a rule he is not particularly friendly, he will take food from your hand, he snatches it and runs off but he does not like to be touched. A couple of weeks ago he leapt at my hubby and cut his hand. Any advice? They are all family pets but our daughter 4 is becoming a little fearful of him.

Assume all are bonded?

Its referred aggression and its totally normal I used to get this with Trip and Scarlett, if Buu or Beau were free ranging in the garden and went too close to Trip and Scarlett's run then the pair of them would start fighting each other. Mine have only ever been bothered with the sight of another bunny and not the smell, sometimes I put a wooden board up in front of Trip and Scarlett's run so they couldn't see the other two playing in the garden and that was fine. Even if Buu or Beau came up really close on the other side of the board Trip and Scarlett couldn't see them and didn't react to them

Biscuit's Mum! said:

Assume all are bonded?

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Peppa & George are as are Snowy and Pumpkin.

Yes this is referred aggression. My two do this too when they smell/see my single male Buzz. Well, Ruby doesn't do anything, but Ralph attacks her. He even ripped the tip of her ear when he smelt a toy that Buzz uses regularly. There doesn't seem to be anything to stop it unless you have the patience to keep an eye on them constantly and get them used to seeing each other?

This "referred aggression" is a big pain in the bum. Smudge is lovely and calm with Rufus, licking and grooming each other. Until she sees another rabbit then its all claws and teeth and the fur goes flying from anything she can grab. She doesn't seem bothered by smells or sound, just sight.

How do you get a bunny over "referred aggression"????

Graeme27Uk said:

How do you get a bunny over "referred aggression"????

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Dont let them near the others so they cannot see or smell each other. Use separate areas where they are let out so that the ground does not smell of the other.

janice-arc said:

Dont let them near the others so they cannot see or smell each other. Use separate areas where they are let out so that the ground does not smell of the other.

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But is there a way to get a bunny to overcome this aggression so that they are not aggressive any more? Is it like re-bonding all over again?

Graeme27Uk said:

But is there a way to get a bunny to overcome this aggression so that they are not aggressive any more? Is it like re-bonding all over again?

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No its normal for them to do this and they won't get used to it or get over it, the best thing you can do is avoid it happening by keeping them seperate. If another rabbit comes close to a bonded pair or group it will upset their bond especially if they are on their own territory, so of course they are going to fight amongst themselves when this happens