new bonded rabbits - now fighting!

Hello!

Need some help!

We have had our bonded pair of unneutered male rabbits now (1 year old brothers - netherland dwarf x lionheads) for about a week and a half.
One of them has been humping the other, and the other has been trying to hump back but keeps getting chased. They have been doing quite a bit of territorial marking (poos everywhere). Otherwise they have been fine - grooming each other, sleeping together, eating together etc.
We have just today let them out to run around in the frontroom and they bagan circling each other. I watched them as I thought it seemed a bit agressive, and sure enough they started chasing which ended in a really nasty scuffle with hair flying all over the place! They were both up on the hind legs boxing each other.

I've separated them now (one in the kitchen and one in the frontroom). They are going to the vets on Wednesday for a check up to see if they are OK for neutering.

Otherwise - what shall I do?? I have no idea now! We want them to stay bonded as a pair

Thanks,
Jenny

They MUST be neutered before you try bonding again, unneutered male rabbits can fight to the death. It will take a couple of months for their hormones to die down completely. There is a sticky I think about bonding rabbits that may help you.

Neutering your rabbits won't necessarily stop them from fighting, I am afraid, because once boys have fought they quite often do so again.

Neutering would definitely have to be a priority in order to have them bonded. Once they are neutered, keep them separate for a month or two- let their hormones die down and any bad memories fade. Then choose a room to bond them in, completely sterilize it of any bunny scent and start the bonding process. Just be patient and don't have any expectations of them- they'll be starting their relationship from scratch after all.

It's easy. Get them both neutered otherwise that will keep fighting and any of them will get hurt badly.

Plus it removes the risk of cancer too

Could it just be a one-off? Or is it likely they will fight again if put together?

The stress of moving could have triggered the fighting but they will remember they no longer like each other and might be fine for a few days but then suddenly attack again. It really is playing with fire trying to put them back together again.
If you want to try and maintain some bond then I would keep them next to each other but make sure they cannot bite each other through the wires. You can try rebonding them 6 to 12 weeks after neuter depending what you read. For this you will need a neutralised territory and they will need close supervision for a few weeks.

What if we just kept them together while we were with them, and then separate when we are not?

Sorry I know it's a scare tactic but this was one of my rescue buns Jeremy after a failed bonding ended up in him needing hundreds of pounds worth of vet treatment

Bitten back


Nearly lost his eye


The vet had to stitch his eyelid back on

OK separate it is then. Just it seems strange - they are already bonded and have been for 1 year. I guess in their new home, they have lost the bond.

It seems pointless bonding the rabbits if they are just going to fight again.

jennyes2011 said:

OK separate it is then. Just it seems strange - they are already bonded and have been for 1 year. I guess in their new home, they have lost the bond.

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How were they living for that year? Were they in a hutch with run? Or did they have access to a larger space? I'm no bonding expert at all but if they grew up in a smallish area it could have been amicably shared territory. Give them a larger "unclaimed, unmarked" space (was it the first time they had been in your front room?) and their need to dominate and defend their territory kicks in.

Oh dear, what a mess to be honest, I'm amazed that a pair of unneutered boys managed to last as long as they have without fighting, I'm afraid it is completely inevitable that unneutered boys will fight at some point and moving house would be a trigger for them - they are naturally territorial and their urge to mate will lead them to instinctively attack other males on their territory. I've seen many injuries on rescue rabbits where unneutered boys have been kept together, and sadly they often attack each others testicles causing very serious injuries...I even know of one who had to be put to sleep the injuries were so sever

If I were you, there is absolutely no way I would allow them together now, even supervised, as a serious injury can happen very quickly. I would advise getting them both neutered as soon as you can and then after 6-8 weeks you can try and reintroduce them carefully on neutral territory. I'm sorry to not be the bearer of better news but there really is no other option, two unneutered adult males should never be kept together as they will virtually always end up fighting, so this is the only way to salvage their bond now. Good luck! X x

They lived in a bedroom together for some of the time, and the rest in a hutch with a run outside (last 4 months).
And yes it was the first time they had spent in the frontroom together.

We will definitely keep them separate and get them neutered ASAP. They are at the vets Wednesday for a check-up to make sure they are healthy enough.

If I had realised this would happen, I would probably not have gone for this pair. But we have them now so will have to do our best.

What are the chances of them bonding again once neutered? We might have to consider not keeping one of them

tonibun said:

Neutering your rabbits won't necessarily stop them from fighting, I am afraid, because once boys have fought they quite often do so again.

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Sometimes, but not always. The first time i tried bonding a quad my boys fought, Smudge's hormones hadn't gone completely. The second time my boys were best of friends.



Sometimes if they fight they remember (Nutmeg did but she got badly hurt by Mini) but not always.

jennyes2011 said:

OK separate it is then. Just it seems strange - they are already bonded and have been for 1 year. I guess in their new home, they have lost the bond.

It seems pointless bonding the rabbits if they are just going to fight again.

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My bonded pair, Paige and Toshi, ripped fur from each other, left scabs, etc. They actually tried to kill each other when they were fighting :? And now?

Well they kind of look like this: