Should i be worried??

Abi F · Jun 2, 2013

I got two male 8 week old bunnies yesterday, they are litter mates and seemed to be getting on really well. they groom eachother a lot, sleep cuddled up and play together.

about an hour ago they were lying next to each other and Barney started licking Remmy's blind eye, then it looked like he was tugging fur or tugging something out of his fur, Remmy stayed still and seemed really calm, he didn't move. then they lay like this for ages....

Barney is on the right, Remmy on the left.

I've checked Remmy's eye and it's fine, the fur just looked wet and a bit messy. could this be Barney showing that he's the dominant one? they're asleep on eachother now

nessar · Jun 2, 2013

Just sounds like grooming to me, albeit a bit rough! In fact, the bun that does most of the grooming is usually the more submissive one, the one asking for the grooming (they may put their head on the floor or put their head under the other one) is the dominant one.

Does Remmy's eye weep/water at all? Sometimes bonded buns clean the other's eyes.

This book is really good for learning about rabbit behaviour, it's written by the creator of this forum:
http://www.therabbithouse.com/behaviour/

Abi F · Jun 2, 2013

nessar said:
Just sounds like grooming to me, albeit a bit rough! In fact, the bun that does most of the grooming is usually the more submissive one, the one asking for the grooming (they may put their head on the floor or put their head under the other one) is the dominant one.

Does Remmy's eye weep/water at all? Sometimes bonded buns clean the other's eyes.

This book is really good for learning about rabbit behaviour, it's written by the creator of this forum:
http://www.therabbithouse.com/behaviour/

he get's what looks like sleep in it so he may have been cleaning it, it did look rough but like I said, Remmy didn't care. Remmy does actually always initiate the grooming, he puts his head under Barney's a lot, then he will lick Barney's back. he's actually doing it as I speak so maybe he is the dominant one

thanks for the link I've just ordered the book

nessar · Jun 2, 2013

Abi F said:
he get's what looks like sleep in it so he may have been cleaning it, it did look rough but like I said, Remmy didn't care. Remmy does actually always initiate the grooming, he puts his head under Barney's a lot, then he will lick Barney's back. he's actually doing it as I speak so maybe he is the dominant one

thanks for the link I've just ordered the book

I'd get it checked out by the vet just to make sure there isn't any underlying infection or anything that needs to be treated. Do you know why he is blind in that eye? If you need to bathe the eye yourself, you can use cooled boiled water and cotton wool or cooled tea (no milk or sugar!) - tea can help soothe and heal. (edit: You could just get it checked out when you go to get their vaccinations done, it doesn't have to be a separate visit.)

Yep it certainly sounds like Remmy is dominant, although when their hormones kick in things could change. You may first start to see it in about 3 weeks, although it takes longer with some buns. Things to look out for are humping, chasing, nipping, grunting at each other, getting possessive over things, buzzing/honking, circling and spraying - these are all potential hormonal behaviours and you want to neuter them asap to prevent any fighting. Don't worry if you see these behaviours, they just need neutering before it escalates and then they should gradually calm down again. Bites on the back of the neck and sore penises are also tell-tale signs of humping. They can be neutered at about 12 weeks old, as soon as their balls drop.

They look so sweet cuddled up like that

Abi F · Jun 2, 2013

nessar said:
I'd get it checked out by the vet just to make sure there isn't any underlying infection or anything that needs to be treated. Do you know why he is blind in that eye? If you need to bathe the eye yourself, you can use cooled boiled water and cotton wool or cooled tea (no milk or sugar!) - tea can help soothe and heal. (edit: You could just get it checked out when you go to get their vaccinations done, it doesn't have to be a separate visit.)

Yep it certainly sounds like Remmy is dominant, although when their hormones kick in things could change. You may first start to see it in about 3 weeks, although it takes longer with some buns. Things to look out for are humping, chasing, nipping, grunting at each other, getting possessive over things, buzzing/honking, circling and spraying - these are all potential hormonal behaviours and you want to neuter them asap to prevent any fighting. Don't worry if you see these behaviours, they just need neutering before it escalates and then they should gradually calm down again. Bites on the back of the neck and sore penises are also tell-tale signs of humping. They can be neutered at about 12 weeks old, as soon as their balls drop.

They look so sweet cuddled up like that

the breeder initially thought he didn't have that eye, she said at one point it looked like it had completely disintegrated and that the fur was starting to grow over it, but then the day before I went o pick them up he opened his eye fully and it's very cloudy. he was just born like it. she bathed it regularly with tea.
I think I will ask the vet to check it when I take them. they are on my lap now and Remmy's eye looks very clean so Barney did a good job!
They will be neutered as soon as it's possible.

they are super sweet together just hope they stay such good friends

Should i be worried??

Abi F

Warren Scout

nessar

Warren Veteran

Abi F

Warren Scout

nessar

Warren Veteran

Abi F

Warren Scout

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