Bonding advice for 2 youngsters will be gratefully received

[Cookie & LP]

Hi, we are bunny owner novices, but so pleased I have found this site as we are learning fast from all the great info provided. Now in need of some bonding advice please:

We have a 7mth (approx.) neutered female, and a 12wk male (not yet neutered) - we had the female a few months before the new addition. They currently have separate indoor cages next door to each other and they run in a large area which is separated with a wire/mesh fence. The female used to bite angrily through the divide, but now they sniff and occasionally sit alongside each other. We've tried introducing them in a neutral outdoor area on a number of occasions and they will be ok for a few minutes then the female will attack the little one - fluff flies badly! - then we separate them, and it'll be ok for another few minutes and it just continues to repeat itself until we find it too difficult to watch the little man take any more.

I do appreciate it's early days and it will take time, but are we wasting our time, or should the little fella be neutered first, or should we be leaving them in together for longer?? So difficult to know what to do for the best and it's awful watching him being chased and attacked. We have a large outdoor hutch and run we want to put them into together eventually but it seems a very long way off.

Hindsight is a great thing, and had we known the difficulties we would have perhaps rescued 2 already bonded, but it's a good learning curve and for now we just want them happy and hopefully, eventually together! Any advice very gratefully received, thank you.

 

[Alibunbun]

Hi there cookie and welcome to the forum! It's great that you found us :wave:

Firstly I would say yes, he needs to be neutered first; it will calm down hormones and he won't give off the same scent as an in-tact male would to another rabbit. He must be left to recover for a few weeks as well. As far as the introductions go, it is a lot harder when you have acquired a bun that wasn't from rescue or tested to see if they get along, as sometimes it is just not going to work out between two rabbits, they can be quite picky! You have to be comfortable with the idea that these two might not get along in future,but I'm no expert on bonding so I'll leave that to the others :thumb:

Hope you find the forum useful!

 

[Fee]

Hi and a huge welcome to you all!!

Definitely get Small man neutered first then wait a good few weeks for his hormones to settle. Litter training and bonding will be a bit easier. That said bonding is never easy!!,,

All the best xxx

 

[BunnyLover34]

Hi,

As the others said, getting him neutered definitely makes the whole process a lot easier and allows his hormones to settle down.

Possiby, you could try leaving them in for even less time than you are already, even if it's 30 seconds or so and then gradually increase this period over the next few days. When I was bonding mine, they fought really badly and I was adviced to try and seperate them BEFORE they started fighting; it's best to leave it on a good note if possible so that they see each other in a good way, not as enemies the next time they meet. That was my undertsanding anyway.

Other than that, make sure you provide lots of distrations, such as food and toys and ensure the neutral space you are bonding them in isn't too large so that one doesn't claim some territory as their own which can lead to fights.

http://cottontails-rescue.org.uk/information/bonding-bunnies/
This website has some great information about bonding

Good luck!