Really stuck with bonding, I'd be grateful for some help...

Hello,

I was hoping somebody would be able to please help me?

I have two male neutered rabbits from different litters that are about 6 months old. I'm trying my best to introduce them to each other but it's like 5 steps forward and 3 steps back.

Briefly, I adopted the second rabbit (3 weeks ago) as company for the first rabbit as I had him from a member of my family who couldn't look after him anymore (about a month ago). I felt sorry for him so adopted what I thought was a female rabbit until it came to spaying time and it turned out to be a male!!

In a carrier in the car they are both fine (I've done this every day for about a week) but when I put them in an indoor 4ft x 4ft run with 6 panels which I actually then reduce to 4 panels and squeeze into a diamond shape they are at each other every 10 minutes and by this I mean circling, fur pulling and nipping. And soon after being separated act like nothing has happened. I usually shout 'no' and place them side by side talking to them gently and smoothing them both which calms them down until the next bout.

I should just keep them apart but frustratingly they actually ignore each other, lie side by side, eat side by side, cuddle, and one has even recently started to groom the other the rest of the time they are together. They just annoyingly spat the rest of the time.

On their first introduction and only once since then one mounted the other one. Strangely, the one doing the mounting is grooming the other one as well but it isn't being reciprocated...

I have spoken to my local vets several times and I think it could be that they were only neutered 3 weeks ago. One vet said it was okay to make the introduction after 10 days and subsequently another only after 6 weeks!

I think my only options are is to stop the bonding process until 6 weeks and try again or keep them separately permanently because it must be upsetting them both.

At the moment they are in a big hutch with run and a little hutch with no run but we swap them back and forth every couple of days. They also come in the house to play but separately. We are in the middle of cornering off the garden to make a big 20ft x 20ft run for them too as it would be nice if they could both binky outside and not indoors as one hit the living room door the other day which must have hurt.

I'd be grateful for any further advice

Thanks,

Lisa.

Hi :wave:. My first suggestion would be to wait several weeks until hormones have settled a bit more before re-starting the bonding process. Males can still be pretty frisky for a good while after being neutered. Then I'd create a bonding pen not much bigger than their carry cage in a COMPLETELY NEUTERAL area. It has to be somewhere neither bunny has been before and if that's not possible then you need to clean the area thoroughly with a white vinegar/water solutuion.

I've always found that after around 12 hours in a very small area where they're forced to sit side by side, and as long as there's no aggression, then you'll be able to SLOWLY increase the size of the pen. When I say slowly, I mean 6 inches at a time. Too much space too quickly will lead to chasing and nipping again (although this is perfectly normal behaviour as well). It is generally felt that once you start the bonding
process, it's best not to separate the buns again as you're constantly re-starting the process and the buns have to re-assert authority and find their pecking order all the time. If you have any time off over christmas then it would be an ideal time to get things rolling (as long as hormones have settled). I usually set aside a week so that I can sleep next to the bonding pen as well.

Just remember that chasing, nipping, fur pulling and humping are normal behaviours and as long as it doesn't turn into a full-on fight then if you can bear it, let them get on with it. I just sit by the bonding pen and place a hand between them if it starts to get out of hand.

Thanks for replying. I wasn't sure what I was going to do next but I've decided to wait until their hormones have settled and will try the bonding again in the New Year.

I've run out of areas at home because although they live mostly outdoors in the fresh air I do bring them both in the house too and they've been everywhere. I have a pen that has a waterproof flooring which I can disinfect though so I'll have to use that.

The circling, nipping and fur pulling doesn't stop though! It feels like a full on fight to me... when you say 12 hours in one fixed sized pen do you build up to 12 hours with no fighting first then increase the size of the pen for another 12 hours and so on? Does this mean the pen becomes their home for however long it takes for them to bond?

Thanks,

Lisa.

Yes, that's how I do it. Twelve hours is only a rough guide as you might find they need much less than that. But essentially, I keep them in a small space until they've been calm for several hours, then increase the space again (marginally) and observe again for another few hours. You'll often find you can get to a reasonable sized pen in a day or two where they're being civil to each other and then it's best to leave it at that for a good 24 hours before increasing again.

A full on fight is where the ears go back, tail up in the air and they charge at each other, flying up in the air and round and round. This MUST be stopped immediately.

Thankfully a fight hasn't escalated quite that far. I'll do as you suggest and hopefully it won't take too long particularly as they seem to really like each other for the most part

From what you've already said, it does sound quite positive. They WILL chase and nip, that's normal bonding behaviour so try, if you can, to let them get on with it and they'll sort themselves out. Humping is normal bonding behaviour as well. As is ignoring each other :lol:. They're complex little creatuers LOL!