Bonding 6 month doe with 12 week old male (both un-neutered)

spinecho · Oct 7, 2015

Hi,

Apologies as it seems I ask more questions than I answer!

After Thump's sad demise, we have decided to get another male bunny for our remaining doe Clover (sister of Thumper).

We are looking at a gorgeous black minilop boy who is approx 12 weeks; Clover is 6 months. They are both outside bunnies and we have 2 hutches with attached runs (both are separate, but my ultimate plan is to connect both with tubing so they have free run of everything!)

I am planning to keep the new male in a separate hutch/run to acclimate to us and his surroundings but we would like to bond them.

How long should I leave it before bonding??
Once it became apparent that Thumper was interested in Clover I separated them in their large run by a galvanized wire mesh, so they could still smell each other and hopefully make bonding after neutering easier.
Should I take the same approach with a new male and Clover, or introduce them together?
Would it be better to leave bonding until after the boy is neutered (we'll get Clover spayed in the New Year) so I dont have to bond them and then separate due to the boy's urges?

Hope this all makes sense and I look forward to your replies!

Sarah1991 · Oct 7, 2015

Personally, I would keep them apart, but have them living side by side until both are neutered and hormones have calmed down. This way they know of each other presence and can smell one another but wont be able to scuffle or breed.

Males can get females pregnant very early on so I wouldn't allow them to be together at all, Clover could well get pregnant at six months by a 12 week old male and this would be dangerous to her being so young.

Definitely wait it out and get both neutered before allowing them to bond, usually its around a six week wait after neutering for all hormones to dissipate and everything to heal and calm down properly.

I know you probably have your heart set on this male, but just in case you didn't know, if you are in the UK many rescues will have single males who are young and already neutered, so you would not have to wait around to bond them. Just in case you were interested.

Good luck with them. x

spinecho · Oct 7, 2015

Sarah1991 said:
Personally, I would keep them apart, but have them living side by side until both are neutered and hormones have calmed down. This way they know of each other presence and can smell one another but wont be able to scuffle or breed.

Males can get females pregnant very early on so I wouldn't allow them to be together at all, Clover could well get pregnant at six months by a 12 week old male and this would be dangerous to her being so young.

Definitely wait it out and get both neutered before allowing them to bond, usually its around a six week wait after neutering for all hormones to dissipate and everything to heal and calm down properly.

I know you probably have your heart set on this male, but just in case you didn't know, if you are in the UK many rescues will have single males who are young and already neutered, so you would not have to wait around to bond them. Just in case you were interested.

Good luck with them. x

Thanks for the prompt and informative reply!

I'm in agreement that it's best to keep them apart until they're both done.
I'll keep them in separate hutches/runs (as we did for Clover and Thumper) and allow them access to the big run on our (once lovely!) lawn with the mesh separating them so they can scent each other out without actual contact.

And in answer to your last point, we're also looking at a gorgeous rescue bunny who's 6 month's old and pre-neutered! I have a feeling that by end of month we'll end up with 3 bunnies!!!:lol::lol::lol:

Shimmer · Oct 7, 2015

Is there a reason why Clover is not going to be spayed until next year?

She is old enough at 6 months. As an outdoor bunny, it would be better to put her through the op before the really cold weather starts. She may need a couple of days inside immediately after the op, but should cope after that. She will also have part of her tummy shaved.

Rabbits are quite sensitive to temperature changes - so putting a rabbit through a major op, bringing her inside, then back out again in frost / snow would be adding to her stress and would be harder to keep her comfortable. Spaying her now minimises these problems and gives her time to regrow the fur. It also means that she can have a new bunny friend to snuggle up to in Winter.

spinecho · Oct 7, 2015

Shimmer said:
Is there a reason why Clover is not going to be spayed until next year?

She is old enough at 6 months. As an outdoor bunny, it would be better to put her through the op before the really cold weather starts. She may need a couple of days inside immediately after the op, but should cope after that. She will also have part of her tummy shaved.

Rabbits are quite sensitive to temperature changes - so putting a rabbit through a major op, bringing her inside, then back out again in frost / snow would be adding to her stress and would be harder to keep her comfortable. Spaying her now minimises these problems and gives her time to regrow the fur. It also means that she can have a new bunny friend to snuggle up to in Winter.

She was ready to be spayed last week at same time as her brother!
We took her to the vets, but as she's a minilop (and a mini minilop at that!!) the vet advised that she was too small to operate on and to give it a couple of months.
With Thumper sadly passing away days after his op, we're extremely cautious not to get her spayed too soon.

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Bonding 6 month doe with 12 week old male (both un-neutered)

spinecho

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Sarah1991

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spinecho

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Shimmer

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spinecho

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