Really stuck and need help

Hi really need some help

We have two rabbits bubbles(male) and squeak (female),bubbles has been neutered since August and squeak got spayed two weeks ago.

We got bubbles in May and squeak in September and she was 8 weeks old as a friend, they lived together since October till 3 weeks ago when they had a fight and squeaks ear got partly bitten off. It was totally out the blue as they were grooming each other the night before. Since then they have been separated in adjacent cages. Squeak got spayed and was given the OK last week.

For the last two nights we have put them in a pen on neutral territory and they been grooming and being nice to each other. Still a really strong bond between them. However last night they have managed to get into each other's side of their house and have had a massive fight and are both really bald in places and bitten in places off to the vets again in an hour.

We love both of them so much and they both lick us and groom our clothes and they have a really strong bond with us too. We have never bonded two rabbits before and probably have made some mistakes.

Just looking for some advice on what to do and reason for them fighting in their house together nut yet OK in a pen together. Do we need to replace everything as they have claimed things as theirs? Also will it work out for them because both of us are finding it difficult with them fighting.

Thank you in advance to anyone that replies.

Do you know which side of the "house" they had the fight - hers or his? I suspect what has happened was the fight they had 3 weeks ago was due to Squeak becoming hormonal and territorial. So now she has been spayed those hormones should die down as time goes by, then you need to be able to put them both somewhere they can live in for a few days without moving them to be able to monitor them. While that is happening you will need to clean their house and put fresh litter tray in and try to remove any smells. Let us know how it is going.

Thank you for replying.

I don't know both sets of fur were in each side. The most mess was in squeaks side. The vet has gave them antibiotics as some cuts are deep.

When would you say would be a good time to start introducing them to each other again ?

I would give them time to heal and simmer down a bit. Is it possible for you to keep them away from the place they will be living in while they are recovering? Are they on Baytril?

They both have a really strange relationship. Today we let them out separate and the one that was out just sat next to their house waiting for the other one . You would think they wouldn't want to be near each other.

Not really possible to separate them we sold our hutch and things and bought a boules indoor house so they would have lots of room.

Yeah they are both on baytril for a week.

The vet yesterday said maybe they just can't live together and now my partner has this view I totally disagree with it. What are your thoughts about it ? Squeak is still rubbing things with her neck so does that mean she is still very hormonal?

Thank you again for replying

Females can be very territorial even when they are neutered. Wherever she is occupying she will most likely defend, so introducing them again will need to be away from this area, somewhere she hasn't claimed as hers. It can take a couple of months for hormones to die down, depending on how hormonal she was.

We are both teachers so would we be best bonding them in the febuary holiday ?also should we let them have bunny dates between then and now ?

Thank you so much for the help and sorry for all the questions

Don't worry about the questions If you can keep these 2 separate until the Half-term then it might be a good idea, but remeber to put the female as far away from where she will be living as possible. The time will help the i njuries to heal and hormones will have died down by then, so yes I think this sounds like a very good idea, although it's not what you want but should pay off in the long run.

A slightly different situation to yours but I also work in a school & waited until these past Christmas holidays to bond 2 of ours. In between October half term and Christmas holidays we dated them for short amounts of time during the weekends which helped us seal their bond quicker during the holidays. I'm only a novice so anyone feel free to correct me if I'm wrong but I'm not sure how easy or likely it would be to fully bond them over just a week when starting from scratch. Good luck!

Hi again

We have let them see each other in a neutral pen for an hour each night. Then put them back in their separate sides after that. This is what has been happening.

1. They have been licking each other quite a bit.

2. Squeak the female adores bubbles and constantly try's to cuddle in to him lying next to him forcing her head under his and he licks her head.

3. Bubbles doesn't force him self under her or try to cuddle into her. He has nipped her back a few times and this makes her jump and face him so there face to face. She never nips him.

4. If she lays down with her legs out next to he will nudge her legs with his head trying to get to where her privates are. This causes her to jump really quickly and has resulted in him starting to circle her at which point I pick him up.

5. Also the other day when I was cleaning them out she went into his side they had been fed and when she went to his bowl he was trying to pull it away he wasn't aggressive or anything. I remember before they had a fight he would do this also.

So is it possible that he could be the one causing the problems ?
Could he be jealous ?
Everything was his before she came could that be causing problems ?
Also could we be a problem? because he bonded to us really young and would just follow us everywhere
In your opinion do you ever think they will ever be like they were and be able to live together ?

Thank you again for people replying