• Forum/Server Upgrade If you are reading this you have made it to the upgraded forum. Posts made on the old forum after 26th October 2023 have not been transfered. Everything else should be here. If you find any issues please let us know.

Bonding a quad-in abit of a rut!

hoppetylop

Mama Doe
Hi all:wave:

Im in a quandary with my newly bonded quad,can anyone advise?

About a month ago my bunnies were introduced to (hopefully)become a quad.It comprised 2 bonded sisters(Lily and Ivy) and 2 single males (James and Cosmos).I haven't had the boys long and thought it would be wonderful if they could form one group so they could have a very big space to live in.I realise it was a risk but it has worked out except for one thing.

The "pecking order" is-Lily,James,Ivy,Cosmos.James follows Lily everywhere and obviously adores her and also likes Ivy but he really doesn't like Cosmos.Everytime Cosmos (who couldn't be more submissive)comes anywhere near James or the girls James growls and chases/fur pulls Cosmos.He is making Cosmos quite jumpy and he tends to sit in the corner.Very fortunately Ivy sits with Cosmos when the chasing has been particularly bad and calms Cosmos down(little angel:love:)

Is there anything I can do to help the situation?Cosmos is desperate to sit with the others but cant get near them when James is with them.He tries and tries to show James how submissive he is but James is possessive of the girls and gives Cosmos warning stares if he approaches them when they are resting together.I realise its very early days but Im concerned about Cosmos as he befriended the girls first and wants their company as well.Do I do anything or let them sort it out?I feel I should be proactive but don't want to make things worse by interfering.

I would be very grateful for any advice.

Thanks.x
 
When I did my quad bond (it was 2 pairs - a pair of brothers, and a pair of sisters) at one stage I had what appeared to be a trio and a single but thankfully they quickly bonded into a tight knit quad.

Are they still in bonding territory? If so I would not extend space for a bit in order to try to cement the bond. Moving mine from inside to their new shed caused a bit of chasing etc but they soon settled.

It's good to see you again :wave:
 
Hi Zoobec:wave:

Yes they are still in their bonding pen which is 7x3 foot.Good to know your bunnies sorted themselves out.Did you do anything to encourage that?

Thanks for your post.x
 
Hi Zoobec:wave:

Yes they are still in their bonding pen which is 7x3 foot.Good to know your bunnies sorted themselves out.Did you do anything to encourage that?

Thanks for your post.x

I left them in the bonding pen without moving them until they settled. I fed lots of hay and forage in a pile in the middle, I heavily pruned my rosemary bush and fed them branches of that, and since then I read that it has calming properties. Thankfully the boys were soon grooming the girls. The girls never groomed each other or returned the favour to the boys so they were a bit taken aback to have their eyes washed :shock:

Tulsi also bonded a quad at a similar time.

Here is my original thread http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/s...ter-Bonding-a-quad&highlight=Zoobec+quad+bond
 
Last edited:
Thankyou very much Zoobec and MightyMax.Im wondering if I should reduce the size of the pen to encourage more interaction and hopefully discourage chasing.I could make it 4x3 for afew days.Can you remember the size of your quad bonding pen Zoobec?
 
Last edited:
Initially it was an xl dog crate which was just over 4ftx3ft if I can recall. Then I extended it with a run after a couple of days if I remember rightly. It might be worth a try :thumb:
 
Ok Im going to reduce their pen size for a little while.I will remove the vet bed mat that Cosmos tends to sit on when the others are snuggled elsewhere in case it causes problems at all.They have 2 hay tunnels.Should I leave one/both out?Sorry for all the questions!
 
I had nothing in their pen, not even litter trays. I just made the bottom one big litter tray with newspaper and then a big pile of hay in the middle. I would remove anything that seems to be causing any territorial issues like the vet bed mat as you say, and probably the tunnels too. I’d keep encouraging them to eat together by scatter feeding pellets in the middle, and plenty of forage regularly.
 
I find it really difficult to advise without being there, or communicating on the phone .. Sometimes I've found reducing the space contributes to aggression and frustration. There again they don't get close if you don't put them in a confined space.

I have (for my own rabbits) never used a very small space and always had several littler trays, but sometimes got the litter trays down to one big one.

Scatter feeding is a good idea. I always use an endless supply of herbs, forage, grass, readigrass and hays etc. I reckoned it was worth them putting on a bit of weight to become friends. Also, a hungry rabbit can get frustrated and aggressive ...

Good luck xx
 
Thanks MightyMax.Yes its a tricky one because Im worried it may make James frustrated and even more annoyed with Cosmos if I reduce the size but at the moment there is less and less interaction between Cosmos and the rest of the group.
I have been scatter feeding.Cosmos tends to eat what he can reach from his little corner so if I do reduce the pen I wont include his area which will smell very strongly of him as he doesn't venture out of it much now.
 
Thanks MightyMax.Yes its a tricky one because Im worried it may make James frustrated and even more annoyed with Cosmos if I reduce the size but at the moment there is less and less interaction between Cosmos and the rest of the group.
I have been scatter feeding.Cosmos tends to eat what he can reach from his little corner so if I do reduce the pen I wont include his area which will smell very strongly of him as he doesn't venture out of it much now.


What did you decide to do? xx
 
My four were bonded in a large area with a litter tray per rabbit and one extra. Any chasing and fur pulling was allowed but watched carefully. Like Zoobec I put a lot of forage in a pile in the middle to help calm things and even though they are not cuddly (or even strokable) a hand on each of the fighting rabbits would calm things.

Mine are two already bonded sisters and two brothers who fell out. I kept the bucks apart for weeks prior to bonding the quad.

One of the bucks (Frosty) is the leader of the pack and always chases Snowflake (his brother) away from food at meal times then a few seconds later they are eating right next to each other!

Daisy (the largest of all the rabbits) tended to get left out but it gradually sorted itself out.

Hope your four are doing well now.

http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/s...now-a-quad-More-pics!&highlight=bonding+begun
 
Thankyou so much tulsi,that's very reassuring.x I will have a good read through the linked thread.

Hi MM.I have reduced the pen alittle which I think has lessened the chasing.Cosmos now has a "new corner"so that problem continues.Also whereas Ivy approached Cosmos from time to time for a cuddle,she is only snuggling with James and her sister Lily now.Cosmos stays in his corner as he is growled at and chased by James if he comes out.I ensure he has a water bottle near him.He doesnt seem to try to get involved with the others now.This is their 5th week together so Im wondering if they can sort things out.I must admit Ive worried a lot about Cosmos the last few days.
 
I think Im going to have to remove one of the boys:(I have been watching the group all today and discovered that Cosmos has very little freedom to move around the pen without being chased back into his "corner".He doesn't have access to the food without my help and I just cant see this improving I t don't know which boy as they both like the girls.Whoever is removed will be rebounded with a girl so neither would be left by themselves.This is a really difficult decision as Cosmos was very close to the girls first but James wont let him near them now.James would cope better with the change but hes bonded with the girls quite closely.Aaagh!!!
 
I think Im going to have to remove one of the boys:(I have been watching the group all today and discovered that Cosmos has very little freedom to move around the pen without being chased back into his "corner".He doesn't have access to the food without my help and I just cant see this improving I t don't know which boy as they both like the girls.Whoever is removed will be rebounded with a girl so neither would be left by themselves.This is a really difficult decision as Cosmos was very close to the girls first but James wont let him near them now.James would cope better with the change but hes bonded with the girls quite closely.Aaagh!!!

I wish I could add some useful advice but I have nothing. I just wanted to empathise about how this difficult this must be. Maybe if Cosmos is the one who has been struggling with the bond it might be better to leave him with the girls in case the experience leaves him wary of future bonds? I think you'll have to weigh up the pros & cons of removing Cosmos vs James & take it from there? x
 
Yes this is what I was thinking.I want Cosmos to have a good bond with the girls as his first ever bond experience although when I see James snuggling with the girls I feel bad that I might be separating them.Cosmos IS socially abit awkward but I think the girls would be patient with him,especially Ivy.I would get James re bonded very soon but the guilt I feel about MAYBE removing him is upsetting me.There is no easy answer.
Thankyou for you reply though.x
 
Back
Top