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First bonding session done

Rackeluk

Rackeluk

Warren Scout
Okay so I’ve just done my first ever bonding session, male Max and female Lily, I was going to do ten minutes but they both spent the first 10 minutes looking round the neutral room and not even bothering about each other, Max then decided to venture over, I was a little scared but there was no aggression at all, Lily was eating a romain leaf and she let him eat it with her i was so happy, Max then decided to get on her back and start humping her I didn’t know if I should have got him off her or leave him, Lily wasn’t even bothered so I left them but it didn’t end, in the I stopped Max and he started licking her neck...

I’m thinking this is a good sign and their first session has gone well, am I right??
 
Rackeluk said:
Okay so I’ve just done my first ever bonding session, male Max and female Lily, I was going to do ten minutes but they both spent the first 10 minutes looking round the neutral room and not even bothering about each other, Max then decided to venture over, I was a little scared but there was no aggression at all, Lily was eating a romain leaf and she let him eat it with her i was so happy, Max then decided to get on her back and start humping her I didn’t know if I should have got him off her or leave him, Lily wasn’t even bothered so I left them but it didn’t end, in the I stopped Max and he started licking her neck...

I’m thinking this is a good sign and their first session has gone well, am I right??
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Yes you're right. Everything sounds really good, it was your male I was more worried about but he didn't behave badly. Chasing, humping and maybe a little fur pulling is all part of the bonding process, which usually lasts up to 3 days, maybe not this long. He is bigger than Lily so perhaps try to take their mind of things by giving them something to eat, the humping shouldn't last long. Well done!
 
tonibun said:
Yes you're right. Everything sounds really good, it was your male I was more worried about but he didn't behave badly. Chasing, humping and maybe a little fur pulling is all part of the bonding process, which usually lasts up to 3 days, maybe not this long. He is bigger than Lily so perhaps try to take their mind of things by giving them something to eat, the humping shouldn't last long. Well done!
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Lily didn’t stop eating during Max’s humping she was still eating her romain lettuce hahaha

Should I stop him humping her or just leave him to it?

I’m going to do the same everyday and increase 10/20 minutes each day xx
 
I would try to distract him only because he is a little big bigger than Lily. I am of the school of thought that if you keep separating them you are just taking a step back each time. It is up to you oc but I would keep them together and you will soon be over the humping stage. I've just bonded 2 x 8.5 yr old buns and Daisy started humping Caramel, it's usually the other way round, so I told her No! I started Monday and they are now settled down together. The rule is that if they are not fighting then keep together, otherwise you are prolonging the stress. At the end of the day, you are the best one to judge as you are right with them.
 
Has it been over 6 weeks since the male was castrated? I thought it didn't seem that long ago and males can remain fertile for 6-8 weeks post castration. He will be fully healed within a week or so but sperm can survive elsewhere. That would be my only concern as the female isn't spayed yet.

However I may be wrong if he was castrated earlier etc ,humping from both genders is normal during bonding as already mentioned it sounds to be going well. I don't separate, as I find it can delay any progress as the rabbits just do the same thing every time they meet. Hope it continues to go well!
 
It’s been 4 weeks, I asked the vet and they said it was safe and said she would be too young anyway to get pregnant, plus he wasn’t humping in the right place for anything to happen haha it was more side of her body, I stopped him mid process, he’s so lied back He didn’t mind.
I’m thinking weather it may be best leaving it a couple of weeks, I was going off the vets advice.
They are outside together all day separated by chicken wire and I bring Lily indoors at night to sleep in the indoor cage, they both have a stuffed toy each that I swap over every other night.
 
Rackeluk said:
It’s been 4 weeks, I asked the vet and they said it was safe and said she would be too young anyway to get pregnant, plus he wasn’t humping in the right place for anything to happen haha it was more side of her body, I stopped him mid process, he’s so lied back He didn’t mind.
I’m thinking weather it may be best leaving it a couple of weeks, I was going off the vets advice.
They are outside together all day separated by chicken wire and I bring Lily indoors at night to sleep in the indoor cage, they both have a stuffed toy each that I swap over every other night.
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I would leave the bonding for at least 6 weeks after Max's castration. As Liz said, he can remain fertile for up to 4-6 weeks. I too was once told (by a Vet) that my newly castrated Buck could go back in with 3 un-neutered Does too soon after the Buck's op'. The result being an additional 17 baby bunnies :shock:

Sometimes it can be better to not interrupt the bonding at all. IE do not split them up after 10 minutes, but try to keep them together 24/7. Gradual bonding can take much, much longer as each time you separate them they have to start at the beginning again when you put them back together.

That said, gradual bonding can work for some Rabbits, IME there is not a one size fits all when it comes to bonding Rabbits.

I hope it all works out OK for Max and Lily xx
 
Oh thanks for letting me know I’ll leave the bunny dates for a while I don’t fancy a litter from them haha

I’m in the process of building a bunny palace in the back garden which they will share, I’ll wait until it’s built.

My plan was to find a night that I can put them together in the indoor cage and sleep in the same room as them for the night to keep an eye on them then if they are fine I’ll leave them together xx
 
I’ve rang the vet and they have now said that Lily would be too young to get pregnant, they said that bonding would be fine because by the age she would be able to get pregnant Max would be cleared ��*♀️, I’m clueless, they said that when it comes to Lily being done Max would take care of her...
 
Rackeluk said:
I’ve rang the vet and they have now said that Lily would be too young to get pregnant, they said that bonding would be fine because by the age she would be able to get pregnant Max would be cleared ��*♀️, I’m clueless, they said that when it comes to Lily being done Max would take care of her...
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Is your Vet Rabbit Savvy? What they mean is when you take her home from her spay, Max will be there and this is very encouraging for the female. It aids in her recovery.
 
I'm just checking, how old is Lily and what breed is she? (sorry if I've missed these details).

I only ask because smaller breeds are fertile as young as 14 to 16 weeks, larger breeds from 20+ weeks.

Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk
 
Rackeluk said:
Lily is 11 weeks today, she’s a pure bred Lionhead.
Max is 19 weeks and he’s a Dwarf Lop
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So in theory she would be too young, personally I'd wait until he's definitely infertile, but if you do decide to go for it make sure you keep a very close eye on her behaviour and speak to the vets about neutering if she does somehow become pregnant etc as you need to be confident they can terminate her pregnancy safely if needed.

Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk
 
Thank you, I’m booking her in to get spayed when she can, I’ve been told she has to be at least 16 weeks but she’s tiny so I’d rather her be a bit older.

I’m going to wait a couple more weeks to make sure he’s definitely infertile.
 
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