2 Males!

Hi All,

Brought home 2 male buns yesterday (Lionhead + Florida White). They are both approx. 8 weeks old but the Lionhead may be a week or 2 older judging by his behaviour (and genitals showing!) Owned rabbits in the past but this is the first time I've brought 2 home together. They were together originally so wanted to keep that bond there.

It's been around 24 hours since they've been in their new home and I noticed the Lionhead mounting the other bun this morning. I've been out with them for a few hours today and he's doing it quite a bit. The other isn't really reacting which is a good sign for now.

However, me being me I'm worrying about it. They will both be neutered at the earliest opportunity (could be a few weeks yet) so I really don't know what to do in the meantime. I can't keep my eye on them all day so if a fight does break out I won't be able to split it.

On the other hand, I'm so reluctant to split them without stressing them out further. I adopted 2 in the hope of keeping them together. (Otherwise I would have got the one ) I've heard once neutered they can be a lot calmer but as I say that could be a while yet so if they are seperated it'll be for a long time!

I feel sad for the younger one getting mounted all the time, is this going to stress him out?

Would appreciate any advice this, many thanks!

Hello and welcome. I'm not really an expert on this matter - I am certain some of my RU friends who have extremely lengthy experience in bonding will be posting replies for you soon so all I have is general observations based on my own experience. To me, your description sounds very typical of an assertion of dominance. It has to happen I'm afraid, and is quite common in most animal species. One must be more dominant than the other and rabbits do this via mounting - it's about being in control and being on the heigh ground so to speak.
As you rightly state, you will be getting them neutered and this should help with any possible arguments (fighting) but it'll be 6-8 weeks post op before the horemones subside and settle.
Will the mounting stress the younger one? It is possible and to that end it could make him retaliate so the only solution I can give to prevent this is to keep them apart when you are not there and allow contact together when you supervise. This is the only way in my opinion that you can reduce the element of a fight breaking out.
I am sure my more experienced RU friends will dip in and help out with much better advice but I hope it all works out for you. I have a lionhead and they are super cute.
CRaig x

Hi Craig,

Thanks for your quick response.

So the younger one being mounted isn't really reacting as such. He's just letting it happen most of the time but he will try and escape now and then. He's been running around and enjoying himself still so that's good. I have them outside in a 2 tier hutch and large run. They seemed occupied whilst out in the run but I've just locked them away for the night so now I'm a little more worried being in a more enclosed space, and with them both coming of age I'm not sure it's the best idea.

But based on what you've said and what I've already read I may split them sooner rather than later. I'd hate for them to be separated for so long that they end up not re forming that bond 2-3 months down the line post op. I will try the method of putting them together for an hour or so each day supervised if that's not gonna upset them

its likely imo that the mounting would eventually lead to a fight, as the one being mounted would likely get fed up of it in the end.

personally, I advise to always keep young rabbits apart no matter the sex until both are fixed and allowed 8 weeks for hormones to calm down. I advise this due to the fact that, its highly likely a fight will break out due to hormones being on the rise, but also that after neutering, hormones surge before they drop. thus after neutering, things can become worse before they become better, which can mean more explosive and aggressive fights before it tapers off.

I just think its not worth the risk, if a big fight happens it can be *very* difficult to rebond. it would be awful if that did happen, for then either you to go through a seriously difficult time re-bonding, or it just never working out at all.

I also would say your concern of separating them now meaning that they do not bond in a few months time isn't of a concern either! any rabbit can be bonded imo, and providing you follow the right steps, you bumping into this is highly unlikely. what would be more likely is a fight breaking out & thus never being able to be bonded due to that fight.

try and house them side by side so that they can still smell & see one another, this will help with bonding but also with comfort to each rabbit having a friend nearby.

Just an update:-

They were doing fine after me and my partner were forever keeping a close eye on the pair of them.

However, the last couple of days our one bun is constantly mounting the other again. I've decided to buy a separate enclosure and split them until they get neutered (which is not due until another 6 weeks yet)!

My question is, will we be OK keeping them seperate at night but reintroducing them in the day time or is that a no-go?

If you can see one of the rabbit's testicles then he is ready to be neutered. Maybe have a look at the other Bunny? It would be lovely if you could get them neutered before a fight broke out but going off what you have described it is more than likely there will be a fight which can be fatal as boys try to castrate one another. I would also advise that you separate them now making sure they are very safe from each other and wait until after they have been neutered and hormones have been given time to decrease.

Luke said:

Just an update:-

They were doing fine after me and my partner were forever keeping a close eye on the pair of them.

However, the last couple of days our one bun is constantly mounting the other again. I've decided to buy a separate enclosure and split them until they get neutered (which is not due until another 6 weeks yet)!

My question is, will we be OK keeping them seperate at night but reintroducing them in the day time or is that a no-go?

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I’m having a similar problem. My bunnies are 2.5 months old and half-siblings. We caught the male humping his sister Friday night. Thankfully, it’s unlikely he made her pregnant since her genitalia doesn’t look mature and he didn’t do the “flop” afterwards (i.e. didn’t ejaculate).

I’ve renovated their hutch so they’re now separated. After getting advice from others, I wouldn’t reintroduce them in the day. Apparently the male can do the deed in 3 seconds! Even if you watched them like hawks they can mate in the blink of an eye. It’s not worth the risk. I know this will suck because you want to keep them stimulated and avoid loneliness, but avoiding an unwanted pregnancy is top priority


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LexiRae24 said:

I’m having a similar problem. My bunnies are 2.5 months old and half-siblings. We caught the male humping his sister Friday night. Thankfully, it’s unlikely he made her pregnant since her genitalia doesn’t look mature and he didn’t do the “flop” afterwards (i.e. didn’t ejaculate).

I’ve renovated their hutch so they’re now separated. After getting advice from others, I wouldn’t reintroduce them in the day. Apparently the male can do the deed in 3 seconds! Even if you watched them like hawks they can mate in the blink of an eye. It’s not worth the risk. I know this will suck because you want to keep them stimulated and avoid loneliness, but avoiding an unwanted pregnancy is top priority


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Sorry, edit! I didn’t see the main title of the thread and assumed you had a male and a female [emoji2356]


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LexiRae24 said:

I’m having a similar problem. My bunnies are 2.5 months old and half-siblings. We caught the male humping his sister Friday night. Thankfully, it’s unlikely he made her pregnant since her genitalia doesn’t look mature and he didn’t do the “flop” afterwards (i.e. didn’t ejaculate).

I’ve renovated their hutch so they’re now separated. After getting advice from others, I wouldn’t reintroduce them in the day. Apparently the male can do the deed in 3 seconds! Even if you watched them like hawks they can mate in the blink of an eye. It’s not worth the risk. I know this will suck because you want to keep them stimulated and avoid loneliness, but avoiding an unwanted pregnancy is top priority


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Haha, no worries! Thanks for the response anyway.

We've just separated them and feel quite sad about it. They got on so well (apart from the humping). The whole reason we got a pair was so they'd keep each other company.

tonibun said:

If you can see one of the rabbit's testicles then he is ready to be neutered. Maybe have a look at the other Bunny? It would be lovely if you could get them neutered before a fight broke out but going off what you have described it is more than likely there will be a fight which can be fatal as boys try to castrate one another. I would also advise that you separate them now making sure they are very safe from each other and wait until after they have been neutered and hormones have been given time to decrease.

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We took them to the vets last week and he said they won't be ready until the end of November. They then have to be separated once the op is complete anyway don't they? So they are going to be apart from each other for a good few months before we can think of re-introducing them. At this point, I'm not sure they'll remember each other and will end up fighting! As I said the whole reason we bought the pair was to keep them together.

You are not alone. So many people do this then feel bad when they have to separate them, or risk a pregnancy or a bad fight. Certain pet shops or breeders don't tell you this. Brothers usually fall out at around 14 weeks, one day they are cuddled up, next day they are fighting. This is how they are normally. The boys will be fine separated :thumb:

Luke said:

We took them to the vets last week and he said they won't be ready until the end of November. They then have to be separated once the op is complete anyway don't they? So they are going to be apart from each other for a good few months before we can think of re-introducing them. At this point, I'm not sure they'll remember each other and will end up fighting! As I said the whole reason we bought the pair was to keep them together.

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The end of November sounds a long time to me! How old will they be then? From my quick calculation, based on what you originally said, it seems the older one could be 4-5 months old? I would have thought he would be ready (ie testicles would have dropped) before then. I would query this with your vet tbh. The less time that they are apart the better.

If they didn't need to be separated beforehand, then they would not have had to be separated after the op.

Omi said:

The end of November sounds a long time to me! How old will they be then? From my quick calculation, based on what you originally said, it seems the older one could be 4-5 months old? I would have thought he would be ready (ie testicles would have dropped) before then. I would query this with your vet tbh. The less time that they are apart the better.

If they didn't need to be separated beforehand, then they would not have had to be separated after the op.

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They are both 11-12 weeks old so call it 3 months. So we're looking at 4 - 4 1/2 months before they go in.

tonibun said:

You are not alone. So many people do this then feel bad when they have to separate them, or risk a pregnancy or a bad fight. Certain pet shops or breeders don't tell you this. Brothers usually fall out at around 14 weeks, one day they are cuddled up, next day they are fighting. This is how they are normally. The boys will be fine separated :thumb:

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Thanks.