Siblings bonding?

[thenorthernbunnies]

I have 2 siblings: they are currently 11 weeks and of course will need to be neutered soon. (They are both girls however!)

How do I go about it? I'm guessing I separate first just incase they start to fight? Or is this not necessary unless they DO show aggression?
I then neuter them both on the same day and separate while they heal? Then i will need to bond them - what is the best way to do all of this?

Thanks

 

[Preitler]

I would just keep them together. They'll sort their hierachy out anyway, seperating them would make things just worse.

Imho, the setup is important. They should have enough, structured space, divided into at least 2 connected parts where they can not see each other, if they need to take a break. Also no real dead ends in their area, and hidey houses with at least two openings.

There might be some tensions when puberty hits, some humping and short chasing, all rather normal. Contrary to bucks, does have quite a range of social strategies, but imo it helps a lot when they can go out of each others eyes, or claim one part of the housing as hers.

I only had one doe at a time spayed, but my situation was different, if I were in yours I would have them spayed at the same day and maybe divide their space for a day if that helps to get them rest, but I wouldn't expect much trouble anyway.

Rabbits are social animals, and does rarely don't get along at all, imo messing too much with their behaviour can be conterproductive, sometimes rabbits bond despite of what their human puts them through . Personally I trust their abilities, and only intervene if something is wrong. Which is rare.

 

[InspectorMorse]

First are you 100% certain that they are both Does. Mis- gendering of baby Rabbits frequently occurs leading to ‘accidental pregnancies’

Baby bonds are not true bonds. The dynamics can and usually do change when puberty hits. Fighting can occur in both Bucks and Does. Does are very territorial and will fight just as much as two bucks to defend what they perceive to be their territory. So you need to be very mindful of this fact.

Does can be spayed from the age of about 5 months as long as they are healthy and weigh at least 1kg. I would get them done at the same time and if they have remained together right up to being spayed I would not separate them at all. There is no need to do so even after surgery, infact separating them afterwards if they had been together would add to their stress and could inhibit their recovery. After surgery they will still have some hormone surges, so they will need careful monitoring for any aggression or fighting.


If they were to fight prior to being spayed then it will be very hard to get them back together even after the spay and a period of time to allow hormones to settle. So personally I have never just left them to it to sort things out as a real fight can result in serious injuries. In my 26 years of caring for Rabbits I have managed to keep most same sex siblings together before and after spaying/castrating but on a couple of occasions it was necessary to separate to prevent a full on serious fight. I was able to reunite them about 6 weeks after their ops using the same bonding principles of it being done on neutral territory.

 

[thenorthernbunnies]

I would just keep them together. They'll sort their hierachy out anyway, seperating them would make things just worse.

Imho, the setup is important. They should have enough, structured space, divided into at least 2 connected parts where they can not see each other, if they need to take a break. Also no real dead ends in their area, and hidey houses with at least two openings.

There might be some tensions when puberty hits, some humping and short chasing, all rather normal. Contrary to bucks, does have quite a range of social strategies, but imo it helps a lot when they can go out of each others eyes, or claim one part of the housing as hers.

I only had one doe at a time spayed, but my situation was different, if I were in yours I would have them spayed at the same day and maybe divide their space for a day if that helps to get them rest, but I wouldn't expect much trouble anyway.

Rabbits are social animals, and does rarely don't get along at all, imo messing too much with their behaviour can be conterproductive, sometimes rabbits bond despite of what their human puts them through . Personally I trust their abilities, and only intervene if something is wrong. Which is rare.

Thankyou for that - my vet suggests to take them in on same day, spay together and then they will not be as stressed while in vets - I'm just very concerned about the fighting! I think a lot of what I have read is sounding scary, so to hear its not too much trouble most of the time makes me feel a lot better!