Big Bites during bonding

[Peapod026]

Hi All,

I’ve had my little bunny Merlin for about a year, and decided to get him a friend, a little mini rex girl named Bean. Well, they are both altered and bonding has been going alright–except that Bean (when given the chance) gets behind Merlin and takes a BIG BITE. I don’t mean a nip, I mean she closes her eyes, and opens her mouth as wide as possible and bites him HARD. He always now just runs away from her when she comes near him, or turns around and there’s a potential fight. She’s not aggressive in any other way, and to be honest, she’s very mellow and methodic when she bites him, its not a quick or fast bite. 

 They do well in the same neutral space together, they don’t fight, and are comfy enough (IE will flop down, will groom, ect..). However, they don’t want to groom each other (they will both sit there with their heads down, waiting to be groomed by the other one), and the biting Bean does, makes Merlin uneasy around her. 

How do I let Bean know that biting Merlin is not OK? I try to make a high pitched sound every time she goes in for a bite, to express pain (on his behalf), but it still seems to happen. Any solutions, or reasons why she’s biting? 

[vanessa]

Take a look at my bonding notes. My buns were doing the same thing. Grooming and snuggling, but when Lancelot moves, Guin Nips him. The nipping has calmed down. Her bites went from an all out attack, to hard nips, to softer nips. This evening she took a small clump of fur, but not hard enough to leave a visible wound. I suspect it started as hate and fear, but now it is defensive. Defensive nips are ok-ish. But I still didn’t want it to continue, because it made Lancelot nervous. He doesn’t move about freely, because he doesn’t want to be nipped. But they are doing much better. Some people say – let them figure it out. Some say – don’t let them fight, which I totally agree with. But I have been coddling them so her nipping doesn’t scare him off of her. Each bun is different. I put a folder dish towel over his back and rear, so her nips wouldn’t scare him. Once she is calm enough with his presence, she will stop nipping. Grooming – slthough great, doesn’t necessarily bean bonded. She grooms him a lot – but still nips when he moves. I have been using the dish cloth, and also telling her to behave whne she nips. Surprisingly – she listens. Despite advice on letting them figure it out – I dont’ want to scare him off – so like I said, I’m coddling them for his benefit. I think it is working. Tonight I’m leaving them in the bonding cube together. Maybe try coddling them and see what happens. How long have they been bonding for? Maybe she is biting to get a reaction from him – to tel him to move – or groom – or do something he is not doing? Maybe yoru high pitched yelp isn’t working because you are nto the one being hurt, and she is smart enough to know whos voice is whos. I would use my momma reprimanding voice, and tell her to behave. When she settles down, I would stroke her. That’s what I’ve been doing. It is difficult when we don’t know exactly what their behavior means, and what they are thinking. Try to treat them as individuals. I’d love to hear how it goes. Maybe you can figure something out that helps my buns 🙂

[Peapod026]

Thanks for your response, Vanessa! My computer died right after I posted this, so I couldn’t get my response to post from my phone (though I’ve figured it out now). I read your bonding notes and will continue to! So funny you had a little Merlin too!

[Author]

Messages