Hello everyone! I’m new to the forums but not new to owning rabbits. However, I’ve never run into a situation like this before and could really use some advice. Wish I didn’t have to make this situation my first post, and I hope I’m posting this in the right subforum, but circumstances being what they are, I’m quite worried
I’ll try and sketch it out with as much detail as I can.
I own a pair of mini lop brothers, Gabriel and Raphael. They’re a bit over a year old (born march 2015), and are neutered since late September. They used to get along very well, they were each other’s best buds, always cuddling, grooming each other, and keeping close when exploring. About a month ago, they were taken to the vet for their yearly shots. Gabi did ok but rafi had a terrible time of it, he was honking and thumping for a while after. Still, their bond didn’t seem to suffer from it at all.
A few days ago I was alerted to a scuffling sounds in their pen and my first thought was that one of them was having a seizure. It turned out that a fight had broken out, and a quite vicious one, fur flying everywhere and someone even making a small squeal. Rafi came out of it with a scratch on his ear but no broken skin. I separated them, let them calm down, and tried a rebond after. The whole day, things seemed to be back to normal, cuddling and grooming all around. By the evening however, another fight broke out. I wouldn’t trust them together unsupervised after that, so now they’re separated, with occasional switches so no one claims me side of he pen for himself. They can still see and smell each other and don’t seem bothered by each other’s presence.
Today I tried letting gabi explore the sofa with me while I was having a cuddle with rafi. Everything seemed tense but ok. They bump noses, they groom. However, when rafi turns and gabi smells his backside, that seems to set him off. He’ll stretch forward, ears low, and I think if I hadn’t been there to put a hand over his neck to keep him calm, he would have nipped. It seems like this is what started the scuffles; someone will initiate a chase after a butt-sniff and the other goes on the attack. When I observed rafi today, I noticed his bum is letting off that male bunny odor but stronger than I’ve smelled it on either of them before. Apparently the smell has something to do with it.
Does anyone have any advice? What could be causing the smell? Rafi is clean and his anal glands look fine–is it hormones? They’re not aggressive at the sight of each other and even groom without squabbling, so is there any hope that this fighting will pass if they are given enough time? What can I do in the meantime to help restore their bond?
I used to be so happy to see my boys lounging together and enjoying each other’s company, so this sudden change in behavior is heartbreaking to see. Any help would be very much appreciated.