BABY BUNNY BEHAVIOUR

[Luna&LilysHoomin]

Hi everyone,

I am new on here and looking for some advice.

I currently have 2 Holland lops. My first one, Luna, I got December 1st 2018. When I got Luna I was told she was 8 weeks old. She was and still is AMAZING. Perfect in every way. Potty training was EASY, friendly loves to cuddle, just easy with everything. As time went by, I started thinking maybe I should get another bun for Luna so she isnt lonely and has some company throughout the day. It was pretty easy with Luna, I have everything I need why not. SO.. I found a breeder, I purchased my second Holland lop, Lily, and waited for the 8 week mark before bringing her home. I wanted a boy, but mid way after already giving a deposit I was told it was actually a girl and I was already attached. Right away once I had lily, I noticed how much smaller lily was compared to Luna when I got her. I have a feeling the person who sold me Luna, my first rabbit, lied about her age. I didn’t know any better because it was my first bunny ever and she was small but lily was sooooo much tinier. If I had to guess Luna was 1-1/2 months older then 8 weeks when I got her. So this brings me to my dilemma. My new bun lily is CRAZY. Like a little super demon lol. When it came to bonding them it was suprisingly easy, Luna is a sweetheart and the first day they were already cuddling and cleaning each other I was really happy about that. I actually just put them together, no stressing them, no small areas first, it just worked out. My rabbits are free roam. So as the days go by, this little baby poops everywhere and I mean EVERYWHERE. I use the same litter training technique I did with Luna on lily and she will poop in her litter but everywhere as well. I’m not sure if this is normal behaviour and I just never got to experience what real baby bunny behaviour is. Does this eventually stop and it’s only happening because she’s a baby? Or is she just not getting the whole training process. And please tell me this wild crazyness is a baby phase lol. I have tried limiting her space till she gets it and she escapes EVERY trap I make.. she is wild and doesn’t take no for an answer. I feel bad for Luna because so much had to change because of the little ones behaviour. And they aren’t aggressive with each other, Luna just wants snuggles from lily, but lily is a super bully. Takes food out of Luna’s mouth, it’s all about her basically. Is this just a baby stage and will this get better? I wasn’t expecting this my first was easy.

[Doodler]

Hi there. As far as size is concerned you can see a wide range of sizes in the same age just like any animal, bunnies can grow at different rates. With Hollands there are bunnies with a dwarf gene (those are ones that will be within size standards) and some without that are called false dwarfs (these will be larger than breed standards). If you have a false dwarf they will be bigger but even then sometimes you can’t tell if they are false dwarfs until they are more mature or unless you know both parents are false dwarfs. A lot of times you can tell at an earlier age simply by their head and ears because they tend to look a little different when they are false dwarfs (they tend to have longer ears and longer faces). I have a false dwarf and a dwarf and the dwarf looks more like a Holland should. Of course it is possible the person lied because they are harder to sell when they get older since a lot of people want babies.

I know this is hard to hear but your bunnies are not bonded. The reason you had such an easy go of it is because they are babies. Baby bunnies cannot bond and really need to be separated by 12 weeks. Once their hormones kick in their snuggles can quickly change to fights, and severe fights at that. Two does can be one of the hardest pairs to bond simply because of how territorial they can be but it’s definitely doable if done correctly with time and patience. Once the oldest is 12 weeks I would separate them to avoid this. There have also been multiple times babies have been gendered incorrectly because it’s so hard to do and babies resulted in this mistake. You would then need to wait until they are both spayed, healed, hormones settled and prebonding is done to start the actual bonding.

As with people their personalities can be very different. I can tell you mine slowed down with age and the oldest is only 1.5 years. They are still trouble makers though.

As far as litter box training I wouldn’t be surprised if Luna’s habits also start declining before she is spayed. Once hormones kick in they use pooping to mark their territory. They also use pee as well. My buck was always really good with his litter box and once he became bonded he’s still good but not as good. He is pooping a few more nuggets outside of the box. Luckily they are right around the box. My doe was never as good as my buck. It’s not unusual for some to take easier to it than others. Some also have better control than others so it’s not unusual to have a bunny that will always drops a random poop here and there.

Good luck with them!

[Kiki]

Yes, I agree with Doodles. Definintely need to spay and the litter box behaviors will calm down. Indie is like a different Bun now that she is spayed.

[DanaNM]

Doodles pretty much covered everything!

Just wanted to reinforce that you should separate at 12 weeks. We’ve had several cases on the forum recently of folks who swore they had two baby girls, and ended up with a surprise litter.

And yes, babies are very hard to litter train, but it should all improve with spaying and once they are bonded! It actually sounds like she might not be as young as you think, as her behavior sound a bit like a teenage bunny hitting puberty! Dwarf buns are also known for being the most sassy little troublemakers! :p

NIC cube grids might work well for you in terms of blocking access to things, as they have pretty small grid sizes and can be modified any way you want.

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

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