Bonded pair still working out dominance after 6 months

[Ntlzk]

Hello!

I have two rabbits, P (male, 2 years old) and C (female, ~1 year old). We bonded them in April — it took a month but we finally figured it out! At first P was way way way more aggressive towards C, lunging at her and “bunny tornadoing” but those behaviors plateaued over the bonding process as they got more comfortable with each other.

 

now they’re fully bonded — they cuddle, groom each other, share food well, etc. But over the past month there have been more hierarchy disputes. C is usually the one asking for grooming, and P usually complies, indicating that she is taking over top rabbit position. (She grooms him as well!) But then C also has been humping P, which annoys him, and then he chases her around and nips her or rips out some of her fur. She usually does this before breakfast or after dinner. It doesn’t seem dangerous, and the fight doesn’t escalate beyond a nip or two. That said, this has been happening 3-4 times a week for about a month or two now. C is also pooping everywhere despite being litter trained — I assume for hierarchy reasons as well.

Wtf is happening? Will they ever figure this out?

also FYI they’re both free roam and both have been spayed/neutered for the whole time I’ve had them.

 

[DanaNM]

Hmmm, that much fur pulling isn’t normal in fully bonded pairs, I agree it sounds like there has been a bit of a hierarchy upset.  Are there any new pets, humans, or other smells in your house? Sometimes things like that can upset a bond a bit. Can you describe what you did to bond them?

Sometimes if one bun is having a medical issue that will also upset a bond a bit. Does either bun have any signs of illness?

. . . 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.  

[Ntlzk]

To bond them, we each gave them half of the house, split with an ex-pen, and then switched their habitats each day so they wouldn’t get too territorial over one part of the apartment. (This was absolutely miserable, they both spent the whole day rattling the ex pen trying to get into the other part of the house)

I feel like our bonding process was pretty standard — it took about a month, maybe a little longer. Started in a cardboard box on the washing machine for about 20 minutes, then moved to the bathtub for 20 min to an hour, then to a covered porch that’s neutral territory for an hour, then a few hours, then a night.

they’ve been bonded ever since, and even though they have started having these little spats, they return to cuddling shortly after, so it’s a bit strange

I’m racking my brain but there haven’t been any big changes in the home — no new guests or animals at least. I got a new couch a few weeks ago but the fighting had started long before that. And it doesn’t seem like either bunny is sick — they’re both eating and excreting and behaving normally.

Im at a loss!

[DanaNM]

I think it might be good to do a bit of “bonding bootcamp” with them, which basically means some bonding sessions in a neutral space to see if they can resolve these issues.

You could take them to a neutral area and see if you can spend the weekend or a few overnights with them there. Sometimes that’s all that’s needed to help them straighten things out again.

Sometimes I think what can happen is a more shy bun may not be as assertive in the early bonding sessions, but once they settle in a bit more they assert themselves more and it can cause little disputes. Now that they know each other better, revisiting some bonding techniques should hopefully smooth things over.

. . . 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.  

[LBJ10]

You said this seems to happen around meal times. Have you tried separating them while they eat just to see how they react?

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