Bonding Behavior Question

[EspressoBean_]

Hello! Recently we have been working to bond two female rabbits, one of which is a three year old, large holland lop named Clover. The other is a young small lionhead named Willow.

We are housing them outdoors. We have made a fenced off area (with mesh separating them so they can see and smell each other) inside Clover’s fenced off area (I don’t want to say cage, it’s more of a big, long run). This means they are basically together all the time but can’t attack each other.

 

Recently we have been letting them run around the backyard together. Clover will chase the smaller one in short bursts. Clover doesn’t show any signs of aggression and will sometimes do binkies while chasing. Sometimes she will eat grass next to Willow and slowly try and approach her.

Willow doesn’t really let Clover approach her unless they are separated with mesh. When being chased, she pins her ears back and flattens herself to the ground. She also does this anytime Clover approaches her (even if there is a barrier). Clover will sniff her, sometimes groom her head, and sometimes nip her. Willow usually runs off after about 30 seconds.

Willow doesn’t hide after being chased. She will just run with her ears pinned back until Clover stops chasing her. After being chased, her ears return to their normal position. Then she goes back to laying down or eating grass.

Is this a good sign? Bad sign? Willow is too fast for Clover to catch so we let Clover chase her because it doesn’t seem aggressive. Are they playing?

[brit_onatuesday]

Hi! It sounds like Willow is still skeptical around Clover. I say this because at times she’s relaxed (eating & laying down) and other times she’s kneeling low with her ears back, which is normally a sign of impending attack. In this case it sounds like Willow is just preparing for a possible attack from Clover, because she hasn’t decided herself that Clover isn’t a threat yet. Luckily for you Clover seems to be a happy go lucky kind of bun, so in time Willow will figure that out. The nipping is normal, my buns did it in the prebonding stage, it was like they were testing the waters, what you wanna look out for is latching or if they start circling eachother in a tight formation. I would suggest you take the next step, while they are out maybe make a secluded area in the yard (use a playpen) and this way you can oversee them in close proximity. Something that worked for me, when my buns were face to face, I would pet them both at the same time, this would cause them to laydown usually cheek to cheek and it tricks them into thinking they’re being groomed by the other bun. You can also put banana or apple sauce on their foreheads. You can do this for 15 minutes or so the first day, and each day a little longer as long as you always separate them on a good note. Rabbits hold grudges, so if anything gets out of hand you’ll have to take time off. Another thing you can do is put Willow in Clover’s pen, and Clover in Willow’s pen, so they can get used to eachother’s scents. Female rabbits tend to be territorial so this will help with them getting more acquainted. Good Luck!

[EspressoBean_]

@brit_onatuesday Alright thank you! I will definitely try what you have recommend. I’m sure Willow will warm up with time, her personality has always been a bit skeptical of everything and only recently has she been letting is approach her to pet her. Thanks again!

[DanaNM]

Are they both spayed? How old is Willow?

Bonding sessions should be done in a neutral space. They backyard is not likely a neutral space if they both have spent time in it before. If you look at the pinned posts in the bonding section there is a “bonding template”. If you paste it into your reply with the info filled in that would be very helpful. 🙂

. . . 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.  

[Hazel]

Have you done any pre bonding (switching toys, litter boxes, enclosures between them)? There should be several weeks of pre bonding before any face to face meetings. Flat ears are a sign of aggression, putting their tail up is as well. It sounds like Willow is expecting an attack when being chased, it’s not play. I doubt Clover is being playful either, as you said she’s too slow to catch Willow, so there’s no way of knowing what her intentions are, although my guess is she’s not trying to be friendly. Binkies aren’t always a good sign. Binkies are in fact a combat move to avoid the other rabbit’s attack in a fight.

I would stop letting them interact this way. Willow being chased around only makes her view Clover as an aggressor and will hamper your bonding efforts. You want them to make positive associations with each other, not negative ones. Also, if Clover does catch up to her or Willow decides to turn and take her on and things turn nasty, there’s no way for you to catch them in an open area like this and break them up before they get seriously injured.

I would take a step back, do pre bonding for a while and once there is no more aggression you can start face to face meetings in a small enclosed space (bathtubs are a popular choice) so you can control the situation if a fight breaks out.

[Hazel]

Have you done any pre bonding (switching toys, litter boxes, enclosures between them)? There should be several weeks of pre bonding before any face to face meetings. Flat ears are a sign of aggression, putting their tail up is as well. It sounds like Willow is expecting an attack when being chased, it’s not play. I doubt Clover is being playful either, as you said she’s too slow to catch Willow, so there’s no way of knowing what her intentions are, although my guess is she’s not trying to be friendly. Binkies aren’t always a good sign. Binkies are in fact a combat move to avoid the other rabbit’s attack in a fight.

I would stop letting them interact this way. Willow being chased around only makes her view Clover as an aggressor and will hamper your bonding efforts. You want them to make positive associations with each other, not negative ones. Also, if Clover does catch up to her or Willow decides to turn and take her on and things turn nasty, there’s no way for you to catch them in an open area like this and break them up before they get seriously injured.

I would take a step back, do pre bonding for a while and once there is no more aggression you can start face to face meetings in a small enclosed space (bathtubs are a popular choice) so you can control the situation if a fight breaks out.

(I’m reposting this because my original post disappeared, my apologies if it causes any issues!)

[LBJ10]

Hazel – I found your post in the spam again. I’ll check to see where we’re at with that glitch.

[Hazel]

Thanks LBJ. Sorry for all the spam. 😆

[Author]

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