Bonding teens

[Captain Jackie]

Spay

Spaying surgery was one month ago, both are spayed.

Housing

They live in X pens side by side, with enough layers in between that they can touch noses but not bite. Each pen has a hiding place in it.

Bonding background

They’ve been living in the same house for 3 months now.

They get very tense around each other, and then start circling and biting (even in a neutral space). Originally they were very affectionate and inseparable. Their litter boxes get swapped unintentionally every so often. I’ve been trying to reintroduce them to each other but they fighting.

They lie next to each other in their separate pens constantly, though.

 

Should I wait until they’re adults? Right now they are teens.

[HipHopBunny]

Hi Captain Jackie! 🙂

“Spaying surgery was one month ago, both are spayed”

The first 4-7 weeks after being spayed or neutered, rabbits will go through what we call a “post-spay craze” where their hormones are high, so will be more prone to be set off. 🙂 I would wait a few weeks until that settles down, then I would start some prebonding (cage, litter boxes, and toys swap)

You said that they get tense when they are around each other – so I take it you have been doing some bonding sessions? It is very encouraging that before this they were great together, so what I really recommend is just waiting out those weeks for their hormones to die down, then start some prebonding. 🙂

Keep us posted, and wishing you calm rabbits! 😉

[Captain Jackie]

@hiphopbunny

That’s great to hear, I didn’t know their hormones were doing that!
I was trying to do bonding sessions but 10 seconds into every try they’d start nipping. 🙁

I’ll do more swapping then!

Thanks a lot for the response. ^_^

[DanaNM]

I agree with more pre-bonding! I would do full-on side swaps (leave the litterboxes a little dirty) for a few more weeks.

For your sessions when you resume, chose an area that is brand new and somewhat stressful if you can. Hopefully the additional pre-bonding will help a lot!

 

 

. . . 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.  

[Captain Jackie]

Thanks, I’ll do the litter swaps for a couple weeks and then try again maybe? I hope this works!

[DanaNM]

Sounds like a good plan to me 🙂

. . . 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.  

[Captain Jackie]

Update: it’s been almost a month since I first tried and almost 2 months since they were spayed. I’ve been switching pens with them for about a month. I had them in the tub today for about 30 minutes without them fighting. They were somewhat curious about their surroundings and instead of immediately trying to rip out each others’ throats they just sat there facing each other. Is this good progress?

[DanaNM]

That sounds like very good progress!

. . . 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.  

[Captain Jackie]

Ugh, we’re SO CLOSE. It seems like Lizzie wants to be friends again but CJ is nervous because initially Lizzie was bigger and stronger than her and gave her a royal beating when they first started fighting, before they were spayed. Now, Lizzie has been sitting calmly and patiently whenever she and CJ are touching. I don’t think I’ve seen her nip at her at all, even when CJ nips her. She just sits in a relaxed position with her eyes half closed.  She’s always sticking her nose through the bars like she’s interested in what CJ is doing. CJ on the other hand has been tense and occasionally nips lightly at Lizzie either on the nose or back, and her eyes are wide open. I think Lizzie might be older because she started displaying certain behaviors about a month before CJ such as digging and chinning and seems to be more interested in a relationship now as well. Hopefully CJ realizes that Lizzie isn’t hurting her anymore and that she’s actually getting bigger than Lizzie too lol. As I’m typing this CJ has just flopped down next to Lizzie in their separate X pens and they’re lying side by side. So cute D:

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