Bunny bonding

[kpearce]

Hi all…. Well Gidgit just got a new little sister named Gizmo.  They are getting along great!   They don’t fight, she loves him to death, and he deals with her rather well.  My question is… Do I let them figure out who is going to be dominant or do I push them off of each other when they start humping each other? 

I can let them out and they run around my living room while being supervised, and they are fine together, but then one of them will decide that they want to hump the other.  They each just lay there for a while, being humped, but then they get up and run away, and then we do the chase game.  But what do I do?  Do I let them chase each other around trying to be dominant or do I squirt them in the face with the water bottle?  I know that I started the bonding process too soon, Gizmo was just fixed a week and a half ago, and I know that it makes Gidgit (my altered male) a little wild, but they are great together.  They are actually both lying in Gidgits cage together, not doing anything.  They will eat together, and I don’t have any problems other then the humping. 

They are both very relaxed with each other (They both lay with their back legs stretched out)  

AHHHH PLEASE HELP!  I want to make both my baby’s happy, but I don’t know how to deal with this one! 

One last note, I have been letting them each out to have individual play time, and when I let Gidgit out all by himself, he was pouting for a while, then I would let Gizmo out, and he would run around and chase her and he was happier.  I am just soooo confused about the humping! 

 

Thank you all for your help!  I love this site, it is great to have people who have gone through the same things to talk with!  

 

Thanks again…KimBerly, Gidgit & Gizmo! 

ps.  GIzmo’s paretns were feeding her oats…Is that healthy for her to eat? 

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[Beka27]

http://www.rabbit.org/journal/3-11/rabbits-teaching-rabbits.html

if you haven’t yet, read this article from HRS.  it talks about that very situation.  the most important thing you need to watch for is that they are not injuring each other thru nips or scratches.

i’m sure they are but i just want to double-check.  they are both altered right?  i don’t remember the story.

[Hannah]

Firstly, YAY NEW BUNNEH! *does a bunyn dance*

But anyway, I’ve never bonded bunnies, but from what I’ve heard, humping is pretty normal. The only time it really gets to be a problem is when one bunny is doing all the humping and the other one gets fed up and attacks/bites the other one to retaliate. Just watch to make sure they both seem okay with the humping. As far as oats go, I know oats can be fed to chinchillas (which tend to have similar digestive/nutritional issues) to help relieve mushy stool, but as long as Gizmo doesn’t seem to be having any issues with her poo I don’t really see the need to give her oats as anything but treats. Humphrey and Monty both enjoy a handful of oats now and then, and it’s very cute to have them eat them out of your hand. However, oats are not necessary for everyday feeding.

[RabbitPam]

I remembered seeing Oat Hay made by Oxbow and just checked their website. It’s there. If Gizmo is used to oats at the moment, perhaps you could try some of the Oat Hay to begin with, then mix with Timothy and gradually transition to Timothy only with the Oats as a treat. I understand that changing their diet abruptly is hard for them to digest, and might be rejected. You can be feeding Gizmo the taste she’s used to but in a healthier form while getting her used to better foods.

[MarkBun]

Humping is fine as long as that isn’t the only thing that they do all the time. You’ll need to let it happen from time to time to allow the dominance issue come out. But if they’re not thumping a lot or biting at one another, it’s going well.

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