Charlotte and Caramac

[BunBun10]

I recently got a second rabbit and I have been having some issues bonding them.

My first rabbit, Mister Charlotte is a neutered male who is about 11 months right now. I reccently got a 4 month old un-neutered female rabbit, Caramac. The breeder I got her from said that I should just stick them in the same cage and they will work it out. I questioned this immediately because I did a lot of research and watched videos, which told me that I should have them separate at first then bond them slowly. However, I followed the breeder’s advice and stuck them in the same pen. They are getting along all right, no fur pulling or fighting. My male rabbit, Charlotte, is chasing Caramac around and grunting, mounting her, and spraying her with pee.

He is getting better about the chasing and mounting, but the spraying seems to be getting worse! He was previously litter trained and was very good about using the litter! He only sprays when she is around. If I let him out of the cage by himself, he doesn’t spray. Caramac isn’t litter trained yet and since I have carpet, I can only let her out in certain areas and certain times.

I have had them together for two weeks now. Any advice? Should I separate them now and then try boinging them slowly? Charlotte already seems somewhat attached to Caramac despite the peeing.  But both of their paws are yellow with pee! And it is a pain to clean up daily!

Ps. I checked with the vet and Mister Charlotte is definitely neutered!

Thanks!

[DanaNM]

So, I hate to say it, but the breeder gave you terrible advice! You are pretty lucky that they haven’t seriously hurt each other. I don’t mean to be harsh, I have just seen rabbits first hand that have been injured very badly due to just “putting them in a cage together”.

You should separate them and get your female spayed. Because your female is not spayed, it will be very difficult for a true bond to form, because your male will harass her relentlessly (as you are seeing with all the hormonal behaviors).

It sounds like you have done some reading on the bonding process. There are many ways to go about it, but the first step is to make sure both rabbits are castrated (spayed or neutered). It sounds like yours are getting along OK, even with all the hormones involved, so hopefully once that happens the process will go smoothly for you.

. . . 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.  

[BunBun10]

Thank you for the advice Dana! They are both giant rabbits. I have been told not to get Caramac spayed until she is at least 6-8 months since they take longer to mature. Seems like until she is spayed and then recovers, I should keep them separate then…

[DanaNM]

Yes that sounds about right for giant breeds! And yes separate them until after spaying and her hormones have settled (usually this takes between 3-6 weeks). It’s also recommended to do “prebonding”, where you have them live side by side and swap who’s in which cage every day or two for a few weeks. This helps them get used to each other’s scents before you put them together, and I’ve found it really does help things go more smoothly. So you could separate, spay, let her heal for 2 weeks, then do a couple weeks of pre-bonding and see how they do. If things are still crazy in bonding sessions with mounting etc, then pause and do a few more weeks of pre-bonding, which will also let her hormones calm down more.

. . . 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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