Cocoa & Bean – BONDED!

[Patchwerk]

Hello!

Hoping to get some advice on future bonding.  Perhaps I’m being overly worried, but I just wanted to see what some other, more experienced, people might think.

I adopted a female (Cocoa) and a male (Bean) the 30th of April.  They were 9 & 16 weeks when I got them, both Holland Lops.  Obviously, neither are fixed yet, but I intend on getting them both fixed when they come of age.  According to their vet, Bean should be able to be fixed sometime next month.  For Cocoa it may still be awhile.  Either way, I realize I’ll that after they’re fixed I’ll need to wait for them to heal up and get the hormones out of their system before I can actually start the bonding process.

I’ve had house rabbits in the past, but never 2 at the same time.  I’ve read quite a bit about bonding and the different methods.  I figured that it would be best to keep them in relatively close proximity while in their seperate cages… That way they could get used to each other’s scent and be able to see one another.  I’ve let them sniff each other through their cage bars (When one of them is out playing) but that’s been pretty much it.  I haven’t seen any agression in either of them.  Bean’s hormones were already running rampant when I got him, so he’s been pretty interested in “meeting” Cocoa, if you know what I mean.  I’ve noticed that Cocoa’s is starting to show some hormonal habits as well.  They’re both starting to leave droppings around each others cage, which (I assume) are territorial habits.

Anyway, this brings me to my actual QUESTION … Since their hormones are going bonkers and they’re not yet fixed, am I causing them a lot of irritation by keeping their cages near one another?  My biggest fear is to have them start to loathe each other because someone else is in THEIR territory, even though their seperate cages have both been in the same area since I got them.

I probably sound paranoid, but just like all of you, I want the best for my bunnies and want their future bonding to go as smoothly as possible (though I’m sure there will be bumps!).  I just don’t want them to dislike each other BEFORE I even get to the bonding process!  Should I take a step back and move the cages away from each other?  Or do I have the right idea by keeping their cages nearby one another from the start?

Any input would be great.  Thanks so much for anyone who has taken the time to read my rambling post.

[Beka27]

I think you can keep their cages in close proximity as long as it doesn’t seem to be stressing one or the other out too much. Be careful tho, as males can impregnate females thru cage bars… so you need to make sure they cannot get within 3 inches of each other’s cage. It’s not so much of a worry right now since Cocoa is still very young, but will be important over the course of the next month.

[Patchwerk]

Thanks so much for responding! I appreciate the input.
I made sure to have their cages spaced far enough apart to deter from any acrobatic mating rituals, haha.

Cocoa seems to be definitely showing signs of sexual maturity now. Heard her honking at Bean today. Both of them lift their tail up high and circle around each other’s cage and leave droppings. I feel bad for them ’cause I’m sure they’re frustrated and just want to mate. ‘Teenage’ bunnies and their hormones… This is always one of the really difficult parts!

[Beka27]

How sure are you of their ages (and their sexes)? It’s odd that Cocoa would be showing hormonal behavior this soon if she’s only 9 weeks. When is Bean getting neutered? At 16 weeks, he’s probably good to go now. If you already have an appointment scheduled, can you call them up and see if they’ve had any cancellations to move you up sooner?

These kinds of behaviors can be stressful for them, so if you still need to wait awhile to neuter/spay, I would consider relocating one to another space.

[Patchwerk]

Oh, sorry! I guess I didn’t make myself clear… I got Cocoa when she was 9 weeks old.  I don’t feel entirely sure on the exactness of their ages.  I did get them from a pet store, so I assume they were also making a guesstimate.  She’s been with me for a month now. So she’s probably more like 13 weeks old give or take?

And yes, I’m starting to worry that this might be a stressful situation since their hormones seem to be both on high now. I am definitely going to move them to different areas since Cocoa just seems to be getting worse. I’m glad I posted here so I could get another opinion.

I brought these guys both into the vet as soon as I could after I brought them home. They were healthy aside from a minor case of coccidia. So, I’ve been giving them medication to rid them of that. The vet didn’t want to fix Bean until he was off of the coccidia medication, so that’s why I’ve had to wait.
Their vet told me that Cocoa was a female. She’s really familiar in dealing with rabbits, so I don’t know if it’s possible for a seasoned vet to make that mistake? That would be pretty bad if she did!
But I was wondering if honking was unusual for females? She pee around Bean’s cage last night.  I don’t think it was a ‘spray’.  Is it unusual for females to do this?

So, yeah, definitely moving these 2 to different areas of the living room. I hope that will be far enough apart for the both of them… I don’t have a very big condo, so there aren’t many places for me to put them.

[Beka27]

Good vets can make mistakes… it does happen. Both males and females can honk, hump, and spray. Thank goodness you got them in and were able to get meds for the coccidia!

[Patchwerk]

Thanks again, Beka!

I wanted to take them in right away and make sure they were healthy buns! Thankfully they finished their medication dosage yesterday… So now I just need to take a sample of poo into the vet to make sure it’s all out of their system. Keeping my fingers crossed!

This weekend I may have someone who is quite experienced with rabbits have a look at Cocoa just to make sure she’s a she!

[LoveChaCha]

My female… honked at me before she was spayed.. and also sprayed on the carpet. She STILL honks at me hahahaha.

I would find a stuffed animal without the marble eyes and exchange them between the two bunnies for now. Their nose rules.

[lynnbunn]

Hi there!
I just went through some *stressful* bonding.
My first attempted pair didn’t go as I hoped. After awhile near each other they began to like each other. I put them together in neutral territory but fighting ensued. I put them back in their respective sides of the area but they truly began to detest one another. It got to the point where the bonding would never work as they fought immediately.

For my second attempted pair they pretty much hit it off. There was a little nipping but that was all. I put them together permanently after the first one or two weeks.

All of them were fixed though so they didn’t display any hormonal behaviors. They were, however, teenagers and I felt like they had some bi-polarity going on.

Anywho, I think it’ll be fine, at least for now, that they scent each other. You can try to have them eat dinner near each other (still in their separate cages, of course) so that they can see each other with good memories. If they begin to pee or poo specifically near the other rabbit’s cage (or as close as they can get), I would advise high awareness. Any sign of agitation or aggression can lead to bad feelings.

Good luck~

[Patchwerk]

Thanks again for all the input & advice guys!   (I’ll probably be saying that a lot, haha… but it’s nice to get responses!)

LoveChaCha: Haha!  She must really love you if she still honks!  I may definitely try the stuffed animal approach. 

lynnbunn: Sorry to hear about that stressful bonding, yikes!  But I am glad the other bonding went well.  Your icon is ADORABLE, btw!

Hoping to get Bean fixed very soon… And then Cocoa.  Meeting with their doc again this Saturday for one more exam to make sure they’re healthy for the surgery.  Once they’re healed and time has passed, then the actual bonding can begin! Fingers and toes crossed that it goes okay! I will definitely be putting to use the advice I’ve gotten on this site.

Though I have their cages spaced a couple feet apart, there is still territorial marking, both urine and droppings, in their shared play area.  (Of course, only one can go into the play area at a time)  I’m not noticing any grunting or annoyance in either of them, and they both seem to feel pretty safe and happy.  (I’ve been getting lots of bunny purrs & binkies lately!)  I assume if they were super stressed out, they wouldn’t feel comfortable flopping down and relaxing in their play area.
I guess I wasn’t sure if the marking necessarily meant that they were aggressive towards one another?

 I think things are going okay so far… aside from the peeing and pooping.  But, I can’t really control hormones.  If I had a bigger place, I might consider putting them in different areas, but I decided it’s just too difficult in my small condo… So I just went with moving their cages even further away from each other.

[Patchwerk]

I haven’t really updated, but a lot of things have been happening lately!

Cocoa and Bean got fixed earlier this month (6/6/2011) and have healed super well! I’m so glad to have that surgery out of the way. I realize it takes about a month or so for the hormones to completely work out of their system, so I have been keeping them seperate. While they were getting their seperate out-of-cage playtimes a lot of it would usually consist of one rabbit trying to get to the other rabbit and check them out, but I would always have them blocked off so that they couldn’t get to each other. Still, they are stubborn and persistant little buggers so eventually one would get to the other’s cage so they could sniff at each other through the bars.

One night Cocoa was being a little brat and kept trying to get to Bean’s cage so she could sniff at him through the bars, finally managing to weasel her trough the blockade that I had made. Both of them were mostly healed up and were moving and behaving normally… so I just gave in and decided to let them meet, but under heavy supervision. I did not want either of them to get injured as it had been about 10 days or so since their surgery… Perhaps it wasn’t good judgement on my part , but I they were just so dang eager to see each other.

Every meeting that they had since the very first one has been great. Bean has mounted Cocoa and is still a bit hormonal and has been spraying, but these tendencies seem to be slowly dying down. I have seen no signs of aggression. No grunting, no ears back… And since they have always been near each other and I have switched their cages over the time I’ve had them, neither appear to be overly territorial and they seem more than happy to share their cages/food/treats/etc. I have made sure to always keep an eye on them when they are out together.

Over their times meeting each other, Bean has mounted Cocoa, both of them have been full of binkies, lots of nose touching, lots of following each other around as they explore, and then finally grooming and flopping down beside each other to rest and cuddle. I’ve made sure to reinforce each meeting with treats and pets.

This weekend has been one of their longer sessions together, and Bean is even better about not mounting Cocoa and they just seem to enjoy each other’s company… While I’ve seen nothing but positive things in each of their meetings, when can I be sure that they are truely happy with each other? When is it time to let them have a permanent home together? I’m thinking that maybe I should give it another week just to be sure, but I would love some input. After seeing how happy they are with each other, I feel bad putting them in their seperate cages when I have to go to work, but I don’t want to risk a fight happening when I’m not their to supervise them.

[Elrohwen]

Sounds like you have an easy bond on your hands! I would get them up to being together the whole time you’re there to supervise, then move them in together when you can be around all day (like the weekend) and make sure they’re ok (I’d also sleep on the couch to be near them).

[Patchwerk]

Argh, I’m terrible at updating.

Well, I was hoping to do a bonding journal on this site and maybe give some helpful feedback to others going through the bonding process… (Though I have gotten some helpful feedback, that’s for sure! Thanks guys!)… but I am extremely fortunate to have had one of those ‘Love at First Sight’ bonds! Yay!

I wish I had some photos off hand to show you guys, but I’m currently writing this on break at work. Cocoa and Bean are like two peas in a pod. So much snuggling and grooming. When one of them starts to binky, the other decides to binky too! Bunny happiness is contagious, I guess! They are just so happy with each other and this makes me very glad. Now they won’t be lonely while I’m at work.

Only thing Bean still does is sometimes get excited and try and hump Cocoa, but that just seems to happen less and less… I think it might just be a few remaining hormones from his neuter, which was 6/6/2011. Cocoa just moves away when Bean tries to mount her and doesn’t get aggressive at all. Then they just sort of forget about it and lay down together, haha.

Anyway, they are in their permanent home together now and are pretty inseparable. I wish I had some more information to give people, but I got lucky.   Hopefully it stays that way and I’m not jumping the gun!

Thanks again to those who have responded to my posts. And good luck to all of you who are in the bonding process!

[LoveChaCha]

The humping is quite normal – they are establishing a dominant bunny. As long as no fights break out, and that it is becoming lesser, it is all good

[Patchwerk]

LoveChaCha — I don’t think I have ever seen either of them get aggressive toward each other, or towards me. Is it possible for there to be a relationship where there isn’t a dominant bun? It seems that Bean is sort of the dominant one of the pair, I guess. He’s the smaller of the two and more skittish, so it’s sort of comical to think of him as dominant, haha. They both seem pretty neutral. They’ve been living together for probably a little over 2 weeks now with no problems… I hope it stays that way!

[LoveChaCha]

Rabbits way of lives work that way – there is a dominat bun. It just happens. Even if they are small, they can be quite dominat There is a bunny that Monkeybun has that is a 1.5 dwarf. Biggest humper when she was getting bonded to her own friend

[Patchwerk]

Ah, I wasn’t entirely sure as I thought I read somewhere that there was such a thing as neutral relationships. Well, in that case, Bean is definitely the dominant one. Cocoa either lets him hump or moves away. Hopefully the moving away isn’t a bad sign? Like I said, there is never any aggression that I’ve seen. Cocoa pretty much puts up with Bean if he’s being humpy…   And yes, I’ve heard of smaller buns being dominant over the bigger ones. XD It’s just always comical to me… and adorable!

I always like to be cautious and hope I’m not jumping the gun on labeling them bonded…  But since they’ve been living together comfortably, I hope they won’t suddenly get in a fight for some reason!  I have a hard time seeing that happening, but I suppose you never know…

[Author]

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