colin & bessie fall out

[colinbessiemummy]

colin and bessie used to be the best of friends but they’re now having to live separately because they won’t stop fighting…

it happened while they were in the care of some neighbours while we were away on holiday. colin’s abscess flared up again and on the advice of the vet our neighbours placed colin in a separate cage (he was being taken twice a day for antibiotic injections and this, the vet said, would help to prevent reinfection). this was a month ago. we got home yesterday. now whenever they’re both running free they end up attacking each other and tearing chunks of fur out. no blood yet fortunately. but it’s so sad! they used to cuddle up and groom each other all the time.

what can we do to re-bond them? please please, any advice? if they can’t be friends again, we’ll have to re-home one of them.

btw, colin and ‘bessie’ are both sterilised males, one and two years old. bessie’s a lionhead, colin’s breed unknown. and we live in china…

HELP!

[jerseygirl]

Aw – I’m sorry! It sounds like their bond was broken because of the separation. Other factors could have been a different household and other animals about also. Did they care for them in your home or theirs? Also, Colin may have come home from the vet with a weird smell that Bessie may have reacted to. It’s why it’s recommended to take them to vet together because something that simple can break a bond. So I’ve read/heard. What was your original bonding process with them?

Sometimes a stress bonding technique like a car ride together in a carrier can be used to mend a bond if two rabbits have had a tiff. But if you suspect it is more than this, you’ll probably have to go back to basics – meetings in neutral space etc. 

Personally I would wait until Colins treatment is finished as bonding can be stressful and may hinder his healing.  Also, if you do have to take him regularly to vet without Bessie, it may undo any progress you have made.  You could begin now by penning them side by side and cage swapping overnight.

[RachelB]

Sounds like you need to start the bonding process over. Start slow and give them time to have “happy” memories with eachother to replace the chasing, fur biting, and nipping. I agree that they need some stress bonding with lots of forced pets laying near eachother.

Try not to give up on them too soon…. they got along once so Im sure they can get along again it just is going to take some time, work and patience!!

[colinbessiemummy]

thanks for the advice guys.

i tried the stress bonding technique with them last night. we brought them in separate cages to a friend’s place and then released them in the new neutral space of the friend’s living room. they ignored each other mostly, which was a marked improvement! after 20 minutes they went back in their cages and i left them side by side for another 20 minutes. again, they were quiet, whereas at home they’d still be trying to attack each other through the cages.

i’ll keep this up over the next couple of weeks and see how it goes.

when they were first introduced there were no problems and they bonded pretty much immediately. bessie was very little then so i suppose colin didn’t find him any kind of threat, and bessie was used to being around other rabbits.

i really hope they can be friends again. colin is happy hanging out with people, but bessie seems all depressed since the fall-out.

 

[jerseygirl]

That’s good news! A totally foriegn, neutral space can help alot. At some point you can try them traveling in the same cage to so they take comfort from one another. If you think they’ll fight in it, maybe try a deep, open top box so you can intervene. (Not recommended to do this whilst also behind the wheel  )

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