Divided cage?

[BunnyGma]

We got a pair of Holland Lops (does) for my daughter (16) and son (11) for their birthdays. I think they were about 14 weeks when we got them and are approximately 5 months old now. They get along well and often lick each other and cuddle. However one of the bunnies is constantly mounting the other (& usually backwards), and the one being mounted is always trying to escape before cowering and letter her finish the deed. I feel really bad for her, and it’s kind of disturbing. I know it should help when we get them spayed. Is it too soon? Do we need to wait until they are 6 months old?

I feel like I need to separate them for the sake of the bunny that’s being mounted. Can I keep them in the same cage but with a wire divider? Essentially it would be like 2 cages side by side. So they would have the benefit of each other’s company without having complete access to one another. I would want to keep them like this if the mounting didn’t stop (which I read should curb with spaying but may not completely stop it.).

Last question is about separating permanently. We got 2 because we thought they would be happiest with a buddy. But I keep reading about plenty of people that have 1 rabbit. Is it really terrible to just have 1 (if we can find a nice home for the other)? I think one of my kids is kind of over the bunny. They thought they would be more cuddly than they are. And I wonder if having just 1would make it bond better to it’s human? They were doing pretty good until we went on vacation for 10 days. We took them to a friends house to care for them but I don’t think he handled them much as they seemed much more skittish when we got back and have even been biting us some.

We did do some research before getting the bunnies, but it just hasn’t panned out to what we thought it would be like.

Let’s just say, we are having a little bit of bunny regret. There have also been a couple pee accidents on my relatively new couch that I am REALLY unhappy about. The vinegar is not cutting it. The smell is nauseating and I can’t have my house, especially my couch smell like rabbit pee.

That was way too many questions in one post. ?

Thanks in advance for your help.

[Harley&Thumper]

Yes, they should be separated immediately. It’s not uncommon for people to sex bunnies incorrectly and you might end up with a male and female in the same cage. Supposedly bunnies can mate through a wire fence so you would need to completely separate cages.

They might be biting you because hormones are kicking in and they are becoming rebellious teenagers. Spaying / neutering will help fix that problem as well as the peeing outside of the litter box.

I believe the general consensus is that bunnies are more playful and energetic in a pair or trio but they can still live a long happy life as a single bunny.

[sarahthegemini]

Posted By BunnyGma on 8/23/2018 11:12 AM

We got a pair of Holland Lops (does) for my daughter (16) and son (11) for their birthdays. I think they were about 14 weeks when we got them and are approximately 5 months old now. They get along well and often lick each other and cuddle. However one of the bunnies is constantly mounting the other (& usually backwards), and the one being mounted is always trying to escape before cowering and letter her finish the deed. I feel really bad for her, and it’s kind of disturbing. I know it should help when we get them spayed. Is it too soon? Do we need to wait until they are 6 months old?

I feel like I need to separate them for the sake of the bunny that’s being mounted. Can I keep them in the same cage but with a wire divider? Essentially it would be like 2 cages side by side. So they would have the benefit of each other’s company without having complete access to one another. I would want to keep them like this if the mounting didn’t stop (which I read should curb with spaying but may not completely stop it.).

Last question is about separating permanently. We got 2 because we thought they would be happiest with a buddy. But I keep reading about plenty of people that have 1 rabbit. Is it really terrible to just have 1 (if we can find a nice home for the other)? I think one of my kids is kind of over the bunny. They thought they would be more cuddly than they are. And I wonder if having just 1would make it bond better to it’s human? They were doing pretty good until we went on vacation for 10 days. We took them to a friends house to care for them but I don’t think he handled them much as they seemed much more skittish when we got back and have even been biting us some.

We did do some research before getting the bunnies, but it just hasn’t panned out to what we thought it would be like.

Let’s just say, we are having a little bit of bunny regret. There have also been a couple pee accidents on my relatively new couch that I am REALLY unhappy about. The vinegar is not cutting it. The smell is nauseating and I can’t have my house, especially my couch smell like rabbit pee.

That was way too many questions in one post. ?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Firstly, yes you must separate them now. With hormones at play, they could fight and really hurt one another. Being separated by a wire divider should be adequate so long as they can’t stick their noses through. 

Some people do have solo buns that are happy however MOST bunnies are happier with a bun friend. They are social and really do thrive with another rabbit. Of course there are exceptions. But they are just that: exceptions. I honestly feel a bit sad reading that you might get rid of one so the remaining one bonds more to you/humans. A human cannot physically be with the bunny 24/7. On average you’ll be asleep for 8 hours every night. That leaves bun alone for those 8 hours. That’s not even taking into account the time you need to shower, cook, do housework, run errands, go to work etc. That leaves bun on his own for a significant amount of time. In my opinion, it would be such a shame to keep your bun alone all that time just so he/she bonds more with you when you are able to spend time with bun. Also, it’s not guaranteed to work like that anyway. 

It’s a shame that one of your children is ‘over the rabbit’ Rabbits are not cuddly (again, there are exceptions) but bunnies can be affectionate in other ways. The reason bunnies don’t like being picked up is because in the wild, this signifies being killed and eaten by a predator. So, naturally, bunnies are very scared of being off the ground. I don’t know if you already knew this but if not, try explaining that to your child so they understand why their rabbit isn’t snuggly. Rabbits often like kisses and nose boops which is adorable!

As for peeing. Unfortunately unspayed rabbits are quite difficult to litter train and even litter trained bunnies like peeing on soft things sometimes including couches. The best thing you can do is put blankets on the sofa so that they take the bulk of the pee or simply block access to it. 

[BunnyGma]

Thank you for your replies!
I feel like I need to clarify- e would not be rehoming a bunny for the sole purpose of bonding with human. The main reason would be if the mounting didn’t stop after spaying. I don’t feel like it would be fair to the bunny being mounted to keep them together. I was just wondering if we decided that was best, if the bunny would become more bonded to the human. I would feel especially sad if the bunny no longer had a bunny (even a dominating mounting one) and was also not bonded to anything else.

Fingers crossed the spaying calms everything down and bunnies will get to stay together and no rehoming is necessary.

[sarahthegemini]

Unfortunately even once spayed, bunnies can’t just be put back together. They need to go through a bonding process. Check out the bonding sub section

[Azerane]

I second the recommendation of separating them now. Just make sure that the wire is fine enough that they can’t bite each other through it. At any time the mounting could turn into fighting. In regards to spaying, you are best to contact your local rabbit savvy vet about that. Some vets like to wait until 6 months, other vets will spay rabbits once they reach 1kg. They’re almost 6 months anyway so I wouldn’t expect much in the way of a delay.

Regarding the one rabbit biting after you went away. Sometimes that just develops with hormones and territorial behaviour. Another option is that the rabbits might have actually been handled too much, rather than not at all, and may have resorted to biting to be able to get space. Are they are bites, or just soft little nips? Small nips aren’t uncommon with young rabbits and sometimes they’ll grow out of it. Otherwise it could be a defensive/territory/hormonal thing. Make sure you’re calm around them, move slow and gentle with petting etc to put them at ease. If it’s hormonal, spaying will help with that too

[Nutmeg]

Ahhhh yes, they are going through the good old hormone surges and getting territorial.
I agree with everything above, so wont repeat that..

But just wanted to add…. (unless it was added and I missed it lol) the humping is for dominance. Bunnies are kind of like wolves in that they have a pack hierarchy with one being more dominate.
The one who is mounting is trying assert her dominance.
The same with the peeing and pooping – as that is them trying to mark their territories… both of these will settle a bit after they are spayed.
(Plus 70% of unspayed females will get uterine cancer by the age of 3 to 5, so its good to get that done anyway)

My vet recommended 6 months old. I got my girl (and boy) done when she was 7 months and he was 6 months.

After the spay they will go through hormone surges (like menopause lol) and can been even more of a pain in the butt for that month or so – so you need to keep them seperated still during this time… but what you can do during this time is start pre-bonding them… again read the bonding section of this forum.

Then when you put them together for the first time again in neutral territory (again the boding section covers this) she may still try to mount her for dominance – Make sure no face humping happens though) but once they figure out the pecking order between them that usually stops.

My first bunny liked to snuggle BESIDE me on the floor… she didn’t like to be picked up or on my lap… but I got her at 4 years old…. but my two new bunnies who are about 8 months old now don’t like to snuggle.. they have too much energy. I’m not sure if my first bunny was like that when she was younger too.
But have the kids just sit on the floor with them – but IGNORE them … just watch a movie or something and let the bunnies come up to them and sniff at them. And even then don’t try to pet them just yet.

Bunnies are a lot of work, but are very rewarding. Even my hubby cried when we had to put our first down, and he isn’t a huge “small animal” lover .

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