Extremely Dominant Bun with Submissive

[Vinni]

<p class=”p1″>Hi all… So i’m trying to bond my two bunny girls. they’re the same age, both spayed 2.5 weeks ago. I put them in a stroller and walked around the neighborhood and that worked great! Then i put them in a small space to start the first date and did the smush method. They do great with that! Then the nipping starts. It’s just one nipping the other, the other will NOT fight back! At first it’s fine and I let it happen since it’s just some light nipping. However she always goes for the face/eyes or the butt. Then eventually it leads to a fight which I break up. However due to this, my submissive bunny, Brandy, seems to be terrified now of Rummy, the dominant. It just seems Rummy is relentless with attacking Brandy… and I feel bad because Brandy won’t defend herself and seems like she’s getting hurt with all the fur getting pulled out. Please help 🙁</p>
<p class=”p3″>I also wanted to add that they will do great with each other for a little while and even groom themselves (wash their own faces) but then Rummy starts it up. I wish she would just understand that no one is debating that she is the dominant one… Brandy isn’t fighting back and accepts that Rummy is the dominant… It’s just sad to watch</p>

[DanaNM]

It doesn’t sound like things are going terribly, but I would wait a little longer for hormones to settle, sometimes females can take a while for things to calm down. I think 4 weeks minimum is a good rule of thumb.  Also, did you do any pre-bonding (side swaps)? This can help a lot when buns are very tense around each other.

I personally have never had good luck with small spaces it as a primary method. It can be good for stressing and smush-petting, but once you need them to interact more it seems to not work as well, especially when one bun is very timid.

Do you have a larger space you can use? Even the whole bathroom floor? While I don’t know exactly what’s happening, my guess is that Rummy wants Brandy to groom her, and she isn’t, so she starts nipping. Brandy has no where to get away from her, so Rummy interprets that as her challenging her and the fight ensues. Giving a bit more space lets them move away from each other to avoid conflicts escalating.

Definitely work on preventing fights from happening. Some when they approach each other, be ready to start petting them. If nipping starts, for now don’t be afraid to break it up because it gets tense.

It is also usually not productive to try to project which bun will be dominant. There are signals going on that we may not pick up on. For example, Brandy may be pinned to the ground, which can actually be a grooming demand or a refusal to back down, which is more dominant that you may think. Sometimes the more fearful bun ends up being the instigator of fights. This is what happened with my first pair, the more aggressive bun actually ended up being the submissive one. You never really know how it will all fall out, so just try to focus on preventing fights and helping them feel more calm around each other.

. . . 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.  

[Vinni]

Wow, thank you for the insight! Yes, their living spaces are directly next to eachother separated by an expen border so they can see and sniff eachother. I’ve also been swapping toys and towels every few days. What you said about the not projecting actually really makes sense because I didn’t think of it that way! Rummy is always more anxious, so maybe she is actually very scared of Brandy and is coming across as dominant!

I’m going to give it two more weeks for hormones to settle some more before attempting again. Thank you so much for you your thought out and helpful response!! 🙂

[DanaNM]

You’re welcome! 🙂

During pre-bonding, I would actually swap full sides every day or two, or litter boxes if that’s not feasible. You really want them to get ALL up in each other’s scents and start to lose track of territories. LOL

. . . 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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