Fighting when trying to bond

[Meaghyean]

Hello! I have a neutered male (Finny) and a spayed female (Monica) I’m trying to bond but Finny attacks Monica as soon as he lays his eyes on her. They’ve had their cages side by side for about a week and I’ve switched them backs me forth in their pens but it seems like nothing is working. I have doubts about stress bonding because frankly Finny isnt scared of anything. Also he is free roam so I’m not sure about a neutral territory for them. They’ve both been in every room in the house, even the bathroom.
It really feels like Finny will never stop trying to fight, even when I separate them he fights whatever I use to pull them apart (towel, gloves, etc.) Hes never been aggressive before and I really cant figure out what to do about them. Any advice is welcomed.

[Sirius&Luna]

Hi!

It sounds like you’re moving pretty quickly. Normally, we recommend at least a month of prebonding, which is swapping them between cages, not just having them side by side. Swapping is very important because it means they lose track of what territory is ‘theirs’ and also get used to the smell of the strange bunny. Finn is probably attacking because he feels territorial, if they’ve already been in all the space in the house.

I would go back and do at least another month of prebonding, then find somewhere completely neutral to start your bonding. This could be a friends house, the car, a bit of fenced off garden if you have one (outside doesn’t retain territorial marking smells so easily as indoors), or a neutralised space like a pop up pen (cheap on amazon) or an xpen if you already have one with the walls and floor covered with clean blankets/puppy pads.

I can’t emphasise enough the importance of enough prebonding, and neutral space they’ll be like different bunnies!

Can I ask how long they’ve been spayed and neutered for?

[Author]

Messages