Help with bonding

[Mmh]

Hello,

We are currently trying to bond 2 neutered lionhead males and I’m not sure how the bonding is going as this is my first time. We have a 2 year old lionhead (Peter) that we’ve had since he was 8 weeks and another 1 year old male (Leo) that recently fell into our laps and thus began the bonding process. We did allow Leo to settle in for about 2 weeks before starting bonding. Both were neutered around 5-6 month mark. Peter is completely free roam and we did not want to change this, so Leo is set up in a pen in Peter’s home-base room. Peter does frequently hang around outside the pen.

The first bonding sessions went very well as they both seemed very indifferent and Leo even began grooming Peter right from the beginning. As time has gone on, Peter began grooming Leo back but it has turned more aggressive and always ends with Peter frequently nipping Leo’s butt and it can escalate quickly. We have been at this for about 6 weeks now and it does not feel like anything is changing, either regressing or progressing. We have them in a 2X2 ft pen in a neutral area and have been doing it for about 25-30 minutes a day but the continuous butt nipping continues and has been for about 4 weeks now. It always starts with Peter grooming Leo’s head and then moving down toward his butt and nipping him. I honestly cannot tell if it’s harmless but it usually continues to a point where it looks like it will escalate to a fight and I separate them. Leo does not reciprocate the nipping, the most Leo does to interact with Peter is to either groom him or ask to be groomed himself.

Since I have never bonded bunnies before, I’m not sure if I should continue what I am doing or if I should change my approach. I have read that bonding 2 males can take longer so I have prepared myself for that. Are there any recommendations? I did try moving to a new neutral area but that did not change anything. I’m not sure if what I am seeing is normal behavior and I just need to continue to be patient or if I am doing something incorrectly that I need to change. Any tips would be much appreciated! Thank you!

[DanaNM]

I would try a larger space! Butt nipping is usually a way that rabbits communicate that they want the other rabbit to move out of their way. In a small space that’s impossible.

Once in the larger space I would extend the length of time they are together. Try to work up to a couple hours at a time. It sounds like it’s going well overall, so I think with a larger space you will see improvements and be able to start extending the time.

Also if you haven’t already, swapping which bun is in which pen is important. Even though Peter is free roam, he needs to get used to Leo being in that area (not at the same time of course) and swapping sides can really help them lose track of territories.

. . . 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.  

[LBJ10]

Dana made some good suggestions. Also, a little bit of nipping isn’t necessarily a bad thing as long as there is no real fighting. Sometimes you just have to let them work things out and not intervene too soon. A larger area for one bunny to move out of the way when “told” will probably help with this.

[GlennTheLionhead]

I agree with the points made by the other.

I too think that it seems to be going well overall and they just need to work things out. Grooming is very positive. The main thing is preventing an all out fight from happening but I have found that allowing a little light nipping actually helps things to move along, I believe they use this to try and communities and test boundaries with the other bun. So allowing them to communicate helps them move away from the stalemate phase. I think sometimes butt nipping can also be asking for grooms depending on the context i.e., if it happen just after the nipper has been grooming the other.

I agree longer sessions and more space will hopefully help them iron out their relationship.

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