Intact male in need of company – what would you do?

[Karla]

Hey guys. I need your help with this dilemma. A coworker has asked for some help. She has a 7 year old intact male, but he clearly misses company.

She doesn’t want him neutered as she has read several places that it is very risky when they are that old. He sprays and humps things, so she is a bit concerned how he will take to a spayed female (if it will be too much for the female, or it will stress him too much)

I have told her that although the female is spayed, he will still hump her (that is what Freddy did), but it is my experience that yes, it will be too much for the female, but she will actually stop him from doing it if it gets too much.

So perhaps it could work. And didn’t it work out for Vivian and Jack as well, although his humping was caused by bladder stones? So what would you recommend? Should she get a neutered male, a spayed female or let him be alone?

[Nibbles_NZ]

I wouldn’t put another rabbit with him. Just knowing how Baxter was (and will be for a while) because he was intact. They don’t stop humping. I think it would be too much and unfair for a spayed female. Even if the female had enough and tried to stop it. An unaltered male can be a lot more agressive and end up hurting her. I think it would stress the female way too much. That’s just my opinion.

[mocha200]

is it a inside rabbit? if so, why doesn’t she just spend more time with him and play with him?

[Nibbles_NZ]

It’s hard to play with an intact male. Especially one that is spraying. I often got humped by Baxter and he sprayed me once too. He stopped playing with me after he realized he would rather hump me. Letting him out of the cage was a problem too. He would mark and poop everywhere. This is a sad situation for this bunny I have seen where bunnies and kitties played. Is that an option? A kitty could defend itself from a humping and spraying bunny more than another bunny could. Couldn’t it?

[mocha200]

one of my cats like my buns but you have to be careful it depends on the cat.

[Nibbles_NZ]

What about a kitten? They always have those in shelters.

[Karla]

It is a house rabbit, but she feels that he is lonely. She has a cat, that he likes being around with, but he sprays the cat, so the cat often goes away. So she feels sad that he doesn’t have the company of another bunny.

I told her getting a spayed female might be an idea, but that she should make sure it was an adult and that it had places to hide from him…only because I noticed that Molly actually seemed to think it was fun that Freddie chased her trying to hump her. But 24/7 is a bit tooo much for even the most over-bearing female, I think. And even if Molly finds it funny to be chased, you would never see them lay next to each other, while his hormones were at the worst. So I am not sure if an intact male and spayed female will ever get a close bond?

[Nibbles_NZ]

I wouldn’t exactly let the kitten live with the bunny but some supervised play time is always good. A kitten would probably think the bunny was playing if the bunny humped it lol.

[mocha200]

all i know is our kitten is to playful to play with the bunnys. she just doesn’t know when to stop. she is such a brat, a cute one though.

[Nibbles_NZ]

It would be hard to know what the outcome would be. Would a female make the males hormones worse? Even though she is spayed she still has scent glands so he would know she was a girl. Baxter humped everything but he was a lot worse when I smelled like Bella…come to find out Bella is actually a male so it didn’t matter to Baxter. lol What a hard situation. I understand that an adult cat may get tired and run away from the bunny but would a playful kitten? Even adult cats get sick of energetic kitten and go hide from them. I just thought that a kitten wouldn’t get as stressed as a bunny would. Plus, if it didn’t work out she would then have to house the other rabbit. Whereas a kitten is free roam and doesn’t require as much maintenance as a bunny. I really hope your friend finds a solution.

[Karla]

Well, I asked her to consult a vet and have her bunny checked – perhaps he is in such good health that he could easily be neutered although it sounded like she wasn’t ready to take the risk. That would be the best solution really.

A part of me thinks that his hormones will go crazy, but if he has a stuffed toy to take his frustration out on and the female can go somewhere else to hide from him, it might be a solution. Though who is to say, that both won’t be extremely stressed?

I think it is such a dilemma. I really don’t like seeing bunnies live on their own, but this is just not a good starting point for a bunny friendship.

[Nibbles_NZ]

I think you are giving her some good advice. I am assuming it isn’t the actual neuter she is concerned about but the anesthesia? I wouldn’t do it if it were a spay but a neuter may not be so bad. I don’t think they are down for long. Our Vet called us like 30 minutes after he started on Baxter and said that he was waking up. It would be sad to lose her bun while he was down though. That is scary. Our Vet said that losing a bun when it is under anesthesia is usually due to a respiratory ailment. Has a stuffed animal ever worked for your buns raging hormones? I tried it but I think it only made him want the real thing even more. He looked at me like I was a giant females you know what! LOL. He stalked me…walking back and forth at the side of his pen. He had this look in his eyes. I was almost affraid of him for a couple of days after I gave him that bear. I pet my other male rabbit and forgot to wash my hands before I pet him and he bit me. He never bites.

[Karla]

LOL, Baxter sounds like he was a hormonal monster! I’m not sure how I would deal with such a monster, haha.

I think the stuffed toy worked on Karl, but he was never as bad as Baxter. But once he got the stuffed toy, it was all he did…he never left it. He was constantly on top of it. But it was great, because he was such a shy and timid boy, so if we needed to catch him outside for instance, we just took the stuffed toy and he would come running to us instantly. Today, when we want him to go inside, we have to chase him around in the garden to catch him!

I agree with the castration. From what I have heard it is such a small operation, that the bunny doesn’t have to get that high a dosage of anesthetics, so the risk isn’t so great even if the bunny is old. I hope she goes to the vet, but I understand her concern. Although I would do it nevertheless.

[Nibbles_NZ]

lol yes Baxter was and still is a hormonal monster. He just got neutered Thursday and came home yesterday. I have been humped twice. lol He doesn’t stalk me though. He is to busy with his new crinkle tube. I am glad it is a distraction for him. lol

[BinkyBunny]

Some very experienced rabbit-savvy vets are comfortable doing older rabbits, but blood work is usually a must. Rucy had to go under anethesia when she was in her later years too due to jaw abscess. They did blood work, and my vet was very experienced with Rabbits (Dr. Harvey – pretty well known in the rabbit circles) and Rucy did just fine with the surgery. It’s not out of the question, but making sure the rabbit is in good health and the vet is rabbit-savvy and confident is a must.

Though Jack and Vivian have bonded, and Jack is a humpy “neutered” rabbit still – he’s not like he used to be prior to the surgery. If he was as nutty as he was before he had the bladder stone removed, I am not sure if they would have bonded, because Jack was CRRRAZY humpy in the beginning. He climbed the xpen I had him in at the time and that’s when he was afraid of heights! He also still sprays so if your friend is okay with that and the bunny is okay with that, then it’s not impossible. Vivian has a place to go to each day if she wants to escape Jack’s obnoxious behavior. He’s just not AS obnoxious as he used to be.

I have heard of neutered and unneutered bunnies successfully being bonded, but in general I’ve heard of more complications than I have heard of success .

The fact that her bunny sprays her cat, means he would most likely spray the female as well, so even if they bonded, it might be a little more pungent around. Jack sprays still, but the smell is not as strong as an unneutered male, but it’s still not pleasant and I have to clean spray at least once a week.

Just some things for her to consider.

[Deleted User]

I would tell your co-worker that placing another rabbit, even altered, with the intact male buck carries a high risk of injury and possibly a subsequent need for surgical attention. It makes more sense to neuter this old buck and bond him the proper way, or leave him single but provide stimulation such as more exercise time and interaction with his owner.

[angelicvampyre]

Rufus is about 5 years old and the vet has no issues giving him the snip she said if he was a female then yes but males not such an issue.

[RabbitPam]

Spockie was not neutered, and at seven he was a bit humpy with my ankles, but otherwise loved to play with me. He never sprayed, though, so I think from all reports he had a lower hormone level in general than some bunnies. But at seven, he started to develop other health issues, mainly loss of mobility in his back legs, so he couldn’t climb into his litter box within a few months. He was very, very healthy all his life, but then the last 9 months or so he was disabled. I say this because a geriatric bunny can have a health issue come on them fast, and that effects their behavior and ability to cope. It definitely would be the vet’s call about neutering him now, but also a younger bunny is more vigorous and he may not like that either in his older years. If you did get a bunny, I’d go with a neutered male at least 3 years old so he’s more mellow, too, rather than a female.

I was also very worried about Spockie’s loneliness. Until I was home a few weeks between jobs. That’s when I learned that bunnies have their deepest sleep of the day right when you’re out of the house. He was awake for me in the AM, and when I got home, but obviously didn’t want any company during the day while resting. So he wasn’t nearly as lonely as I imagined. I think you can safely consider your bunny as OK with you and the cat, and agree that a bit more playtime, or changing his play/out time routine will be stimulating enough.

If you want another bunny because he is geriatric and you are afraid of losing him, so you want two, then be sure to have him date first so you see how he interacts with others and let him choose his new friend. Again, I’d recommend a male that is neutered, like from a shelter, that you want too. You will probably have them both for several years. But the new one will grieve when he passes, so you will want another mate for the new one if things go for them as expected. (No sudden illness for the new one, for example.) Make sure you have separate housing for two at first, and can afford expenses for them both.

[bunnnnnnie!]

How about getting another bunny and putting them in cages next to each other, with neighboring x-pens?  Then he’d have the companionship of another rabbit but no fights or anything.  Or would that frustrate him more, to see another rabbit and not be able to get at it?  Just an idea.

[Beka27]

I don’t think 7 is too old to get neutered. As long as it’s okay with the vet and he’s cleared thru blood work, I would recommend she do it and bond him the proper way. It’s very likely that he may have another 5 years. If he were currently sick or declining in health, I wouldn’t recommend the stress of surgery and bonding, but if he appears healthy, there’s no reason to not go thru with it.

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