Is it impossible to bond unless spayed?

[IHeartBuns]

I’ve read about bonding and understand it is recommended to spay/neuter your buns to reduce aggession/territorialness but still see so many others still having problems bonding their buns even if they have been fixed.

I have a 4 month old female and just got another 2 month old female yesterday. I called The vet today and they  won’t fix them until 5 or 6 months of age which means I’m looking at another 5 months before the second one is fixed too(including the month rest after)

 

Does anyone have success of bonding rabbits on here that have not been fixed? Since both of mine are so young, would it be possible at all to introduce them? I have already started using the bunny double with hair from the new female rabbit with my 4 month old girl. She is jumping on the stuff animal and nibbling it and trying to reach the new bun in her cage.

Is it a horrible idea to let them in a nuetral territory to see what happens or is that just asking for trouble? Do you think the 4 month old will hurt her b/c she is in her teenage years?

[Tate]

I would wait. Even though your vet won’t do a spay until 5-6 months, doesn’t mean your 4 month old isn’t already reaching maturity. It seems like there are many instances where bonding before spaying and neutering are futile, as the rabbits lose their scent after the surgery. Many rabbits require a reintroduction anyway.
In my experience, all animals are unreliable in their teenage years.

[peppypoo]

If both buns are too young to be fixed at the moment, just house them side by side for now – that way, when you do get around to introducing and bonding them, they will be very familiar with each other and it should make the process a lot easier. Even if your bunnies get along right now, it’s important to realize that baby bunnies will almost always get along with each other, but things can quickly escalate to fighting once they reach maturity. If they fought, it might create a bad experience that could decrease the chances of a successful bond later on. I feel like your best bet is to avoid possible negative experiences for now and just accustom them to each other without giving them a chance to fight.

[KatnipCrzy]

I would not say it is impossible to bond unspayed bunnies but it is highly unlikely. Unfortunately you are just going to have to wait to let them have any bonding sessions. The likelihood of injury is so high if they accept each other at first and then start fighting- that you will probably pay as much if not more on vet bills for injuries than for the actual spay.
Hormones are going to kick in and they will probably scuffle- and you don’t want to create a negative association with pre-spay bonding attempts if it highly unlikely to work successfully.
The only time I can think of that females accept other females as cagemates is then they are in horrible overcrowded housing- like hoarding or neglectful breeding. And then if these bunnies are rescued, spayed and properly rehomed they will then show aggression. We had that happen to a member a couple of years ago. She adopted 2 spayed females that were rescued from a crowded horrid situation- when they got to her house and settled in- one visciously attacked the other. And the injured bunny had to go the the Emergency vet as she had a bad wound to her privates. They tried to make it work with the 2 of them- but the injured rabbit was not comfortable around the other rabbit and the owner reported that when they returned the aggressiive rabbit to the shelter- the other rabbit relaxed and binkied and they saw a huge improvement in her behavior and happiness. The bunnies names were Hailey and Bailey- but I can’t remember the owners screenname.

[Monkeybun]

I have a pair of bonded girls, but never would I have tried to bond them pre-spay. My Monkey is quite dominant even now, unspayed she would have been an unholy nightmare to Smudge.

And, at only 2 months old, you do have a chance that your “girl” could be a boy. Its often hard to get genders right at a young age. Sometimes even knowledgeable vets get it wrong that young Definitely safer to wait!

[MarkBun]

Even if you bond them pre-spay, after the operation, the loss of hormones changes the scent of the rabbit and it would more than likely break that bond – or at least require a bit of re-bonding anyways.

[Beka27]

Posted By Monkeybun on 05/04/2011 01:16 AM

And, at only 2 months old, you do have a chance that your “girl” could be a boy.

Its often hard to get genders right at a young age. Sometimes even knowledgeable vets get it wrong that young Definitely safer to wait!

+1,000,000!!!!

 

This is the big question.  Pet stores get it wrong.  Breeders get it wrong.  House Rabbit people get it wrong.  Vets get it wrong.

There are many times that EXPERIENCED vets have gone in to do a spay/neuter… and ended up doing the other surgery instead due to the sex being wrong.

I would not risk it.  In one month, the younger (if male) would be at the right age to impregnate the older one (if female).

[IHeartBuns]

OK- thanks everyone…I will keep them separated…I have the cages stacked on top of eachother instead of side by side so they can’t bite eachother. I give them free roam at different times so I guess I will just have to stick to that..I don’t want my rabbit injured for sure.

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