Is it ok to keep my lop with my dwarf lion head?

[CaroDeK]

They are both still young right now and are both about the same size still as well. My lop is a little larger but not much. They love hanging out and snuggling together and are both in the same large cage even though I have a separate one for my lop. He prefers to stay with Scottie, my dwarf lion head. 

I don’t know what kind of lop Bandy is and am not sure how to figure that out, as he is not yet full grown. I assume he is going to be bigger than Scottie, i’m not sure she is going to get any bigger at all. 

I am not conceded about accidental pregnancies with Scottie because both are too young to breed and Scottie will be spayed when she reaches maturity. I have been told I need to do this around 3 months. 

They are together in the same crate now and doing fine, are there any risks? Will Bandy be too big to play with Scottie one day? 

[peppypoo]

I suggest keeping them separate for now until they are BOTH fixed, at which point you can head over to the bonding forum so that they can be best buddies . It would be a great idea to house them next to each other (but separated by a couple of inches) so that they are familiar with each other; this should facilitate bonding when the time comes.

It’s great that you’re planning to have Scottie spayed when she is old enough, but the thing is that different bunnies mature at different ages and you never quite know when it is…it’s not like she’ll come up to you and say “hey mommy, I’m mature now!” If they are living together, it’s very possible that Bandy could impregnate Scottie before you even knew that she was ready to be spayed. I know it’s adorable to see two bunnies cuddling together, but it only takes a moment for the deed to be done and separating them for now is really the best for both yours and your bunnies’ sake. You could even plan ahead and set up spay/neuter appointments for when they are  5-6 months old (3 months is a little too young). Do you have a bunny-savvy vet already?

Also, you didn’t mention it so I just wanted to make sure and say that yes, the male needs to be neutered too if you’re planning to bond them.  Spaying Scottie will take care of accidental pregnancies but Brandy’s urges and territoriality will still be intact if he is not neutered, and he would be incessantly bothering Scottie to satisfy those urges (which would upset and stress her), and very possibly also be aggressive toward her.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Welcome! I definitely ditto peppypoo. They should not be together until one (better both!) are fixed. You will absolutely be spending money on vet costs for a pregnancy if you let them socialize unfixed. They take seconds, you won’t have a chance to stop the act when they start. It’s best to deprecate and hang tight until one or both are fixed.

[CaroDeK]

Ok, I will put their crates side by side so they can see each other! And I am still searching for a Rabbit Vet. I live in a really small town, we have maybe 5 vets I think. Four of them that I called said they don’t see rabbits and all referred me to the fifth but when I called them they said they haven’t really had any rabbits but that they could see mine anyway and as tiny as my little Scottie will be even full grown it scares me to think something could go wrong. I am pretty nervous about it. I am wondering if I should look outside of my town or go to the vet that said they would see my bunnies. And at what age should I first take them to the vet and what all do they need to have done besides spay/neuter?
I do plan to get Bandy neutered too but wasn’t going to have them both get surgery at the same time and thought i’d take Scottie first because she is about a month older.

Once they are both fixed is it ok to keep them together? I was also really wondering about the size difference and if that would matter. I assume bunnies like to be kept with other bunnies? I have heard that they do and i’ve heard that they like to be alone also but from what I can tell they don’t like to be alone at all!

I would really like to find out what kind of lop Bandy is.

[peppypoo]

Side by side sounds like a great setup .

The House Rabbit Society has a great guide to finding rabbit vets as well as list of recommended vets in many states: http://rabbit.org/faq/sections/vet.html. You could also try asking our forum to see if anyone has a vet recommendation for your area – we have members from all over! I understand being nervous for the operation, but with an experienced bunny vet the surgery really is quite safe. I’m assuming you live in the US – some other countries offer vaccinations for rabbits, but in the US spay/neuter is really all you need to do aside from the occasional check-up to make sure that things are running smoothly. It’s never a bad idea to take the bunnies for a check-up once you find a good vet, to make sure that they don’t have any congenital problems – particularly dental problems, which aren’t all that uncommon in rabbits.

After they are fixed I’d wait another month to make sure they are all healed up…bonding may involve some scuffling and dominance mounting by either party, and you wouldn’t want the wound to re-open and cause problems.

If you post a picture of Bandy we might be able to take a few guesses at what kind of lop he is. If he is young though, it might be kind of hard to tell since many of the lop breeds are most obviously differentiated by size. Also, unless you purchased your bunnies from a pedigree breeder it’s unlikely that they are any one breed, rather a mix of some kind. But in the end, I think most of us feel like it doesn’t really matter what breed they are, and love them all the same .

[CaroDeK]

thanks for your help! I assume size won’t be an issue then? I don’t want Scottie getting steeped on she is unbelievably tiny.

I’ll defiantly check for the vet recommendations and look around my area in other cities if I need to.

I am having a hard time getting a good photo of Bandy but I will post the one I have if I can figure out how!!

(:

[CaroDeK]

I posted a picture of Bandy under Q&A

thanks!

[FluffyBunny]

Size shouldn’t be an issue. I’ve seen bonded pairs of Flemish giants (15+ lbs) and dwarf bunnies (under 2 lbs) in person before, and they did fine. For the most part, breed doesn’t really matter when it comes to bonding…they don’t seem to mind size difference very much. I have a 4 lb female and a 7 lb male myself, and I’ve never had a problem.

Also, bunnies definitely like being with other bunnies. I had a single male for almost 2 years, and I could definitely tell he was happier when I got my second bunny. Bonding is really worth it, even if it’s tough. Good luck with your buns!

[peppypoo]

You’re welcome! Glad to help

Size doesn’t matter when bonding…we even have a member here with a lionhead bonded to a Flemish Giant.

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