Just want a variety of opinions etc

[Sabrina]

Hello fellow bunny goers.
I have a five month three week old female Netherland wharf that I’ve had since she was eight weeks one day. I got her from a pet store but it was a locally owned who bought from the same breeder as they always do and they’re very knowledgeable about rabbits so this wasn’t a Petsmart or Petco. I haven’t gotten her fixed and I’ve read thousands of posts about aggression or behavior etc. regarding fixing the female now I understand that there are health risks involved with not getting them fixed but that’s just something that I haven’t done as of yet . She’s been in very good health I only had an ear infection with her since I’ve got her. She has been free roam since I Brought her home my main issues with her is chewing my phone chargers not really doing anything else she doesn’t dig she’s actually very very good like surprisingly good not scary she comes up to anybody even if she doesn’t know them she’s very curious and other words but she’s the best I’ve ever had. Mine and her relationship is strong she enjoys Lancolli petting session but also always returns the adoration by licking me for extended periods of time.
I haven’t had her around any other rabbits haven’t had any other rabbits etc. etc. or animals or people in general I live by myself she has her own room and never had a cage.

I recently adopted a baby lion head she was The results of misidentifying gender (as well as her other siblings.) I went over to where I got her from originally to just identify gender for them so that they know which babies were boys which ones were girls etc. etc. well needless to say I wound up falling in love and I took my baby with me . She’s very timid I wouldn’t say shy though. She was being kept in a cage OUTSIDE with her other siblings but when I got there it was only 4/11 plus one other baby from some one else’s litter. She WAS bonded to one of her sibilants and as bad as I wanted to take HIM too I have a FEMALE rabbit at home that ISNT fixed….

I brought the baby home and immediately set her up in an Exercise pen in the living room. Now my dwarf has free roam of the whole house I do not like her just in the room with that being said I don’t let her in my room usually so I left the baby in the exercise pen in the living room for the first two days while my dwarf rabbit you know that used to her etc. I then moved the exercise pen to my room and have done away with the exercise pen but instead I use my spacious closet to keep her litter pan food toys etc.

I’ve already started the bonding process at first my Netherland dwarf of course wanted to be head honcho seeing this is her house and there was some mounting there was a couple nips there was a couple bouts of chasing but it was never at actual fight some hair pulling but never an actual fight. Although they’ve never fully fought and my dwarf rabbit has never fully charged at the baby I Felt uneasy about the bonding process still so I’ve used a couple of the stress bonding tactics. The baby shows signs of submission it hasn’t returned my Dwarf rabbit eye licks or demands or grooming at all. dI’ve put them in a car in a box together I’ve carried them around in the washing basket done a couple things . So just the other day I had an idea of taking them both outside at the same time.
Mind you I live in apartments on a busy intersection so there’s plenty of noises outside. Now the new baby was in a cage outside so I figured really it would be something she would like because she always tries to run outside behind me my Netherland wharf on the other hand has never been outside doesn’t like when I take her outside etc. I thought that my back patio might be the perfect place (after bunny proofing) Because it’s unknown to either one of them and it might make the other one feel better (the new baby)

The first day I took them out I set treats out and I stayed out there with them for about 30 minutes, where they were mostly ignoring each other. now keep in mind I did say the new baby is timid, as they are smelling each other she just jumps and runs away without even being nipped or anything. she’s long-haired so I think I need to get her a cut because she just freaks out sometimes but that’s beside the point. After the 30 minutes I brought both of them in and put them in their separate living quarters. since that day I’ve only brought them out for free roam or playtime or whatever you guys want to call it at the same time I do not let them out separately . Two days after the meet outside I took them back outside but this time I left the door cracked a little bit and left them out there alone I would check up on them every couple of minutes and come to find out they were huddled in the corner next to each other so I let them be. I came back about 15 minutes later and they were both laying in the same corner one was just inside the cardboard box I placed out there and one was on the other side of it which is progress still. After this meet I let them run around because they came in on their own time. Just the other day I put them out there and it was much of the second visit going on and again I let them come in on their own and hang out.

The new baby seems to follow the dwarf around following her into her room etc. the dwarf doesn’t seem to mind it until they both get into the room and she goes into the closet where their food is. I have both spaces set up in the exact same way food litter etc. is in the closet in their respective places but access the rest of the room. When I enter the room behind both of them my dwarf rabbit (who’s room that is) sometimes Thumps and I can’t tell if it’s towards me being in there (which would be a surprise) or if it’s the fact that the new baby is in there because I can hear her chasing sometimes but other than that it’s usually quiet in there with them both in there so I let them both be.

It seems that every time I let them out there either under the couch together or laying down within a few feet of each other or trying to groom each other but it winds up my dwarf rabbit licking the eyes of the other one until she runs away (the dwarf does not nap her I watch) it seems that every time I let them out there either under the couch together or laying down within a few feet of each other or trying to groom each other but it winds up my dwarf rabbit licking the eyes of the other one until she runs away (the dwarf does not nap her I watch).

I’m wondering if I should move the new babies food etc. into the other room maybe opposite of the closet and see if they can both be in there fully all the time or should I create a new bathroom and feeding place for both of them together. Or is it too early.

[DarthVadar]

Baby rabbits do not bond with other rabbits. They get along fine with them because their hormones haven’t kicked in yet. So don’t feel bad about taking her away from her litter- they would eventually need ti be separated anyway to prevent breeding. That being said, it would be a good idea to wait to bond your bunnies. It sounds like neither of them are full grown, and any bonding progress you make now will be gone at around 7 months. They can have supervised playtime and stuff, but hold on with the stress bonding.

[Doodler]

Hi Sabrina! I will have to disagree with DarthVadar. Your bunnies should not have supervised playtimes at this point. Bunnies are not like dogs where they can just have play time. This can be very dangerous as bunnies who are not bonded can fight and they can fight to the death! Even if it’s ‘supervised’ things can happen very quickly. This is why bonding has to be done very carefully.

I do agree that baby bunnies do not bond so that is why you should hold off on any further attempts of bonding between these two at this point. It is recommended that bonding is not done until both rabbits are altered, healed and hormones settled. I would keep them separated 100% of the time until these things happen. Even having a pen set up like you had before can be dangerous if the other rabbit can get to the pen because nips can happen between bars and I have seen nasty nose damage from this exact thing. If they hurt each other it could take their bonding much longer since bonding requires trust. The reason why almost everyone recommends having them altered first is because hormones tend to play a big role in bunny behavior. If you look back in the bonding section of this forum you will see so many people have come here to get help because they had young rabbits who used to ‘love each other’ but now they have turned aggressive towards each other. This is what hormones do.

There is a lot of great information on this site in regards to the bonding process! I bonded my two not too long ago and I can tell you from experience it’s worth it but it’s very important to do it correctly with safety of both bunnies as a priority.

[DanaNM]

Hi there, welcome

I agree with Doodles. Both buns should be spayed (typically done at 8-9 months), then you can work on bonding them. Once you get to that point, ensure they are in neutral territory.

Any meetings that are not in neutral territory can actually set things back and make them feel more threatened. Adults usually are fine with babies because they aren’t a threat, but as soon as hormones kick in that can all change (we get so many posts on this forum titled “why are my rabbits fighting?!” and most of them are buns that were together as babies that started fighting as soon as puberty hit).

Also, babies can be hard to sex accurately, so I would not be 100% sure that the baby is female… and since your dwarf is unspayed, I would be very careful so you don’t end up with an accidental pregnancy!

. . . 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.  

[Sabrina]

Thanks for the responses. I must say I did wait TOO late to read them.
The day after I posted the original post, I came home me from work to find BOTH of the buns had escaped their respected areas…. one hopeped over a pretty tall gate and the other figures out ho to pull open a door that wasn’t latched ?. They were not fighting but layers by back to back in a sort double bourse shoe. I’ve been letting them be with each other whenever they WANT whatever CJ is almost 24/7.
I’m SURE my Netherlands dwarf is a girl. I’m sure BOTH are.
But if I’m wrong I’ll have some little netherheads to take care of as well ?
I have a appointment scheduled for Lola (Netherland dwarf) to get spayed in almost exactly 3 weeks.
At this point I think I’m just going to see where it goes and make sure to separate them
When I’m not home. Neither has shown signs of aggression biting circling charging since I got them.

[Doodler]

It sounds as though you made your decision on how you are going to go about this. They are your bunnies and this is your right.

I just wanted to make sure you fully understand how risky this is. Just because you have not seen any aggression to this point does not mean things can’t change drastically at any moment. Fights happen fast and it may be too late for you to intervene in time. I personally do not feel the risk is worth it and would be devastated if anything happened to my bunnies. Bunnies can cause significant damage to each other that can even result in death.

To say you if you are wrong that you’ll have little netherheads to take care of is a surprising way to look at this considering this baby was a result of this exact thing. If you look at this very forum you will see a topic from someone who had their ‘does’ sexed by three people to find out after it was too late that one is a buck. They had one litter and before they found the babies the doe was pregnant again so they now have their second litter. I find there are enough unwanted bunnies in this world to risk this as well.

I also wanted to add that using caps in forums is considered a form of yelling and can come across in a very negative way.

[DarthVadar]

You might want to invest in a better cage or pen for each of them….unbonded bunnies left together unsupervised can injure or kill each other, as already said.

[Asriel and Bombur]

You didn’t wait too late to read them, and as long as they aren’t fighting it’s not too late to take everyone’s advice. You asked for advice, were given very sound advice and are choosing to throw it out the window. I hope for the sake of those bunnies they don’t end up seriously injuring each other or the girl becomes pregnant. Taking care of baby bunnies isn’t easy and it’s not an “oh well! How cute I now have a bunch of little babies running around” situation. I think your oh well attitude is pretty careless considering it’s hard for bunnies to find good homes that are actually knowledgeable.

[DanaNM]

Hi Sabrina,

You have been given very sound advice so far from multiple members regarding separating until after their spays, and then continuing the bonding process once their hormones are settled. I encourage you to follow the advice given here.

To prevent the same advice from being repeated over and over, I am going to lock this thread. Feel free to message to me with any questions you have, and if a new question comes up, please start a new thread.

. . . 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.  

[Author]

Messages