Male Rabbits – Not bonding well

[Oliver's Roost]

Ok, so I’ve posted about my boys about a month ago. However, I’m still experiencing some issues and I would like either some reassurance or some advice. 

Many happy moons ago, I got my two forever buns, Oliver and Charlotte. They were a match made in heaven. Due to some sad circumstances, my beloved Charlotte passed away, leaving her beloved husbun behind. Oliver was devastated so I made the decision to get another friend for him. I was also upset at the loss of Charlotte and wanted to fill the void for myself as well. 

Enter Gus. Gus was not exactly what I was looking for. He is a young mis-colored Dutch rabbit, I believe he’s probably about 7-8 months old now. I wanted another female to bond with Oliver. However, I fell in love with Gus instantly and so he became a part of my family. He’s cuddly, personable and I’ve found now that he LOVES my dog, Rosco. This set aside, Oliver has not been as fond of him.

I tried bonding Gus and Oliver a little bit, just to see if there was an instant love connection. This was not the case. I went ahead and got Gus neutered (Oliver is neutered as well and has been for about 3 years – he’s around 4 now), hoping it would help him calm down and be more accepting of Oliver (and to help with the spraying – lord help me). The spraying has stopped and Gus’ litter habits have drastically improved. All-in-all, Gus is a great bun.

HOWEVER, it has been about 3 weeks since Gus has been neutered. This entire time has been spent pre-bonding. Their cages are next to each other, I’ve flipped their cages several days out of the week (weekends they get breaks). They will hang out next to each other through the cages, small fights ensue every now and again, but they can’t reach each other through the cages. I decided to try to bond again. Nothing good happened. There was some ignoring for a minute or two but once they decided to interact, it was straight fur pulling, chasing, grunting, and fighting. This is how it has been both before and after Gus’ neuter.

This all being said, I’m starting to wonder if it’s not going to work out. I know that it can take up to a month for the hormones to fully drain. Gus is pretty submissive and will put his head down to Oliver but Oliver will soon nip at Gus setting off the fighting… I know it’s possible for two male bunnies to bond, but when do I call it quits? I’m starting to get super discouraged. I love Gus and don’t want to give him up. But I would like to be able to have my buns in the same cage (for during the day), two cages is a lot to maintain – not to mention it makes play time out of the cage difficult. 

I know that Gus being young as well can make him more naughty and likely to react… But at what point do you know they aren’t going to bond? I don’t want to get rid of Gus… but when are one of them going to give and be friends? I’ve been on this bun bonding adventure for two months now and I’m just feeling super discouraged. I miss my dear Charlotte and just want them to be friends and see how much better their lives will be if they would just be friends. 

Would getting a female rabbit and trying to bond them as a trio help them settle their differences?

Thank you all, I hope that I can get some kind of resolution… I just want my buns to be friends…

[Mikey]

Youre moving too fast. Hormones are still int he body for about two months after a neuter. Youll need to wait until two months are up. Three weeks is too short. Continue with prebonding until then, and then try again in a neutral space

“Gus is pretty submissive and will put his head down to Oliver but Oliver will soon nip at Gus”
This is not submission. Gus is putting his head down in a way to demand grooming. Oliver nips him as a way to say “I will not groom you”, which starts the fight. Gus wants to be the alpha, and Oliver will not bow down.

“Would getting a female rabbit and trying to bond them as a trio help them settle their differences?”
No, it is more likely to make it all worse.

[Sirius&Luna]

I agree you need to wait longer.

But you also said that they ignore each other for a minute or two – so once you’ve waited another month, that’s a good place to start. Put them together for 2 minutes, and separate before they start fighting, and do that multiple times a day. Once they’re used to the two minutes, see if you can leave them for 3 minutes, then 5 etc, without fighting.

[Author]

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