My Little man is scared of my Little man!!

[Cupcakesmom]

Yipes!  I have been working on bonding Spike to Derby for about a week now. They are doing ok and I see some promise. When I put them near each other in their cages, they do wonderful. They go nose to nose and visit, they share hay and they lay next to each other. What scares me though is when I put them together in the neutral space. They dont fight at all, but they will go nose to nose and sometimes Spike will lightly nip at Derby. Its not a hard biting, but Derby always runs away, which in turn makes Spike chase him. I seperate them at the point and restart in a few seconds after they have both calmed down. Any thoughts as to what I could try? Is this normal behavior in bonding?

[MoveDiagonally]

When you said you separate them what do you mean exactly? Do you take them out of the bonding situation entirely? If you do, I would recommend NOT doing that. Taking them away from each other teaches them that nipping/chasing will get them what they want (out of the situation). It can actually encourage aggressive behavior.

What I would do is do sessions in a smaller, portable, area. Like a box or laundry basket. When the nip/chasing starts shake the basket/box for a couple seconds which should make them stop. Another thing you can do is pet both firmly with each hand and alternating hands when they go nose to nose. This usually keeps them kind of “pressed down” to the floor and it distracts them a bit. I’ve done this in a lot in tense situations where a fight may break out with success.

Any time you physically take one rabbit away from another and end the session you want it to be on a good note. Even if the best moment you can get from them is laying nose to nose without fighting.

[Cupcakesmom]

I don’t seperate completely, but I pick one of them up and calm them down, then try again. Sometimes they completely ignore each other for a few minutes, then the process starts over again. I’m thinking that Derby about 2 years older than Spike, so he might not have the energy or patience for my little whippersnapper To bring them closer again I put a little pile of veggies down and they both come to it and eat and the process starts all over again. I have tried the laundry basket and they do really well with that. There is no nipping, only snuggling. I will have to try the petting thing you told me about, MD, that might really help since they will sort of be pinned to the groud and cant chase. They are so darn cute together that I just want them to be pals! I havent had any real fights so I’m glad about that!

[LittlePuffyTail]

How big is your neutral space? It’s suggested to start with a small area and gradually expand it when they are doing well.

[Cupcakesmom]

Yes, maybe my neutral area is a bit big. I constructed it out of old doors so it’s 4 normal sized doors as walls. I used it as my fosters pen, but now that they are gone, I use it for bonding. I also have carpet down. Should i take the carpet up and have the slippery floor? I worry about that because I think that freaks out Derby even more. I could for sure try making the space smaller until they are feeling better.

[LittlePuffyTail]

I wouldn’t make the floor slippery. I would try a smaller area and see if that helps, though.

[Cupcakesmom]

ok, tonight I am going to make the space smaller so they are “forced” to be near each other. Should I continue with the piles of greens so they come together? should I try the bonding before or after they eat? (i figured after so they wouldnt be aggitated because they were hungry) How often should i be bringing them together? i have been trying to do it everyday, but should i do it more than once each day?

[LittlePuffyTail]

Start once a day, short sessions and gradually increase the time as they make progress. Then you can start doing several sessions a day.

I usually did my bonding work after their supper. Letting them share greens can be a good bonding exercise but I would only try that after they have toned down aggression.

[Cupcakesmom]

This weekend went really well! I did two sessions a day for about 20 minutes. I made the space about 1ft by 2 feet, with me sitting at the opening so they were forced together. Spike was grooming Derby and there was no aggression whatsoever. Derby did mount Spike a few times, but I just pushed him off. They ate out of the same bowl and shared strawberry treats. I swapped their cages a few times too, so hopefully that will help. I am going to continue like i have been and increase the space in about a week. eventually I will walk away and see what they do. then I will go the neutral space and the space they will both share. I am really happy with the results so far though!

[LittlePuffyTail]

Sounds good!

[Cupcakesmom]

I wouldnt say that I am out of the woods yet, but I am starting to see the clearing!! I was able to leave them alone and do some housework while they were in the neutral area together. They just kind of beebopped together and hung out. Since I was off all day yesterday and they had been doing so well, I decided to move them to the semi-neutral area. They did really well in there, so I left them in there all day. I think they got a little restless because they were both pulling on the gate later in the day. Since again, they were doing so well, I let them out and they got to run around together in the livingroom, which will be “their area.” They did well, a little chasing, but nothing too bad. They ended the night by lying nose to nose together for quite awhile and Spike was also grooming Derby. This morning I let them out of their houses together again in the living room. They did ok…some chasing, but nothing a loud clap from me couldnt stop. They even went into Derby’s cage together and laid together…but Derby is NOT allowed in Spike’s cage! (I had been swapping cages for them, but I think Spike still thinks of that one as his own.) They are in eachother’s cages today and I will bring them out again together tonight. My little dudes are so cute together! I am one proud mama, but will be even prouder when they are completely bonded and living together

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