Plz Help-Advice-Bonding

[KodaBear]

(This is my first post, so apologies if it’s posted incorrectly)

Male: 2.5 year old, free roamed neutered male. Bear. Lop 5lbs

Male: 1.5 year old, free roamed neutered male. Koda. Lop. 1.8lbs

 

We originally got a bonded pair, Flopsy (M) and Bear. When they were babies. They stayed together until Flopsy died from  liver complications. Bear was a single rabbit free roaming in our living room, dining room, and office (barred only from our bedroom). He did okay for almost a year, but showed signs that he was getting lonely so we wanted to get him a friend.

We took him on a handful of bunny dates trying to find him a female, but none of the dates went well, but then he met Koda and they did quite well, so we took him home with us.

We had split our living room and dining room area (previously all Bear territory) with a 4 foot pen. We swapped them from one side to the other and trying to take things slowly. However, one night Bear cleared the gate and attacked Koda and it resulted in serious injuries. Multiple large bites and lacerations that required many stitches, Bear seemingly was unaffected. After reviewing the fight we saw that as soon as Koda went into the kitchen (outside of Bears territory) that Bear laid down and didn’t pursue.

We decided to put Koda in our room while he healed. He made a full recovery, but we thought we would never be able to bond them after such a fight. But we built a pen so that he could come out of our room and see Bear but remain outside Bears territory. Immediately they began playing around the gate, laying side by side, flopping on either side of the gate and there has been no gate aggression.

We thought maybe when we move we could try to bond them again. However, recently while we were deep cleaning the carpets and moving furniture Koda go out and him and Bear came around the corner at the same time and got into a few second fight, we think they legit just scared each other because once we separated them and put them back by the gates they laid down right next to each other.

The problem is that even with the split second fight, Bear had bit Kodas ear and it required a glue stitch while once again Bear was unharmed. My concern is that if we attempt to bond them, that any fight will be a detriment to Koda. From everything I saw size and breed doesn’t affect bonding, and we tried to get the same breed of rabbit, but Koda is just SO much more fragile. He is so much smaller and his fur seems so much thinner while Bear is almost triple his size and his bite is so much stronger.

Is there anywhere that helps with bonding in Ohio? Or is there any hope of bonding them safely? Or should we just have two separate rabbits that can only see one another threw a gate ?

Any help is appreciated! I can provide pictures if needed or any further details!

[DanaNM]

Oh man, that’s so stressful!

I don’t know that Koda is more fragile necessarily, but I think Bear is just biting to injure when they get in these fights (sometimes in fights the buns are really just nipping or fur pulling, and not biting that hard).

I think your experience in a true bonding session will be different, or at least worth trying.  It is very normal and expected for rabbits to fight when they are not in neutral territory. However, every time they get into a fight like that it can make it harder to bond, so it is so important that this doesn’t happen again.

I know there is a rabbit rescue org in Ohio, I would look them up and see if they have any bonding services. The place you adopted Koda from may be a good place to start and could be able to help.

When you are ready to try an actual date, I would chose an area that is somewhat stressful, med-large sized, and very neutral. No food or litter trays in the area. Be ready with thick gloves on and something to help separate them if needed (like a dustpan). When they approach each other, don’t wait to see what happens, just start petting them both a LOT, swap scents, and try to keep them calm. You’ll want to have your hands on them as much as needed to prevent any nipping or fighting. Once you get a better read on their body language you will start to ease off the petting, but at first the goal is to build some positive associations and assess how they are in neutral space. Keep the first sessions very short  (like 2 minutes) and repeat daily or a few times per day. End sessions on a good note (ignoring each other or being petted is fine).

If they try to attack each other right away, then I would start to consider stressing techniques like car rides to try to get past that phase.

I think it will be informative to do an actual session in neutral space to see how they do, either on your own or with some help from a bonder.

. . . 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.  

[KodaBear]

Thank you!

It’s been so hard cause I feel as though they will do so well. They will try and groom each other thru the gate. Wait for each other to wake up and come out. Binky and zoom when they see each other. But then the two times they’ve been within touching range they’ve fought.

Bear is also hard to read because he doesn’t move his ears. Koda can point his up or point them forward or lay them back, but Bears never move. So one min he seems fine and then he lashes out.

I sent a few emails, but haven’t heard back. Since there’s no neutral territory left do you think we should wait until the move ?

[DanaNM]

A good tip for when you can’t use ears as a cue is to look at tail position. Relaxed and down is good, pinned up means aggression.

But yeah it’s really expected that they would fight if not in neutral territory, but it’s a good sign they get along through a barrier. Have you done side-swapping?

If you have no neutral space left waiting till you move would work well. Often it’s a lot easier to bond buns in a completely new place! When I’ve moved with unbonded buns I’ve even had them ride to the new place in carrier together (once I’m sure they won’t fight in the car) and then just marathon bonded them in the new place (but that def takes time and some planning).

You could keep doing side-swaps until your move, and could try some car rides with them as well. For car rides, you’ll want to have someone else drive. I like to use a plastic storage tote instead of a carrier with nothing on the bottom. Have the car running, have your leather gloves on, pop the buns in the bin and go for a drive. Sit in the back with them to make sure they don’t fight. Most buns will not fight in a car and will seek each other out for comfort. Drive around for 10 min or so and then return the buns to their pens when you get home. You can repeat this daily or every other day, but definitely keep an eye on their stress levels and ease off if you notice signs of inappetence etc. Doing this ahead of your move would be good to get the ball rolling and break the cycle of fighting.

You could also reach out to friends/relatives to see if you could do some sessions at their place. I used to live in a small studio so I would bond buns in my friend’s garage. I would drive the buns together to her place, do a session, then drive them back home. I think the combo of the car ride and the brand new place really worked well.

. . . 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.  

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