Rabbit pulling out fur?

[VeniceLola22]

Hello! I am new to the BinkyBunny Forum, so apologies if this question is in the wrong area, but I was wondering if there was anyway to stop my rabbit from hurting the other one. I have 2 bunnies, One is a Lion-Lop mix named Venice (male) and the other is a Netherland Dwarf named Lola (female). (Pics to come!) The Netherland turned one in June, and the other will be 2 in January.They have been living together for a little over a year now, and Lola had been ripping out his fur in the beginning when we first got them. We got her spayed as soon as she was old enough, and he was neutered before we got him. I never saw her doing it again until just recently. It seems to only be when I am petting Venice, and Lola will come up from behind and pull out his fur. I thought maybe she was just grooming him, but it isn’t dead fur that she’s pulling, and he really hates it. He absolutely loves to be pet, but Lola is extremely skittish and darts when I try to touch her it. She will not let me near her at all, or let me touch anything that she feels is her’s. I read that she is eating his fur due to a lack of hay, but they have unlimited hay everyday. I am worried about her too, because I started noticing “string of pearls” poop from her. During her checkup before she was spayed, the vet said that she would most likely be the dominant one, even though she is smaller. Her personality is so big, while he prefers to sit around and eat. If anyone can help, it would be greatly appreciated (for me and Venice!!)

*On a side note, this issue is more irritating to me than to them, but maybe someone can help me. They pull some of their hay out of their feeder (still leaving plenty for them to eat) onto their cage floor and use that as their litter box instead of their actual box. They just lay in their litterbox, and get up and move over there if they need to go. Maybe they enjoy laying on the bedding? It is really only bothering me, as it makes it difficult for me to clean, but we may just go through the whole litter-training process again. 

[LBJ10]

Although disturbing, this behavior is normal. She may be annoyed that he is receiving attention from someone other than her. How dare he! She sees you petting him so she feels the need to tell him who’s boss. Does she hump him too?

Eating his fur is also (surprisingly) normal. It doesn’t necessarily mean they are lacking hay. They just do it sometimes.

Does she take treats from your hand? Perhaps you could offer her a treat when you’re petting Venice? Bonding exercises may help as well, even though they are already bonded. It can reinforce the idea that they need each other and can take comfort in each other. It couldn’t hurt to try anyway.

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