Spring fever?

[GlennTheLionhead]

Hey! It’s been a while since I posted, hope everyone is doing well! Glenn and Nellie are pretty happy and healthy

My two have been bonded for 2-3 years now, they bonded very easily and quickly and are big cuddles and copiers!

The last few days there’s been a bit of tension/bickering, they are co-exisiting well and spend the majority of their time chill, eating and sleeping together but occasionally when they are more active Glenn has been trying to mount Nellie – also honking a lot while doing this. Nellie really doesn’t like this and will relatate by either moving away or jumping 360 into lunge stance… 2 nights ago they were okay but the behaviour got a little concerning as Nellie was retaliating by lunging and nipping at Glenn and Glenn became a bit relentless with the mounting so I took them to the semi neutral lounge for the evening and overnight to work it through supervised and they calmed down, cuddling, grooming etc…. Since then they have been together and I have been monitering them closely, they have been generally business as usual but with Glenn trying to mount occasionally and Nellie getting annoying and grunting at him. Is there anything I should be doing at this stage other than close monitering for changes and escalations? I know some mounting is common in  bonded bunnies and Glenn has previously been a serial mounter with his late bunny partners but he’s never actually mounted Nellie, she has never let him but she’ll happily groom the hell out of him! I’ve always thought their behaviour suggests they’ve accepted eachother as equals. Also just to note at this stage I’m very against the idea of seperation, they are not there yet and are still bonded and enjoying eachothers company – seems more like bickering at this stage.

Any thoughts are appreciated 🙂

P. S – to anyone who has followed and helped with Nellie’s health issues, she’s doing really well, daily Loxicom, probiotoics supplements and joint support seem to be doing wonders for managing her arthritis and gas issues so far!

[LBJ10]

Glad to hear Nellie is better!

Changing seasons can trigger hormonal behaviors in bunnies, even ones that are spayed/neutered (they still have their adrenal glands). That being said, if this doesn’t resolve soon, I would suggest looking into other causes. Bunnies have been known to hump when they are experiencing discomfort in their bladder, for example. Or they can be like one of my bunnies who was a stress humper.

I wouldn’t suggest separating them. If things don’t escalate beyond a lunge, then I wouldn’t be overly concerned. Obviously it’s good to keep an eye to make sure things don’t get out of hand. Would a surrogate work in this case? Glenn gets all humpy humpy and you redirect him to a stuffed animal?

[BrunosMama]

Hey!

I’ve noticed that sometimes changes in environment can cause a day or two of grumpy, humpy behavior in our otherwise chill and loving bonded pair Napoleon and Rocky.

It can be something as simple as I’ve cleaned in the computer room (where they live) and they don’t like where I’ve moved something or perhaps one of the cats ran in for 5 seconds and Rocky has to remind Napoleon he is the boss lol.

It generally resolves on its own, but yeah, always a good idea to keep a close eye and intervene when one of the buns starts getting annoyed. We usually try some form of distraction, like a new toy, or sitting on the floor and handing out treats and pets to kind of reassure them both. It usually works pretty well. 🙂

That being said, have you noticed a certain area that it happens more often? Like a certain hidey box or anything? I only ask because a couple months ago, Rocky suddenly got very territorial over their hidey box that they both sleep in 24/7. We ended up taking it away and let them sleep in some new areas/hidey spots for about a week or so, then gave them their box back, and no more problems. Yay for short bunny attention spans lol!

[Bam]

“March hare syndrome” is what first comes to mind for me too. Even long time neutered buns get hormonal this time of year. It’s not only about sex hormones, the rapid increase in daylight that occurs near the spring equinox affects the sleep/wake cycle and other things as well. It affects humans too, but to a lesser extent bc we can apply reason. Rabbits (probably) dont reason much.

The short attention span of rabbits is a blessing, as Bruno’s mama says 😄 If there is certain stuff that triggers territorial behavour, take it away, move it, block it off temporarily etc. Chances are the buns have forgotten all about it when you unblock/move stuff back.

It doesnt seem to me like Nellie and Glenn need separating, if you can monitor them and intervene if they are being “bad bunnies”. Backwards humping should be stopped asap bc of the proximity of his penis to her teeth.

What LBJ says about excessive humping is important since it can be about a pain problem -kidneys, teeth etc. So that needs a bit of monitoring (is he straining to pee, dribble pee outside the box, does he eat hay etc.) This is more difficult with two buns than with just one, of course, but if we’re aware, we can look for small signs. If the excessive humping continues or gets worse after the madness-time of spring season is over, it’d be a good thing to have it  looked into.

 

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