Switching Dominance

[SuperBunnyto]

My bunnies have been bonded for about a year and change. They’re both spayed/neutered, with the male being the dominant one. However, their relationship has generally been a bit on the equal side.. ish… However, for the past few of days I’ve seen the female demanding to be groomed decisively by shoving her head under the male’s chin. The male grooms, they settle down for a bit, then he starts chasing her and nipping her butt a bit. Sometimes he tries to mount her, but she will run away. Then they settle for a bit again.

Is it possible that the power dynamics are shifting? 

Has anyone had bunnies who switch dominance?

I haven’t seen outright aggression from either one, but should I be worried about this? 

I don’t feel they need to be separated, at least not yet, but I want to get people’s opinion on this.

Thanks!

[Mikey]

For the record, chasing and nipping at the butt are aggression. Rabbits do that to try to bite genitals. Its not a bonding thing, but rather an upset bunny thing. You should heavily consider separating them before they fight to the point they refuse to ever bond again in the future. Aggression will get worse if not fixed asap.

My advice would be to stress bond them for a few days while working on prebonding. If the stress bonding doesnt work on its own, they might need to be completely rebonded.

Any new smells, noises, or scenery?

[sarahthegemini]

Often the dynamics do change between a bonded pair. I wouldn’t necessarily say they need seperation so long as you can be extra vigilant and really supervise them. But it depends on the level of chasing. For example, my boy runs and nips my girl’s bum when he’s excited waiting for me to feed them. He’s not once tried biting her genitalia……I supervised A LOT to be sure it’s not something that would escalate. Full speed chasing and nipping would be different though. 

[SuperBunnyto]

I was watching them carefully and ended up choosing to separate them as his chasing was getting out of hand. I’m trying to figure out what’s changed, but can’t figure it out. We just had a trip to the vet recently for one of the bunnies, but I don’t know if that would do it. I know my bunny semelled different when the vet was done handling her (she smelled like soap), so maybe that triggered it, I don’t know… I will try some bonding sessions. They were both upset that I had to separate them, but honestly I didn’t want to take the chance of waking up to maimed rabbits. I’m a bit heartbroken right now.

[sarahthegemini]

Posted By SuperBunnyto on 2/06/2018 4:43 AM

I was watching them carefully and ended up choosing to separate them as his chasing was getting out of hand. I’m trying to figure out what’s changed, but can’t figure it out. We just had a trip to the vet recently for one of the bunnies, but I don’t know if that would do it. I know my bunny semelled different when the vet was done handling her (she smelled like soap), so maybe that triggered it, I don’t know… I will try some bonding sessions. They were both upset that I had to separate them, but honestly I didn’t want to take the chance of waking up to maimed rabbits. I’m a bit heartbroken right now.

If the chasing was getting out of hand then it’s good you separated them (I just wanted to point out before that some chasing and nipping doesn’t mean that one bun is trying to attack the other’s genitals but as I said before, it depends on context) It could be the vet smell. If it’s a fairly new bond, I think it’s more likely that a vet visit could shake things up. But I suppose it’s not out of the question for a solid bond to be disturbed. 

[SuperBunnyto]

I don’t think he was trying to bite the genitals. I think part of what is happening is that, for some reason, my girl has not been returning the grooming which has been frustrating him. But I’m running through a list of things I can do to “reset” their relationship to a better place. Separating them was just a matter of dividing the space, so they still get to see each other, which helps in getting them to spend time together without the possibility of injury.

I have read in the past of cases where a bonded pair suddenly falls apart. They are still eating together without much issue, especially when I renewed their hay in the morning, so I think food is going to be my entry point. I’m also using the same brush to groom them both so that I can leave both their smells on each other. I’ll be changing their mats and washing everything to get rid of old smells, and have considered renewing some of their toys.

We’ll see what happens. At least I’ve got a plan now, and that makes me feel better.

Thanks both for your input! 🙂

[LittlePuffyTail]

We just had a trip to the vet recently for one of the bunnies, but I don’t know if that would do it.

I’ve seen that happen several times here on BB. Best of luck. Hope you can get things figured out and your adorable buns back together.

[SuperBunnyto]

LittlePuffyTail, yeah I just found out that vet trips can cause bunnies to un-bond. Both bunnies went to the vet, but only one bunny got any attention, so I think that’s what did it. Generally when we go, both bunnies get checked… In any case, thank you for the good wishes. I’m planning on going back to bonding basics and hoping that they get back to their sweet spot.

[sarahthegemini]

Posted By SuperBunnyto on 2/06/2018 7:42 PM

LittlePuffyTail, yeah I just found out that vet trips can cause bunnies to un-bond. Both bunnies went to the vet, but only one bunny got any attention, so I think that’s what did it. Generally when we go, both bunnies get checked… In any case, thank you for the good wishes. I’m planning on going back to bonding basics and hoping that they get back to their sweet spot.

I thought a vet visit can only cause issues if only one of the pair were taken. I wouldn’t have thought it’d cause problems if both were taken but only one was examined. I find that really bizarre! 

[Harley&Thumper]

If only one bun was handled, wouldn’t they be the only one with the new strange smell. Wouldn’t that be the same thing as if you had only taken one?

[SuperBunnyto]

Harley&Thumper, that’s my thought, too. Aki (the bunny that was checked) did have a noticeable new smell of soap on her, probably from the vet washing his hands after handling his previous patient. So I’m thinking that, since Elliot (the big bun) didn’t have the same smell on him, that’s what might have triggered it. Only Elliot is the one showing aggression, not Aki. So I’m going to try holding them both as much as possible to get my scent back on them, and then go back to bonding basics.

[sarahthegemini]

I don’t know I mean, the bun not being handled would still smell the vet environment and they’d still sense the original scent of the other bun as it wouldn’t completely change. It’s not like as soon as the poorly bun is taken out of the carrier, their normal scent diminishes and they become unrecognizable. Who knows. I’m not saying it’s not possible, I just didn’t think it was a likely cause but as I say, who knows!

[SuperBunnyto]

sarahthegemini, what you say also makes sense, but with bunnies I feel many things are a bit on a wing and a prayer. Maybe the vet trip just precipitated something that was starting to happen already? I’m just hitting all the stops until I find something that works. I want my babies happily together again!

[sarahthegemini]

Posted By SuperBunnyto on 2/07/2018 12:12 PM

sarahthegemini, what you say also makes sense, but with bunnies I feel many things are a bit on a wing and a prayer. Maybe the vet trip just precipitated something that was starting to happen already? I’m just hitting all the stops until I find something that works. I want my babies happily together again!

That’s very true – a lot of bunny behaviour defies all logic and us humans just have to have a stab in the dark at what it might mean  

[SuperBunnyto]

Just wanted to share this, because I just found it this morning (re-bonding is not going as smoothly as expected, so I’ve been looking for additional information online). It’s from the House Rabbit Society website (https://rabbit.org/journal/4-4/tough-bonding.html):
“Marriage Counseling
Sometimes bonded rabbits break out in a fight after years of happy companionship. We don’t always know the cause, but suspects are: new rabbit arriving in the household; trip to vet or other incident where rabbits are separated and/or pick up a strange smell; a health problem that makes the sick bunny irritable or the healthy one anxious. Once any health problems are addressed by your veterinarian, go back to bonding basics. To mask a strange smell, dab both bunnies with a scent such as vanilla.”

Who knew vanilla could be used for this…

[Author]

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