Two Female Bunnies Friends Since Birth – Now Extremely Aggresive

[Mercedes]

We recently purchased two 2-month old female bunnies from a local market – one gray and one black. They had both known each other since birth and got along perfectly fine. The first few weeks of owning them were heavenly- they slept, ate, drank, and played with each other all the time and in the same cage. They always had enough food, water, and space and their cage was clean and relatively large. But a week or so ago I noticed that the gray bunny (haven’t named them yet) was missing patches of fur on her back with scabs underneath. I did a little reading about the issue and didn’t think much of it. But a day or so after, more fur chunks were scattered about their cage and the gray bunny had missing chunks of her ear. So I stayed outside with them near their cage to see what was going on. The black bunny was chasing the other around the cage, grabbing hold of her with her teeth, and tearing her fur a while the other was squealing and thumping. While the gray bunny showed no aggression even now, she has a constant nervous vibe and is jumpy and submissive around the other. When it got to be too much, we put them in separate locations, not letting them close to each other. We had them apart for a few days before I set up a neutral area (a fenced off space in the grass) where I put them both in with food, water, everything. I sat in the area and pet them both while they sniffed one another and went about, eating and resting. But the very second I left them alone, the black bunny went right back to terrorizing the other. I even tried the method where you squeal and swat them when they misbehave, but it did nothing. Now I fear putting them in the same space because of the gray bunny’s injuries (not severe enough for a vet visit, though). As far as I know, nether of the have been spayed (and since they are still young, they shouldn’t have very many horomonal problems yet) but they were born and raised together (the seller wasn’t sure if they were sisters or not). I really need help and nothing is working. I want to get another bunny to help bond the two, but I fear for their safety as well.

[Wick & Fable]

Welcome to BB Mercedes.

First and most importantly, separating them immediately and making this permanent is the most important intervention you can do for their safety and well-being.

It is a very big misconception that rabbit siblings will get along. Mothers and children, sisters and brothers, etc. Rabbits do not recognize family units and do not have that sort of allegiance to each other. The reason this misconception is still around is because *baby* rabbits will get along with almost anyone because, as you mention, hormones are not in play. So it’s not the fact that they are siblings and have been together since birth, but it’s the fact that they are young and didn’t have hormones at the time. At this point, hormones have surged, therefore they can no longer be together until they are both spayed. We’ve had rabbits as young as 10 weeks old display hormonal behaviors on these forums. Hormones can develop early or late. It’s clear they are now present, so your rabbits need to be separated until a month following both their spays. They need to forget each other and the very bad interactions they’ve had, as rabbits can hold grudges.

You mention some bonding terminology, including neutral area, and you mention observing sniffing and general supervising, and that’s positive; however, these sort of bonding tactics can only be used for rabbits who are ready to bond. Since they have shown aggression, it’s more important that they both need to be spayed prior to them being able to do any proper bonding.

See https://binkybunny.com/BUNNYINFO/tabid/53/CategoryID/9/PID/940/Default.aspx for some fundamental bonding knowledge, which again, applies once they are both spayed.

You were misinformed and the seller should have been responsible to tell you they cannot be kept together. They potentially didn’t even know themselves. But what’s most important is that you’ve acknowledged something must be done immediately. Again, separate them until they are spayed. This may be months, but it will be well worth it for their happiness and health.

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.

[sarahthegemini]

You need to keep them separate. And because they have fought, badly, they need to completely forget one another. Once they have both been spayed, you can work on pre bonding. The recommended time to pre bond is a month but for yours, go for longer.

You said the injuries aren’t severe enough for a vet visit but you also said one rabbit had chunks missing from her ear? That absolutely requires a vet.

And under no circumstances should you SWAT your rabbits. Ever. I have no idea where you learned that ‘method’ but hitting an animal is never okay.

[Mercedes]

Thank you! I will definitely keep them separated and look into spaying them.

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