Hello all, I’ve got a bit of a question. It’s mostly about bonding, so I figured this was the best place for it. (If someone decides it’s better off somewhere else, I apologize!)
There’s a bit of background in my introduction post, but to summarize the situation I’m trying to bond an 8+ year old female Netherland Dwarf with an approximately 1 year old male Holland Lop. Fuu (my lady) was previously bonded, but sadly lost her mate 2.5 years ago. Lucky (my boy) came to us un-neutered so we had that done a week after we got him. That was 2 months ago. We hadn’t wanted to formally introduce them before now because we wanted to give him as much time as possible to get his hormones evened out. For the past couple of weeks, I’ve begun swapping them back and forth between each other’s cages to get them used to having the smell of each other around. I say “them,” but really I mean Fuu. She’s extremely territorial about her cage, to the point where it took her months to allow my fiancé to change her litter without throwing a hissy fit afterward.
Last Sunday we took them both into the kitchen where there’s a 4’x5′ rug – Neutral Ground. There was no outright hostility; always a good sign. They sniffed around and explored the area for a while, then sniffed around each other. Then Lucky promptly mounted Fuu. We looked on in nervous apprehension, and I’d fully expected Fuu to Diva out and box him because she was always extremely bossy and dominant with her old mate. I was wrong. She submitted and didn’t seem bothered by it, but I nudged him off after a bit to make sure she didn’t get angry and go “Hulk” on him. There was a bit of flopping, a bit of grooming, more mounting, but no thumping, lunging, or flattened ears.
My real question is this: He was neutered 2 months ago, but he’s still extremely vocal. He loves to sing / honk, and he was happily serenading her for the entire duration of the first date. Is it normal for a bunny to sing even after he’s been fixed? He often sings now and then, but the almost constant singing during the date made me question whether or not something might be amiss. Should I wait longer for his hormones to calm down even more, or is this a common thing? On the one hand it’s cute and very giggle-worthy because I imagine him doing a Jerry Lewis routine, “Nice laaaaady! Pretty laaaaady!!” but on the other hand I would love some input from people more experienced than I.
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Good luck with the bonding! I’m attempting to bond my nethie, Monkey, to my boy Dutch Moosie. Fun times! lol
