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BUNNY 911 – If your rabbit hasn’t eaten or pooped in 12-24 hours, call a vet immediately!  Don’t have a vet? Check out VET RESOURCES 

The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

Forum BONDING Bonded already?

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    • Theo&Leo
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        Hey just looking for thoughts on this…

        I have 2 male buns one named Theo who is 5 months old and neutered and one named Leo who is 4 months old and still unaltered. They have been together since Leo was nine weeks old seperated by some caging and with some occasional play time together. I do plan to get Leo neutered but he hasnt matured yet to do so. When I have them together they run about binkying, sniffing, and eating greens. They’ve never fought and they both groom each other and lay up against one another. Today I had them together for over an hour without issue. I haven’t fully put them together because Leo sprays pee sometimes and I worry that Leo may get hormonal.

        Im just wondering if I were to de-scent everything if they would be okay together now. Im not sure if they are bonded already? They eat and sleep on opposite sides of the caging often grooming each other through the bars. During play time neither of them tries to dominate the other. They noth have very gentle personalities (if you pet them they immediately come together and lay there until your arms get too tired to pet them anymore lol). My main concern is that if they are bonded already and Im not sure if they are I could possibly break the bond by taking Leo in for neutering. Should I take them together?


      • Azerane
        Moderator
        4688 posts Send Private Message

          Bonds can be broken by taking only one rabbit to the vet, as the rabbit that has the visit comes back smelling very different. However it’s usually only temporary and a small reintroduction process usually does the trick after the vet smell has worn off.

          My concern with your boys is that you’re not seeing any issues because Leo hasn’t reached puberty yet. You can’t get him neutered yet for that exact reason, but it’s likely also the reason you’re not seeing any issues. Of course there is a chance things will be fine if you leave them together, however my own concerns would have me keep them separated to prevent even a risk of biting/fighting etc when Leo starts to hit puberty. His behaviour may not, but could drastically alter then. Just something to be aware of.

          At the end of the day it’s your decision, but for safety’s sake I would keep them apart until after Leo’s recovered from his neuter and properly cement their bond then.


        • Mikey
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          3186 posts Send Private Message

            Just because theyre bonded doesnt mean they wont fight in the future. Keep them how they are for now, until your youngest is neutered

            My first two were unaltered for about 2 months together and were fine free roaming together. Blue hit puberty and began nipping and mounting on occasion, but he quickly stopped that when i told him repeatedly that it made me sad (hes my trained emotional support rabbit; he doesnt like when im sad). We had him neutered soon after that. Bombur had to wait a while though due to testicle problems. And he got aggressive. He would start with small nips and over the course of 2 months progressed to mounting, biting (blood), fur pulling, boxing/hard kicking, ect. They had to be separated after Bombur ripped chunks of Blue’s fur out (it was a very short lived fight [few seconds], we had the spare cage set up already and planned to add him to it that night). We had to rebond them after Bombur was neutered, and luckily, Blue didnt hold a grudge against him so bonding went pretty smoothly. However, our third rabbit, Badger, who saw it happen but didnt participate is still very cautious and nervous around Bombur

            So theres my personal reason for advising you to keep your two separated until all hormones are out of the picture


          • Theo&Leo
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            16 posts Send Private Message

              Thanks guys! I’ll definitely wait, I am in no rush to throw them together anyway and definitely don’t want them to hurt each other. I was also wondering how will I know for sure if Leo is ready to be neutered? The only reason I knew with Theo is because I fostered a female rabbit that brought out his hormones but he didn’t really change all that much other than being obsessive with her and he was ready at 3 months. He never got aggressive, sprayed pee, etc. Leo won’t let me check to see but has sprayed pee during play dates with Theo however I don’t know if that necessarily means he is ready. I brought him to the vet at 3 months but they couldn’t find anything and now he is 4 months old. I just want to avoid a vet bill if he isn’t ready. Is there some sort of indication? I know he for sure isn’t a girl based on Theo’s reaction to him as well as the breeder checked him as he grew to nine weeks.


            • Mikey
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              3186 posts Send Private Message

                Youll have to take a look at their genitals. Males will have very obvious testicles if they havent been neutered. Do note, some vets take out the testicles completely and some vets only cut the tubes and burn the ends so they cant pass sperm to the otherwise in tact testicles. If you see testicles, youll have to look for scarring. If you dont want to look or arnt sure, id ask the vet. You can get a male bun neutered whenever their testicles have dropped


              • Azerane
                Moderator
                4688 posts Send Private Message

                  Posted By Mikey on 4/26/2016 10:07 PM

                  You can get a male bun neutered whenever their testicles have dropped

                  That exactly. It’s simply a matter of checking. Unfortunately they can retract their testicles so they’re not always obvious, but when relaxed they should be reasonably easy to see. All I remember is I turned Bandit over one day to see if he was ready and found nothing, the next day I checked again and there they were, as obvious as anything Sometimes when they’re hopping around you can also see them from behind under their tail if their little fluffy butt is raised up enough.

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              Forum BONDING Bonded already?