New bunny aggression, don’t know what to do.

[PennyAndDudleyMom]

Hello,

my first post to the forum so I am sorry if this comes across wrongly, still learning the ropes!

I adopted two bunnies from the same litter in late May 2016. Up until about a month ago, they were living in the same cage, cuddled and binkied together all of the time, never any problems.

However; the behaviour started to change and I am unsure what to do.

It started off with them mounting each other, after approx. 2 weeks of that, Dudley pretty much surrendered to Penny and did not initiate any fighting. That being said Penny would not stop. The final straw was I was woken up to Dudley making a high pitched whining sound which led me to believe he was very scared. Penny would not stop chasing and biting at his ankles, he is much smaller then her. Since that situation, we have kept them in separate cages. They were fine while free roaming around the house this entire time by the way, aggression only happening while near Pennys cage, or while in the same cage. 

Now, as of a few days ago. We had to move the bunnies from my boyfriends house to my house. They seem to have settled in okay, not eating as much but still eating which I believe is just from adjusting to the new environment. But, now when I let them out to free roam together, Penny attacks instantly. If I just let Dudley out, if he comes anywhere near her cage- she will stick her nose through the cage openings and bite him. Even when I put them on my bed, away from the cages, she would chase and bite at him. I am feeling very frustrated and sad about this aggression because they used to be best friends and now they cant be close without fighting. 

I am just kind of lost on what to do, at first I thought this behaviour was bonding, but it does not seem to me to be that, because Dudley is genuinely afraid. I should include that neither have been fixed as I am a student and my vet quoted me $400+HST a rabbit and I do not have that kind of money right now (no judgement please). 

Any insight on the situation would be appreciated, as I am lost on what to do to get them friends again. 

[Dface]

That sounds to me a lot like their bond has broken.
Baby rabbits dont form true bonds-like children they tend to be loving and affectionate towards all other rabbits, so once they grow up they do need to be bonded, however this is rarely possible without neutering as hormones simply take over. His fear of her is due to the memory of being attacked

Im assuming your buns are male and female, and from the timeline your rabbits have reached sexual maturity(females are able to have babies from 4months old)
so you’ll want to keep them separate from now on(litter mates should not breed ) and bring your female to a vet to check if you are about to have a surprise litter

[tobyluv]

Besides the threat of pregnancy, you should not keep rabbits together once they reach a certain age, usually around 3 months. Once the hormones come flooding in, aggression can come with them. Rabbits that fight can severely injure each other. Besides the fact that you don’t want your rabbits to be hurt, the vet bill to try to take care of those injuries could be very high.

I’m surprised that the female isn’t pregnant already. Maybe the male is so frightened of her that he hasn’t tried to mate, but it only takes a few seconds for mating and pregnancy to occur. Rabbits can even manage to mate through cage bars if the cages are adjacent.

You will definitely have to keep Penny and Dudley apart until they have been spayed and neutered and at least a month has elapsed. You could end up with a real tragedy if they continue fighting – which they will. Don’t even let them have access through cage bars. If one is out exercising, you need to make sure that they can’t bite through the bars.

You do need to make sure that you have a rabbit savvy vet perform the surgeries, but you may be able to find a less expensive vet or even a low cost spay/neuter that accepts rabbits. Some vets participate in Care Credit, where you charge the amount, then if you pay a minimum each month, there is no interest.

[jerseygirl]

I agree with Dface and Tobyluv, you’ll absolutely need to keep these 2 apart.

$400 for desexing is just so much! Do check out some other options. This thread has links to low cost spay/neuter programs.
https://binkybunny.com/FORUM/tabid/54/aft/116849/afnp/278073/Default.aspx

[jerseygirl]

I do want to add – be prepared for a litter. If your female is pregnant or experiencing a false pregnancy, this would explain her aggression.

[PennyAndDudleyMom]

Thank you so much for the opinion and helpful link! I was not sure if maybe the $400 was just a normal cost. It is $400 CND. Not many clinics that specialize in rabbits around where I live, so I think thats why its so much here. I was wondering if you had any insight on how I would tell if my baby girl is indeed pregnant?

[PennyAndDudleyMom]

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my post and express your opinion/knowledge. I really appreciate it. I took your advice on not letting them have access to eachother during free time. So I sit with them separately in the bathroom to play now

[jerseygirl]

Posted By PennyAndDudleyMom on 11/24/2016 11:58 AM

Thank you so much for the opinion and helpful link! I was not sure if maybe the $400 was just a normal cost. It is $400 CND. Not many clinics that specialize in rabbits around where I live, so I think thats why its so much here. I was wondering if you had any insight on how I would tell if my baby girl is indeed pregnant?

Unfortunately, it can be difficult to tell with pregnancy. There is only a short window where kits can be felt with palpitation. Often, the only sign people may get is when a rabbit plucks the fur and builts a nest a day or less before giving birth. Some rabbits will pluck earlier, then again before birthing, especially young inexperienced rabbits. This can also happen with false pregnancies.

You may see her seem to be eating more but this can coincide with her age and growing also.

Now that they are separated, you would need to calculate one month on from when they were last together to be in the clear. 

CND is Canadian Dollars?  If you feel comfortable posting the general area of where you live, some members might be able to point you to some reasonable priced rabbit savvy vets. 

[PennyAndDudleyMom]

Turns out Penny is a male….

[PennyAndDudleyMom]

Turns out Penny is a male….

[Mikey]

Atleast hes not pregnant You will need to neuter them both, and give them a month to heal and drain hormones before you will be able to bond them. When you do bond them again in the future, do it in a small neutral area such as the bath tub or a box

[PennyAndDudleyMom]

Yes! I am very relieved that pregnancy will not be an issue! I am also feeling slightly glad that Penny is actually male because of the lessened chance of developing cancer! Cannot wait to bond them

[Author]

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