It’s Lily and Charlie! Plus bonding problems :/

[Charlily]

Hey there! New to the forums here.
Just wanting to introduce myself my bunnies.
My name is Tiff and I’m a first time bunny owner, to a Lily and Charlie both female dwarf lops. I didn’t exactly research into bunnies before I decided to adopt one and had noooo idea how complex they actually are, although the reason I adopted Lily and Charlie was because I had a connection with Lily at the pet store and I was amazed at how lovely and friendly she was with me and cuddly too! My boyfriend fell in love with Charlie and that’s why we bought her.

Ok, so, they’re both from the same breeder but not the same littler? I think same Dad different Mum. Lily is allot smaller and younger and Charlie is allot bigger. We adopted Lily first and then decided to adopt Charlie as a friend for her and assumed because they were in the same sanctuary in the pet store and also seemed to be affectionate with one another there that they were friends and would love to live together!

We. Were. Wrong.

Lol. ‘:/

Although they groomed each other and cuddled with one another initially, my parents were woken up early in the morning to them fighting viciously and making crazy noises! Although my boyfriend were only told in the morning upon waking.
We own a pet poodle who is very chill but curious (can be jealous) but seems more than ok with the little guys.

Another thing to note is that we out them in a brand new two story hutch together so it was neutral.

We didn’t realise it was a really serious thing until the day after the early morning ‘rave’, when my boyfriend and I were cleaning out their cage, they fought again in the smaller cage we put them in.
Lily cut her foot really badly and we think it was from the fight.
Was heartbroken she had been hurt so bad in the first few days of having her.

They’re in separate cages now, because Lily has to heal and recover.

I’m just confused with their behaviour as they seemed to be getting along when we were present although we are not 100% familiar with bunny body language.
– have noticed that Charlie, being allot biger seems to be a bit more clumsy and dominant, not as self aware as Lily and allot more independent.
We believe Lily is the underdog in this scenario.

We’re not sure what to do as it would be too complicated to keep them both if they can’t get along and Lily’s vet bills along with the cost of buying their lovely hutch etc already comes to a whopping amount I hadn’t expected.
Am happy that Lily is ok now though but would just like some advice on what to do?
Should i return Charlie () or should we give bonding another chance?

The hutch is two story but I’d rather them both being able to run up and down freely and happily.

Thankyou x

[tobyluv]

Are Lily and Charlie spayed? You cannot keep rabbits together once they reach puberty (around 4 months) even if they are siblings unless they have been spayed or neutered and properly bonded. There will be aggression and fighting. Rabbits can severely injure each other when fighting, plus rabbits can hold a grudge and if they fight and get injured or feel intimidated, they will have a hard time bonding in the future.

If they haven’t been spayed, you need to keep them separate until after their surgeries and a few weeks recuperation time, which also allows for the hormones to be flushed out of their body.

If they have already been spayed, it could be that they just aren’t compatible. It happens sometimes, but it is rare.

Here are 2 good articles on bonding:

http://rabbit.org/faq-bonding-multiple-rabbits/

https://binkybunny.com/BUNNYINFO/tabid/53/CategoryID/9/PID/940/Default.aspx

[sarahthegemini]

How old are they? Are they spayed?

[Charlily]

Hey tobyluv, thankyou for the swift reply!
Hmm, yes they havnt been spayed yet! Hadn’t really thought that would be an issue but it makes sense if I think about it considering the hormones and such! They are only 8-10 weeks old according to pet store sign lol not sure how accurate but even though Charlie is bigger, she is still small enough to be 12 wks old, would say Lily is 8 wks old.

Well crap! Lily ain’t gon have time for Charlie for a while then :/.

Thankyou for the articles!
I have done a bit of reading recently about it but figured voicing my situation to long time bunny owners and bonders might give me a better idea.

All replies appreciated ☺️

[tobyluv]

They may be a little bit older than 8 -10 weeks. Puberty and the hormones it brings can start up at 12 weeks or so. Some breeds mature faster than others. So, it sounds like you definitely need to keep them separated. As I said, severe injuries can occur when they fight. Most vets wait until a rabbit is 6 months old before spaying. You will need to check with your vet and see what he or she prefers.

[Author]

Messages