Bonded pair fight? Please Help!! :(

[Crashley]

Hi everyone, so here’s whats going on..

Winnie and Pepito are both spayed and have been bonded for about 4 or 5 months now. Never had an issue with either of them, they live in the same room and are free range. They share a litter box and they are always loving each other, cuddling, grooming each oher literally inseparable. Today I came home from work and I go in there room and its destroyed..turned upside down. Food bowls scattered, boxes on the other side of the room, hay EVERYWHERE! So..red flag already. I see chunks of fur around the room. I go up to Winnie and she had something what looked like fur in her eye that gunked up, about 1/2 an inch long. I pulled it out. it was that much. i could tell she greatly appreciated it. Her eye looks normal besides slightly red. Both Bunnies seem to be fine. But Im assuming it was a fight. It would be the first time  that they have ever fought…if that’s what happened… I’ve been keeping close eye out all evening and sometimes I will hear what sounds like them running fast around the room..Ill get up, just to make sure they’re not in a scuffle and all seems fine.Nothing has changed. They’ve been sharing the same litter box since the beginning(of there bond). Pepe has a gash on her ear..however, no blood and it oddly looks like its healed. Where did it come from?? What could of happened that after 5 months of being inseparable, they fight? I’m still not %100 percent certain if they’ve been fighting but what else could any of that be from? I’ve been home all evening and have only heard abrupt running 2 times, both times nothing was wrong. But something happened..What do i need to do?

Do I need to separate them? Neutralize everything in the room? I work 8 hours a day and if I came home to a severly injured or even worse, dead rabbit..I seriously would lose my mind. 

The only thing I can possibly think of is a massive box I laid in the room that they both loved..maybe they got territoral of the box? It wouldn’t really make sense though as they share all their boxes and everything else too.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated..

Thank-You in Advance!

[Mikey]

Its likely not healed, but scabbed over. Her ear that has a gash. If it really is healed over, then you know this isnt the first time theyve fought so badly while you were away.

If they only have one litter box, you really should add in another one. Its best if each bun has atleast one litter box to avoid fighting over them.

They definitely fought by what you described. Its up to you if you trust them while you are away at work. If theres already a gash in one of your buns, it would not be wise to keep them alone together while you are not home. Stress bonding could help them remember their bond. Note, that many things can cause a bond to fluctuate: hormonal phases (possible even in spayed/neutered rabbits), new sounds, new smells, new sights.

[Q8bunny]

I’ve been reading a lot of stories about peoples’ buns behaving extra strange this season. Who knows? Sun flares or something. Regardless, I’d do what Mikey suggested and maybe consider observing them extensively while at home to better read body language etc. Can you do work and whatnot in their room or the hallway just outside their room?

[Crashley]

So, I separated them, i just created a NIC line inbetween two sections of NIC cages areas. they can still lick through the squares and see each other. Im scared if i keep them together while im sleeping they will get in a tizzy. Im also very weary separating them..scared of depression(although they can still see,smell,and lick one another through the bars), scared of ruining there bond. Is this the best idea to do while im away? and then putting them together when im home?
This is very defeating..spending months bonding them, them being bonded for at least 4 months, and then this…I just wonder what happened. They still love each other though. grooming eachother and laying against eachother.. For the night they will be separated.

[Crashley]

I separated my buns last night. When I woke up to get ready for work this morning, i let them together and they ran to eachother like long lost lovers and started theyre usual grooming sessions. I separated them again just before I left and they will remain that way till I get home. It’s sad seeing them separated :/

[Mikey]

I think it is the best you can do for now until you can work on bonding sessions and/or figure out what causes them to fight while youre gone. It may look sad, but theyll be happier too

[BuckyLuna12]

Maybe the buns both want to be the dominant one. Humping is a sign of dominance, and sometimes rabbits pull each others hair out when they are humping. But if they are hurting each other you should keep them separated until you can supervise them.

[Willow Lien]

My doe attacked my boy once when she was scared of something else she heard. Now, they get scared ALL the time but do not usually take it out on each other. I happened to be in the room and quickly separated them. They have been bonded a year and it has not happened since.

Could be something outside scared them?

[DanaNM]

This is a tough one. I second the suggestion that perhaps something outside spooked one of them, which may have confused the other, resulting in a fight. Imagine one bun running around scared, but the other bun thinking they are being attacked, resulting in a fight which neither really intended to start. Perhaps the box might have had something to do with it, if one felt trapped.

I agree that separating them while you are gone is the safe bet, and then doing some bonding sessions with them. It is a good sign that they went straight back to grooming. Can you sleep near them at night, so you would wake up if they start to chase?

If you have time over a weekend, you could try marathoning them in neutral space, then cleaning and rearranging their home. Essentially repeating the cementing phase if they seem completely good again during the bonding session.

. . . 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.  

[Rosie]

I am a new member and have joined specifically to find out what could have caused my newly happy bonded buns to fight. I mean properly fight! They have been slowly bonded over a couple of months and living happily together in an outside large hutch and run for over a month. Yesterday whilst out in the garden they had a fight, then again this morning in the run, after which they were separated. I let them back out in the garden again this afternoon but after half an hour of happy playing they were fighting again. They are spending the night apart. They are male and female and both neutered. We had the male first who has been the dominant one from the start, but it seems to be the female trying to start the fight by trying to get her face really close to the males face. Is she trying to be the dominant one now?! Some advice is needed and very welcome to not loose all the hard work we have put in with them already.

[BuckyLuna12]

I’ve never heard of a bun getting close to another bun as being a sign of dominance. I’m really stumped. This is happening to my babies but my female is not spayed. But with both of your buns fixed, and bonded, I can’t think of why there fighting. I’m sorry

[Crashley]

Seems they just keep chasing each other after about 2 hours of being together, I am redoing my bonding steps as of now and keeping them separated. I will keep posting on this progress ,I’m still surprised this has happened. :/ They were truly the best of buds!

[DanaNM]

Hi Rosie, It would probably be best to start a new thread, so things don’t get confusing! It would be useful to know how long they have been bonded, and what you did to bond them. 

. . . 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.  

[DanaNM]

Posted By Crashley on 7/16/2017 10:06 PM

Seems they just keep chasing each other after about 2 hours of being together, I am redoing my bonding steps as of now and keeping them separated. I will keep posting on this progress ,I’m still surprised this has happened. :/ They were truly the best of buds!

Hi Crashley, that’s so upsetting! That’s good you are keeping them separated. If the bonding steps don’t seem to be making any difference after a few sessions, you may need to try a complete “reset”, and keep them separated for a longer period to let them cool off and “forget” each other. I’ve heard 3 months is recommended for a total reset. 

. . . 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]

If they’ve actually had a fight it would be best to completely reset as DanaNM suggests. Give them a chance to forgive and forget. It must be so upsetting tho

[Author]

Messages