11 week male/female siblings bonding

[lilmiffy]

Hi Everyone,

This is my first time bonding rabbits and I appreciate all your help. This site has been super helpful!

So here’s the story – we recently got two baby lion head rabbit siblings that were born 4/26/17, putting them at 11 weeks old. We are not yet sure of the genders but were told they were one male one female. I am taking them to the vet on Monday for their first check up as well as setting up an appointment for neutering/spaying as soon as possible. 

My question is about bonding them at this time. Initially when I brought them home I placed them in the same cage. The next day as I was watching them I saw the male bunny attempt to mount the female. I immediately separated them and since then they have been in different cages but in the same room. I think they’ve both taken it very hard and seem lonely when they are not together. 

I have been letting both of them out at the same time in a shared space and watching them extremely closely. Whenever I see the male attempt to mount the female, I break it up. They are so happy when they are together and they are running full speed across the room and binkying everywhere. I have been very diligent with making sure that they are not mating or anything. They just seem to be so comfortable together. They plop right next to each other and eat out of the same food bowl as well.

Is this okay or should I just be letting them out at separate times? They never fight and never nip at each other. I have seen them grooming each other as well. I just really don’t want them to forget about each other and it’s quite heartbreaking to not have them together.

Thank you for any advice you can give me!

[sarahthegemini]

Do you want a litter? It would be rare for the female to be fertile at 11 weeks but it’s not impossible. They need to be separated, at all times. Not let out for ‘supervised play time’

[Deleted User]

I have two male bunnies, and they seemed to not be fighting around 11 weeks either, then something snapped at 12 weeks and they got into a really nasty riff. Bombur still has a few scabs to prove it. They have been separated ever since. Yes it’s painful to see them out at separate times especially because they were inseparable before their fight, but honestly I wished I had separated them from the start. You can’t bond when they haven’t been fixed. Unless you’re trying for babies, they need to be fixed before properly bonding them. They’re hitting that age when one could start becoming territorial, or both could try to display dominance (already happening). 

My husband and I have their cages facing each other about 6 inches apart. They can still see and smell each other. They come out at separate times, and will hop over to each others cages. Bombur will usually ask for grooms from Asriel, and Asriel will still give them. But until they’re fixed in 4 days, we know it’s what’s best for them. 

[Mikey]

If they can reach one another, they can mate. If they mate, they can breed. If they breed, at this age, it can be very dangerous for your female. As in, she may die. Unless youre prepared for this risk, you keep them a foot apart. Note, that rabbits can mate between bars, and can mate about a foot apart.

[tobyluv]

At their age, they definitely should be separated now. It only takes a few seconds for a rabbit to get pregnant. Or for a fight to happen, with injuries occurring. They can be kept in the same room, but their cages should not be right together. They will have to take turns for out of cage play and exercise. You might need to place an x-pen or some kind of barrier around a cage when the other one is out exercising, to prevent any aggression through cage bars. An x-pen can come in handy for bonding when it’s time for that. If they aren’t bad chewers, you could get each of them a plush animal to cuddle with, groom and hump.

[lilmiffy]

Thank you all for the recommendation. I guess I’ll start separating them now and hope that I can get them neutered/spayed soon so that I can start bonding them! A follow up question I have is how long would I need to wait until I can bond them? Do I have to wait for both buns to be fixed before I can let them see each other again?

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