Bunnies Bond seems to be broken please help!

[Cassie]

I have 3 bunnies 1 female Nala and 2 males Ollie and Franco. I spent a few weeks slowly bonding them and it went great only one fight broke out between the boys but I took a step back and stress bonded them again after and it went very well from then on. I have had them bonded for a few weeks now and in the same cage all 3 of them. Nala and Ollie were already bonded when I got them and I was very cautious while bonding the 3 to make sure I wasn’t going to make things not work out. I researched a ton and they seemed to bond with only slight trouble. I waited until I was completely and fully comfortable and they were also before putting them together in a cage. They have been doing great up until I changed the flooring in their cage. I put fleece down and I think one of them peed on it so I cleaned it up. The next morning the problems started and Ollie and Franco started fighting so I took the fleece out amd cleaned and things seemed to be perfect for hours but then again tonight they broke out into a fight and Ollie even went after Nala for a second which shocked me. I’m not sure what to do or where I go from here it was all so sudden. I have separated Franco from Ollie and Nala but I’m not sure if I should wait and then try to bond them again or if there are other things that could be going on that I’m missing. Please help I’m very stressed out and not sure what to do. Thank you!

[Mirpanda]

Okay. First thing you need to do is take a deep breath. Stressing yourself out is not going to help. Now, I’ve never bonded rabbits, not yet anyways. But I think first you should assess the fights. What kind of fighting is it? Is it just little tuffs? Or is it like full blown bunny tornado, fur flying around? If its the first then research tells me that is normal, but if it is the second then I think you should put them in separate cages, but still close. That way you can evaluate their behavior and let them cool off. If being apart stresses them out then the bond shouldn’t be broken. After 12-24 hours, I would try to put them together in a neutral territory and see how they react. Here is a really good website that offers lots of detailed information about bonding https://rabbit.org/bonding-rabbits-a-how-to-from-georgia-hrs/

[DanaNM]

Hi there, welcome, sorry you are going through this, so stressful!

How bad was the first fight? Were there injuries? Broken skin? If so, it may be necessary to take a break and start from scratch.

How long were they living together 24/7 when you changed the flooring? New bonds can be a bit tenuous, so changes in the environment can upset things.

. . . 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.  

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