Bonded pair fighting

[hln917]

I took Shades to the vet this morning to her her front teeth trimmed. After she came home, within an hour she started going after Cappuccino and chasing her. They are jumping on each other ripping fur out of each other. I now have them separated in the same room but divided by a baby gate. I've never seen them fight like this.

What would have set her off like this? They have been bonded before they came to live with us over 1 1/2 now. Please don't tell me the bond is broken!

 

[elrohwen]

That's actually fairly common when one goes to the vet alone. They come back with all sorts of strange smells and the other bunny isn't sure who they are at first. I would just introduce them slowly and keep an eye on them for a day, but they should settle back down. I don't think it's permanently broken, just a little shaken.

In the future, can you take them both in one carrier? This way they both have the vet experience and the same smells.

 

[SOOOSKA]

That happened to me with my Wilbur & Jackie. I brought Jackie to the vets because she was ill. They started to fight (they were litter mates too). I had them separated for over a month before they rebonded. The only place they were ok was on my bed so every night I had them on the bed snuggling.

A second cage was built (a big NIC cage) to cage Jackie as she was put in a small rabbit cage. On the day the second cage was finished they rebonded. So now they have two very large NIC cages in their room.

Hopefully yours will be much easier to rebond.

What did I learn from this always bring both rabbits to the vet if one needs to go. I did this with Winston & Vega and had no problem when Winston came home. They were so happy to be back together.

Susan

 

[slavetoabunny]

I totally agree with the above info. If I take Sparky to the vet, then Scooter is OK when she comes home. But, if I take Scooter to the vet, Sparky gets aggressive with her when she gets home. Moral of the story: take them together. They should get over it.

 

[hln917]

Thanks everyone! I will definitely take both girls next time. Shades been going alone every 3 weeks and this is the first time they are aggressive with each other. I don't know who started it. As I was sitting with them, Cappy would run up to Shades and try to sniff her and Shades would pounce on her. I left them alone for about an hour and all was quiet but than they fought and now they're separated again. Hoping they'll work it out on their own.

 

[kirbyultra]

Have they kissed and made up yet tonight?

 

[jillphil]

I agree with the advice to take them together when going to the vet or any new place that has unusual smells. Rabbits have great noses I guess!

 

[hln917]

We kept them apart last night as they were still fighting. Just inseparate part of the room divided by a baby gate so they can still see each other. It was Shades that kept going after Cappy, not the other way around, so I think she doesn't feel well. (Cappy even came out to groom her ears soit looked for a split moment all was fine then Shades attacked her.) I also posted in the infirmary.

http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=57699&forum_id=16&jump_to=777159#p777159

This morning, they both came downstairs and it looks like Shades was trying to ask for Cappy's forgiveness, she kept going up to her and putting her head under her for grooming but Cappy is now petrified of her and runs away. I think Shades is frustrated by that so she ends up chasing her now in frustration and anger. She just pounced on Cappy.

Unfortunately I have to volunteer at a Bunny Spa today so I can't monitor them. I don't want to take any chance when I'm not home so it will have to be separate rooms until I get home.

 

[slavetoabunny]

When my bonded pair gets into a snit (doesn't happen often) I give them a little bit of Rescue Remedy to calm them down. A car ride together may make things right also.

 

[hln917]

Well we kept them apart yesterday while we were out of the house. When they were together, both would stay on the opposite side of the room. Poor Cappy was petrified of her sister. No fighting nor chasing. I checked on them in the middle of the night and they were sleeping next to each other! However by 6am, we both jumped out of bed and went flying upstairs b/c we heard them chasing each other. I didn't see any fur so we're assuming they were just playing. Dare I hope they are slowly bonding again? Keeping my fingers crossed!!ray:

 

[Haley]

I agree, from now on always take them to the vet together. This happens quite often.

Here's what I would do...put a little vanilla extract on your hands and rub them together, then pet both bunnies all over so they both pick up the same smell. You should also probably clean out their cage/area etc with vinegar and water to get rid of any smells.

On other thing I do to make amends with feuding bunnies is give them treats when they are together. Or, another trick is to put a little peanut butter or mashed banana on one' forehead to encourage the other to groom. Usually once there is some grooming they will be more likely to kiss and make up.

Good luck!

 

[kirbyultra]

It doesn't sound like it's too far down to splitsville for the girls! Maybe a quick car ride will do the trick and they'll snuggle more. Sometimes I get paranoid that if the buns smell different even if they both smell like vanilla, they will freak out because they don't smell familiar to each other and they won't make the connection that it's their old pal.

 

[hln917]

It looks like the girls are back together!! Peace and harmony in the house again.:bunnyheart I'm sure it was b/c she wasn't feeling well that she acted out like that. Poor Cappuccino was so afraid of her for the last couple of days. I think she's still a bit wary but they are snuggling up again.

However, poor Shades has a small scratch mark on her side most likely from Cappuccino when they were fighting. Will be keeping an eye on that now.

Thanks for everyone's advice. I will take both girls with me to the vet next time.

 

[hln917]

Ok, so maybe not all is in harmony. We had another male rabbit visiting yesterday, running around the house. Bad mistake. When it was time forthe girls to come down to play, Shades was not happy with the smell. She ran over to where he had peed (we wiped and cleaned the area) and started to poop there. Now she's chasing Cappuccino terrorizing her. She's not biting and no fur is flying but she won't leave her alone. As soon as she goes near her, Cappy would run and the chase begin. It's almost as she thinks Cappy is the intruder. Any suggestions what to do? Hubby doesn't think I should separate them if they are not fighting.

 

[kirbyultra]

Is Yeti still at your place or he's left already?

 

[hln917]

No he was only here for about an hour yesterday and left. We did vaccuum after he left but I'm sure his scent is still here. Only Shades is bothered by it.

 

[kirbyultra]

I forget, is Yeti neutered or not? Probably not if you were able to look at him and tell right?

A lot of times buns get upset when they are around strange unaltered buns of the opposite sex. Seems to happen more often to females than males. Has Shades ever been in contact with other bunnies (not in your household) that you can tell if this sort of affect on her behavior is normal or not?

It could just be a coincidence that a week ago she had to go to the vet and this week a different bun came by. I don't know if it could be anything other than a behavioral blip. If the girls aren't fighting, I would agree with your hubby and say that it's probably premature to separate them. My fear would be if you separate them while both girls are so unsure of the situation that it may weaken their bond. Perhaps it's best for a few days to keep the girls holed up in their own room so they don't have to deal with the downstairs smelling like a big manly bun? lol

 

[hln917]

It didn't look like Yeti was neutered.

We didn't separate themlastnight and it was quiet up there. I got down of my hands and knees and scrubbed the floors down yesterday. They were fine last night, however I forgot to scrub the area by the fireplace where Yeti peed and Shades has found a new place to pee and poop!:grumpy

Shades is still chasing Cappy this morning but not nipping. I noticed she only does it in the morning. Last night they came down and all was fine. Right now, they're sitting calming on the rug grooming themselves. Keeping fingers crossed~again!