Bonding my bunnies and not sure if this is normal

[SquareHouse]

I just picked up my new bunny Cosmo, he's about five. And my current bunny who's a female Stella is about seven. I got him home and set his Carrier outside of her cage so they could see each other and then moved Cosmo into his pen. I let Stella out and she went to the enclosure Cosmo was in and was curious. After a bit of sniffing I opened the door to see the initial reaction. Stella rushed in and grunted a bit but stopped almost immediately. Cosmo then began humping her. Both are spayed and neutered. I separated them and they continued to do that for almost a minute. When I tried separating them the last time I think Cosmo may have gotten a hold of Stella's fur with his teeth since he wouldn't come off from her neck. I put Stella back in her enclosure and checked on her. I gave her a grape and she was doing alright. She then started thumping. She did that for a few minutes and is now looking of at Cosmo's enclosure. After a few minutes Cosmo starts thumping before settling and flopping. Stella is still looking over at his enclosure. I have them as neighbors with a few feet between the enclosures. I want to know if this is normal. I haven't ever done this before so I'm not sure what to expect. Any advice would be great because I'm really hoping that I won't mess something up and that both of them are happy and will be able to get through the night.

Sorry if I left any information out but I'd be glad to provide whatever information would be helpful.

Thank you so much!

 

[Blue eyes]

Having them in separate enclosure that are nearby is a good way to start. I'd leave them like that for a few weeks so they can get accustomed to each other's presence. Do not have them interact directly at all yet. It is fortunate that they did not start to fight when put together suddenly.

Take a look here for further details on bonding:
https://rabbitsindoors.weebly.com/bonding-bunnies.html

 

[SquareHouse]

Having them in separate enclosure that are nearby is a good way to start. I'd leave them like that for a few weeks so they can get accustomed to each other's presence. Do not have them interact directly at all yet. It is fortunate that they did not start to fight when put together suddenly.

Take a look here for further details on bonding:
https://rabbitsindoors.weebly.com/bonding-bunnies.html

That's good to know! Thank you! I feel like there's so much information but it's always good to get it from people who have first hand experience with them. I really appreciate the advice and link. Thanks!

 

[JBun]

Like Blue Eyes said, keep them separated, give them a few weeks, especially for the new bun to get all settled in, and your other rabbit to get used to his presence. Also, if he hasn't been neutered long, it can take 4-8 weeks for those hormones to fade, so he could still be acting based on those hormones if it hasn't been long enough post neuter. Which you want those hormones almost completely gone when starting to bond, as they interfere with the bonding process and could result in the bond not being successful, or worse, injuries occurring.

While you're waiting, it would be good to read up on bonding and rabbit behavior and body language, so you know the signs of escalating aggression and when to intervene, which is crucial in bonding to know when to stop things before serious injuries can occur. Along with the link above, here are a few others:

http://language.rabbitspeak.com/
https://wabbitwiki.com/wiki/Understanding_your_rabbit
http://cottontails-rescue.org.uk/information/bonding-bunnies/
https://wabbitwiki.com/wiki/Bonding_rabbits_together