female doesn't like new male,m younger.

[sweetasme007]

the male was just bought from a pet store butshe is 2 months older than him and she chases him all over the place,won't leave him alone. Was the lady at the pet store wrongabout he/she being a he/she? why do they fight this way?

nichole

 

[Nicky Snow]

i have a two year old female, and just bought ababy to keep her company, the pet store people told me that a babywon't show it's sex until later. my older female hates/is jealous ofbaby, who after two months i suspect is a boy. i have them in differentcages, and am hoping that they learn to like each other. Good luck withyou and yours.

 

[naturestee]

How old is your girl? Is shespayed? Since she's from a pet store, I'm guessing her to bearound 4 months which is prime hormonal "teenage" time.Spaying will help reduce her aggressivness.

Also, she sees the new rabbit as an invader in HER territory.You should keep their cages in sight of each other but only let themplay together in an area that neither has claimed asterritory. I am currently doing this with my two rabbits, andit's starting to work. My girl is reallyterritorial.:? It can take time even with friendlybunnies. This website has a lot of good info on bonding yourrabbits:

http://www.mybunnies.com/bonding.htm

There are also several good articles here:

http://homepage.mac.com/mattocks/morfz/rabrefs.html

 

[naturestee]

Oh, and welcome to the forum, both of you!

 

[Nicky Snow]

thanks for the welcome. My older girl wasalready 6 months old when i got her from a petshop, and a magician hadher before. the magician must have mistreated her, because she doesn'tlike me picking her up and such, i have always respected her space, andtreated her exceptionally well. i don't fell it is safe to let them outtogether, as the older female attacks the baby. i sometimes think thati should let them duke it out so they can move on, but i don't wantthem hurting each other. the cages are side by side, and have beensince the baby came home, but still the female attacks whenit's the baby's time to run outside the cage. My little one however isvery interested in making friends. (He is very brave)

Can they really hurt each other or am i too protective?

 

[dajeti2]

They can literally kill each other ifleft to fight it out. Are they spayed and neutered? Alot of times it'snext to impossible to bond couples until they are spayed and neutered.Once you get them done you can wait 6 weeks for the hormones to ebb andslowly introduce them again.

Unitl then I wouldn't attempt letting them out since the doehas already shown aggression towards the younger one.

Tina

 

[Nicky Snow]

the older female i don't know and i don't thinkshe could handle going to the vet. i recently moved and she was verystressed out for a while. unless she was sick i wouldn't want to riskit. the baby boy i have considered getting neutered, but if i am goingto keep them separated, i won't have to worry about pregnancy. iusually give them each their own time to run around and they get alotof attention from me. thanks for letting me know not to let them fightbecause i really love them lots, and if anything happened to either ofthem... i'd be a mess.

 

[dajeti2]

I understand completely. I'm sorry Ithought you were wanting to try and bond them. I must havemisunderstood, sorry.

So when do we get to see pictures of these two little trouble bubbles lol.

Tina

 

[Nicky Snow]

i really wanted them to be buddies, so that wheni wasn't home they wouldn't be lonely. i won't give up faith that thatcould still happen. does 'bonding" mean mating?

i don't have a scanner at home, but my mum has one. i carry a pictureof my bunnies in my wallet, so i would be very proud to show them off.hopefully i can get some pictures posted soon.

 

[naturestee]

Bonding is the process of helping rabbits befriends. It is usually done with two spayed/neutered rabbits,but it can work with intact same-sex couples or where one is fixed andthe other isn't. It's harder with intact rabbits becausetheir hormones tend to make them territorial, not to mention the matingurge.

I would suggest you wait until you get the boy neutered, and then wait3 weeks after that to make sure he doesn't have any viable spermleft. Otherwise, he will most likely impregnate yourfemale. Even if you keep them separate, neutering would keepyou safe against accidents such as one bunny escaping from the cage-and they can mate through cage walls. Besides, intact malebunnies can be GROSS- just look at Rose's (rabbitgirl's) Bub!Beautiful, smart, funny, and sprays is owner in the face!:shock:

 

[Nicky Snow]

thanks for explaining the bonding thing. i amgoing to look for a good vet so my little lad can get taken care of.and i was wondering about her getting pregnant through the cages. ifeel better about my little guy getting neutered, and more hopeful thatmy munchkins might one day be pals. thanks again.