Knowing if/when to separate a bonded pair

[Kipcha]

We have this rescued bonded pair called Denny and Cass that are currently looking for a home.

Now, Denny is pretty overweight and we have been working on giving less pellets and pushing more hay and Cass can stand to lose a bit too, but Denny acts like he is starving ALL THE TIME. Whenever someone has any kind of food, whether it's the pellets or any veggies, Denny starts going nuts chasing Cass around the cage, biting at her hindquarters/underside. He didn't do it so much at first, but lately it is just getting ridiculous.

So how should I intervene and when? I mean, he hasn't done anything to hurt her yet, but when they start going it's enough that the water bowl goes flying and they're practically running along the side of the cage.

I would just hate for one of these times for him to get a good bite in, or for Cass to get tired of it and beat the snot out of him or something. I don't know what's normal for bonded pairs since we don't have any, so I always find it very worrisome and attempt to break it up but it just doesn't stop until the veggeis/pellets are gone.

 

[whitelop]

Could you feed them separately? Like take who ever is handled easiest and put them in another cage or on the floor for feeding time, then once the food is gone, put them back together.
I don't know much about bonded pairs since i don't have a pair, but i feel like i would separate of i were in your shoes.

 

[agnesthelion]

Well I know every pair is different but my pair never show aggression during eating? In fact, eating is suppose to be an actual bonding activity.....?

How are they besides around food? Like, do they seem attached at the hip and very dependent on each other or just kinda "meh" about the other one? If they don't seem TOO attached (like where splitting them could make them depressed or something) then I would maybe consider separating.

It is so hard to say because every rabbit is different but what you are describing does sound like a bit of a concern and you are right the doe could eventually get sick of it and fight back.

Best of luck!

 

[OakRidgeRabbits]

It sounds to me like this is an ongoing case of food aggression, which probably explains why Denny is overweight. It would be wothwhile to try feeding the rabbits separately to see if that helps. But if the problem continues, I would probably separate them. It sounds like Denny may need to be housed individually for his own health and happiness.

 

[Kipcha]

I have tried feeding them seperatly but Cass takes her dear sweet time when it comes to eating pretty much anything, she doesn't rush through her pellets so she'll leave them laying around all day if she so decides. So it doesn't really help too much.

I always thought that eating together was a bonding thing too, which is why I was surprised to see such aggressive behaviour about it.

When food is not involved, they seem to like each other well enough, they hang around one another and they do spend a fair amount of time grooming each other. So not attached at the hip, but enough that I would like to find a different way to solve this... Which I am starting to think isn't going to work.

I'm thinking this might end up being a case where we seperate them, he's been very consistent about it and I feel bad for Cass but at the same time, I wish she would just eat when they're seperate for a bit... *Sigh*

 

[BinkyBunny]

I would separate but have their cages close possibly even touching since they do enjoy each other company.

 

[Chrisdoc]

Yes, feeding should be a bonding experience. I know one of the few times I can put Snowy and Houdini together now is if I fed them and they´d quite happily eat together but that start nipping again after so this sounds like something you should be stopping as you don´t want it to turn into full out fighting.

If you feed them separately, you may just need to take Cass´s food up and if you feel she´s not eating enough pellets, she´ll make it up with her hay and you could always feed her a few more veggies than Denny.

 

[JBun]

Instead of separating you could try putting Cass' pellets up after Denny finishes eating his pellets, and just let them munch on hay the rest of the day until the next feeding time. Try it for a few days and see if it seems to work out well. If not, then you can always separate them.

 

[Blue eyes]

I am just beginning to deal with a lighter version of this with my bonded pair. It's the first time I've seen this behavior in any of my pairs. Sapphire (my girl) is the one who seems more food aggressive. She's bonded close with Mocha. It is rare that they are not snuggled against each other.

She's always gotten super excited when the pellets are fed. She would circle around Mocha as I'm getting the pellets and placing them in the cage. Then I noticed her taking greens from Mocha. They can have a pile of greens, but she wants whatever Mocha is eating. Fortunately he doesn't seem to mind and just gets another piece.

A few days ago, there was one piece of romaine left. Sapphire took it from Mocha and hopped away with it. Mocha came to share and Sapphire actually lunged for him and chased him away.

So now I keep a closer eye and make sure that they finish at the same time. I'll break the piece in half and hold them out separately to each bun.

I only see this with Sapphire around food (and then not always). They share a pellet dish, but they wolf it down. I just hope it doesn't escalate to what you are dealing with.

If it's only around food, I'd think feeding them separately is a good solution. With plenty of hay around Cass should still be fine -- maybe spread out her pellets in smaller quantities throughout the day if she doesn't eat many at once. And do so separately from Denny.

Hmmm... something just occurred to me. I had heard that some people feed pellets by strewing them around the cage so the buns have to forage. I wonder what effect that would have on Denny? He wouldn't have one spot to guard, so to speak.

 

[JBun]

With my bonded pair, my female rabbit is a BIG grump. She lunges at Flopsy all the time, over what ever. Sometimes she'll lunge and nip at feeding time and most the time Flopsy just avoids her when she's like that, and if he get's real sick of her acting like a grump, then he'll box her back, then she gets scared and runs and hides for a minute. But they still like each other, snuggle and groom, but it never escalates beyond a little lunging, boxing, or nipping.

 

[Kipcha]

So Denny and Cass just went to a foster home where they will be allowed out of the cage to wander the kitchen and living room, so I am hoping that if they have a bigger area, Denny will not feel the need to get so defensive over food. We had them out running around in the living room earlier today and they were being so cuddly with each other and grooming one another, I don't think I would be able to seperate them unless we seriously need to. So fingers crossed that this works.