My boy bun is a relentless humper...

[doublebunnylove]

Bentley is 2 years old and he has lately been going after my 1 year old girl bun named Lucy. He has done this to her before, but now it seems to happen every like 20 minutes.

He will sometimes corner her so she can't escape and I feel so bad for her. They do grunt but its not like an angry gunt its different than that. He will also continue to follow her around for a while if she runs away at first. But there is something a bit grosser. He doesnt actually enter her but you know, on her back he does this all the time. But im also worried cause sometimes he tries to get at her head and im afraid that, well, she might bite "it" off.

I know this is a learned behavior but is there anything I can do to help ease him out of this bad habbit.

 

[ldoerr]

First off, they are BOTH spayed and neutored correct? If not DO THAT. Males and females should not be together unless they are fixed unless you are trying to breed them. If that is the case you need to do LOTS of research.

 

[doublebunnylove]

Lucy is spayed but Bentley is not though. Would it help if he were to be neutered?

 

[ldoerr]

Yes. I would get him neutered. It will help dicepate the hormones that are causing him to hump.

 

[doublebunnylove]

I will deffinatly get him neutered! but in the mean time what should I do?

 

[FallenRabbit]

I would seperate them. That way there is no chance of a fight breaking out. Just my thought.

 

[Imbrium]

they should be separated for now if at all possible (and for 6-8 weeks after the neuter, as it can take that long for the hormones to be totally gone) because as long as he's hormonal, that's going to drive his behavior and make him obsessed with wanting to mate... which ofc she doesn't want because she's spayed.

 

[agnesthelion]

Oh goodness. Seperate them NOW! Neuter him immediately. Holy buckets, you are lucky there hasn't been a fight already. I almost feel bad for the poor guy hormones driving his every need but not getting what he "wants" lol

Yes, you actually can't even consider them bonded until both buns are fixed, IMO. Since there hasn't been a fight. I would keep them in seperate cages/enclosures next to each other so they can still see/smell each other but do not let at each other. After the male is neutered it can still take a couple weeks for hormones to dissipate.

 

[doublebunnylove]

Thank you all for your great advice but how much does it cost to get a male nuetered?? (im a poor collage student)

 

[Imbrium]

depends on the vet, but less than a spay... if you have any rabbit rescues/sanctuaries around, you might try calling them and asking if they know any reliable vets who do low-cost rabbit neuters.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

:yeahthat:

 

[gmas rabbit]

Before we had Derby neutered he had a harem of stuffies he humped repeatedly all night. I actually felt sorry for him, how frustrating. Within about a month as the horomones settled down so did he. I paid $125 to have him neutered, but I know that the rescue societies and spca ( whatever the equivalent is in the states ) has programs that will help out. Your vet may allow you to pay if payments. It is always a good idea to have a male rabbit neutered too, not only because it makes them less sexually aggressive, but for health reasons. Definitely helps to prevent certain cancers. IMO

 

[Thumperina]

Could I please ask, if the male is neutered but female is not, why is it wrong to have them together? What harm could it bring?

 

[agnesthelion]

Thumperina wrote:

Could I please ask, if the male is neutered but female is not, why is it wrong to have them together? What harm could it bring?

Its because of a fight risk. Hormones drive everything a rabbit does. Which their main goal, being at the bottom of the food chain, is to mate. Rabbits cannot be considered bonded unless they are both fixed. If they aren't fixed then the only reason they would "like" to be near another bunny would be to mate with them. Their very DNA drives them to do so.

So in this case the male will only continue to hump. He doesn't like or respect the female. He just wants to make babies The female will eventually get sick of it and fight back. The male won't back down because of hormones. Viscious circle. Fights between rabbits can be very dangerous, if not deadly.

 

[Imbrium]

:yeahthat:

 

[ldoerr]

Another reason to get the female spayed is that it greatly reduces the risk of cancer. Females have a 80% chance of reproductive cancer by the age of 5 if not spayed.

Like the others have said, you can not consider a pair bonded unless BOTH are fixed because of hormones.

 

[Thumperina]

agnesthelion wrote:

Thumperina wrote:

Could I please ask, if the male is neutered but female is not, why is it wrong to have them together? What harm could it bring?

Its because of a fight risk. Hormones drive everything a rabbit does. Which their main goal, being at the bottom of the food chain, is to mate. Rabbits cannot be considered bonded unless they are both fixed. If they aren't fixed then the only reason they would "like" to be near another bunny would be to mate with them. Their very DNA drives them to do so.

So in this case the male will only continue to hump. He doesn't like or respect the female. He just wants to make babies The female will eventually get sick of it and fight back. The male won't back down because of hormones. Viscious circle. Fights between rabbits can be very dangerous, if not deadly.

Thank you. I have fixed male and unspayed female and I recently see her doing the following: She puts her paws on his head and presses him down. What could this be? Does she want sex or just being dominant?
Also, do females have a certain hormonal rhythm? I have noticed that my unspayed female was having false pregnancies every 24 days. Is this when she supposed to be "in heat"? How long this peak last every month, I wonder? 2-3 days?

Yes, I know about the cancer.

 

[ldoerr]

Rabbits do not go through heat. They are induced ovulators (I think that is the term at least). They can become pregnant at any time. The act of mating releases the eggs. So I guess you could say that they are in heat at all times.

 

[Thumperina]

IS it OK to ask my questions in the topic that is not mine?

We neutered one buck in August (another one will be getting neutered, he was too young earlier). The neutered buck can sit still for hours doing nothing. He is too calm. I honestly do not like this change. Sure it's nice not to worry about babies and such, but I think he was more "real" when he wasn't neutered. It's not a question, just observation.

 

[agnesthelion]

Lauren is right. There is no cycle to female rabbits. She is simply going through false pregnancies. A very common act among unspayed females. The fact she is around another bun (fixed or not) brings on even more as her body/mind/hormones are only reacting. The only natural reason she would be around another bun naturally would be to mate. No other reason. They don't "make friends" otherwise. Hormones drive everything they do.

As far as her putting her paws on him, yes it's a dominance thing. She is proabaly a bit confused as to why he isn't mating with her. Again, since hormones drive everything they do, she's basically saying "hey dude, I'm here" but since he won't reciprocate, dominance emerges.

It really isn't fair to either bun to try and put them together when they arent both fixed. She is crying out (figuratively) to be impregnated and he doesn't understand what she is doing. It is a recipe for a fight and your female having false pregnancies stirs up grumpiness in her every time. Get her spayed. It's the best thing. Pregnancy is not the only worry when it comes to stuff like this. Fighting and attitude plays a huge part too.