Is this an okay bonding situation?

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_Moby_

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Hello,

I brought home a 1 month old Netherland Dwarf doe today. I am hoping to bond her to my 11 month old Netherland Dwarf buck, who is neutered.

I have attached pictures of the set up I have right now. I was worried about the bonding process because I do not really have any neutral space to introduce them, I only have my room. Moby (the buck) has free roam in my room, and probably considers the entire space his territory. But he seems to be responding to her well; he keeps flopping against her cage. I was worried he might nip at her, so I added an extra barrier of fencing so they can't reach eachother.


But I am kind of worried to let them come in contact to eachother, and here is why. A few weeks ago I brought home a 4 year old Flemish Giant doe from the Humane Society; she was the sweetest angel of a bunny and it breaks my heart I had to bring her back. Moby seemed to react positively to her as well, flopping against her cage, but when they came in actual contact he attempted to mount her and just would. not. stop. At first she allowed it, but later on she started grunting, and then they eventually started fighting and I had to bring her back, considering it a failed bonding experience (which I think was entirely my fault). I could not keep her in a cage because she was so big, she just hopped right over the fencing I have (luckily this will not be an issue with the baby doe), and that's about when they started fighting.

So my worry is that Moby is going to try to mount this new baby Netherland Dwarf, and he is considerably larger than her and I am worried he will hurt her. I wonder if the reason he kept trying to mount the Flemish giant is because she was so large, he could not get ...'satisfied'... and so kept trying. But I also know it can be a dominance behavior as well.


Sorry for the wall of text. Does anybody have advice for me? I know its best to have them bond in neutral territory, but they both seem to be reacting positively to eachother. I'm just worried to take the next step and let them come in contact because Moby will likely try to mount her, but she is so small.

I will get her spayed as soon as I am able (4-5 months for a doe from what I've read).
 

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Firstly, any bonds made while the baby is young will not necessarily be carried over into adulthood, especially with the onset of puberty. It is usually advised to wait until affer neutering to start any bonding.
It really is important that it is a neutral area, as like you said he will consider it his territory. That is a massive hurdle to overcome in bonding two bunnies. Laying next to the cage doesn’t necessarily mean he likes her, it can also be a way of pointing out that where that cage ends is his space, so he is claiming the rest of the room.
I would be quite reluctant to attempt any bonding at the moment, though others might be able to help you more.
 
It really is important that it is a neutral area, as like you said he will consider it his territory. That is a massive hurdle to overcome in bonding two bunnies. Laying next to the cage doesn’t necessarily mean he likes her, it can also be a way of pointing out that where that cage ends is his space, so he is claiming the rest of the room.

That is a good point. But he is actually flopping against the cage, and has been binkying around the room... but it would probably be different if I let her out of the cage. You are right about waiting until she is spayed to actually try bonding them.
 
I'm wondering how you ended up with a 4 week old rabbit. That is rather young. Even if a kit is weaned at that young age, it is advised to keep them with momma til at least 7 weeks of age.

As Popsicles explained, it isn't advisable to try to bond them until she is spayed. The reason for this is that, even though it is common for a baby to get along with an older rabbit, it is usually temporary. Once hormones kick in, all heck can break loose. If they are together and you aren't there to stop a fight, things could get very ugly.

As baby grows, any fencing used to keep them separate should be at least 30." Anything shorter could be hopped over. (Smaller rabbits are more agile and jump higher than large rabbits.)

There is no advantage to trying to let them interact while she is so young. It won't make them bond any better later. However, it does carry risk, because if they fight, they may remember and it could sabotage future bond attempts.
 
I'm wondering how you ended up with a 4 week old rabbit. That is rather young. Even if a kit is weaned at that young age, it is advised to keep them with momma til at least 7 weeks of age.

As Popsicles explained, it isn't advisable to try to bond them until she is spayed. The reason for this is that, even though it is common for a baby to get along with an older rabbit, it is usually temporary. Once hormones kick in, all heck can break loose. If they are together and you aren't there to stop a fight, things could get very ugly.

As baby grows, any fencing used to keep them separate should be at least 30." Anything shorter could be hopped over. (Smaller rabbits are more agile and jump higher than large rabbits.)

There is no advantage to trying to let them interact while she is so young. It won't make them bond any better later. However, it does carry risk, because if they fight, they may remember and it could sabotage future bond attempts.

I was mistaken at first, her pedigree says she was born on March 29. So she is just about 2 months. I will keep them separate until she is ready to be spayed. However, since Moby is free roam and Maby (the new doe) is confined in a pen, I'm slightly worried that he may try to nip her through the bars.


As a sidenote, I just found out some good news, that I might be able to use one of my parents apartment that is currently vacated for the next three months until the lease is up. So I can bring both rabbits there (I would stay with them), and it would be a neutral territory. But since there is no point in trying to bond them until she is spayed, I might as well keep them separate there too, right? My issue now is that my room is small, but in a whole apartment it would be much easier to keep them apart.
 
Was thinking that if you still have access to an apartment after she is spayed (and healed), that might be a good place to do the bonding (neutral area-- where neither rabbit has been before). I don't quite see any advantage to moving them before she is spayed. They need to remain apart until she's healed. If that can be done where they are now, then I'd leave it at that for now. You'll be wanting some neutral space for when it comes time to bonding. It doesn't sound like your room will be that place.
 

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