Bonded Bunnies suddenly hate each other?

[Bunnykinz]

I have 2 neutered one-year old bucks. Bugsy the lop has always been the dominant one because he's bigger than Bryn the dwarf. They've been together since we got them, they both got neutered in May together ect. In August Bryn suddenly started chasing Bugsy and biting him. They've been separated since then and Bryn is still aggressive towards Bugs. Bugsy is terrified of him! Is it possible to ever rebond them and why is Bryn suddenly acting like this?

When he attacks he lays his ears back, grunts and nips.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

We had two females that were neutered and bonded for four years. One day they started tearing into each other and we had to keep them separated. Still don't know why. Good luck.

 

[missyscove]

I had a speutered male/female pair that was bonded and one day had a fight and I never did get them bonded again. I got to the point where they could have time out of their cages together, but then I went off to college and my mom was too nervous they'd hurt eachother so she went back to separate play times.

 

[isabelly]

I only have the one rabbit, but according to all the articles I've read:

Changes in behavior can be a result of discomfort. You might want to take them for a check up at the vet. If everything's okay let Bugsy run away from Bryn, you only have a problem if Bugsy decides to fight back. Bryn has decided to be top bun and if Bugsy accepts it then they should settle back down after Bryn enforces his dominance a couple times. You may still want to keep seperate cages for unsupervised nights or work hours.

If Bugsy fights back, you'll need to put them both in a stressful situation to make them bond. Put the two rabbits in a cardboard box and take them for a car ride around the block (someone will have to drive while you watch the rabbits). This should stress them out enough to forget their hate. You might have to re-introduce them slowly, keeping them in seperate cages and gradually letting them spend more time together as things progress. Obviously keeping them seperate will take alot less time and effort, so you'll have to decide what's best for you as their caretaker.

 

[Bunnykinz]

Bryn has been perfectly healthy for the last 2 months, so I don't think he has any discomfort. Bugsy does try to stay away from Bryn but Bryn follows in pursuit and has nipped him pretty hard a couple of times. His turn in behavior is so strange since he's always been the submissive little brother. Bryn is also now a bit more aggressive toward us, too if that helps any. He's growled and charged my sister a few times when she attempted to feed him. :devil He's quite a vocal little guy.

 

[Digdug]

All's I had to do was read "Two bucks" in the first post, neutered or not, will start attacking each other almost immediately after you do a thourgh cage/bunny area cleaning. This also happens if you bathe your bunnies.

If you do too good a job cleaning, the males wont recognize each others scents or familiar odors and will fight like strangers. once they stink the place up a bit their behavior turns to normal. Try leaving a few toys or objects as they were, or when transporting into a newly purchased/built pen.

Some people get a little dismayed because their buns would not know each other by sight,.. but sad to say, scent is far more important to rabbits than visual cues. Keep this in mind if you want long time pals to stay that way.

 

[Bunnykinz]

Hmm, come to think of it i did give their cage a pretty good cleaning once. But they were kept together the whole time. What if I separated them in their hutch with a piece of wood and then their favorite large wood box that they can jump on. That way they way Bugs has an escape route and they can't always see each other.