momslilmonster2
Member
i was wondering if two males and two females can be housed together ? if so how do i go about introducing them? is it liek introdcuing two chis of the same sex ?
can two males and two females....
- Thread starter momslilmonster2
- Start date
Help Support Rabbits Online Forum:
Korr_and_Sophie
Well-Known Member
Unless they are spayed or neutered, I would not try it. Intact rabbits tend to fight as they reach maturity, about 4-6 months. It does not matter if they are related or raised together from birth. On top of that, intact rabbit will breed and you can quickly become overwhelmed with too many rabbits.
If they are all neutered and you wait about 6-8 weeks after, it can work out. Same sex pairs can work, but not always. The best combination is a male and female where both are neutered.
You need to take bonding slowly. You can't just put them in the same cage and expect them to get along. You need to start with them on neutral territory, like a bathroom or area neither rabbit is used to. It can be good to have a barrier between them at first so they can meet but not get at each other. As they get used to each other, there should be grooming and cuddling. Some humping and chasing is normal at first, but it should not progress to fights or where one is constantly going after the other. As they get more used to each other, you can bring them to the area where they will be living, this may mean that you have to go back a few steps especially if it is one of the rabbits territory.
Some rabbits don't get along no matter how much you try. With these situations, it is just best to keep them apart and make sure they can't get at each other.
Bonding more than 2 rabbits can be tricky. It would probably be best to do it all at once rather then doing pairs and adding to it. Try introducing them in pairs and switch who sees who each time so they all get used to each other. Then progress to having 3 in at once, then all 4. It may take longer to get them all together. Be prepared for them all to not get along and end up having 2 pairs or even a single and a trio.
If they are all neutered and you wait about 6-8 weeks after, it can work out. Same sex pairs can work, but not always. The best combination is a male and female where both are neutered.
You need to take bonding slowly. You can't just put them in the same cage and expect them to get along. You need to start with them on neutral territory, like a bathroom or area neither rabbit is used to. It can be good to have a barrier between them at first so they can meet but not get at each other. As they get used to each other, there should be grooming and cuddling. Some humping and chasing is normal at first, but it should not progress to fights or where one is constantly going after the other. As they get more used to each other, you can bring them to the area where they will be living, this may mean that you have to go back a few steps especially if it is one of the rabbits territory.
Some rabbits don't get along no matter how much you try. With these situations, it is just best to keep them apart and make sure they can't get at each other.
Bonding more than 2 rabbits can be tricky. It would probably be best to do it all at once rather then doing pairs and adding to it. Try introducing them in pairs and switch who sees who each time so they all get used to each other. Then progress to having 3 in at once, then all 4. It may take longer to get them all together. Be prepared for them all to not get along and end up having 2 pairs or even a single and a trio.
TinysMom
Well-Known Member
Hi! First of all - thanks for coming here and asking questions before getting rabbits! That is such a smart choice!
I am one of the very rare cases where you can have two bucks living together - and I have four sets of them living together!!! In there of the cases - the bucks are brothers that have been together since birth and three of the four sets are over a year old - one set I'm still watching to see what happens. There is often mounting for dominance but no fighting.
However - I don't recommend bucks living together if there is a doe around. (I'm not a big fan of it myself but its a long story how mine happened).
For one thing - bucks that will get along just fine - will start to mount and stuff if they smell a doe - it just sorta sets them off and they want to show off as far as who is the "best". So having bucks and does together like that - isn't a great idea.
Also - you don't want to put them together until at least 6 weeks (I think its that long) after neutering....well - I suppose if the girls have been neutered too they couldn't get pregnant. But the bucks can get a non-neutered doe pregnant for a period of time after getting neutered.
If I wanted to have four rabbits together - I would go with ONE buck and THREE does. I know I sound crazy - but I think that would be optimum as there would be no fighting between the two bucks over who is the head.
Good luck with whatever you decide.
I am one of the very rare cases where you can have two bucks living together - and I have four sets of them living together!!! In there of the cases - the bucks are brothers that have been together since birth and three of the four sets are over a year old - one set I'm still watching to see what happens. There is often mounting for dominance but no fighting.
However - I don't recommend bucks living together if there is a doe around. (I'm not a big fan of it myself but its a long story how mine happened).
For one thing - bucks that will get along just fine - will start to mount and stuff if they smell a doe - it just sorta sets them off and they want to show off as far as who is the "best". So having bucks and does together like that - isn't a great idea.
Also - you don't want to put them together until at least 6 weeks (I think its that long) after neutering....well - I suppose if the girls have been neutered too they couldn't get pregnant. But the bucks can get a non-neutered doe pregnant for a period of time after getting neutered.
If I wanted to have four rabbits together - I would go with ONE buck and THREE does. I know I sound crazy - but I think that would be optimum as there would be no fighting between the two bucks over who is the head.
Good luck with whatever you decide.
MiniLopHop
Well-Known Member
I have recently bonded my three together, one buck and two does (all fixed). I let the rabbits pick each other every step of the way. Started out with one female, went on dates to find her a female mate. After a couple months of working with them I took them both to meet a boy. It took a couple tries to get the right male since I wanted everyone to like each other. Now they are all three living in a room together and I'm starting to get the cute interactions. The two girls were the hardest part because they were more territorial. I think it would be too stressful to introduce another male though.
khaelbee
Well-Known Member
we must be really lucky with our buck. we bonded him with our doe when he was about 3 months old, and she was about a year old. now, he gets mad when we take him away from her. they love each other so much and they love to cuddle. we have also never had an instance where the buck tries to harm the babies or fight with them. he actually loves to play chase and hide and go seek with them, and he loves to wash them and cuddle with them.
