Different genders- playmates?

[OreoTheBunny]

My friend just got a female bun and I was wondering if it would be safe to bring Oreo over and let them play together. He is male. Would they fight or something? I know they won't really "play" but I thought it would just be fun to let them meet each other

 

[Korr_and_Sophie]

Rabbits can get pregnant at just about any time, so it is never safe to have an intact male and female together unless you are wanting to breed. It only takes 10 seconds for mating to happen and that usually will lead to pregnancy.

If he is neutered and she is spayed, it can be safe but there are risks of them fighting. There are still risks with disease and parasites and most are spread when 2 rabbits come into contact with each other or with the pee or poop of another rabbit.

Rabbits don't usually get along and play they want dogs would. Rabbits are more territorial and don't really play like dogs do.

You can try it, but I would not recommend it as you never know how a rabbit will react to another rabbit and they can react differently to different rabbits.

 

[OreoTheBunny]

They are both spayed and neutered so would that mean they would fight?

 

[woahlookitsme]

Not necessarily. It depends on the rabbit. Some are more open to other rabbits being around them and some aren't. You can try it but closely supervise their behavior. If any signs of aggression came out then it wasn't meant to be.

Edit: Wait to let them together for a good week or so. Basically so your friends new bunny can show any signs of sickness if they were to pop up. Kind of like how you would quarantine a new bunny in your home.

 

[Luluznewz]

I think that its kind of unlikely they will be so aggressive towards each other that its unsafe to test it out. I would stay very very close and be prepared to separate them if a problem starts. I gentle droped a towel over my rabbits while they were bonding. It shocked them (but didnt hurt them) and then you can CALMLY separate them.

That being said, Im not entirely sure it would be a very fun experience for anybody. If they didnt like each other it would just be stressful for them and you. Its pretty likely they wont really get along. Also, if they do happen to get along really really well i'd feel bad about separating them again.

But obviously you should make the decision yourself. I dont think it would be putting them in any real danger if you are ready to get them apart if there is a problem. There is a chance they would get along right away.

 

[kkiddle]

I've heard that the rule of thumb is to only put rabbits together if you plan on bonding them.
It would be a sticky situation if they started to bond and you had to separate them; it could lead to depression, loneliness, ect.
The other extreme would be if they did start fighting. You never know if a rabbit is going to get along with another rabbit until you put them together, which is why bonding is such a tricky process.
I'd advise against it. There really is no benefit for either rabbit in this situation.