How long before Romeo and Dahlia can live together? :)

[Dahlia-Romeo]

-Romeo is neutered
-Dahlia isn't spayed

For the first while, bonding sessions were short. Dahlia liked to nip Romeo, regardless of what he was doing. He'd just go up and sniff her and she'd get moody over the whole deal. I'd quickly separate them so no one got hurt.

They've been living in the same room as each other for over a year. Normally one cage is on top of the other. During my Christmas break, I'm building them an "NIC condo" (http://rabbitcondo.com/moredetails.htm). For now, the middle level will be a solid piece so they don't have access to each other. Once they are completely okay with each other, I'll cut the proper sized square in the corner of the level so they can hop up and down as they please.

Today, I had them out on a blanket on the floor. They circled each other and got a bit nippy, so I separated them. Later, I took them out again but instead, put a blanket over the couch and let them sit on it together (an area neither is very familiar with). They did very well! Dahlia just lied down and relaxed. Romeo hopped around and smelled her. Since then, Romeo has constantly been going up and grooming her face and ears. She loves it! The only trouble they've had is Dahlia running away from Romeo sometimes. Nothing aggressive happens, she's probably just expecting him to mount her and is trying to avoid it. Other than that, all has been really well and they're still out together now (it's been a couple hours). They shared half a carrot together and that seemed to help the bonding too.

I just learned about switching cages each day so that they get used to living in each other's scents. So I'm going to start that today as well.

When will I know that they can possibly be housed together? Obviously I don't want to rush anything, I want to make sure they're happy and safe with each other before I put them together. And is Dahlia fleeing from Romeo every once in a while a bad thing?

Currently, they're laying side by side together, beside me.

Thanks, guys! I want the best for my buns. :biggrin2:

 

[Imbrium]

you really need to get her fixed before they can be truly bonded (plus, unspayed females only live about half as long as spayed females due to the risk of cancers of the reproductive system)... it can take up to a month for her hormones to be totally gone.

 

[Dahlia-Romeo]

I actually have almost decided not to have her spayed. My vet was extremely hesitant to do the procedure when I asked about it. I don't think he's done very many and I'd rather not risk it. So far, I can't find a rabbit savvy vet in my area, otherwise I'd make the trip to have her spaying done. I talked to a local rabbit breeder and she said it's probably not worth the risk and that none of her rabbits have had any problems with cancer or anything. BUT--I really don't know how accurate that is. For now, I'm starting to think she'll get along fine with Romeo the way she is but of course I'm not totally sure and more experienced rabbit owners might have a different take on this.

I put them back in their cage for a break earlier (even though things were going extremely well) and then took them out again recently. They're now in the hallway next to my room so I can watch them through the doorway and Dahlia's grooming Romeo (something she's never done before). I'm very happy with their progress, there's been no chasing or mounting since earlier this morning. Hopefully everything stays safe and happy for the next few weeks that they have their bonding sessions.

:biggrin2:

 

[Dahlia-Romeo]

:bump:

 

[agnesthelion]

People will have varying opinions on this. There are cases where an unaltered bun does bond with an altered bun. The problem is that the risk for spontaneous fighting is very high.

Me personally, I would never try it. I'm from the mindset that you can't consider buns bonded unless they are both fixed. Hormones are going to constantly rage through her body driving everything she does. Territorialness, false pregnancies, the whole nine yards. Things could be fine for a while, but all of a sudden go south. So the risks for me are too high.

As far as the spay, I'm sure there are BC members who can maybe help you with a vet to spay. Although there is a risk with any surgery, a rabbit savvy vet will usually be pretty confident that it's the right thing to do.....especially if you are wanting to bond her.

If you do decide to not spay her, although it will be different for every rabbit, a good guideline is that they are able to spend 4-5 hours together in NONneutral territory without even one incident. For my two it took me a month to bond. I started with neutral quick bunny dates and worked all the way up to a couple dates a day in their non neutral territory that lasted 2-3 hours. I logged most details in my blog if you ever want to read up on it.

Best of luck to you are your bonding journey.

 

[sugarbunnies]

A vet hesitating to do a spay, when a spay is routine, should be worrying you. I'd definitely try your hardest to find a different vet. And as others said, unspayed females can be tough to deal with.

 

[Dahlia-Romeo]

Thanks, guys.

I actually have never seen Dahlia have a false pregnancy or anything... Hmm. She's going to be two years old on Valentine's Day. She does show territorial behaviors when she sees Romeo outside of her cage (when he's out and she's still locked up). And then the nipping when I first started bonding them. But other than that, I haven't noticed any other territorial behaviors. She's also never cranky with me like I've seen with some unaltered female bunnies, that's more of Romeo's thing, I guess.

If I do have her spayed, I definitely won't be going with my regular vet (he's more of a cats/dogs guy, doesn't see many bunny spay/neuters at all... it's not considered a "routine" procedure here I guess, no one really has their bunnies altered... ever). I'll travel if I need to but it has to be for another reason as well, not just to get her spayed (I'm actually only seventeen and can't afford/don't have the resources to make the trip myself). I was thinking if we head over to Kelowna this summer again, I could possibly take her down there and have it done.

 

[sarah92lynn]

Have you checked ALL vets in your surrounding area? Even a few hours away? There's gotta be a vet somewhere around there that's rabbit savvy.

Don't give up, I had to call quite a few vets before I found the right one for my buns.

 

[Dahlia-Romeo]

Have you checked ALL vets in your surrounding area? Even a few hours away? There's gotta be a vet somewhere around there that's rabbit savvy.

Don't give up, I had to call quite a few vets before I found the right one for my buns.

All the nearby towns are very small, smaller than the one I'm currently in. But I'm not finished looking, I'm going to call up two vets that are about two hours away from me and then maybe I can make my way down there in the Spring (too much snow/ice right now). There's a good one around 6 hours away, but that's at least a weekend trip so I'd have to be going there for more than that reason, unfortunately.