Keeping different aged rabbits together

[Chloe0500]

Hi guys,

So I have a male continental who is neutered and his friend turned out to be male (who then attacked him) so I have rehomed his male friend (to a very good home). My male is alone and needs a friend. I know adopting is better but it is my birthday next month and my parents "surprised me" by putting down a deposit on a baby female Conti for my birthday. She will be 9 weeks old when I pick her up and obviously then needs to be bonded which I can't imagine will take long as my boy loves other rabbits but I'm estimating 4 weeks to bond. She will still only be 13 weeks old.
Is it okay to keep rabbits together with such an age difference? My male is around 2 years old and is neutered so no chance of babies and I plan on having the baby spayed when old enough.
Thanks guys!

 

[Popsicles]

The age difference isn't really the issue here. You may find that although they might get on at first, once the baby starts to mature and hits puberty that bond will no longer be stable. Female rabbits can be particularly aggressive, and those female hormones wreak havoc. The best way to ensure a stable bond and prevent any fights would be to keep them apart until she can be spayed, wait for the hormones to die down (6-8 weeks) and then try and bond them. Even then you cant guarantee they will get on. Ideally the best way to find a bond that should work is to let your bunny choose his own friend - some rabbit shelters will offer "speed dating" so your rabbit can meet a few different rabbits to see who makes a good friend for him, then take them both home to start the bonding process. The added benefit here is also that rabbits from shelters will usually be spayed/neutered already so you know hormones wont change that bond, and will save some money for you paying for the operation. @Blue eyes has some great resources on bonding rabbits, if you would like some extra reading.

 

[Chloe0500]

The age difference isn't really the issue here. You may find that although they might get on at first, once the baby starts to mature and hits puberty that bond will no longer be stable. Female rabbits can be particularly aggressive, and those female hormones wreak havoc. The best way to ensure a stable bond and prevent any fights would be to keep them apart until she can be spayed, wait for the hormones to die down (6-8 weeks) and then try and bond them. Even then you cant guarantee they will get on. Ideally the best way to find a bond that should work is to let your bunny choose his own friend - some rabbit shelters will offer "speed dating" so your rabbit can meet a few different rabbits to see who makes a good friend for him, then take them both home to start the bonding process. The added benefit here is also that rabbits from shelters will usually be spayed/neutered already so you know hormones wont change that bond, and will save some money for you paying for the operation. @Blue eyes has some great resources on bonding rabbits, if you would like some extra reading.

Thank you very much for the response. I didn't know about the maturing and possible aggressive stage. I really wanted to adopt in the first place so I might just see if my parents can get their deposit back and explain to them. Adopting is always best in my opinion so I'm sure they will understand
Thanks again!