Strange, unique bonding...(aren't they all?)

[tonto5150]

Hey all,

First post to Rabbits Online. Most other communites are quiet or dont offer much as far as conversation. Hopefully I can call this place home!

Frankie and Viggo are brothers, now approaching 10 months old. I adopted them together at 6 weeks old, with limited experience and knowledge regarding lagomorphs. Fast forward a few months (including many different habitat incarnations, ideas, free-roaming mistakes and ultimately teenage fur fights), the brothers are neutered and with varying degrees of tolerance to eachother.

I have gotten to the point with bonding dates where Viggo will groom Frankie, but there is no reciprocation. They are fine together in their one neutral space used for dating (kitchen with linoleum floor). But once I introduce a carpet into the area, they get aggressive.

Viggo had escaped a barricade once while I let them both free roam, seperate of course. Upon sight, they fight like hell. But as look at them now, currently on a date in the kitchen, sans rug, they are flopped side by side.

What is the deal! I am unsure how to progress further, and ultimately fear they will never be good to roam together, as cordial as they currently are in our little date space.

Any advice, Rabbits Online?

 

[zuppa]

Hi, the only solution I see is to renovate your house and put lino flooring everywhere!

Seriously, I think maybe your rug carrie smells of both of them and they feel it is marked and trying to protect their territory. But I don't have much bonding experience myself I am still learning and I have two males with very similar habits and would like to bond them but as far as I know bonding two males is not advised as too difficult. Your males are neutered that's good, maybe they will bond just need more time.

I think that they are flopped side by side on lino is a good sign maybe just keep bonding sessions? How long ago they were neutered and how many sessions they already had?

Pretty sure you'll get some more advice from bonding experts I will be watching this thread too.

 

[Imbrium]

Welcome! We're pretty chatty around here (heck, when I'm online, there's no shutting me up ), so I hope you like our community and decide to stick around!

So it's night-and-day when it comes to carpet vs no carpet? Is it always the same carpet or will any carpeting upset them? Same sex bonds are trickier but not impossible... but you definitely have an odd situation going on here. Does the same rabbit instigate the fight every time or do they both attack on sight? Also, how long have you been bonding them in the kitchen area (frequency and duration of individual sessions as well as an overall time frame, please) and for how long have sessions gone smoothly when the carpet isn't there?

 

[Preitler]

I would assume sure footing gives them confidence, which tipps the scale. Since males can be problematic anyway.

I have never experienced any reaction to smell, be it other rabbits, predators or any animals, but haven't done any bonding myself.

 

[tonto5150]

I have been trying to bonds them for about 4 months now, not very consistently at first because of work but now I have a regiment of date/cage swap nightly. I had started in a bathtub, which resulted in 1 fight but eventually turned to stalemates, and have been using different fenced-off areas of the kitchen for a few months now.

Viggo is usually the aggressor, and I have found it usually happens when Frankie starts to roam around the area. I would understand that to be territorial aggression, though they are fine in the kitchen just lazing around and sharing pellets. Viggo has started to take Frankies kale leaf treat, and sometimes Frank will put up a fight. Its as though Viggo wants to be the alpha, but Frankie will not submit, taking grooms but never reciprocating. Sessions are always better off without the carpet in the kitchen. I will try replacing it with a different one that hasnt been "sullied" and see what happens.