I'm a newbie and need some bunny advice! - Paw Talk

Cazsamps · #1 08-30-2007, 03:20 AM

Hi there my name is Carla and i have a netherland dwarf male bunny called Sammo! So anyway i was feeling a bit guilty coz i know rabbits like to live in pairs so i figured i will go get him a male playmate so after 5 weeks of having Sammo on his own that is exactly what i did! Yesterday i went and bought Bbop! Now i have been told by the shop that he is also a boy which is what i wanted! So anyway i had them on their first date yesterday in the bath and it was going ok then they had a bit of a to do so i split them up and put them back in separate cages. I had them facing eachother in their cages for about 3 hours then decided to give it another go and to my delight it went swimmingly! They were getting on so well grooming eachother and sniffing etc so i decided to put them both in the run on the lawn and just watch and still they have not tried to fight or anything BUT my older bunny Sammo has done nothing but MOUNT the other one So i am thinking maybe Bbop is actually a girl!!
so my question is......
Would a buck mount another buck? or do you think i am gonna have some bubby buns in about a month?

Carla x

Darksong17 · #2 08-30-2007, 12:33 PM

Humping certainly can be a dominance behavior. Here are some websites that might help you sex the bunnies to make sure you don't have a male and a female since, unfortunately, you cannot always trust pet store employees to be correct:

How to Sex Your Rabbits
Sexing Rabbits

If you are ever in the market for rabbits again I recommend rescuing instead. Rabbits are the third or fourth most overpopulated pet in shelters so many could use a good home.

**Dragonrain** · #3 08-30-2007, 12:40 PM

Yes a buck will mount another buck - not for sexual reasons but because mounting is a show of dominance in rabbits. Also female rabbits will mount males because of the same reason. The rabbit doing the mounting is showing the other one that he or she is the boss.

With that being said, I wouldn't necessarily count on the pet store being right about the sex of the new rabbit. The pet store told me that Zeus was a girl when I got him, but when I looked for myself at home he was very oveously a boy! Can you tell the diffrence yourself, or take them to a vet who could tell you?

Be careful either way - two unfixed males will often get into fights, and if you have a male and a female then you'll probably have babies on the way - and if that's the case then you're sapose to seperate the mother and father when the babies arrive so the father doesn't hurt the babies. Your best bet on getting them to be friends is getting them both fixed and then bonding them.

Good luck! If you have any more questions feel free to ask!

Cazsamps · #4 08-30-2007, 02:17 PM

Hi thanks for your replies! So i had my dad take a look at both buns and he said they are def both boys (he used to breed rabbits!) on closer inspection today the new rabbit has also been mounting my other one so maybe they have realised neither one is boss lol. They have been together all day in the run and are now both in one hutch and i am keeping a close eye on them to make sure no fighting occurs! As it is so far it has all gone great and they get on VERY VERY well almost love at first sight!!
xx

Cazsamps · #5 08-30-2007, 03:15 PM

Thanks for your replies! They are both getting on fine at the mo they have been together all day and have ben talking and playing etc eating together drinking together and playing hide and seek in and out of boxes!!
Its great to watch them i just hope they stay like it lol they will both be being neuteured when they are old enough x

kathydip · #6 08-30-2007, 05:40 PM

Oddly, Ophelia will mount Oliver at times and at other times Oliver will mount Ophelia. I just cannot figure those two out!

Definitely have them sexed - either look for yourself or take them to a vet. It sounds terrible but I have heard that if you take the female soon enough you can have her spayed and stop the pregnancy if there is one. I never thought I could do that but when I thought that if Ophelia was pregnant it could hurt her I didn't think twice- I knew I would go through with it. Luckily she was not pregnant. Some vets don't like to interrupt the pregnancy. That was my vets choice.
Good luck! Bunnies are so much fun.

Cazsamps · #7 09-03-2007, 05:18 PM

Well i had a look at both buns and they are def both boys so no baby buns for me (what a shame i was secretly hoping lol) nevermind! x

bunnybreeder · #8 09-04-2007, 02:38 AM

I got the same fright with my first 2 female rabbits and I thought that one might have been a boy, but they do it all of the time now, lol, it's totally natural.

Toky-Ohki · #9 09-04-2007, 05:18 AM

When =^-^= Nash-eoke was still alive , Toky-Ohki the female we bought with him was always the one to do the most humping. Unfortunately Nash-eoke stayed a light framed small lop and Toky grew into a Big , Fat and muscular Black Havana doe.

We Had Nash-eoke nobbled for baby bunny reasons but he had always been a frail and unasuming Dwarf Lop and we eventualy lost him to a Gastric problem and then Pneumonia.

Toky still has a permanent soft stool problem , but over time it has improved and she does pass nesquick now . We tried to find out what the problem with digestion was but it always came up negative , I blame the dodgy pet shop we got them from , I dont go there anymore.

I cant help but think that the times we caught = ^ x ^= Toky-Ohki slamming =^~^'= Nash-eoke's head on the side of the aluminium pen in the garden cant of done him much good either.

She was always quite rough with him and often took a small tuft of hair from him every now and again.

There was a time when I was worried = ^ x ^ = Toky-Ohki was a big burley buck , but now I know it's all normal for rabbits , just a shame she was so unsympathetic to Nashie.

Cazsamps · #10 09-11-2007, 08:19 AM

Well my buns have been bonded for 2 weeks now and there has been no fighting etc and the mounting stopped until yesterday when the eldest started mounting the other one! I dont get it! They have been living happily together for 2 weeks so i dont get why there would be a need to express dominance? It doesnt go on long just a quick on and off but still lol.
I checked them both and they are def both boys so i have no idea what they are up to maybe they are just that way inclined lol x

**Dragonrain** · #11 09-11-2007, 09:53 AM

I really wouldn't worry about it to much unless they start fighting. My two boys have also been bonded for a couple of weeks and will mount each other once in awhile. It should eventually decrease, but as long as they are getting alone well otherwise it's not really a big problem - you can still leave them together unless fighting starts.

Rabbits will be rabbits

Cazsamps · #12 09-11-2007, 03:53 PM

Yeah they get on perfectly fine! They eat together drink together sleep together play together and lay together so i have no idea what its all about lol oh well i will just keep my eye on them to make sure they dont start fighting!! xx

**Dragonrain** · #13 09-11-2007, 04:02 PM

Also after they are neutered the humping should decrease a lot!

kathydip · #14 09-11-2007, 06:31 PM

Or it may never go away completely. Oliver and Ophelia have been together since last late November - early December. They take turns mounting each other. They don't fight. They get along wonderfully. When it's going on the neither one seems upset at all.
I would not worry about it. Maybe you should just speak with them about the proper time and place for such behavior. Like NEVER in front of guests.

Cazsamps · #15 09-12-2007, 03:53 AM

LOL i do go out to them when i catch them at it and say "you dirty bunnies the neighbours are probably watching you please would you get down and have a bit of dignity"lol
Bless them Bbop doesn't seem bothered when Sammo is going for it lol he just lies there the little tart!
Aww i love my bunnies!! They are so cute together when they aint doing that heehee have you ever listened to them talking to eachother? It's soooooo cute! xx