is it ok to keep my new unneutered female rabbit in a cage along side my unneutered male rabbit?

Question

hi i have just bought a unnuetured female rabbit and im keeping her in a cage next to my unneutered male rabbit will this cause distress. I intend to get them neutered but they are to young.My female is about 10 weeks old and my male is 12 weeks old and i've had the male for 2 weeks. The male has started stamping but is ok when i'm there but the female isn't bothered.

they are in separate cages but the male is trying to get into her cage

but i do want to put them together once they are nuetered so i need to get them used to each other

Answer 1

That's fine. You are doing things correctly if you intend to put them together after they are fixed. Male-female bonds are the easiest to do. Your male is stamping because he is excited and also frustrated because he's not allowed to hump the female!

Here are some bonding resources for after they are fixed:
http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/introductions.html
http://www.rabbitrescue.ca/Rabbit%20Info/bonding.html

Good luck and your bunnies APPRECIATE having a buddy and getting fixed - they will be much healthier!

Answer 2

The rabbits should be fine side by side. Just don't put them in the same pen, even if they are neutered. I doubt the male rabbit is stomping because the female is next to his cage. Rabbits normally stomp when they are scared and they tend to hop around the cage when they are hungry and you are getting ready to feed them.

It's really easy to tell a rabbit's mentality by watching their body language. If the buck is after the female, you should see him look at her pen and hop side to side with the front of his body with his face constantly facing that pen. He may also take his chin and rub that wall of the cage with his chin marking his territory.

If the male rabbits eyes are bug-eyed or his ears are at attention like they are listening hard when he is stomping, then he is probably stomping out of fear and that is kind of his way of sounding the alarm.

What you'll want to watch out for more than anything is if you see brown stains on the female's fur. If you do, the male rabbit may be peeing on the female and you should probably put a solid divider between the two rabbits. Some male rabbits will do that which are overly sexually aggressive. Normally, that peeing trait is a genetic trait that is passed down and most rabbit breeders will not use a rabbit like that to breed with.

I sincerely don't recommend putting the two rabbits in together. I've read from numbers of people who have put neutered and spaded rabbits together and still had problems. There are really no benefits from putting two rabbits together. I could list about 20 things that I've seen happen when rabbits are kept left together. Keep them separate.

As far as keeping rabbits side by side in cages, I have put thousands of male and female rabbits side by side in cages without harding a single problem. The only two problems I've ever had were the problems of some males peeing, which can be solved by a solid divider. Or in some instances, one rabbit will put its head up to the wire on the other rabbit's cage and the rabbit next door will eat the fur off of the rabbit's nose. That can also be solved by a solid divider.

Answer 3

The male rabbit can sniff her 'a mile off' so even in a different cage, he will do his best to sow his wild oats!

During this time the male get frustrated and could become more aggresive than usual, so be careful putting your hand in his cage even if he has been dosile in the past.

Rabbit can start to breed from a young age so dont compromise by putting them together. Although at that age the litter ay not survive as the mother wouldnt have the skills yet.

Alternatively you could see if a friend has a female that they want to mate and give Thumper a moments pleasure now he has the urge!

Good luck!

Answer 4

i would keep the cages 3 or 4 inches apart because if they are right next to each other the male will still be able to get the female pregnant. also dont let them out together -even for a few minutes until they are neutered - as it can only take a few seconds and you will have a litter of bunnies on your hands.

this link gives you some good tips on finding a decent vet

Answer 5

"Most rabbits produce many offspring (kittens) each year, although scarcity of resources may cause this potential to be suppressed. A combination of factors allows the high rates of reproduction commonly associated with rabbits. Rabbits generally are able to breed at a young age, and many regularly conceive litters of up to seven young, often doing so four or five times a year due to the fact that a rabbit's gestation period is only 28 to 31 days.[9]. In addition, females (does) exhibit induced ovulation, their ovaries releasing eggs in response to copulation rather than according to a regular cycle. They can also undergo postpartum estrus, conceiving immediately after a litter has been born. [1]"

--Wikipedia.org

So no, it wouldn't be a very good idea unless you want little ones running around your house. =p

Answer 6

I had a male and female rabbit. The male rabbit was always stamping for her. I would not introduce them till they have been nuetured.

Answer 7

It's not ok unless u want a lot of baby bunnies around. U know how those rabbits tend to multiply!! =)

Answer 8

Once you get them neutered it would be fine to house them together. For now, keeping their cages beside eachother is a good idea for them to get used to eachother and hopefully they will get along. That being said, it is probably driving your male bunny crazy that she is right there and he can't get at her!

Answer 9

well if you want baby rabbits let them in the same cage if you dont move one cage so they arent by each other

Answer 10

Have you never heard the term " breed like rabbits"?