# Introducing my four rabbits, fight broke out, advice?



## acjb007 (Feb 5, 2009)

Hi, I have 2 boys, both castrated and 2 girls who were spayed 3 weeks ago. Both boy pair and girl pair get on fine together but really want to put both pairs together. I built a massive hutch/run in my garage which is about 6.5ft high, a meter deep and has 3 floors. At the bottom is a 8ft run and is over a meter wide. It has lots of toys and places for them to hide or get their own space. The boys are in there right now and love it! I got all 4 rabbits in a neutral area and let them all meet. The two dominant ones did hump each other but no fighting. After an hour I put them back in separate homes. The next day I did the same and they were fine until they all decided to hop into the conservatory where the girls live. This time the two dominant ones had a big scrap and it ended up with fur torn out and a bite on my hand. They are all back in their own homes now as I don't want it to happen again. 

Will they no get on now they've had a fight? I've heard I should put them in separate hutches next to each other so they get used to smells, etc. Then once a day introduce them in neutral territory and increase the time they spend together until they lay together, clean each other or eat out the same bowl. Does this sound right? I thought it strange that it was a male and female who had the fight and I've heard its the boys who fight more. 

Any advice is much appreciated. Thanks!!


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## Kammie (Apr 4, 2009)

If it was going well the first day you shouldn't have seperated them. If you plan on bonding you need to have a free few days to watch them constantly and not seperate them at all. Yes you will have sleepless nights to watch them but its the best and easiest way to do it. I would give them a few weeks now to get over and forget the fight before letting them see each other again. If theres any signs of agression (you need to be able to watch the body language to spot the smallest sign like a raised tail) spray them with water to distract them. 

One way of making bonding easier is to take them all in same cage in the car, two people makes this easier so one can drive and one deal with rabbits. The stress from the car ride scares them into cuddling up for comfort. A bit of veggie baby food or mashed banana on their noses can encourage grooming and reduce the different smells they have.


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## hazyreality (Jan 11, 2009)

Ok, its so complicated to say how I bonded my 5, lol.

I don't see too much of a problem with letting them meet a few times before spending the day(or 2, or 3 lol) actually bonding them, I did with mine and it worked well. I let them out in the garden for about 1/2 hour at a time 3-4 times a week. The main thing I found is dont put them away just after a fight(even a minor one) because they dont settle, I would just break it up and make them go in different directions and when they were calm put them away.
I found if you seperate them as soon as they fight they learn that to get the other rabbit away, they just have to kick up a fuss and mum takes it away!
Fur flying is to be expected, just dont let it get out of hand.

I took them for a drive a couple of weeks ago and it went fine(I wanted to see if they would be ok before doing the shed!) but I had nowhere to put them so they went back to their own places.

Then last week I had a few days off, and I changed all the shed(again!) and I vinegared it all. Then I took them for a car ride(I was out over half hour) and I put them into half of the shed, and hour or so later because they were getting on, I let them have the other half aswell. I kept an eye on them for an hour or so and no fights so I left them together and just checked them every 10mins. Left them together that night and the next day let them have the runs, and they have been fine ever since.

I have 3 unspayed girls and 2 neutered boys by the way.

So I dunno if any of that helps, just thought I would let you know what worked for me 

*Heidi*


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## acjb007 (Feb 5, 2009)

Thanks for the advice. I take it you vinegared the hutch to get rid of their scents? At what point should you break up a fight? By the way one of mine bit my hand it was lucky none of the other had wounds. I let my 2 male guinea pigs fight as once they had established whos boss they now get on really well. With guinea pigs though they didn't bite just humped and nudged each other. Is it worth keeping them in separate cages next to each other so they get used to their smells?


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## hazyreality (Jan 11, 2009)

If its possible to put the cages next to each other then its worth doing 
Breaking up a fight is difficult to judge really. I would say if its a fur pull and run away then thats ok to leave, if it turns into the 2 having a real go, then just spray some water and instead of a hand, put your foot or a broom between them, then just shoo them in different directions, sit back down and keep an eye on them again. Don't take them away on a bad note. Humping you will have to allow some of, because its dominance but again if it gets too out of hand and the one being humped starts to have a go back, then push apart again. Circling is to be expected aswell.

When it comes to properly bonding them, a bath together is a good idea if you dont mind getting wet. A little bit of small animal shampoo or baby shampoo will make them all smell the same, and they will be scared of the situation and cling together(it worked with my guinea boys!)

And yeh vinegar is to get rid of their smell, but it really did stink in there afterwards!

*Heidi*


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## crofty (May 2, 2008)

acjb007 said:


> Thanks for the advice. I take it you vinegared the hutch to get rid of their scents? At what point should you break up a fight? By the way one of mine bit my hand it was lucky none of the other had wounds. I let my 2 male guinea pigs fight as once they had established whos boss they now get on really well. With guinea pigs though they didn't bite just humped and nudged each other. Is it worth keeping them in separate cages next to each other so they get used to their smells?


The trick is to intervene before it gets to a fight, tail up head down is aggressive, you need to judge the right time to allow them to build a pecking order but you must not let them get into a fight. Id use a small pen to bond them so you can seperat easy, bonding a four is not easy it takes alot of time and patience. Took me a week to get anywhere with my four, i could finally leave them for short periods and gradually increased their living space, id say i didnt call them a bonded group until 5 weeks and i never seperated them in those 5 weeks, made that mistake the first time i tried!


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## fylum (Jun 11, 2010)

I just discovered this site thru my Google search on "fighting guinea pigs." Just wanted to say how helpful all of your info was. I've had GPs for years now (always females) and never had any real problems. I have two females and wanted to get a 3rd, but ended up with a male by accident (the former owner was told it was a female and she couldn't tell the difference -- I tried my best to confirm it was a female, based on what I'd read). Unfortunately, we were both wrong (I soon realized after putting them together)! I didn't know what to do besides get him neutered (he's 9 mos) and keep them in separate, side-by-side cages for a little over a week. Now I'm trying to introduce them and the little male is fighting with the dominant female (~1.5 yrs old). ANYway, I've been a bit discouraged: my attempt to make the ladies' lives a little happier seems to have taken a drastically wrong turn! But thanks to the postings, I'll keep trying using the methods mentioned. I'm probably making too much of it and need to buck-up and just keep trying. Thanks again -- great website -- very informative!


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## VampiricLust (Mar 3, 2008)

Right, this technique of letting them meet daily is all wrong. Everytime you seperate and re-introducing them, you are doing just that, starting from scratch again.

When I bond, I put all bunnies in a neutralised indoor cage, in view so I can see them at all times.

Humping, fur pulling, chasing is all normal behaviour. 
Only intervene if it is a lock on fight, and when you do, you must always use something like a broom, dustpan brush, as you WILL get hurt.

Keep them in the indoor cage for at least a week, and until all rabbits are settled and grooming, laying with each other. Scatter feed their food and put a water bottle on each end. Do NOT put any toys/litter trays/bowls in the cage, as they could become territorial over these objects and "guard" them.

During this week of bonding, keep them confined to the indoor cage only. Don't be tempted to give them more room as it is too early and is likely to result in fights.

While bonding, neutralise all the area they are to go into once bonded. 
You can do this with white vinegar, or a weak bleach solution, leaving it to air for a few days after. You MUST neutralise all bowls, toys and bottles as well, as they will pick up scents from those and a squabble may happen.

For the first week back in their enclosure, in a hutch with multiple levels, I would keep them confined to one tier, then after a week, the next, then the next. This is going on the "gradually increase their enclosure" rule. If you give them it all at once, they will fight. Do this, going back a step if they squabble (decreasing area) and the bond should be fine.

Don't keep moving them during the bonding, and only car ride if necessary.
I would not do anything such as spraying them with water, putting them on a tumble dryer etc, as this just creates un necessary fear and jolting, while a car ride is a smooth journey, if that makes sense.

Good luck.


ETA: Just realised the date of the original post, so by now, my essay is probably irrelevant!


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