young mating house bunnies

Question
Hello
I have two 3 1/2 month old dwarf house bunnies, brother and sister. They do everything together which is great, only now the problem is one is mounting the other. I'm worried about the doe getting pregnant but everything I've read says they're too young to get fixed, and they both get very upset when I separate them. They don't stay in cages. What can I do until they're old enough to spay/neuter? Should I be worried about pregnancy in the first place?
Thanks,
-Jenny

Answer
Dear Jenny,

The male can be neutered as soon as his testicles descend, and that is probably now, or in the next two weeks or so.  Please find a good rabbit vet here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

and take *both* bunnies, even though only the male will have surgery.  You don't want them to "unbond," and the partner is good to have there for moral support and love on the one who has the surgery.

When the female is about 8 months old, she can be spayed, after the estrogen in her system has pretty much finished its work in helping to build her skeleton.  (Early spays have been linked to osteoporosis in many species, including rabbits.)

I hope this helps.

Dana