Pet Information > ASK Experts > Exotic Pets > Rabbits > Behavior change after a fight.

Behavior change after a fight.

22 11:05:25

Question
My dominant male lop was in a fight with either the neighbor's cat or more probably some raccoons.  He had wounds on both ears the last time he let me pick him up.  I couldn't tell if it was on the furry outside too but I could see the edges had cuts.  There were what looked like swollen blood veins visible on the inner surface.  He looks healthy otherwise.

He and my smaller male lop (both under 2) were always together before this.  They would always pee on each other and try to mound each other.

Now his always alone away from the other rabbits.  He doesn't come running a feeding time or let me approach him.  He's easily spooked by movement or sound.  He used to chase the other male a lot by now he's being chased.  He however is still very aggressive towards my cat and chases her when every possible.

The other male now is with the females a lot.  When I got the 2 females the boys were still always with each other but did mate with the females.

Questions:  

Were the males bonded in the first place?  I thought they were but he's been staying away for couple weeks now.

Is he staying away because he's still recovering?

Both he and the mother of his 3 month old sons chased the sons around.  Do they do that because she has another litter?


Answer
Dear Tom,

If the rabbit was injured by a cat or raccoon, then I would be far more worried about him having contracted a dangerous pathogen (anything from systemic Pasteurella to rabies virus) than I would about his behavior change.  His behavioral change could be due to a serious health problem that he's dealing with in the usual rabbit way:  not showing he's ill until it's too late.

The subtle signs of his trying to stay away from other rabbits and his shyness indicate that he is not feeling well, and needs to be examined thoroughly by a good rabbit vet:

www.rabbit.org/vets

whom you'll tell the whole story.

Until that's done, all the other things are much less important, and might resolve on their own if the bunny is treated for illness.  Please also see:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/sickbun.html

I hope this helps.  Please get him to a good vet ASAP.  And also please read:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/breeding.html

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/spay.html

and the helpful articles here:

http://search.atomz.com/search/?sp-a=00062824-sp00000000&sp-q=bonding&user=enter...

I hope this helps.

Dana