How do i stop my new 4 month male rabbit humping my 16 month male rabbit?

Question

I'm going crazy here, when my younger bunny, who was bought 2 days ago is in an indoor cage ( their new shared cage is being assembled) he plays quite well with my older bunny. they l**k each other between the bars and run round the edges of the cage together. however when they're both running around my living room, my younger bunny humps my older one uncontrollably. he chases my older bunny around the room and my older bunny is getting really ticked off. hes been doing this since the moment they were introduced. he has a toy bunny to hump - yet completely ignores it. what do i do?

Answer 1

Hi there... if neither bunnies are spayed/neutered this is likely why your r month old bunny may be humping the 16 month old bunny.  However, if they are spayed/neutered the younger bunny may be establishing a dominance behaviour which is common among animals of the same species. Rabbits by nature are very territorial animals.

Here's an excerpt from the following website about rabbit dominance behaviour:  http://mysite.verizon.net/vze27h5b/id25....

abbits demonstrate dominance by mounting subordinates and by establishing who grooms whom. Grooming is often a one-way proposition, with the subordinate rabbit grooming the top rabbit but the top rabbit not returning the favor. Dominate rabbits will "barber" other subordinate rabbits by chewing off their whiskers.  The rabbit with very short whiskers is the lowest rabbit on the totem pole.  In all likelihood, your rabbit is going to top you on grooming and may not groom you back, but as with humans, some rabbits are less concerned with their social position than others and dispense with the grooming status rules by l*****g you back. As far as grooming goes, it is okay to be subordinate to your rabbit. Turf, however, is another matter.

Rabbits are territorial and defend their turf against intruding rabbits, including funny looking ones. As Top Rabbit, you need to make clear to your rabbit what is his/her space and what is your space because this defines your leadership position in the "warren." Failure to establish yourself as Top Rabbit will result in a poorly trained rabbit with accompanying behavioral problems. Unfortunately, this only results in increased cage time for the rabbit. Respect for each other's space must be mutual. For example, clean your rabbit's living quarters when s/he is out and about.