Free Ranging Male Rabbits Question??? mini-barn that hold ducks, chick

[BuettnersLittleFarm]

My wife has a small mini barn that has ducks, chickens, goats, and rabbits...she lets her chickens out daily to free range and one of her male rabbits got out of his cage and is having so much fun outside...Our question is, would it be wise to let another male rabbit out with the other male as we do not want them to fight each other...her theory is, free ranging them will give them a lot of space away from the females and hopefully won't fight...any suggestions???...do's and don'ts???

 

[Bunnylady]

Free ranging rabbits are at much greater risk from predators and parasites, of course. :/

Depending on the rabbits, your two bucks *might* get along all right on the ground. The most likely scenario is that the fur is going to fly until they establish territories. Depending on how big your barn yard is, you may wind up with only one loose rabbit, the other having been driven off by his rival. It depends on whether you have an animal that is really the "alpha" type personality, or whether they are more laid-back when it comes to other rabbits. It's really hard to say, because each rabbit is an individual.

 

[secuono]

They'll probably square off like Hares and may eventually settle down. I don't see why she cannot let one rabbit out at a time for half the day and the other out the rest of the day??

 

[bunnylovincowgirl]

I know someone who has several free-ranging bucks and they've become more like wild rabbits. They've established their territories and will occasionally fight, but they've become more aggressive to her.

I let my bucks run around the yard for hours at a time, but then put them back. Some are always friendly and loving, but others, as they begin to think the world is their territory, become aggressive and fight me like they would another buck. It's almost like they return to being wild.

 

[pennylove]

Until my first two females bonded to one another, I was letting them take turns free-ranging. We had a one-in, one-out policy for their cages. Not only did it work out really well for us, since we didn't have to supervise them constantly, but neither one had time to establish a "territory" outside their cages. It was shared equally, they both marked it, and it only took about a month for them to adapt to one another. Then for the next month, we monitored their free-range time together carefully and by then, they were getting along great, even sharing their cages.

If the bucks are within range of does, I imagine it will be somewhat more complicated--it's normal and expected for males to fight for breeding rights and territory, but based on my experiences, I highly recommend free-ranging.