most bunnies love having a friend. in most cases, a male and female (both altered) will get along best, two males might be harder to bond. it’s usually suggested that you allow the bunny to pick his own mate from a shelter or rescue (we call that bunny dating) b/c not all rabbits will get along.

this is a really great article about the process of bunny bonding… http://www.rabbitnetwork.org/articles/bond.shtml

oh! i didn’t even notice you were in Ireland!

in that case, i know your options are very limited. if you get a baby bunny, there’s not really a point in bringing him to make introductions. any bunny you pick will be an entirely different bun by the time sexual maturity rolls around anyways. another option… if a breeder has an older “retired” bun they are looking to rehome, you could take that one and neuter/spay right away. that way you could introduce and bond sooner. baby buns are cute, but you never know what their final personality will be.

Our two boys are altered and get along very well together….besides to occasional reverse attempt to mount each other….(mount the head instead of the correct direction   )   

We thought it was going to be a tough job to get them to play together, but it took about 10 seconds.  They just started playing together.  Although becasue the mounting usually results in pulled fur, then a skin infections, they have seperate cages, but are allowed out to play together with supervision.

Chris, you really got lucky! That’s great! However, Luna, this really is not the norm. It’s not to say something like this couldn’t happen, but I wouldn’t bank on it, and you could get stuck with two rabbits – two set-ups. So, of course, I say go what for is statistically easier. The website that Beka gave you has good information on what pairs work best (and of course there are exceptions to that too).

Was there a specific reason you have for not wanting a  female bunny? What have been your experiences, or what have you heard about female bunnies that makes you steer away?

it sounds like your friend’s female is extremely territorial and aggressive, which would be due to the fact that she’s intact. her hormone’s are raging. it’s really no fault of her own. it’s hard to encourage people to the right thing sometimes without appearing nagging. the best you can do is lead by example. she’ll hopefully see how sweet your lil lady is post-spaying and this might convince her it’s the best thing to do.

i’m so sorry that you lost your Chloe! that is very sad. many books are aimed at the hutch bunny, or aimed at breeding, or focus on the bunny being an easy childhood pet. fortunately, now there is better info available and vets are more experienced with rabbits care. i lost a bun at 3 years old, my little boy Stephen, and let me tell you, i did everything wrong at the beginning. i was able to correct diet and housing and the other small things before he passed, but i never got around to having him neutered. i waited a couple years to get another bunny. i found the House Rabbit Society page (rabbit.org… best site ever!) and i read it front to back for a full year before deciding to get another bunny. i knew that if i did it again, i was going to do it right. it still makes me sad thinking back that Stephen was my “trial and error” bunny, but i’ve been able to take the things i’ve learned from him and from further research (and BinkyBunny!) and give my two buns now the best lives i can. we all do what we can with what we have. :o)

spaying is more invasive. it is more expensive due to the fact that it’s a bigger surgery. also, most vets will not spay before 6 months of age. there is not really an upper limit on age. some have gotten buns spayed at 2 or 3 years, even up to 5 or 6. past 5 or 6, it’s a little bit iffy. they are considered “seniors” at that point and the risks might outweigh the benefits. cancer is still a real risk, so you have to be diligent to watch your rabbit’s health.

if you were to get a retired bun, chances are they would not be very old tho. i don’t know much about breeders, but i think they might not breed a bun past about a year. if in doubt, ask questions. if you are purchasing a baby from the breeder, you would hope they are responsible with the mothers and fathers as well. there is no greater chance of cancer in a bun who has had litters, than a bun who has never had litters, as long as both are spayed. a positive thing about getting an older bun, you are adopting one that otherwise might be passed over for the “cute little babies”. with proper care, a one year old bun will still be with you for many years to come, and you’d be missing the messy baby stage. it’s something to think about.

if you go the baby route, a baby bun can be introduced to Henry. he is neutered, so there’s no risk of pregnancy. be careful tho! hormones kick in at about 4-6 months. so there’s a chance she might be a little bit testy for a while before she is spayed. if they fight before she is altered, that can affect the bonding process afterwards, plus either (or both) can get badly hurt in a scuffle. i would keep them supervised if you let them play together. if they don’t fight, you *could* house them together, but be aware that at any time she could take a turn for the worse, so always be prepared with separate housing. the safest route would be separate housing, but where they can see and smell each other. it’s important that they both continue to get outside of the cage playtime.

please let us know how this works out for you, and we love bunny pics, so if you have any you’d like to share…

in addition to the link above, here is the HRS FAQ on bonding:  http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/introductions.html

and the BinkyBunny page on bonding:  binkybunny.com/BUNNYINFO/BondingInfo/tabid/63/Default.aspx

we also have a new bonding forum that documents member’s experiences with the process, many post pics and videos of how they go about the bonding sessions.  this is great b/c you can see that some pairings are very easy, some are much more difficult.  it’s true that ever bun is an individual, so your experience may vary:  https://www.binkybunny.com/FORUM/tabid/54/view/topics/forumid/11/Default.aspx

the link i posted for you first is my favorite bonding site (http://www.rabbitnetwork.org/articles/bond.shtml).  i actually printed it out and i would reread parts of it every day as i was bonding my two buns.  it gives great detail.

Meadow is my mini rex (she’s the one i had first).  i bonded her to Max, the lop mix.

thanks for you kinda words about Stephen. i miss him a lot, some days more than others, especially on here when i see buns who look similar to him.

i adore my Max and Meadow. they are great friends, “love-buns” actually. i adopted Max in June and it took about 3 weeks of daily one-hour bonding sessions. they had their fair share of scuffles, but in the end it worked out perfectly. the important thing is being confident and persistent.

that’s very upsetting about the nurse saying those things to your friend. my guess is that they are just not experienced in the surgeries and they prefer to discourage people rather than admit their own incompetence… if she would still be willing to, i hope she’ll call other places and inquire as to their ability.

bunny gestation is about 28 days and they can get pregnant immediately after delivering, even the same day they give birth! so technically, a rabbit could have 12 litters in one year, altho i’m not sure if that would happen. it would be far too much stress on the mama bun. 3 times a year does not seem abnormal to me, not that i promote breeding, but i think the breeder sounds pretty responsible. keep an open mind. trust that the bun that is right for you will find her way to you…

OMG Henry is so beautiful- he looks so silvery and frosty!!!

he is beautiful! what a character! i can see how he’s the light of your life! i bet he’d love a friend!

Hi Luna
Just wanted to poke head in and say congrats on the little girl bun. I love the name you chose (just read your post in bonding section )
Henry looks like a sweetie pie!
The boards are a little quite right now but as majority of members are in US, they’re bound to be coming on over the next few hours to help with your questions! Good luck with the bonding of Poppy and Henry!

Henry looks kinda chinchilla-ey…sooo cute!  Well congrats on the duo, sounds like you have your resources in place and things will go okey dokey!