I would remove the female rabbit from the room completely so they cannot see or (hopefully) smell her at all. When we had a strange bunny in my house before, my rabbits (who had been bonded for a very long time!!!), began to fight with each other viciously. As soon as the other bunny had left, they were fine. It’s not worth upsetting your bond to have a 3rd rabbit in the room.

The scent of another rabbit triggers aggression in rabbits more times than not. It is a very basic instinct in them. They are not fighting OVER the new rabbit but fighting BECAUSE of her. her scent is setting off this reaction as she is intruding into their territory. Even if you have her scent on you — it can trigger fights in your bonded boys.

As Beka suggested, putting the guest bunny in an entirely different room should help. Based on what Petzy said, you could also get a spare shirt, like a smock, to throw on when you handle her. Then take it off and wash your hands so the boys don’t smell her strongly on you. As Bunnytowne knows, having a strange bunny’s smell on your shirt can set off a boy bunny as well. Might help to keep peace in the family.

And it’s very nice of you to take in a guest. Not easy to find an experienced bunny sitter.

It’s not always as simple to make a trio as some members on here have made it seem. In our situation, I was considering taking on a 3rd bunny from a friend who was looking to rehome. But when I saw how my 2 reacted to the presence of a strange bunny in the house, I knew that for me, a trio would probably never happen. I don’t have the time or desire to have a pair and a separate bunny, so for me, it’s only a pair. Or if a 3rd bunny makes their bond break, you’ll end up with 3 separate bunnies… NO THANK YOU!

Before you decide to get a 3rd, make sure any new bunny is already altered and don’t have anything set in stone until you know how your pair reacts. Do bunny dating if possible.

Try to put your boys back together to see how they react. But if they are still fighting due to her presence, they may have to be kept separate for the duration of her visit. Does your friend have anywhere else the bunny can go, another friend or family’s house? It’s nice of you to try to bunnysit, but I wouldn’t do it if it’s going to damage the relationship between your bunnies. It’s not worth it.

For bonding a trio you would need very much neutral space, and people who have bonded trios sometimes spent months and months on bonding sessions, sometimes without success. Even people with appartments struggle to find enough neutral areas for the bonding of trios. It would not work bonding a third to your pair if you only have one room right now. You cannot introduce a new rabbit to a bonded pair in their territory (your room). It will only lead to fighting and more fighting.

I think you described your setup in another thread. I know it’s hard when space is tight. We have a house but the rooms are so teeny tiny, and the layout is very… “weird” so we might as well be in a small apartment. At least you can have a pair tho! There’s no rush to add a third. You may even decide it’s too much hassle and just stick with two. There’s nothing wrong with just keeping it to one pair!

Any update Lunar? I’m curious to hear how things are going.

In our situation, as soon as the strange third bunny had left the house, Max and Meadow were entirely back to normal, not a single scuffle. They didn’t even have to be separated. They just wanted to let me know that the presence of a third would not be tolerated and they would have things their way… lol!

If you’re going to be around the whole weekend, I’d try to keep them together that whole time, but keep an eye or ear on them… Their bond shouldn’t be broken, just a little bit stressed…

If they are bonded and fighting, its likely cuz of new bunny. Even being in the same room, they can smell her. You’ll break their bond if you keep separating them, so I’d just keep them together unless injuries occur. A little tiff now and then won’t be a big deal.

You might end up having to do a whole weekend re-bonding session, complete with noisemaker or squirt bottle if a scuffle breaks out.

In order for a water bottle to be effective, you have to be watching and spray the “attacker” in the face BEFORE they begin to fight. It won’t work in the middle of a fight. A noisemaker could be as simple as clapping your hands, turning on a vacuum briefly, or putting a few pennies in the bottom of an empty, rinsed out coke can. Like with the squirt bottle, it would have to be done BEFORE they start to fight, so it would only work if you were actively watching and reading their body language.

If your rabbit has injuries, these altercations weren’t scuffles but fights and I advise you to prevent any more from happening or the rabbits will learn to look for retaliation against one another.

could be a territorial dispute. Is it possible for you to put them in an enclosure (cage or rabbit condo or pen) together in a room where they have not been and where the new rabbit’s scent has not been?