Monkeybun- I will be putting my AC in the window soon. That’s an interesting thought- I think it was one of the first open window days of the year.
Sarita – They do have a couple tunnels. I’ll take them away and see what happens.
I’m back to rebonding the boys so please keep the advice coming. Here’s the progress so far:
Last night the boys were chasing each other a little. Swatch was running around the pen and Rolex was running inside the pen and they kept poking their noses through the bars. I didn’t notice any nipping, but it did seem fairly aggressive.
I had a little more time than normal this morning, so I took the boys for a nice long car ride- about an hour and fifteen minutes this time. They cuddled almost the entire time. Swatch really cuddles up to Rolex’s bum when he’s scared. Then when we got home I set up the pen on the landing again. They were good together for a solid fifteen minutes. Swatch immediately dominates the litter box. Rolex shared it with him for a bit and then explored the rest of the pen and cuddled up next to me for a bit. They put their heads together (“groom me”) behavior a few times without any aggression, but also without anyone caving a grooming the other bun.
I regret to admit that in spite of everything I’ve read an been told I left them together a little longer than I should have and it eventually got a little aggressive. I know better and should have made sure that we ended on a positive note, but I had extra time and figured I might as well use it. Bad idea. Then, when I put them back in the carrier and cleaned up the pen with them sitting together in the carrier, I noticed a little aggressive nipping in the carrier. I immediately picked them up and it stopped, but I know that was probably due to too much time together to soon. Swatch was definitely the aggressor today.
The boys and I took another hour long car ride. They cuddled more today, which might just be due to the fact that I used a smaller carrier, but I’ll take it. Then I set them up in the pen just as I did yesterday, this time with treats handy. I tried putting a little dust from the Papaya tablets on their faces (another Tiny Liz suggestion). They both got excited because they could smell it but then almost immediately started cleaning their own faces, not each others. Oh well. They were pretty good together after that. They nosed around the pen a little. Rolex got a little aggressive again, but it fizzled out quickly once I put a stop to it and before too long Rolex laid down next to the litter where Swatch was sitting. From what I’ve read and been told, that’s a good sign. Little by little we seem to be making some progress!
Day One:
We took a nice long car ride today. We stopped by my favorite pet store. Then we drove by a vets office that my boss told me about. All in all, about an hour drive of total bunny terror.
When we returned home, I set up an exercise pen on the landing between apartments. I don’t have any neutral territory in my apartment anymore because I let them run free when I was home. It was about 11am, so I don’t think any of my neighbors were home. I’m hoping I can continue to use this space, because it seemed to work pretty well. I made the pen just big enough for me to sit with them and for there to be a little space in between the litter box and the basket of salad I brought for them (Tiny Liz from RD’s suggestion). While I was preparing their salad and setting up the pen I kept them in the carrier together.
Swatch seemed pretty shaken up when he first got out of the carrier into the pen. They put their heads together but no one caved and groomed the other. On the plus side, no one got aggressive either. After about 15 minutes, Rolex got a little aggressive with Swatch, which I stopped immediately, and then they both were pretty calm together. Swatch even groomed himself while Rolex sat nearby.
All in all, it was the most successful bonding session I’ve had at my apartment since this all began. I made the mistake of leaving their treats in the bedroom, so I wasn’t able to reward them until they were back in their respective areas for the day. Tomorrow I will have to remember to bring them along.
