I’m so confused on the timeline here.

You got her 2 days ago?

And you have already started bonding?

Please clarify if you can, because this is not the way to do proper bonding at all. We can give you advice, but this process is typically a long one, done over the span of several weeks or months….not days…. In the mean time, I would not advise putting them together again until you’ve done some prebonding. Her squealing and grunting is telling you that she is very uncomfortable and if you continue putting them together you may end up with a nasty fight. I really would advise separating them and getting her spayed, barring any other health issues she may have. I would bring her to a vet and get a health check to make sure she can be spayed, then schedule that. Her hormones will likely make bonding more difficult, so you should wait and get her spayed. What’s the urgency in bonding so fast??

Also to add to BN: you need to make sure she’s settled in and NOT stressed. Being out in the wild then being thrown in a new home and thrown with a new bun could severely stress her out, and if it’s bad enough she could get sick and end up with a life threatening illness. You really need to slow down and let her get her bearings. Poor thing is probably already terrified of a new environment never mind being thrown with a bun who isn’t getting along with her. I don’t mean to sound rude, but you need to make her as comfortable as possible before anything can happen.

Typically, bonding progresses in the following stages:

*If possible, both parties are spayed/neutered*

1. Prebonding- both rabbits should be living separately. Either in different cages or with a barrier separating them if they are free range. At least 6 inches apart. Give them a week or two to get used to the sight/smell of the other and then begin swapping toys and/or litter trays, blankets, etc between the living spaces. After they show no further aggression toward the foreign objects, you can swap the bunnies into each others enclosures every day/other day. This stage typically takes a few weeks and is important in reducing initial aggression.

2. Dates- start somewhere that is small and neutral (such as the bath tub). Neutral territory is important because you don’t want one becoming territorial and attacking the other when trying to defend their territory from the invader. Start with short sessions, watch body language and avoid fights if possible. Most of the time, the female is the dominant of the pair. It may just be that she is so brand new to your home that she isn’t wanting to assert herself just yet, so I wouldn’t count on the male being dominant just because he is the one that is currently mounting. If you notice any negative body language (tail raised, ears back, looking to strike) then you need to intervene to stop a fight from starting. Fighting will hinder their ability to build trust, so it is essential to minimize fighting as much as possible. This is the most lengthy part of the process. You should only progress from neutral territory, to semineutral, to communal. Only progress when they show no signs of aggression and can tolerate several hours together without any scuffles or issues. This stage can take weeks to months, depending on the rabbits.

3. Moving in- before you move them in together, you’ll want to allow them to spend 24 hours together in that space with no issues. I would advise you to sleep close by in case any fights break out so that you can diffuse it quickly.

The most important thing in bonding is to not rush the rabbits. Things must be taken at THEIR pace, not yours.

I know this is a lot of information, and you may hear totally different things from someone else. But the truth is that this really is the best approach to try and get your rabbits associated with each other positively and to cement their bond so that you do not have to worry about any fights breaking out when you are not around.

I agree with Asriel as well, she needs time to settle. She is probably terrified and the bonding attempts to a total stranger cannot be good for her.

I wanted to add to my previous post as well, if you don’t plan on spaying her for bonding, you should know that there are many other health related reasons to spay a female. Neutering in males you can avoid without dire consequences, but in females it is very important. Females run the risk of an 80% chance of developing reproductive cancers. With a spay, the risk of cancer is significantly decreased. And since this particular rabbit will be being bonded to another rabbit, it is just better if they can have a relationship without interference from her crazy hormones.

Stop what you’re doing. It’s great that you took in this girl but just because you have, doesn’t mean you need to try and bond her immediately. She needs to settle in, get spayed, recover and wait for hormones to disipate, you need to do sufficient pre bonding and THEN actual sessions.

First and foremost tho, take her to a vet to get checked out. For her sake and your boy’s. She may have something that can be passed on.

Don’t worry, we all make mistakes. I’m glad you came here and are prepared to take our advice Just think of it this way, if they got on so well despite some important steps missed, it might be a very easy bond if you wanted a trio in the future

Females often are the dominant bun in a male/female pairing

I would say providing none of the buns are stressed, it’d be okay to keep their cages near each other all the time. Just make sure they can’t reach one another. Do keep an eye on the two girls together tho, females are notoriously territorial (or, can be) and as they’re both unspayed at the moment, they can be unpredictable so it’s something you need to be vigilant about and prepared to separate them if needed.

It’s good that nothing terrible happened besides a little stress. Things could have been much, much worse! Has your rabbit been bonded before? I noticed he was kinda older (6 right?) so he may be more accepting of other bunnies if he has previously had friends. And since the two girls have been living together, they presumably have established a relationship with each other. So you’ll be taking both girls in? That’s awesome, I wish I could have a trio of bunnies

I think that your intentions were pure in trying to get her a friend because she was scared and lonely, but the reality is that being introduced to a new rabbit is a very stressful experience for them. They don’t know whether this bunny is a threat or a friend, so they needs lots of time to figure that out and learn they can trust them. Kinda like humans!

 It’s all ok. Don’t feel bad, we all make mistakes. What’s important is that you learn, and then you can be better next time around Unfortunately, we have even had people here who have been given bad information from rescues. Some people argue that those on this forum are wrong, but they truly are very knowledgeable about rabbits. They are quite complex pets, not simple little cage animals like the pet stores portray… It’s great that you are open to our advice, others aren’t and that makes us sad for the bunny.  

So get the girls spayed, give them some time to recover (I would say 1 month to be safe), but you can start some pre bonding once they are feeling better (give them about a week of uninterrupted recovery).

Bonding is definitely a daunting task, but there are plenty of folks here with lots of experience and suggestions here to give you support along the way. This is a great resource over a google search, in which you may receive all kinds of incorrect/conflicting information.

Lastly, welcome!! We’d love to see some pics of the bunnies some time

It sounds like you’ve got your hands full that’s for sure 

I know you didn’t specifically ask about Knox but I think it’s probably for the best to keep him as a singleton, so long as he gets enough attention from you. Bunnies with sensitive tummies can be very tricky so for his health, it’s better at least in my opinion to keep him as he is so that you can quickly spot if he’s having difficulties. Not to mention the stress of bonding could set his tummy off anyway. Just thought I’d mention it

I definitely think you did the right thing with seperating the girls. As you’ve seen, hormones can make them very unpredictable. And bunnies don’t care about whether they’re related or not. It’s not their fault tho, it’s their hormones making them a little crazy is all. I do think they will calm down significantly once they’ve been spayed and their hormones have disipated but I would recommend doing A LOT of pre bonding, just to be safe before a physical introduction. You can never do enough pre bonding!  

I think even bonded pairs need to reassert their dominance occasionally but it shouldn’t cause too many issues. Usually they like to reassert their dominance if they can detect a new smell or a new object in their living quarters. And sometimes the submissive bun likes to shake things up a bit! And sometimes the top bun can feel a bit insecure and feels the need to say “hey, I’m top bun remember!” In a stable bond, it shouldn’t necessarily be too easy to spot who is top and who isn’t as they look after each other. My girl for example grooms my boy a lot whereas he’s a greedy little munchkin that rarely grooms her (apart from during their honeymoon phase ), however my girl will NOT accept being mounted. I can’t identify for sure who top bun is. I used to think it was Buttercup (my girl) but who knows lol.

I think the best plan of action is to keep all buns separate, get the girls spayed and wait a month or so. Then start pre bonding, perhaps between those two and Rogan if you want a trio? Just take things slow. 

And if it’s too much stress, get a professional bonder to help lol!

Oh goodness, yes you do have your hands full of fluffs!!

Regarding Knox, it’s wise to keep him separate. Given his diet restrictions and age, it’s best that you limit the variables around him so that you can easily identify the source of any issues he may develop.

I agree that it was good to keep the girls separate! I didn’t know if you had the means to do that, but I think it’s definitely for the best. They aren’t spayed, so even if they have been living together for an extended amount of time, they have probably had issues and learned to be wary of each other. Hormonal girl bunnies are just SO unpredictable, so very smart move you made in separating them.

I think spaying them will definitely help to reduce tensions between them. So, spay the girls. Then give them a few weeks to rest and then tackle pre bonding

Wonderful that you got them in for a spay so quickly! I’m sure this is protocol at the vet, but I would make sure that they will be given a health evaluation before surgery. Since they’ve been living outdoors and were obviously not well cared for by their previous owner, I think it’s definitely important to make sure there are no underlying health issues, since you don’t know a full health history.

It is good timing indeed! I can’t imagine caring for TWO recovering females at once, I was totally stressed out about just handling the one!

As far as separation goes, it doesn’t seem that they had a true bond. They may have tolerated each other from spending time together, but it doesn’t sound as though they were bonded. Personally, I would opt to keep them separate and go about the pre-bonding and bonding as if they haven’t had a history together. If they are in cages that are near each other (6 in apart so nobunny can scratch) I wouldn’t worry about them forgetting each other.

Hmmm, that is curious! In fact, before I got to your post stating that it could have been a survival mechanism while she was living in the wild, that’s exactly what I thought of suggesting.

I’m not sure how you could correct it besides trying to get her more “food secure” and knowing that she no longer has to forage to scrape by. This will take time though, but in the meantime I would contact the vet next chance you get just to see if this has any ill effects. I imagine it doesn’t, since they normally eat the cecotropes, but I’ve actually never come across anything like them eating the actual fecal droppings.

It’s good that you noticed their body language and demeanor and have taken the necessary precautions. Separating them further is exactly what I would advise (and I think others would as well).

I have to say, I thought you to be an inexperienced bunny owner by your first post, as the bonding was quite rushed. But I’ve definitely changed my opinion and you seem to be a very knowledgeable and caring owner!

Bonding is definitely tricky, so don’t be afraid or ashamed of any questions you might have. When I was attempting bonding, I posted here during every session to ask for advice. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out for my two. My female seemed quite receptive and loving of the male, but she wanted to be dominant and that very much upset him. After a month of bonding sessions 3 hours per day, I finally gave up because the male was getting increasingly aggressive as he became comfortable being around her.

I have high hopes that you’ll be able to bond though. You obviously have lots of space to work with, and you’ve been very prompt in figuring out how to handle the chaos of two new fluffs in the house.

Keep us updated, but you’re doing great

Perhaps she is getting so much yummy food that even her regular poops still smell appetising?  I think it’s actually more common than we think as a couple of members here have mentioned it. It could also have been a survival tactic, in which case once she’s a little more secure she probably won’t feel the need anymore. Or it could be a funny habit she’s developed! I would call a vet to inquire but I can’t see any negatives to it apart from not being able to monitor her as easily. I’m not a vet though so take my ramblings with a pinch of salt! 

I hope I didn’t offend you with that comment, I meant it as a compliment

Don’t worry, when I would tell people I was bonding rabbits they would look at me and say “you’re what?”. Most people assume that you can just throw them together and they’ll work it out…. very wrong!! They can fight to the death, so that’s why we were concerned.

Nephy has probably figured out that food tastes much better than poops

Oh yeah if you tell people you’re working on pre bonding and bonding sessions and whatnot they look at you like you’re insane. And they suddenly become experts themselves. “Oh if they’re gunna fight, they would have by now”, “just watch them for 5 minutes and they’ll be okay”, “well they’ll have to learn to get along won’t they” etc etc.