How much time do you spend with him each day?

Most rabbits are happier with a companion, as naturally rabbits do live in large groups. That doesn’t mean single bunnies can’t be happy though, and of course there are always some rabbits that hate all other rabbits.

My rabbits jump on things, I don’t think that’s a reflection of loneliness – some rabbits are just more adventurous than others.

Getting a second bunny that he wouldn’t get along with is a concern, but MOST bunnies can be bonded if you go about it the right way. Is your bunny neutered?

Perhaps you could talk to the RSPCA about fostering a bunny for a couple of months, so if the bond doesn’t work out you don’t have to feel bad about ‘returning’ it. For the very least, you’d need to keep them separated for about 6 weeks while you let the new one settle in, then did some pre-bonding so if there’s no space in your apartment for even temporary seperation, it probably won’t work.

If you head over to the Bonding forum you can find out a bit more about the steps involved in bonding, and see the problems and successes other people have had, so you can decide if you have the time to commit to it. It is a lengthy and stressful process, but seeing two bunnies snuggle up together is the best

The thing is, if you spend 3 hours a day with him then that’s still 21 hours he spends alone. I think a friend probably would benefit him. As a human that works and then needs to sleep etc, even if you spend all your spare time with your bunny, they still end up alone for the majority of the day.

When my bunnies original bonded partner died, I noticed she became much more clingy with me, so I would say it could be a sign of loneliness.

As for neutral space – if you started to make somewhere like the bathroom off limits to him now, then gave it a thorough clean and blocked some bits off to make it different, that would probably work as neutral space. You can also buy pop-up puppy pens quite cheaply on amazon, that also work as DIY neutral space.

Its great that you’re looking into all the possibilities before jumping in though!

Perhaps you can create a larger free roam space that you can leave him in unsupervised. 3 hours is not a lot of time. I agree that the jumping is simply curiosity and adventure since he’s out so little. The carpet digging is a natural behavior, that could come out of frustration of not being out very long, rather than being lonely.

Wick is a single bun and I work full time, but he has free roam of the entire apartment while I’m gone, in addition to his other parent that’s home for a bit while I’m gone. If Wick was in a cage while I was gone, I could imagine he’d feel isolated and frustrated that he could not get around, but being free roam, although I’m not there, he can run around and have the place to himself until I’m home.

It’s great you’re looking into options. Using the c&c grids to cover objects is helpful. For example, I have 5 ziptied together and they cover my TV stand. Its not unsightly or anything since I purchased black ones and the TV is mainly black, and it’s enough to deter climbing or jumping into the equipment. Also, rabbits can be somewhat visual jumpers. They will not jump unless the perceive there’s solid ground. It’s also the same reliance of vision for barriers, so even a piece of cloth draped to create a ceiling and deter jumping. But just be careful because draped clothes will also look like solid ground. The draped cloth works for covering x pen tops and such.

On a side note, logic toys can help provide additional mental stimulation to buns who are as inquisitive and curious as Slush . Another member was discussing about building an obstacle course for their bun. Maybe that would be something Slush would be interested in since he likes to climb on things and explore?

I used to have a cardboard castle (until it was chewed to death) that would be suitable for a medium sized bunny. They’re available on Amazon, but you can also make your own castles by cutting holes in lots of boxes and putting them together they love exploring it, jumping out of its windows, chewing new doors in it, and snoozing in it

Yes, you absolutely shouldn’t put an unneutered male bunny with your male bunny, as they could have a nasty fight. You could of course house him separately until he was neutered, then start the bonding steps from there, but he it’s important that he’s neutered first.

Cleaning thoroughly and rearranging a room can make it neutral, especially if it’s not a room that he spends a lot of time in anyway