HI,

I remember your tragic loss of Gin. Firstly, no one will think that you getting another bunny is in any way a reflection of your feelings for Gin. Sometimes we have to do what is best for our bunnies, and everybody mourns differently. You don’t need to justify your decision, and you also don’t need to be rushed as long as Whiskey is happy. Bonding is a stressful and time consuming process, so you need to be ready for it, and it can be harder on you if loss of a previous bunny is still at the forefront of your mind.

I’ll outline the basic steps below, but am happy to answer any extra questions!

1. Pick another bunny, or preferably, let your bunny pick another bunny. Both bunnies should be neutered/spayed. Generally male/female pairings work best, but as you know, same sex pairings can work really well too. It’s all about personality. You can do this by trying some dates at a shelter, if it’s possible near you, or you can try and choose a bunny with a personality that you think would work with Whiskey.

2. Once you bring the new bunny home, give him a couple of weeks to settle into your house, and bond with you. Don’t introduce him to Whiskey again in this time. Preferably have them in separate rooms.

3. After the new bun has settled in, move both the bunnies into the same room, in separate cages that are at least 8 inches apart. They should never be allowed to touch each other, including in free run time.

4. You can now start swapping them between hutches every other day, so that they lose sense of what is their territory, and so they get used to smelling each other. Some people also give them a stuffie that smells of the other bunny at this stage – it can help to see how they’ll react to each other. Do this for at least a month. They’ll be angry at first, but hopefully by the end you won’t see the react any more. If they’re still reacting negatively to swaps, then keep going a bit longer than a month.

5. Now you’re ready to introduce them briefly on neutral ground. This can be in the bath tub with clean towels laid down, or the bathroom floor if Whiskey hasn’t been allowed in it. Any space that Whiskey hasn’t been in before will work, but it’s good to start with a small-ish space so that you can intervene easily. Make sure both bunnies are calm, and put them together in the space. Be ready with thick gloves to separate them if they start to fight, and maybe something like a pan to make a loud noise with.

6. Good signs to watch out for are ignoring each other, copying each others actions (eg. grooming themselves at the same time, flopping at the same time), snuggling together, grooming each other. Neutral signs are small nips, or short humping. Negative things that must be stopped are chasing, biting, fur pulling, boxing, humping that distreses the other rabbit, face humping.

7. Start off with lots of small sessions, and as they get used to each other gradually extend the time they spend together. Once they can happily spend an entire night together (with you nearby to supervise) in the neutral space, you can progress to semi – neutral, so a kitchen or something that they’ve both been in before, and start again there.

8. Once they’re good in semi-neutral you can move them into their permanent home, which MUST be cleaned and rearranged if either of them have been in it before. Again, monitor them closely, and see how they behave. Often progress will go back a step when you move space, but they’ll get there again. Once you see 48 hours with only positive behaviours, you can declare them bonded.

Obviously we can give more detail when you’re actually bonding, but that should cover the basic steps that you’d need to take!

Posted By GinandWhiskey on 1/30/2018 5:46 AM

Hi guys, 

I have a almost 9 month on mini lop. Last week her sister died and I still can’t get over it now. They were joined at the hip and constantly groomed each other and cuddled and shared everything. Whiskey was very kind and loving to Gin in her last few days. Such a good big sister. 

I’m not saying I’m going to be getting another rabbit within the next few weeks as my heart is still breaking every day for baby Gin. I’m just worried my partner and I are not enough for Whiskey. She’s so happy when we come home from work she binkies so much for the first 10 minutes. She loves grooming my partner when he is lead on the floor and constantly jumps up on the sofa to see what we’re doing. She always used to do it but she does it so much more now it’s just her. I’ve bought her a teddy the day we said goodbye to Gin. Whiskey grooms it and sleeps with it so I’m happy that that is giving her slight comfort when we’re not there during the day. 

Because she’s so young and she is so sociable and loving, I want to get her a husband because I don’t want her to live the rest of her life alone, knowing that she had such a strong bond with her sister before. I’m not doing it yet, but what would I do to make her bond to a new rabbit? How do I go about it? I’ve read about needing to keep them separate and finding a neutral ground etc. But how long must I do it for and when do I start letting them in the same room together for a long time etc etc. I don’t know what to expect. 

I just want to go into this knowing how it will work before I even start looking at more bunnies. Plus I miss my little Gin too much to bring myself to look. But in the future hopefully. Just want what’s best for Whiskey! 

You are very much in the same situation I was in. Finn had a sister who passed away and her passing was both shocking and upsetting. Like yours both where young at 6 months. I have just brought home Myrtle an 8 month Lionhead who has recently had a litter of her own. It has been difficult for me to except another bunny and I think there is a thread on here somewhere that I made a few days ago wondering if I was getting cold feet. She is so timid and nothing like Patience who passed away. 

However Finn seems to really like her scent. They have met only briefly though a small gap in the bars (naughty Finn! &nbsp, he runs around her cage so excited and happy. So for him I am giving her a chance and will try and work on my relationship with her this coming weekend. It will be harder on you then your bunny, but as been said above its for your bunny not you. 

I gave it a month before looking for another bunny, so give it that amount of time and see how you feel. Again it will have no reflection on how you felt about your late bunny. Like me you may need some support about your decision, is it right? Is the rabbit your getting right? I really struggled and changed my mind on what bunny i decided on a few times. 

I think Sirius covered everything but I also wanted to reiterate that nobody will judge you for bringing another bunny into your life if you choose to do so. Nobody will think you are trying to replace little Gin. I think it’s wonderful actually that you are thinking about opening your heart and home to another rabbit in the future. Take your time, allow Whiskey to grieve and allow yourself to grieve.

Posted By GinandWhiskey on 1/30/2018 8:57 AM 

Yes Emma you’re right I think I am looking for support that I am making the right decision. I have people in my life like ‘oh you’re not getting another one are you?’ ‘it’s just a rabbit’ ‘you spent how much on Gin’s medicine and operations?!’ – (the same people who told me I was silly for thinking about insuring her). Clearly they’ve never loved a rabbit. I feel like I need to justify to people why I’m thinking of getting another one. I get told ‘oh but I know a rabbit that lives by itself’ and I’m like ok but Whiskey was bonded and was used to being bonded and I think she’d benefit from it in the FUTURE.

Yes normally those inexperienced will say that. Its that old fashioned way of thinking that the importance of an animal is based on size.

Dog

Cat

Rabbit

Guine Pig

All that matters is YOUR opinion. If you feel that is what is best then that is all that matters. Humans tend to only think about what they feel, not the feelings of the animal hence why so many rabbits have lived and died alone in hutches at the bottom of the yard. Rabbits have so much to offer that many of us have only just realised over recent years. I remember keeping rabbits as a teenager – all lived outside, as that was what you did. None neutered as you didn’t fix rabbits back then. Like Great White Sharks, rabbits are very miss understood. They have so much personality (just like dogs), and are quite intelligent. But you just have to know how to take care of them to see it. 

As long as Whiskey is eating and lively, then there’s no urgent rush on her behalf Sometimes bunnies refuse to eat when their bonded partner dies, and in those cases, they do need to be found a new friend as soon as possible (and often its an extremely easy bond). But since Whiskey is doing fine, give yourself some time!