Advice for 16 wk old buck & 8 wk doe bonding

Forum

OUR FORUM IS UP BUT WE ARE STILL IN THE MIDDLE OF UPDATING AND FIXING THINGS. SOME THINGS WILL LOOK WEIRD AND/OR NOT BE CORRECT. YOUR PATIENCE IS APPRECIATED. We are not fully ready to answer questions in a timely manner as we are not officially open, but we will do our best.

You may have received a 2-factor authentication (2FA) email from us on 4/21/2020. That was from us, but was premature as the login was not working at that time.

BUNNY 911 – If your rabbit hasn’t eaten or pooped in 12-24 hours, call a vet immediately! Don’t have a vet? Check out VET RESOURCES

The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

What are we about? Please read about our Forum Culture and check out the Rules.

BUNNY 911 – If your rabbit hasn’t eaten or pooped in 12-24 hours, call a vet immediately! Don’t have a vet? Check out VET RESOURCES

BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

This topic has 10sd replies, 3 voices, and was last updated 4 years, 6 months ago by DanaNM.

Viewing 10 reply threads

Author

Messages
- 04/30/2020 at 12:35 PM
  Beau Bunny
  Participant
  66 posts
  Hi! After adding Beau to my family recently and doing a bunch of research (it has been quite a few years since I’ve had a rabbit), I decided it would be best for him to adopt a second bun in anticipation of going back to the office soon. After even doing more research, I decided to adopt a female, and she will be ready to pick up next month, when my Beau is about 16 weeks, and she will be 8 weeks.
  
  I just checked this morning and his boys haven’t dropped, but I’ll be keeping an eye on him and getting him into the vet hopefully within the next few weeks.
  
  Any advice on how to introduce rabbits so young? I’ve been told the same precautions are not necessary because they are still babies…but I’m sure that some precaution is quite necessary considering they are male and female. I also don’t want to stress her out with a bunny in puberty going bananas.
  
  What to do? Will they be okay together until he is able to be neutered and I check everyday, or should I hold off altogether until it’s done? I’d prefer to avoid the latter as I know it’s much easier to bond them when they are very young. I don’t know if the family she is coming from is open to hanging onto her for a few weeks.
  
  Also, I’m working with limited space…I have a 16 square foot indoor enclosure, and a 35 square foot outdoor run, plus free range time indoors in the evening, but we have a smaller ranch style home, so keeping them totally separate for any extended period would not be fair. I do have a dog kennel she can stay in for short while.
  
  Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
- 04/30/2020 at 12:42 PM
  DanaNM
  Moderator
  9054 posts
  Hi there, welcome and congrats on your new bunnies! Beau is adorable. 🙂
  
  It will be best for you to wait until both bunnies are neutered and spayed (and hormones have settled) to work on bonding them. Babies do get along, but they do not truly bond, and fights often break out once hormones kick in.
  
  Bunnies are very good at reproducing (hence the expression!) so best to keep them apart, esp with him already at 16 weeks. Buns can get pregnant as early as twelve weeks.
  
  So I think what I would do is get him neutered (which I think he should be ready for that very soon if he’s already 16 wks), then you have them live side by side as neighbors and do some pre-bonding until she is spayed. Even if he is neutered, when her hormones kick in it can trigger fighting and dominance scuffles.
  
  NIC cube grids are really useful for dividing up housing and making temporary housing for during bonding times. The dog crate would also be a fine temporary housing. X-pens are also really helpful for diving up rooms for exercise time. You just want to make sure they can’t nip (or mate!) through the fence, so set it up so there’s with a a buffer 0f 4-6 inches between them.
  
  . . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.
- 04/30/2020 at 1:17 PM
  Beau Bunny
  Participant
  66 posts
  Thanks Dana! He’s 12 weeks now but will be 16 weeks when she’s ready to come home. I understand they’re typically ready between 12-16 weeks. My local exotics vet just called and said to expect 5 months. I just don’t see being able to keep them this way comfortably (for everyone) with the small space we are working with..it’s a small home. I do have the crate, and a pack and play I could pop in the outdoor run, but for 3 months this might be hard to manage especially for her when she’s growing everyday and needs room to run. I’l have to think hard on this. Thank you again!
- 04/30/2020 at 1:23 PM
  DanaNM
  Moderator
  9054 posts
  You’re welcome! I totally understand the struggle of double housing! I am in a studio apartment and have been able to make temporary housing for bonding, so it is possible… but not necessarily the most convenient! I was certainly happy when my most recent pair bonded and I was able to break down the second pen. My brother joked that my apartment was getting gentrified with bunny condos and I was going to have to move. Lol.
  
  Definitely good to think through all possible options, because there is always a chance (albeit small) that bunnies will not bond, and then you are left with two separate rabbits or the difficult choice of rehoming one. It’s important to feel comfortable with the housing set up, because it seems like if you are stressed and rushing things, it can actually make the bonding process harder.
  
  I’m happy to give some more detailed ideas about housing possibilities if you decide you still want to move forward with things. You also might consider adopting an already spayed rabbit from a rescue if there are any in your area. In that case you would still need to plan on housing for the duration of bonding (which can be a couple of weeks in easy bonds, or a few months in tougher bonds).
  
  Finally, don’t feel like you have to rush into a second bun! You are still in the honeymoon phase with your new baby, and it might be nice to just really get to know him and strengthen your bond before embarking on a second. 🙂
  
  . . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.
- 04/30/2020 at 3:28 PM
  Beau Bunny
  Participant
  66 posts
  Hi Dana, you are right. I am rushing things. I did a lot of reading online, and felt immense guilt for having kept my last bunny, Sachi alone while I was at school or work. ( I had him for 10 years ). I was also told by a couple of people that it would be best to add a second rabbit when they are babies– the younger the better. There is so much conflicting info out there! But now I understand it’s not a real bond, thank you for informing me. I am going to wait for Beau to get to the vet. I think that will be less stressful for everyone, especially the buns.
  
  I actually planned on rescue, but the humane society/pet alliance in my area didn’t have any on their site, and the liaison for the rescue in my area, while I appreciated her passion and care for the animals, was very judgmental. She wasn’t happy that I had a dog, or a child, and didn’t have a screened in porch and only wanted me to have very specific kind of x pen, and talked to me like an idiot… outlined this arduous, 30 day adoption process…..
  
  I might have better luck with adoption once things settle down with the whole covid thing too. Thanks again!
- 04/30/2020 at 6:40 PM
  DanaNM
  Moderator
  9054 posts
  Happy to help!
  
  I alway love seeing bonded bunnies but I definitely don’t think people should feel guilty if it isn’t possible. Plenty of people have very happy solo buns, even if you aren’t home 24/7. And for sure no need to rush into it. Especially in such a crazy time!
  
  And you are so right that there is so much conflicting info out there! I will say that sometimes people do keep siblings together from the time they are babies. But most often these are same-sex pairs, so no risk of pregnancy, and often this is done at rescues when litters come in, and they know just the right moment to give em the snip, so to speak. They also have the luxury of lots of space to split them up if it doesn’t work out perfectly.
  
  That’s a bummer that your rescue was judgey. When the time is right you will feel better about it and I’m sure you will find a good match. 🙂
  
  . . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.
- 05/01/2020 at 12:17 PM
  Beau Bunny
  Participant
  66 posts
  I have to tell you that last night, I got my very first kisses and some pretty solid cuddle time. He will usually flop somewhere near me, but he was content to lay on me and binge watch netflix last night! So you were right about the bonding!
- 05/01/2020 at 2:15 PM
  DanaNM
  Moderator
  9054 posts
  Awwww that’s wonderful!!!! 😀
  
  . . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.
- 05/03/2020 at 6:20 PM
  Hazel
  Participant
  2587 posts
  I agree with Dana. Glad you decided to wait, I think it’s the right call 🙂
  
  I’m sorry you had a negative experience with the rescue being difficult and a lack of bunnies to adopt. Don’t worry though, in a few months it will be that time of the year where many of the Easter baby bunnies people bought for their kids will get dumped for daring to behave like bunnies, so there will be plenty of them looking for a new home.
- 05/04/2020 at 11:14 AM
  Beau Bunny
  Participant
  66 posts
  That is true. When I emailed the woman that I had already found Beau, she (the rescue lady) emailed me a picture of foster babies. I think she is just super- duper passionate about her job and probably makes every decision based on negative situations and potential outcomes.
  
  I’ll just wait and listen to my intuition…. I was just worried about him being alone all day but in reality, he snoozes most of the day anyway, my little loaf. [attachment file=”1926596″]
  
  Attachments:
  You must be logged in to access attached files.
- 05/04/2020 at 11:15 AM
  DanaNM
  Moderator
  9054 posts
  He is just SO CUTE. SQUEEEEEEE <3
  
  . . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.
Author

Messages

Viewing 10 reply threads

You must be logged in to reply to this topic.

You may have received a 2-factor authentication (2FA) email from us on 4/21/2020. That was from us, but was premature as the login was not working at that time.

Attachments: