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It depends on the cover, but some are thicker like a pee pad. I would think that would at least slow him down enough so you would have time to stop him.

Oh, I’m so sorry. That must have been awful finding him like that. As tough as bunnies are, they can also be very fragile. It’s hard to know what happened. You were doing a good job with him, so please don’t think this was somehow your fault.

I did mention that to my husband. I just am not sure if it would protect the couch if he decides to bite. I’ll do some research and see what I can find out

thank you

They make covers for furniture to protect it from dogs. Would something like that help?

Glad to hear they are getting along well. Yes, sometimes an unfamiliar setting can help cement things.

Wanted to come back and provide an update for Lottie and Pekoe:

We went away for a weekend and the buns stayed with Lottie’s rescue in the meantime. They kept the two together in the same pen since they didn’t see any bad behaviors other than a bit of fur pulled in the first hour of their stay. Although they aren’t snuggly with each other and s…[Read more]

When was she spayed?

Before spay/neuter status, rabbit hormones and development makes litter training impossible– their habits are more dictated by territorial urges.

Once spayed/neutered, rabbit hormones need a bit of time to regulate so it may still leave things wonky.

Has she never been litter box trained? Or is this a new development? If you’re working on “first time” litter box training, it sounds like you’re doing all of the typical things. Are there other bunnies or even other animals in the home? Could this be (at least partially) territorial?

Getting along for over 24 hours can still be used as an indicator. But you may need to learn to read their behavior a little more. One bunny annoying the other bunny (including a small nip) is going to be different than one bunny trying to pick a fight. If that makes sense. LOL

That’s reassuring! If this bond ends up being a one-sided grooming, annoying-sibling kind of bond, do the indicators for them being bonded change? Is getting along for 24+ hours without any nipping, chasing, fighting still the indicator?

I think ot’s good you’re interrupting attempts at violence – I do with my buns on the rare occasions I’ve seen  chasing/nipping that lasts more than seconds. Best not to let things get a chance to escalate. But it’s really great that Lottie doesn’t seem bothered by it and just goes back to eating/chilling 😃

Not all bonded buns spend all their…[Read more]

He may simply be saying, “hey, I’m the boss around here”. Lottie is acknowledging by backing up and then returning to what she was doing, so I would say that is a good sign. And grooming is great, even if it is one-sided!

Thanks for the feedback! I’ve let them keep ignoring each other and we’re starting to see one-sided grooming again!

A new behavior that’s emerging is Pekoe has been lunging at Lottie, which we discourage/interrupt as soon as we notice. In the instances where we haven’t stopped him in time, Lottie generally moves away then almost immedia…[Read more]

I wouldn’t rush anything if they are peacefully getting along this way.

We’ve had a couple days of long sessions in this larger space and things are progressing! There is still nipping but it seems like Lottie is reacting less frequently. Pekoe has gotten less patient though and the poop wars are beginning. We have hay on the floor as well as a litter box that they both have used, though not at the same time.

One…[Read more]

Sounds like a larger space was all they needed! I agree that ignoring is not a bad thing. It’s progress.

I think ignoring is great, actually. I means sth like “I don’t see you as a threat and I’m not a threat to you”. I’d let them do the ignoring in peace tbh. It’s a really promising and important step.