2nd bunny?

[Deleted User]

hello everyone. this is my first post (hope doing it right.)

I got my bunny, Jameson, 2 months ago and he will be 5 months June 10.  I got him neutered the following week from adoption. He is a house bunny.  In crate only at bedtime (so his sprints dont wake me).  My question is if home bunnies are ok being the only one.  He had his first bunny date 2 weeks ago and did well. I dont want him to be lonely, but the cost of him would double with a second. and i live in 750 Sq FT apt. I want to do the best thing for him. I just found out that his “twin sister” is available ( and looks just like him). I know bunnies dont know is sister, but she fits what I would want for him because same age, breed, and a female.I’m so torn on what to do and i have been reading BB forums since day one, getting all my answers.  Looking for help in knowing if he’s ok as is or will i regret not having a second (whether his sister or another).

thank  you 

Ang

[PEPPERoni]

Hi Angie,

Honestly from previous experience rabbits love company because in the wild they love in large groups…HOWEVER, as long as Jameson receives plenty of attention and love he will end up seeing you as his companion. If he doesn’t seem withdrawn or depressed he should be ok, but maybe keep the bunny playdates? Hope this helps ? ?

[tobyluv]

Hello and welcome to Binky Bunny. Most rabbits do prefer to have a bunny companion, but there are rabbits who are perfectly content to be the sole rabbit in the house, especially if they have a lot of human companionship and interaction during the hours they are most active – morning and evening.

I know that probably wasn’t very helpful, but we can never be sure how our rabbits will get along with another rabbit. It could be a wonderful experience for him to have someone to cuddle with, to groom and be groomed, to speak with in rabbit language, etc. It is a very sweet thing to see bunnies cuddling and so in love with their companion. But would you be able to house them separately if it didn’t work out? It’s rare that that happens, and it’s never happened with any of my bunnies, but you do have to be prepared. Is the crate that he goes in at night large enough for two? They will of course need to be separated until the new bunny has settled in and you have gone through the bonding process, so make sure that you have room to house a new rabbit, at least at first, until they are bonded.

[Gordo and Janice]

Hi Angie. Welcome to BinkyBunny (officially anyway) That is a tough question. So many variables. I too have been contemplating what to do about another bunny in our life. One bunny or bonded pair. I always questioned whether or not our first bunny was happy or not. Lonely or not. I gave her so much attention. But is it the same? I spent so much time with Icey because I felt like if she wanted my attention then she needed my attention. So I don’t know if getting a bonded pair would make me chill about spending time or if I would now spend twice as much of my time with the bunnies. So many things. Little things to some but big things to me. I don’t know how one would tell if their bun needed another or if we just decide one way or the other and make the best of it. Wish it was a more simple answer. Hopefully someone can give advice that helps make the decision more clear. But it may very well be up to us in the end. It’s nice you are asking. It shows, just like you said, that you want the best for your bunny.

Congratulations on Jameson! Glad he got through his neutering so well. It seems like they did it awful early at 3 months. And then like tobyluv said there are the other considerations as well. Keeping them separate at first. She may need to be spayed first (if not already). Then the need for contingent plans if bonding doesn’t take. Or bonding could be a drawn out process, which sometimes happens. So much.

Hopefully someone will be able to help clarify our thoughts on the matter with some input. Again congratulations on Jameson and welcome, officially 😉

[Dface]

This question comes up a lot around here. I am 100% of the opinion a rabbit needs a rabbit companion. I do know some rabbits are perfectly fine by themselves, but they are also in the minority.

Rabbits are fundamentally social creatures. I have to say, even some of the most devoted bun parents would struggle to compete with ability of another rabbit to make the 1st bun happy.
When you go to sleep, work, study, go out socially, go out shopping,shower etc etc this is all cumulative time where your rabbit is alone. This can be in excess of 20 hours of peoples days, leaving the rabbit with a meager 4 hours of actual time with someone.

In pairs rabbits are able to be constantly in contact with one another. Grooming each other frequently and basically just hanging out together.

Bonding is a stressful and often tedious ordeal that most people dont like -it should be the decider in whether you get another rabbit tbh. I had one bond that took about a week, and the other took over 3 months. If you have a shelter that can help you with it, it would be worth looking into!
Like tobyluv says-there is a chance the bond wont work, and then you either end up with 2 seperate rabbits, or someone goes back to the shelter.

As for cost- I honestly didnt notice a huge difference from one rabbit to 2. My first rabbit was such a brat he’d waste a lot of hay anyway, litter got used at the same rate to be honest(as i already cleaned it every 2 days) and then vets fees actually went down as my female cleared up the males eye infections, and was rarely sick

I do have a very serious issue with the increase of fur though..

Personally, I believe all rabbits should be given a chance at having a companion; that could be in the form of bunny dates to see how he interacts with a potential future partner, or in actually attempting to bond them.

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