Another bonding question..

[JessL]

The lop I was looking at adopting is due to have her staples out next week.  Is it preferred to wait a month for the females after desexing to start the bonding process or is it just for the males? Sorry if this has been posted before..

 

[MooBunnay]

The one month is generally recommended for males, because that is how long it takes to make sure they can’t get a female pregnant. For females, however, the one month is not required. I think it is more of a matter of making sure that the female is well healed before beginning bonding, because sometimes things can get a little rough during the bonding processes, and you wouldn’t want the female to have any trauma to the spay area before it is healed.

Good luck with the bonding/adopting!

[JessL]

Great thanks Moobunnay!

I’m hoping to bring Chief in for an introduction tomorrow, but will start them off side by side in 2 different pens. They said she’s a little smaller than what they remember chief to be but he’s quite gentle. I hope this goes well

[MarkBun]

Also, the time is for the hormones in their system to work their way out. I think that if her staples are coming out next week, it means that her scar has healed and that usually takes a few days – which would mean that the hormones will be on the low level.

I should let you know that rabbits that see each other with a fence in between them will be MUCH more well behaved. My Maryann would even be socialable with other female rabbits through the fence of an X-pen but once that barrier was gone, she was instantly vicious. The best way to get an idea (and is fine for a first date) is to put them both in a litter box that is partially filled with hay and immediately start petting both of them when they are next to each other – sort of forcing their heads together with the petting. Then, after about 30 seconds, stop petting and see what happens. And have a dust pan nearby to interpose between the two of them if things get a little physical.

And one of the main things to do is not to be timid or afraid while bonding. Chief will pick up on that vibe and feel that it is this interloper who is causing you to be anxious and, being a good pal that he is, will seek to remove that bunny from your vicinity to make you feel better.

I’m sure that there are links here on this site as to how to work on bonding… I’ll update this as soon as I find them.

[JessL]

Thanks Markus! I have a large padded luxury dog crate thing I actually got for chief that he hasn’t used yet lol. Maybe I should take that along and put them both in there? I’ve read the bonding pages on this site and have gotten good tips from them. If things do go well at the shelter, would it be too soon to bring her home already (she’ll have her own part of the room for the time being) and try the car ride as part of the bonding process and go from there for the next few weeks? Or should I leave her there and return next weekend?

As with most/all of us here, I’d hate having to leave bunnies behind in the shelter

[MarkBun]

Well if the trip isn’t too stressful for Chief, I’d say do at least two dates. You should use the litter box lined with hay so that you can have easy access to the bunnies if something goes wrong. You’ll usually know almost immediately if it won’t work as either bun has their ears back, tail up or are constantly charging/boxing the other rabbit. It is sometimes hard as you are terrified that something bad will happen but truth be told, as long as you are quick, there will rarely, if ever, be any sort of injury to either bun. Maryann literally lunged and bit at the second female that came into the enclosure but being buns, the other hopped quickly away and all maryann got was some fur in her mouth. But this is an EXTREME reaction. I witnessed Maryann and another bun circling each other and nipping for nearly four full seconds before someone was able to seperate them with the dust pan – and neither were even injured.

The main tell-tale signs are the bunny’s ears. If they go up, you will probably not need to worry about a vicious attack. Once they start to move after the agressive petting you give them, just watch. If either begin to flatten their ears or look somewhat aggressive, start petting them again at once for another 30 seconds or so.

You may also want to try them out of the box after a little while. Maryann would dominate the other buns and while she sat there cleaning herself and grooming, they’d just sit there. So pull them both out of the box and get the box out of the x-pen. Again, always give them good praises and pets when they encounter each other but don’t attack. When the buns I was working with would come nose-to-nose, I’d give them two seconds to see if either one would begin grooming or anything else, then I’d immediately say ‘gooood bunnies!’ and start in with the pets again.

There is bound to be some agression from time to time. Love at first sight is rare. Just make sure you have the dust pan handy and be confident.

[JessL]

It’s organized, Chief has a hot date tomorrow with a younger lady! The lady at the shelter as had good experiences with introductions so she’ll be there taking notes etc. I’ll keep you updated

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