Are my bunnies completely bonded?

[MzAardman]

I made a post in the habitat forum about potentially buying a larger cage and moving my two bunnies in with each other, but was advised they shouldn’t live together unless completely bonded. Honestly I’m not sure how bonded is completely so I hope I can learn that here?

 

Spay/Neuter
Are your bunnies spayed/neutered?

My girl is, my boy is not.

If so, for how long (for each)?

She was spayed when I got her so I don’t really know how long?

If not, why not?

My boy had an appointment before the Covid outbreak happenned. After the pandemic started and things closed down my vet limited themselves to “Emergency” visits.

 

Housing
Please describe your bunnies’ current housing set-up (living together, as neighbors, etc.).

They each currently have their own separate cages on two adjacent walls in my art room. The cages are a little bigger than the “Standard” cages you’d get at a pet shop (aka too small honestly) but the entire room is bunny proofed and baby gated, and they’re only in the cages if I’m at work or sleeping.  Quite literally I wake up, open their cage doors, and start my morning routine. Otherwise they own the room.

Bonding background
Did you allow the bunnies to “settle-in”?

I suppose? I’ve had them both since last October? My girl seemed to think she owned the place.

How would you describe your bunnies reactions towards each other (answer for each bunny): shy, scared, curious, calm, aggressive, excited, affectionate, etc.?

Boy: excited, affectionate, stomps his feet alot if either of them is in the cage while the other is out. Humps her quite a bit but he is unnuetered, grooms her face a lot. They lay next to each other very frequently. His home before me sort of left him with no human interaction, only other bunny’s in the hutch so he prefers other rabbits company.

Girl: She’s more independent but actively hangs out with my boy. Grooms him, ALSO humps him. Only aggression I’ve seen from her was early on where she’d chase him off of her toys and rub her face on them and the initial circling they did upon meeting? Lays next to him a lot. She lived free roaming with a bunch of cats before living with me.

 

Have you done any “pre-bonding” (cage or litter box swaps, etc.)?
If so, for how long?

I don’t think I did any pre bonding? They just had access to seeing each other through the cage a lot and decided one day to give them some supervised Out Time together and they got along? They’re not babies at this point.

Have you started sessions yet?
How long have you been working on bonding your bunnies?

Kind of same as above. Didn’t really start sessions. As much as just gave it a try one day? They’ve been chilling together majority of each day since around new year?

 

How frequently do you have bonding sessions, and how long are they?

If “Bonding Session” equals “Together Out Time” I’d say frequency is almost every day and how long is anywhere between 5 and… has to be at least 12 hours on my days off… they get a lot of Out Time.

 

I dunno if some pics of them chilling together will help tell if they’re completely bonded?

 

this was tonight. Chilling by the bunny cooler box.

walked in on boy and girl chilling in a wooden crate

crammed themselves in the cooler box. It was really hot last week though!

hot day chilling by the cooler box

boy didn’t feel like coming out so girl came to visit him of her own accord

girl too busy with her rattle to come out, boy comes to visit her.

 

[DanaNM]

So it sounds like you got lucky with some bunnies that just got along well! Some bunnies do just go together like that, but it’s rare! But, the fact that he is un-neutered means the humping will likely continue. Are you able to get him neutered? If they are both still mounting each other a lot sometimes one rabbit will get fed up and fights can break out. What happens after the mounting? And how frequently does it occur?

A bonded pair will share food, share litter box, cuddle, and groom each other, and they can be in each other’s “personal space” without it causing squabbles.  Signs to watch out for are any lunging, fur pulling, nipping, fast chasing, or general “tenseness”. Esp concerning the mounting. My concern at this point with housing them together would be if he starts trying to mount in a more enclosed space, she’s not having it, and a scuffle breaks out. So I would try to get him neutered before moving on. His smell might change with neutering so she might react a bit differently to him, but my guess is that the change would be gradual enough (as his hormones start draining) that it wouldn’t be much of an issue. Plus the fact that they got on so well from the beginning makes me think it prob won’t cause problems.

. . . 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.  

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