Attempting to bond two dominant rabbits.. help!

[taffyrabbit]

So i’m attempting to bond my bunny Taffy to a bunny i’v reserved from a shelter. I’m only on day four but its been a disaster.

A bit about Taffy:

She’s very sweet and loving to humans, she love cuddles, a year old, was neutered 8 months ago, but got a bit of a attitude on her will nip you if your in her way, or give your hand a nip if you stop stroking her. She’s very food orientated i quite often distract her with food when trimming nails.

A bit about the shelter bunny:

Hes very affectionate to humans, neutered about a month ago i think, about 9 months old, a lot smaller then my rabbit taffy, he doesnt seem to eat much he often just ignores treats.

So their first bonding session four days ago I did on the day the shelter bunny arrived at my house. I put them in my passage way because it was a small neutral territory. It was a disaster, it only lasted 5 minutes because it was none stop the new rabbit trying to bite Taffy, at the point she just ignored him. I decided the spend the rest of the day letting the new bunny get use to his new home.

Second day I tried again in the passage way, more biting from him except Taffy started biting back but only when he tried to go for her.So i kept separating them. On the evening of the second day i’d read that putting them next to each other and stroking them can help bonding so I tried that, this seemed to work abit they snuggled into each other while i stroked them for about 10 minutes,  there was a bit of nipping from the male but not as bad as previously.

Third day id managed to give them three dates of 15 minutes each, each of the three dates were the same of them trying to bite each other and me having to separate them.

Fourth day. There first date was in the passage way again for the first 5 minutes they ignored each other then the attempts of fighting started again. this lasted 15 minutes. Then about mid day i tried putting them in the bath together the male immediately mounted the female which happened a few times and there was a lot more attempts at fighting. They had a final date tonight which again had lots more attempts at fighting from both of them and foot stamping from the female.

Does anyone have any advice? it feels like their getting worse not better

[theshrew24]

Hello! Let me preface this by saying that I am not an expert on rabbits, and I am currently having my first bunny bonding experience.

I did the “smoosh” (sitting them together and just petting them) for a little while when I had to restrategize. If they are settling down in this situation, then you may want to do a few days of just the “smoosh”. Also, I placed both my rabbits’ hutch near each other so that they could see and smell each other throughout the day and night and just get used to one another. At the start, I made sure to leave enough room to avoid any fighting.

About a week ago, I bought a box from the dollar store (solid red sides about 14″ high, with a lid) and reset the bonding by using that as a neutral space. It has been working fabulously for me so far! I filled it about an inch with bedding to replace a litter box (which mine fight over) and put some kale in the middle to distract them. It is just big enough that my boys can sit on opposite ends and not touch each other (about 6″ between them) but small enough that they cannot really circle each other or box or jump. Fighting because very difficult. Also, they moment they start fighting, I can easily pick up the box and start walking or jogging around. This breaks them up now, but before I had to hold the lid over it (not close it, just hold it with about an inch in length open for air) and shake it a bit. No footing = no fighting. It is effective at breaking my boys apart, it does not stress me out, and because the box is colored, they do not see me when the stressful parts are happening, so I can keep associating my presence with reinforcements (treats and pats) not punishment.

Personally, using the box has been the best! Also, it’s portable, so whether you are brushing your teeth, cooking, or doing laundry, you can bring the rabbits around to keep in eye on them and intervene immediately. The fighting has really decreased now, and I am currently transitioning my boys from box to pen.

[lisakya]

Hey! My bunnies have been bonded for a month now and it was my first bond so I’m not expert but it did take about 2 months and I ran into a lot of bumps so here’s what ended up working for me. Try sitting in with them, if you’re not already. And anytime they get close to each other start petting them both with the same hand, all as one motion. So you’re mixing their scents. Also, a change in location can really do the trick. I had been bonding my rabbits for almost two months and one weekend I decided it just needed to happen! So, I started them in an area and it was like we were back to week 2, moved them around a bit to find the right spot and they spent the night with no issues. So the next day I gradually increased their space every couple of hours until they had roam of the whole apartment. They haven’t been separated since! There’s no one way to bond 2 rabbits I feel like. So don’t get too hung up on something you read online, I started out that way and would try to follow the “rules” but they weren’t working so I just decided I needed to stop researching and just dive in my own way.

[Robert]

ok i like this idea!!!!i might try it since i will be leaving my bunnies in 2 weeks for a good amount of time….well they are my girlfrinds…i just claim them as mine 

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