Bonded, but affectionate

[Quirkily]

Hey buns!,

I have two rabbits; Honeydew and Cantaloupe.  They’ve been bonded since late June / Early July and get along just fine, but they aren’t too affectionate towards each other.  Honeydew has never lived with another rabbit (that I know of, he WAS a rescue, so I don’t know a whole lot about his early life) and I think he might be a bit socially awkward?  Cantaloupe seems like she wants to be affectionate with Honeydew, but is a little intimidated or something (Honeydew was very aggressive during their first interactions).  I’ve put some fruit juice on their heads and Canta licked it off Honeydew,but he lick it off of her.

They will lay next to each other, but that’s as affectionate as they seem to get.  Canta will present her head to Honeydew sometimes, but he doesn’t even acknowledge her.  Should I put juice / fruit on their heads daily to see if I can initiate grooming or do you think I should just accept the fact that they’re not affectionate with each other?

[RavenFluffOz]

I brought Raven (female) home about 6 months after Fluffy (male). They are about the same age, both came from the humane league and were neutered when they came home. It took me about 2 months to bond them. I’ve had them about 3 years. They love to sit right up against each other and love each other dearly, but to this day, Raven will absolutely not groom Fluffy. Fluffy is very affectionate and grooms Raven all the time. But as hard as he tries, puts his head right under her, she will not return. So I think it might just be the personality of your rabbits.

[LittlePuffyTail]

A lot of bunnies that are bonded are like ga-ga in love with each other but some couples are less affectionate. More like good friends. I would just accept them for who they are and not worry about it. I have 2 bunnies that are unbondable due to my girl being so aggressive. So just enjoy them

[vanessa]

I have 2 pairs. With 1 pair, Guin is super cuddly and gaga in love and totally crazily smitten with Lancelot. He melts at her affection, but doesn’t approach her for snuggles. She approaches him. But they do spend a lot of time together very snuggly – although it is always she who initiates it. He is deaf. My other pair are the opposite. He is smitten and demands attention regularly, while she is more aloof. Although they do spend a good amount of time lying next to eachother, he is clearly the snuggly one, and she is the aloof one. Barely even allows me to pet her. Both pairs are happily bonded, and they work well as “couples”. So yes – some are snuggly, others not. But they still manage to love eachother.

[Author]

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