Bonding

[supierce]

 So six weeks after Rosco’s surgery and he still is a bump on the log.  Sweet as the day is long but just not a much of a personality, unless of course you are feeding him craisins.  That part hasn’t changed.  But there are only so many craisins you can feed him…  So I decided to find him a friend and took him to the rescue for some bunny speed dates.  Felt like we needed a bigger bun because of how big Rosco is.  They had a Flemish mix that we tried first.  No love and a little scuffle.  Tried a lob ear named Cream Puff and don’t let the name fool you, she was pistol and about skinned him.  Then we tried a larger angora and he was more aggressive, which shocked me.  We changed to a different room to change the scents up and brought in a smaller lionhead mix named Chocolata.  When she was brought into rescue, she was in horrible pain and upon surgery they discovered her uterus was inside out.  She has been in rescue for about six months and gets passed over so they haven’t tried bonding her until Saturday.  Rosco wasn’t aggressive to her nor was she to him.  Rosoc just flopped down, spread out and layed there.  She hopped around and even hopped onto his back a couple of times.  We weren’t sure if he was just exhausted from all of his previous dates or not.  So it wasn’t love but wasn’t aggression. We kept them together and kept making the space smaller so they would be closer.  He finally got up and mounted her a couple of times and it scared her a little but still no aggression.  So she didn’t crawl on him any more but still no aggression.  

So we took her out and tried another bunny to see and it was a fight, aggression on both parts.  So we brought Chocolata home and changed her name to Letty Sage.  We put them in the same crate to ride home (stress bonding) and they were fine.  Rosco has free run of our second family room so we sectioned off one part with an expen and left them in the rest of the day on Saturday and I sat out there with them until after midnight.  No fights, he tried to mount her a couple of times but she ran away.  Was worried about him hurting her because he is so big but she is so darn fast that he can’t keep up.  So I left them together and went back out there Sunday morning around 6:30 in the morning and they were laying about 4 inches apart facing each other and grooming themselvs but not each other. They have been out there together since we brought her home.  Still no love but she is getting where she is not afraid and will lay beside him but never grooming him or vice versa.  Rosco is sooo laid back.  He has tried to mount her a little and she will sit there and lay her head down but then she will bolt.  I will let him for about two seconds and then push him off.  I also will not let him chase her which he has done a couple of times but not much at all.  He couldn’t catch her if he tried though.  

They were together all day while I was at work and when I came they were laying out in the middle of the floor but still no grooming.  And let me just say the she is the sweetest thing ever.  She is so loving.  I moved a big bean bag out there so I could sit with them and she will just hop up into my lap, stay a minute and then go explore.  Periscopes all the time.  Rosco does have a little more pep in his step but still just does’t do much. I guess that is just the nature of the Flemish Giant.  

Does anyone have bonded pairs that just tolerate each other but are not neccesarily in love?  I feel like they will come around to grooming each other and really liking each other which I want so badly but will be happy as long as they are not fighting or showing any signs of aggression.

Would love any thoughts…

 

 

[MoveDiagonally]

Leaving two bunnies together when they’re not completely bonded is incredibly risky. They need to be supervised so you can ensure their safety and watch their body language/interaction so you can take appropriate action. The situation at present seems to be two rabbits, not fighting, but not completely bonded. Are they still in the pen together or are they out and about now? Are they currently in Rosco’s territory?

This situation is in a tough place because I don’t think you want to separate them at this point but it’s potentially dangerous to leave them alone. Is there anyone that can watch them while you’re at work? If they’re together overnight I would recommend sleeping in the same room so you can wake up if they fight/chase. It’s really hard to detrimine the level of their current bond when they haven’t been observed the entire time and their behaviors during those times is not accounted for. 

[tanlover14]

I agree with MD. They need to go through an actual bonding period where you can observe their behavior and watch to make sure there isn’t any aggression or fighting while you’re away. Typically we say 24-48 hours in what will be their shared habitat with constant supervision. This ending bonding period gives you a chance to view them in their whole – in case they DO need to work on something in their relationship.

On the other hand, bunnies can have perfectly content but not overly lovey relationships with each other. Although my rabbits are very close I have heard of rabbits who are bonded but rather content with the company rather than being absolutely lovey – grooming, cuddling, ect. Some may show none of these, some may show all of these, and for some it just takes time. The most important part is that you get a grasp of their entire relationship as a whole by doing this long bonding session. Although it’s pretty likely they are bonded – it’s hard for you to tell because you’re not there for an overly extended period of time to actually determine if they are still having dominance battles or not – which will help determine if they are just “content” bunnies or just simply haven’t figured out their pecking order yet. When you observe them for the 24-48 hour bonding session – you can determine if they have just not figured things out by looking for behaviors such as one demanding grooms from the other, humping, chasing, ect.

What you’re doing with the humping and chasing is great though – it allows the dominant bunny to feel the other is being submissive while not letting it go far enough to agitate the other so good job! Sounds like they are doing great overall.

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