Bonding Plan – Helo & Inara, need advice.

[MoveDiagonally]

1. Should I bond Helo and Inara as a pair and then try to bond pair/trio?

OR

2. Should I stick with the adding one new bunny at a time until I get them all bonded?

OR

3. Should I leave Helo and Inara unbonded and still try to bond all 5 at once?

The reason I’m thinking about doing more rabbits as opposed to one at a time is I’ve been reading a bit about how more bunnies involved can actually make bonding a bit easier. I know people have bonded trios with 3 unbonded rabbits. 

Does anyone have any pros/cons, ideas, opinions? Really, even a comment like, “Don’t be a crazy person and re-invent the wheel. Just do what you know works.” would be helpful. Lol. 

[Julezypie]

I know my opinion doesn’t carry very much, considering i just added a second bunny yesterday who won’t be bonded for a couple of months, but if I were in your position, I would try to do them all at once. Good luck with whatever you decide! And keep us updated!

[kcomstoc]

OMG I’m so excited lol I would do them all at once for long hours this way they don’t have to keep adjusting themselves when a new bunny is introduced (like 1 at a time) just my opinion but I could be completely wrong because I’ve never bonded before. I’m waiting for tanlover to comment

[MoveDiagonally]

Thanks you two! I will definitely be doing another bonding thread when I move forward.

Right now I’m leaning towards adding both (not bonded to each other) into the trio at the same time. If it goes poorly and I don’t think it can work I can always try to add them one at a time. Where as, if I bond Helo and Inara ahead of time I wouldn’t have any option but to add them together.

[kcomstoc]

Good point

[LittlePuffyTail]

I’ve never tried to bond more than 2 buns. I’ve heard that as well about the more buns, the easier it is, but I would be terrified to have that many unbonded buns together at once. Too many buns to try to separate in case of a fight.

I would probably start off doing dates between the bonded pair and other bunnies, one at a time. Get a feel as to how they will react and go from there.

[Sarita]

I think I would put them all together and see what happens – the dynamic will be different than just 2 single rabbits – I think it would be much more difficult for ganging up on one rabbit if you put 2 in the mix. Also might create some confusion in a good way.

I’ll be interested to hear what you try and what works.

[Deleted User]

Just from personal experience it is hard to try to deal with three unbonded buns all at once. It maybe easier to bond two buns together then add the third last. You’ll learn more about two of your buns’ bonding habits and body language. Learning the buns body language will definitely help with keeping fights down.

This is totally random but how did you come up with Helo and Inara’s names? Did you get the names from Firefly and Battlestar Galactica or am I just crazy? =p

[MoveDiagonally]

Everyone is making really awesome points. I share the concern of having so many unbonded rabbits together. I’ll probably try it with both with the trio, each separately with the trio, and pairs just to get a feel for everything and everybun and move forward from there. I have two people bonding, my husband and I, and could enlist our roommate for another set of hands to break up possible fights.

Skipper’s Mama- I already have a bonded trio (Monty, Dexter, and Penny) and I have two more currently single rabbits to add (Helo & Inara) to the mix making a bonded quintet (5). For my trio, I started with a bonded pair and then added the third. I’m pretty comfortable identifying Monty, Dexter, and Penny’s body language during bonding while Helo and Inara will be a bit of wild cards.

You’re right about their names! They’re from BSG and Firefly.

[tanlover14]

I would suggest doing the whole group at one time. Every time I’ve added a new bunny the dynamics have shifted, buns get frustrated from the new addition, and with a larger group there’s more of a chance they will find a friend and go off rather than everyone targeting the one new bunny like they did when I was bonding newbies into my group.

If you try a few dates with everybun and they don’t go well, you can attempt pairs and then adding them in. From what I’ve read (while doing research on adding in Simba and Nora) it seems much more difficult to bond pairs and groups together than to just throw them all together and try it out. Idk if that makes any sense. But it seemed people have had less luck bonding pairs to pairs and pairs to trios (when the buns already have a “best bud”). Idk, just something I thought about when attempting to add my newbies. Granted, that’s just an observation from the articles I personally read.

[tanlover14]

This may also sound funny but it’s always been easier to get my groups to stop fighting than it is when there’s only two. When it’s a huge group, you can usually do a loud noise and mine have always stopped as they are all just chasing and attacking but no particular bun as they get so riled up they go after everyone. When two of mine have fought they seem to be more focused on each other and more set on hurting the other one.

[Deleted User]

Move Diagonally you are a Brave Woman! Sounds as though you’ll be taking on quite the challenge.

Not that I have any experience with bonding rabbits, but from years of observing animals (and people) to me Tanlover has summarize the key points the best. If you put everyone together they can work out the new “pecking order”, and learn to settle into it. Seems to me if you have one pair, and one trio you are more likely to have the already bonded rabbits drawing close together against the “outside threat”. Easier to socialize with single rabbits, … hope that makes sense, hard to express!

Best of luck whatever you decide and I do look forward to following your new thread when you start it. Hopefully my internet will stay with me and I won’t have to read it all in one shot at the end this time!

[Deleted User]

Thanks for the clarification. I’ve been popping in and out of the site and I didn’t realize you had Monty bonded to Penny and Dexter. I thought you were trying to bond Monty, Helo, and Inara all together.

You seem to have a good game plan and you have the awesome input and advice of the bonding queen TL. =p So I think you’ll do fine. Especially since you already know Monty, Penny, and Dexter’s body language. It’s always hard to try to bond buns when you’re not tuned into their body language.

Haha. I wasn’t sure were you got the names from. I’d never really thought about it until I came across the post and was in the middle of rewatching BSG when it hit me. I was like, “Heyyyyy. I wonder”. =p So I had to ask. (Sorry I’m a total sci-fi person.)

[tanlover14]

Seems I’ve become quite the legend on bonding around here… Hahaha!

I could get used to all this fame. My ego will become as big as my bunnehs.

[kcomstoc]

Tanlover- LOL

Move- When does the epic bonding start?

[MoveDiagonally]

Thanks TL! I hope the group sessions work out because I’d rather them figure out their hierarchy one more time than have to do it twice.

Kcom – Spay/neuter + 1 month will put bonding in the last half of next month, so there’s still some time.

GD – Haha, bonding gets less intimidating the more you do it I think. I know that the next bonding I do, I will be much more aggressive about putting them together for longer, quicker. My biggest issue with bonding the trio was them getting stagnant in their relationship and I think it would have taken less time if I had pushed them forward during those stagnant times a little bit quicker.

Skipper’s Mama – I love BSG! Helo and Athena are two of my favorite characters on the show. I wanted to use the names for both bunnies but my husband has his heart set on Firefly names. We compromised and each named one. I’m love sci fi as well!

[kcomstoc]

can’t wait by then I’ll be settled in to my new apartment and trying to keep Caleb from marking up the carpet lol that’s going to be a hard one (any advice for this private message me lol I could use all the help I can get) we move the first day in August

[hannaroo]

I agree with TL, go all out there good luck with your next bonding sessions! Hope they go smoothly!

[tanlover14]

MD – it TOTALLY gets less intimidating the more you do it! I so SOOOO agree. With Nora, it was my third time and I just kind of threw her in there and let them go at it, Hahahahhaha! With Nora I wasn’t even nervous anymore. Just wanted it to hurry up! Which is stupid because it only took a week… but really! Once you figure them and their behaviors out – it’s soooo boring!

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