Bonding questions!!

[Keri]

Hello!
I have been working on getting my bunnies bonded for a few days now. They were doing great in the neutral territory. They were snuggling and one was grooming the other. I have moved them to the place they will eventually live and stopped doing so well. They tolerate eachother but one of them will start chancing the other when she gets near. The aggressor looks relaxed other than that. He is grooming himself, eating, and laying down! Just every once in a while she gets too close and he’ll do a 2 second chase then be done. Should I continue to bond in the non neutral territory or should I go back to the first area. Any tips would be greatly appreciated

[Bunny House]

Hi!
did you do pre-bonding before you did actual bonding? You can always go back to the first step of the actual bonding and when they relax near each other then move to the next step, if they keep chasing then stay at that step until they calm down.

Has one of the buns mounted the other to establish dominance?

Bunnies are just like humans and can have good and bad days, Maybe he is just really annoyed that day and wants to be alone but I suggest going back to square one and working back up, it never hurts

[sarahthegemini]

Sometimes with bonding, it’s one step forward and two steps back. Don’t be afraid to go back a step. That’s perfectly normal and is no indication that things won’t work out

How often are the chases and how long have they been in their permanent surroundings? A little chase here and there can be okay, but it depends on whether or not it escalates and how often it occurs. For example, my boy chases my female sometimes when he’s excitedly waiting for pellets. He’s been doing it since December. My female just moves out the way lol.

If they were doing well in the previous area, I would go back to that for a little longer.

When you moved them from neutral to permanent area, how did you do it? Did you thoroughly clean it to remove scents and rearrange things so it looks unfamiliar to both? If not, definitely do that before moving them to that area again. You might have already tried this but another thing to consider is starting off in a penned area of their permanent surroundings and gradually increasing over the space of a couple of weeks.

So, go back to neutral. Build up trust and make sure both buns are relaxed in one another’s company. Before moving, make sure they are both enjoying each other rather than just being in the same space. Thoroughly remove scents and rearrange what will be the permanent housing. Move them to that space when you think they are ready, but start off with small space and expand.

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