Bonding with other pets?

[Malp_15]

I just got a baby bun (Netherland Dwarf/Dutch) and he is doing great and I am completely in love I have two dogs and a cat as well. I’m not concerned about how my dogs will interact with the bunny, but I would like my cat to as well. She is 13 and was a queen hunter in her day. I was just wondering if anyone has any experience with hard to bond cats and buns? Or any advice on how to do it?

I would greatly appreciate it

[LoveChaCha]

Rabbits will not 100% bond with a cat or dog. They will co-exist and may play with each other. But based on the personality of some animals, they will need to be supervised all the time.

[littlemissflip]

My cats mostly ignore my bunny. Our girl-cat used to groom our previous bunny (cutest thing EVER), but then one day she just got tired of him and wouldn’t groom him anymore. Poor rejected bunny…

Our boy-cat has always been afraid of the bunnies, so he stays faaaar away from them. Every once in awhile the bunny and cats will play a chase game (we call it Predator & Prey… though the cats aren’t always the prey!).

And occasionally our cats will bop the bunny on the head (bat-bat-bat), but never with claws extended.

So… yeah… I don’t know about bonding, but they all coexist peacefully and humorously in our house

[BinkyBunny]

Our cat doesn’t bother our bunnies but I don’t trust him unsupervised as he gets excited if he sees a bunny run. It kicks in his “hunter” instinct I think. In all these years, nothing has happened, but my own instincts tell me that with THIS cat, I have to supervise.

I have seen other peoples cats though have no problem with snuggling up with a bunny. There was even a cat that used to wander around the House Rabbit Society’s headquarters. Of course, because people were there, he was supervised, but he had no intention to harm a bunny. So it really is about the individual personality of the pet.   And at SaveABunny, there was this incredible dog (he has passed) that wouldn’t hurt a fly and was so gentle at the shelter amongst all the bunnies.

I also agree that it would be difficult for a bunny to really bond with other pets like they do with each other only because body language is different for all three types of pets. It’s hard for them to communicate and get what they want from each other when their own “animal cultures of hierarchies and expectations” are so different.

 

But for some co-existing advice check out this articles put out by the House Rabbit Society: 

http://www.rabbit.org/journal/1/dogs.html

http://www.rabbit.org/journal/2-11/…bbits.html

[KatnipCrzy]

My cats ignore the bunnies and do not care to really interact with the much- they would avoid the bunnies as opposed to seek out interaction- but they are all low-prey drive indoor only cats.

A bunny and rabbit will most likely not bond but can co-habitate.  Rabbit communication is different than bunny communication.  My first bunny I got was young and I had a 7 month old kitten at the time.  They snuggled and did great at first- but once Cotton’s bunny instincts started to kick in- the cuddling ended.  Cotton thought a nap/cuddle session was the perfect time to solicit some nose grooming from the kitten, Pixel.  Pixel thought the bunny was just snuggling in tighter for a nice nap.  When Pixel did not groom as Cotton thought she was clearly requesting she would nip Pixel- often in the belly.  Pixel soon learned that Cotton was not a nice napping and snuggling partner and did not have much use for her after that.

[Monkeybun]

I do have to ask: why are you not concerned about the dogs?

I know alot of dogs are gentle, non predator-ish, but at the same time.. they like to play, and can hurt a bunny unintentionally. Or scare one badly.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

OMG Katnip-SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEE
Sorry-had to get that out!

Malp_15. I ditto all. They won’t bond as two bunnies will bond but can cohabitate. As both dogs and cats are predators and speak a different language then bunnies-you should be somewhat concerned with both; and always supervise. Unless said dog or cat is toothless, clawless and in a wheelchair-there is some risk
As well-even with a fantastic dog-the rabbit can get frightened. So you must always supervise and consider bunnies mood too.

Now for introductions to the cat-I would keep them short, hold bunny so you can protect bunny-and have a friend assist in case kitty becomes unmanageable. Let her see, progress to sniffing and progress as you feel each of them are handling the introductions.

[Bren]

well I can’t speak for others, however, my experience has been very positive with bonding with the other animals. I started out with a large rabbit breed on my first one because I have a dog and two cats who also hunt outside. I wanted them to not always view the bun as Meat…lol

I have posted in the forum before pics of my Nilly sleeping and laying with my black cat. (spooky) spooky and Nilly are bonded and no, I have no worries. i have another cat that is the MAIN hunter of the cats and again, she is fine with the buns too. But keep in mind, my rabbits are larger, 7 and 11 lbs.  My dog loves them and plays. the only thing I have to look out for is that my buns are a bit daring to check out what my dog has in her food bowl so I now know that i have to feed the buns first and they are way too occupied to see what the dog has. And I know the dog REALLY appreciates this! lol.

I have no issues. my one bun has full reighn of our kitchen area and is never caged any longer. She and the animals get along with no issues.  She minds if the cats dont want to play and if the dog ever growled at her, she knows….I think it is like any other animal, they need to find their “place” within the clan of the “family” to know exactly what is expected and tolerated. I have had Nilly going on two years and the new bun, Hickory for just a litttle over a month, and they are not completely bonded yet…..I think it will be a lengthy process. Nilly is a WEE BIT territorial! haha.

[Florida_Bunnies]

With the cat I’m not sure I can help you there. We have a foster kitty in our house at the moment, but he has to be kept separate from the bunnies because he exhibits predatory behavior.

 

But when it comes to dogs I have good news! We have two chihuahuas who absolutely get along with our bunnies. My older dog Sissy is like a mommy to the buns, she snuggles/cuddles and even grooms them. It’s funny they don’t play with the buns. The buns are mischevious and TRY to get the dogs to play but they just ignore the buns. I just love to watch them lick each other though, it’s so cute. When we first got our buns I was worried but after slowly introducing and a lot of supervision I’m happy to report that we have never ever had a problem with aggression.

[Malp_15]

I think I worded my post wrong I didn’t mean like bunny to bunny bonding, I meant more co-habitation.

I’m currently in my room with bun and dogs loose together. My one dog just ignores the bun and my other one gets excited when he runs, but I make him sit or surrender to the bun. By me saying that I’m not worried about the dogs, is that they are friendly and obedient. I would never leave them unsupervised with the bun.

My cat still likes to stalk him when he is in his cage so that relationship will take some time, but oh well. Otherwise when I am in the room, she knows better

[Malp_15]

Oh and my old black bear hamster used to borrow into my shih tzu’s fur and they would nap like that on the couch before the hamster had a stroke

[bayourouge]

I’m glad I found this thread. Our bun is just turning 7wks now. We got him last wknd and he plays everyday with our 3yr old toy poodle. And when I say play, I mean chasing, grooming and, last night, about 4 or 5 big binkies! The dog loves having somebody new to play with bc she’s friends with every animal she meets. This looks really positive so far.

[LoveChaCha]

Hi bayourogue,

Sometimes, a rabbit will do a defensive binky when the bunny is angry. It is kind to distinguish that with a regular happy binky at times. Make sure they are always supervised as anything could happen.

[bayourouge]

That’s good to know. Thanks. They’re never ever alone but I’ll keep an extra close eye.

[Coco and Louis]

Do you have dogs? I have an old schnauzer and when we first got the bunny she was in my hands and rocky (the dog) was jumping all over me and tried to lick her, it freaked me out and I tried getting him to sit down and stop but he would not listen to me and I have never seen him that hyper before. For that reason I keep them completely seperate from each other because I do not know if my dog wants to eat my bunny or not

[KatnipCrzy]

Malp-15 If you cat is showing predatory stalking behavior toward the bunny then the cat will never be considered completely safe with the bunny as anything could trigger that response in the future. And bunnies can be feisty when they get territorial and hormonal- so it is possible for the bunny to look to start a fight with the cat if the cat gets too close.

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