Fig & HoneyBee

[bunnyfriend]

I thought I would document my experience of rebonding a rabbit after losing a bonded rabbit.

Backstory: Wilbur was bonded to another who passed away after 6 years and I chose to find her another rabbit pretty quickly based on her behavior. Figment (male) and Wilbur (female) were an instant bond, on their first date in less than a minute they were laying next to each other, another few minutes and Fig was grooming Wilbur. The adoption counselor allowed me to take Fig home and Wilbur let Fig into her territory immediately. After hours of them just snuggling and grooming I decided not to separate. I did however spend the night next to them and they were never left alone *I do not recommend that others try this method*. They ended up staying together from then on. Fig stood by Wilbur’s side during her passing and spent a good 30 minutes grooming her afterwards. 

Fig’s behavior after Wilbur’s passing has changed dramatically. He spends most of his day laying around rather than going on his explorations around the house. He does not finish his pellets, whereas before he would gobble them up. I realize I am choosing to search for another rabbit for him early on but I believe it’s in his best interest and that bonding goes better if the rabbit is able to say a proper goodbye.

Date #1: I brought Fig to the humane society for a date with a beautiful REW who has been there for 9 months. Fig immediately flopped but the second she caught sight of him she lunged for his face. Fig did not react at all. The adoption counselor pulled her away and then let her approach again but she went after him right away. After the third time the counselor decided to end the date, which was probably 3 minutes long. I left feeling like maybe they didn’t get enough of a chance, but the adoption counselor is very experienced.

Speed dating: Since there were no other bachelorettes deemed eligible by the adoption counselor I was passed on to WHRS. A speed dating session was set up with 3 different bunnies. Dates 2 & 3 were uneventful. Each time the rabbits did not interact with each other at all and were more curious about the room. 

Date #4: This one started off like the others with the exception of one nose bump but the adoption counselor decided after a while that we should make a human barricade since the room was so large. Once we did this I was able to pet them together while they were side by side. Fig asked her to groom him and then she asked him to groom her. Fig gave in after a short period and started grooming her. The counselor was surprised by this and said this normally doesn’t happen. Fig groomed her a bunch of times and he did mount her as well but kept grooming and she tolerated it for a while. She did finally tell him it was enough but let him groom her again.

The next step is do a bonding session at my house with the adoption counselor. If that goes well then she stays with us. Right now she’s named BB (previously she was called BBB which stood for Brown Bunny *insert not nice word here*). Fig is just a very loving rabbit and I believe that he would have tried to bond with the other rabbits if the conditions had been different. 

[Dface]

By the sounds of it, Fig might be a dream bunny thats an easy match to anyone! I really hope that it goes well and the new rabbit takes to him too!
Given your situation the easiest bond my be the best option.
When my girl lost her mate she took hours before I could take him away. Like Fig, she changed so much with the loss-she too didnt want to do anything-sitting in her cage for days not leaving, she lost her appetite(1/3 of her body weight in 2 weeks) and I dont think you have started too soon at all.

Judging from my experience with it, some rabbits dont do well without their own kind, especially when they’ve had a very dependent bond. It took me a while before I could find her a partner (unlike your Fig, she’s a total wagon!)

Good luck with the second date!

[Gina.Jenny]

Fingers crossed all goes well.

Pippi, our only non-rescue, is also one of these buns who would get on with nearly any bun. We had just taken on a feral girl (Jenny) two years ago, when Pippi’s bonded bunfriend had to be pts, and he just accepted Jenny, who is well and truly the boss in that pair. I put him with her the same day we lost Rusty, it was pretty much an instant bond.

[Luna]

I hope the bonding session at the house goes well! I think you’re doing the right thing for Fig; it’s not too early to get him a friend based on his reaction.

[DanaNM]

Awww Fig sounds lovely, what a sweet heart. Wishing you an smooth bonding process!

It’s hard to get a sense of from your post, but do you like BB? How did she end up with that name?   If you really don’t like her, you might request a second date with one of the others, but with the same set-up that worked for BB.  It can be harder for you than Fig to re-bond soon after a loss, and if you don’t like the bunny you might have a harder time bonding with them. 

If Fig has an obvious preference for BB, then easiest go with her, but it sounds like he may just love most other bunnies, so you might be able to be a bit more selective. 

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[bunnyfriend]

Hi all! Sorry for the gap, I took my 3 year old on a 5 day backpacking trip! In the mix of all of that I’ve also been waiting to coordinate a day for the home visit, BB’s foster mom is also the chapter manager and is understandably very busy. This afternoon BB is coming home! As long as the date goes well the adoption will be finalized.

Gina.Jenny: I’m glad to hear another bond went so smoothly after a loss.

Thank you all for the good luck wishes! I will update on how this afternoon goes!

[bunnyfriend]

Posted By DanaNM on 7/28/2017 12:57 AM 

It’s hard to get a sense of from your post, but do you like BB? How did she end up with that name?   

Sorry that I didn’t make it clear I’m keen on BB! I will get more of her backstory today (it was hard keeping tracking of 3 different bunny backstories) but whichever rescue had her before the Wisconsin House Rabbit Society gave her that name because she is a tad shy and has some cage aggression. I suppose they thought it was funny but I don’t like it. The cage aggression I am told is getting better and was not enough to exclude her from a household with a small child (I have a 3 year old). I liked all of the rabbits Fig went on dates with, I wanted to take them all home  and I felt guilty about the ones that didn’t make the cut. I purposely had Wilbur go on a date with Fig first because his age made him more difficult to adopt out, I like choosing the ones that have either been there the longest or may be “undesirable” to some. 

I’m planning on renaming “BB” because I’m not a fan of the name and I like giving an adopted bunny a new name, which in my mind symbolizes a fresh start! It will probably be a few days of getting to know her before she tells me what her name is supposed to be. 

[DanaNM]

Awww, well that’s great! Rabbits have a tough go of in in shelters…. I never expect rabbits to behave as they would normally in a shelter, it’s such a stressful environment! And I do think that names have a way of perpetuating habits or behaviors, because then everyone probably treated her like a B….. 

Once you get to know her, I’m sure you come up with a great name. Moose came to me from the shelter with the name “Creed”….. what the heck kinda name is that for a bunny?! 

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[bunnyfriend]

So date #2 went pretty well! At first Fig mounted “BB” a few times, then they had a grooming face off for a bit, both requesting that the other groom them. “BB” finally gave in which was different from the first date where Fig was mostly the groomer. She ended up grooming him quite a bit. I kept the grooming session going for a couple hours, eventually putting in a litter box and feeding them. Things kept going smoothly but as the night went on “BB” became a little territorial, mostly towards me, and I separated them before going to bed. 

[DanaNM]

Oh that’s wonderful!!! You must be the bonding whisperer! And Fig must be the most charming rabbit in the world! 

Grooming on the first and second date…. wow!  

They look lovely together, and how nice for B to move up from being named such a mean name to having a loving home and companionship. 

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[bunnyfriend]

Things have gone down hill quite a bit. “BB” is settling in and getting more territorial in her own space. Yesterday morning they had a session which pretty much right away the started fighting and nipping. I think “BB” was doing most of the nipping and Fig was probably trying to mount her. I have them a break all day and tried again this morning but after a few minutes the scuffles started again. They were in a completely new area of the house in a x-pen. All I had was a towel on the ground. I’m going to give them another break (not sure how long it should be) and then maybe try them in the bathtub or take them for a care ride. I’m at a loss for what suddenly changed.

Edit: I realize nipping doesn’t always mean aggression. After doing more reading I realized the term for what I was seeing is a “bunny tornado.” Fig had a chunk of fur coming out after on his face. 

[DanaNM]

Oh goodness, it seems like with bonding it’s often two steps forward one step back. Sometimes moving to a new area sets things off, and they need to re-establish things. So, probably just moved things a bit too fast. Females often end up being dominant in couples, so she is prob just making sure Fig is going to let that happen, and may feel even more uneasy due to her new home. 

I would let her settle in for at least a week with no sessions, then do some pre-bonding for at least two weeks. 

Things may very well be more settled the next time, but I would opt for a large, stressful space (so, a large pen with the vacuum?). 

I also noticed in your photos you had a litter box and towel. Buns can get territorial over litter boxes, even new ones, so I would remove it until they are getting along and doing long sessions. You also might remove the towel, so they are on slippery ground and have a harder time chasing. 

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[bunnyfriend]

I’m a little concerned because the first “bad” session happened in the same area that the good session happened in. The pictures are from the first bonding session but in the negative sessions the only thing they’ve had in the x-pen is a clean towel. I can try without a towel too and see how that goes!

I’m going to try your suggestion of a larger space and waiting for a couple weeks. Thanks!!

I’ve also contacted the adoption counselor/BB’s foster mom to see if she has any input. In the meantime I’m going to continue working on BB to try hopefully help her reduce some of the aggressive behavior.

[DanaNM]

Ah, I see! It really could be that she wasn’t territorial at first, because it was brand new, but now she is settling in, as you said, and feeling more defensive. It’s weird how things develop. Bertha and Moose’s first date, she let him mount her a ton (she had been very stressed from the car ride to go meet him), but after that, it was NOT tolerated, so it took him a while to accept that and submit to her. I think first dates are a good indication of whether it will work or not, but you never know how the in-between dates will go as their sort out their dominance and build trust with each other. 

But, counter-intuitively, settling in more + pre-bonding should help. 

It sounds like Fig will likely accept her as dominant, so once she realizes that, she will likely settle down. 

And yes, all too familiar with the bunny tornado! It can be terrifying. I like to have oven mitts on my hands and the vacuum on stand-by for early dates when things can get tense. 

You can also try the “smoosh” technique to start dates, where you pet them both side by side, literally smooshed together. Also, if they go nose-to-nose asking for grooms, but it looks like neither is going to do it, you can start petting them both and swapping scents. It’s all about building trust. I try not to do this too much after it is clear they aren’t going to fight, but I did this with Moose and Bertha in the first week or so, and I think it helped them be more calm around each other.  This is all after pre-bonding, etc.   

Bertha and Moose were my third bonding experience, and I really learned with them not to rush things, as it made it less stressful for everyone. 

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[bunnyfriend]

Quick update! Fig and HoneyBee were given an over 2 week break. I am happy to say that after starting bonding sessions again a couple days ago this pair has been grooming and laying side by side. I’m letting them run around most of the house together and they have been returning to Fig’s area. I’m going to officially move them into together permanently sometime in the next few days. I will update with pictures soon and quick recaps of the recent bonding sessions!

[DanaNM]

awww that’s great news!

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

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