Forever Alone?

[Lola92]

Hello!

I made an account to tell you the story of my bunny.

I have ALWAYS wanted a bunny and finally, when I got a new bigger apartment, I was ready.
I got Lola when she was 3 months old. She immediately licked my hand when I tried to pet her and that’s when I knew she was the one for me. I took her home. She is a free-roaming bunny and has everything a rabbit heart desires. Except for a friend …

I got her a male friend. I adopted him, but he just newly got neutered, so I seperated them. They were able to sniff each other through the baby grit I installed to seperate my apartment in half. But when I put them together, Lola was so scared. I had never seen her scared. She’s not the type. She’s very adventurous and curious. But she was scared of the male bunny. I tried and tried and tried. But I could see the fear in her eyes.

Finally, I talked to my vet. She said it doesn’t seem that they will get along and maybe I need to try another bunny. So I did. 

I had Lola spayed when I got her a female baby friend. First, she chased the baby around for hours on end. I was watching them carefully. But then I left for 3 minutes to go to the toilet and when I came back, the baby had a HUGE (7 cm) wound going from her back leg to the belly. Lola ripped off her skin. I could see the flesh. I rushed to the emergency with the baby and they fixed her, thank God. 

They suggested me to keep the baby in a big cage so they could slowly get to know each other. So I did. For a month or so, they lived next to each other. Lola, free-roaming. The baby, in her cage. Lola occassionally bit her through the bars when the baby got too close … 

One day I was cleaning the cage when Lola jumped right in (which she had never even tried before) and bit the baby again, ripping off her skin AGAIN. So, back to the emergency. After that I gave the baby away, disappointed and sad that Lola might be forever alone.

Lola is very affectionate. She hops onto my bed for cuddles and all that. She is super sweet. With me, at least. But what she did to that baby bunny was so cruel and heart-breaking. Now Lola is all alone. I can tell that she is bored and I hate to see her like that. I want her to be happy and full of joy. 

I don’t know what to do … I don’t want her to be alone forever but I also don’t want to get another bunny just to have the same awful result and end up giving them away. What should I do?

[Wick & Fable]

Hello! To begin, I think it’s wonderful that you’re trying your best to give Lola the best life, which may include having a rabbit friend. I will highlight that, while having a rabbit friend is generally preferable, there are rabbits, like my Wick, who’d I’d like to believe has a wonderful life with just us two as a dynamite duo. Not all human schedules can accommodate though.

Lola isn’t used to having another rabbit around, which is why I would think both her AND the other rabbit being fixed is important. The presence of an unfixed rabbit can drive up hormonal behaviors in fixed rabbits, so this may explain the surge of aggression Lola has towards an unfixed baby. That being said, I would recommend the most common steps to bonding, which is complete separation until both rabbits are fixed and recovered. No dates or interactions. This includes sharing a wall, as you have explained this has harmed the relationship (biting when too close).

Following that, it sounds like prebonding is a fundamental step Lola may benefit from. Prebonding is done prior to the rabbits meeting in any sense and can last anywhere from two weeks to a couple months. Prebonding involves swapping litter boxes and blankets/possessions, and this allows the rabbits to get accustomed to the other rabbit’s scent. This may minimize initial fears and/or aggression.

What are your thoughts on this?

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.

[Asriel and Bombur]

I don’t understand why you’d let her chase the baby around for hours on end, and why you’d leave them unsupervised even for a second when that was happening. Baby bunnies can scare very easily, and to be honest she’s probably traumatized from that. As Wick said, both girls need to be fixed. You can’t bond unfixed bunnies. Females are very aggressive and territorial of their space when another bunny enters it. Which is why they both need to be spayed.

If you get another bunny, you need to get them both fixed. It’s not a matter of she doesn’t play well with them. She’s not fixed, and that’s causing all the problems. If you do get another bunny, keep them completely separate until you are ready to start bonding sessions. Not even a quick face to face when you bring the new one home. And as Lola has shown she is aggressive over her space, keep a new bunny in a room away from Lola. This will help her settle in. When both have been fixed and you start prebonding, THEN you can move the cages next to each other. You also need neutral territory to bond, and if Lola is free roam, you need to block access off to some room and clean it. She can’t think every space is hers, or she will continue to act aggressively, even when spayed.

She’s not forever alone But ya gotta do things properly to ensure both buns are happy and healthy, and that you don’t go crazy  

[LittlePuffyTail]

She says Lola is already fixed.

I had Lola spayed when I got her a female baby friend.

[DanaNM]

I agree with what’s been said so far, and I just want to emphasize the importance of neutral territory when introducing rabbits, as I think this is THE most important part of bonding successfully.

It is very likely that your experiences so far have been negative because all of these interactions happened within Lola’s territory. Imagine if a stranger showed up in your home, and was like “I live here now!”. You might be afraid, or at the very least, very annoyed! But, when you meet someone out in the world, your initial reaction is not to run away or fight them.

Pre-bonding is important in situations like this, but it is crucial that they are not able to get into each other’s areas during this time, and not able to nip each other through the bars.

So, if you choose to try again, make sure you have a neutral space planned for bonding sessions. This is ideally someplace that is not even within smell of Lola’s area, but definitely not an area she has been or can see from her main space. Could be the bathroom, a pen set up in a garage or backyard, your car, or even a friend’s house.

It is also very very important that you do not let rabbits fight in bonding sessions. This means breaking up chasing before it leads to that. When one or both rabbits is very scared, petting both when they approach each other can work wonders in this situation.

From what you described, I don’t think Lola is necessarily anti-social. I think her negative experiences are due to one of the bunnies not being spayed/neutered in each situation, and likely mostly due to the space used for their interactions.

. . . 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.  

[Q8bunny]

In addition to everything above, I want to emphasize that some buns prefer to be and often end up lifelong solo buns.

My bunny is one such case. He spent the first few months of his life completely alone in a hutch, and never learned to socialize with other bunnies. He has no clue how to properly communicate with them. I used to foster shelter buns, and attempted excruciatingly slow bonds a number of times. No luck. To this day, he mistrusts and dislikes other rabbits. Loves people though. Even strangers.

So keep in mind that as long as your bun is getting sufficient affection and attention (time) daily from you, it may just be good enough for her to be a happy and well adjusted bun.

[LittlePuffyTail]

Same as Q8 with my Olivia. She was terrified of other bunnies. Some bunnies are happier solo.

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