How soon should matchmaking begin?

[roscoe]

Hello and thanks for your advice.

I have a deeply loving bonded pair of rabbits from the same litter. They are 5 years-old and have never been separated for more than a few hours. Our darling boy bunny suffers a non-contagious illness that is finally taking his life, after a year of fighting. We are laying him to rest this week. Our little family is heartbroken to lose him. We know it will be hardest on his sister.

Our vet is doing an in-home euthanasia. We plan to leave sis alone with the body for a few hours so she understands what has happened.

But we’re worried about sis and would like to find her a new friend soon. I’ve made some preliminary contacts with shelters in my area and I’ve been reading forums on bonding. I’m uncertain about when we should start “dating sessions”. My impression is that it should be very fast–like a day or two. But I don’t want to create more stress by rushing her.

Are there signs we can look for in her behavior? Is a couple of days too soon?

Any information this community has would be helpful.

Thanks. 

[Sarita]

Oh, I’m so sorry about your sweet rabbit.

I really believe it does depend on your rabbit and any signs of loneliness. A couple of days is not too soon. It’s true that many rabbits can get depressed and honestly I’ve had 3 pairs who have lost their mates and they have done fine but adopting a friend for your bunny is the best idea.

[Author]

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