Introducing new bunny to dogs

[Lindsey12]

Hello everyone,
I’m going to be a brand new bunny owner soon and am nervous about introducing my dogs to the bunny. I am rescuing a male Holland lop who is about a year old the people at the rescue think. I have 4 dogs, none of whom are prey drivin they have peacefully coexsisted with cats and chickens. I’m mostly worried about introducing him to our Great Dane as he is obviously a very large dog with a very deep bark who gets very excited with new things. I’m nervous as to how the bunny will react to such a large excitable creature. Right now the bunny lives with about 25 free roaming cats at the rescue which he has no issue with at all. I’m looking for advice on how to ease the bunny into a brand new environment with dogs he’s never met. Also I would like to add he was rescued by an older lady who found him in her backyard cornered by her rotwiller but he was unharmed. The lady at the rescue advised me to take it slow. I will be picking him up from the vet after his neuter to bring home. How can I make this transition as easy for the bunny. I don’t want him to feel scared and unsafe in his new home. I am aware this could possibly take months everyone to live happily together. But I am most worried about first introductions. Thank you all in advance for your advice.

[Hazel]

Welcome! Thanks for rescuing this little guy. 

I wouldn’t do face to face introductions for a while. He’ll be in a completely new environment, right after having surgery. And who knows what happened before the rescue got him. I would give him a few weeks to heal from his neuter and to settle in and start to feel safe in his new home. Rabbits often go through a “post neuter craze”, after being fixed their hormones go wild for about a month and then balance out. During this time, he might act more aggressive/territorial and show other hormonal behaviors. This is mostly a concern for people who are planning to bond a pair of rabbits, but even in this situation I think it would be best to wait, so he’s as calm as possible before being introduced to a pack of dogs. Waiting for a few weeks will also give the dogs some time to get used to his scent and hopefully they won’t be as excited when they finally get to be closer to him. What will his setup look like in your house? Will he be in a room that can be closed off so the dogs can’t get in? Eventually, a baby gate might be a good idea (as long as the dogs can’t get past it), that way they can see and hear him, but can’t get close enough to bother him. When you’re ready for face to face meetings, I would do it with one dog at a time, on leash, with the bunny in his cage. Keep the dog calm, correct any undesirable behavior like barking or trying to pounce. If the dog can’t stay calm at a certain distance to the bun, take a step back until he calms down. It will take time, just keep doing short sessions. And make sure the dogs are worn out before meeting the bun, a tired dog is a good dog. 

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