Need Suggestions for Bonding

[MissyBunny]

I know that bonding is tricky no matter what. If anyone has any insight for me that would be great. 

 

I have one bunny at home that was rescued from outside, I’ve had her roughly 3 years. She is going to get spayed soon and I have another bunny at my workplace that I am rescuing because she has a previous eye injury (possibly caused by another rabbit attacking her) causing her to lose sight in one eye and may be losing the other as well. Because of this she is unable to be adopted to the public. She will be getting spayed as well.

 

My concerns lie with the fact that neither bunnies have had much experience with other rabbits and have mostly been on their own their whole lives. Because of this I am concerned with how well their bonding could go or if it could end catastrophic. I’m determined to do my best but if anyone has insight on a similar experience any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated.

[Wick & Fable]

I think you can approach the situation similar to any other bonding situation. Basic and foundational information can be found here: https://binkybunny.com/infocategory/bonding/

Whether or not a rabbit has been around other rabbits, I feel, does not really impact the probability of success anymore than the rabbits’ personalities. Patience is key and accumulating positive experiences between the two!

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.

[DanaNM]

Agree with Wick, it’s hard to know how it will go. Also know that it’s very rare for a bond to be completely impossible (about as rare as “love at first sight” bondings). Most are somewhere in between. Getting them spayed is of course the most important first step, and you’re doing that. 🙂

I think it’s best to plan for the worst and hope for the best. So you can start with settling in period where both bunnies just get used to their new homes with no bonding sessions etc (length depends on how relaxed the bunnies are). They can live side by side during this time though. Then follow that up with some “pre-bonding” cage swaps for couple weeks or so (again, depends on how relaxed the buns are about it) to help them get used to each other’s scents. The fact that both bunnies are new to your home will probably be an advantage as you will have more neutral spaces to work with.

Then after that it’s really just about supervising dates in neutral territory, and experimenting with the space if it doesn’t seem to be going well. If they seem to hate each other, then car rides (or other stressing) can be really helpful, in addition to more pre-bonding.

It’s very important to prevent fights, but do not get too discouraged if they try to at first, as most bondings do involve some level of attempted fights and it doesn’t mean things won’t work out.

. . . 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.  

[MissyBunny]

I’m gonna try everything I can but I am worried about the neutral space thing cuz my first bunny is a free roam and I’ve had her this way about 3 years. She has a room to herself and gets supervised access to our living room and basement. The goal is to get both bunnies spayed, bring the other one home and then have them living in the same room. All these spaces my bunny has already lived in.

[Wick & Fable]

In my case where my first rabbit (Wick) was free-roam for 3 years, I used the bathroom as neutral space. It was actually @DanaNM who helped convince me on it, haha. We both now have had several day/week experiences of especially cramped bathrooms because there was a pen set up in it.

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.

[MissyBunny]

My rabbit doesn’t have access to the whole house but she has definitely been in most primary areas. I will have to experiment a little I guess.

[DanaNM]

Yes I know the struggle of a no neutral space well!

Bathrooms seem to be the way to go… even if buns have access to them they typically don’t spend much time there, and they are easy to clean with vinegar to remove any smells. Lots of people end up bonding their bunnies in the bathtub since that’s the only neutral space they’ve got!

You can also try creating a semi-neutral space by disguising an area with a tarp and some blankets. If you have a trusted friend or family member you can see if they will let you use their garage or kitchen for bonding sessions. A little trickier with covid, but I’ve spent many hours in my friend’s garage!

But don’t despair just yet, you can try blocking her access to some prospective areas now, to kind of reserve them for future bonding sessions. Then you can just see how it goes after pre-bonding and go from there.

. . . 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.  

[MissyBunny]

I was thinking of using my bedroom as a temporary housing for both and using a playpen to separate them, and use the bathroom or any other open spaces for bonding sessions. My rabbit lived in my room for about a few months a year ago but hasn’t been there since so I hope that will work for housing till they’re bonded and I can move them to the rabbit room.

[DanaNM]

It might be better to set them up side by side in the rabbit room, and then use the bedroom as a space for bonding sessions, as that sounds pretty neutral?

Your current bun might be annoyed at first, but part of the process will be her getting used to another bun being in “her” turf.

. . . 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.  

[MissyBunny]

I thought of that originally but I was concerned with the idea of leaving them alone since the rabbit room is on a separate floor from my bedroom. Since the rabbit room is already bunny’s territory as she’s lived in there for 3 years. But If that is still considered the best way to go then I will definitely do that.

[DanaNM]

It’s true you would want to be extra certain that they couldn’t get to each other (storage cube grid work really well for making temporary housing/pens… especially the fine mesh ones which can be used as “nose guards” that they can’t nip through). But I’m sure whatever works best for you will be fine. I was just imagining when you eventually get to longer bonding sessions it might be nice to be in your room as you can sleep in your own bed while keeping an ear on them. 😉

. . . 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.  

[Louiethebunny]

With Louie and Lola, they had their initial speed date and got along fine, then bonding starting in one of our bathrooms that was nice and neutral then moving into semi-neutral, slowly expanding their space so they were somewhat forced to be in each other’s presence. Towards the end of securing their bond, I had them free roam in our room together during the night knowing if anything happened I would be right there to act. I think using the bedroom sounds great because you’ll be able to keep your eyes on them, and then by the time they’ve got bonding progress the bunny room will be more aired out and slightly neutralized. I would also recommend neutralizing your bunny’s territory before moving them in together, it really helped Lola and Louie get along better in Louie’s old territory.

[MissyBunny]

Yea thats kinda what I was thinking. Have them live in my room but separated and as the bonding progresses I can remove the gate and let them free roam in my room together.

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