Newly bonded bunny died. Help.

[Irina]

Tofu and Butterscotch were recently bonded and were living together for a little over two weeks. This morning Tofu was lethargic and would not walk, eat or drink. Without getting into the upsetting details, Tofu just died. I am now wondering what effect this will have on Butterscotch. They were cuddly and floppy together. Is there anything g I should watch for? Anything I can do to help him? I have Shadow, my girl who was spayed 5 days ago, and was going to get all three together in 3 weeks or so. Is that still a good idea? Should I wait longer, or do it sooner? For those who don’t know, Shadow and Butterscotch are litter mates. Prior to Butterscotch’s neuter 5 weeks ago, Shadow and Butterscotch shared a pen (I thought they were both girls). There has never been any aggression between them. Their pens are adjoining now, and there are no issues. I guess I feel bad for Butterscotch being alone now. Would bonding them sooner be better or worse for him. I am completely out of my element here and have no idea what the best thing to do is. Any advice would be helpful.

Move Diagonally- you were involved with my boys bonding, do you have any suggestions? (I don’t know if I am allowed to ask a specific person for their advice… If not, let me know and I will not do it again).

Thanks in advance.

[MoveDiagonally]

I’m so very sorry for your loss, Irina. It really breaks my heart to hear this.

I have not had to deal with a bond mate passing away and I don’t have any experience in this. Here’s an older thread where BB gives some really in depth advice on helping a bond mate grieve based on her personal experience:

https://binkybunny.com/FORUM/tab…fault.aspx

I’m sending good thoughts to you, your family, and Butterscotch.

[Irina]

Thank you MD. I thought about letting Butterscotch spend time with little Tofu- but the vet advised against it as it was so sudden and she cannot rule out something infectious/contagious. I have spent the entire day bleaching/cleaning everything….
Do you have any thoughts about timing WRT bonding Shadow? Would Butterbuns be less lonely if he had another playmate sooner rather than later. I know I still have to wait at least another couple if weeks… But should I go ahead then, or wait even longer for Butterscotch to grieve/recover?
Poor Butterscotch. He looks so confused… And so small in his big pen all by himself.

[MoveDiagonally]

I also wanted to mention that giving him extra love and time, stuff like that will help him (and probably you too) grieve. I’ve heard sometimes a stuffed animal friend can make a bunny feel a bit less lonely. It’s all so fresh right now and it might take him a while to realize Tofu isn’t coming back and stop looking/waiting for him. I’ve heard mixed things about bonding quickly after a loss of a bond mate. I think the big concern is a bunny having troubles after a loss (not eating as much, etc…) might react poorly to the stress of bonding. If when her 4 weeks are up he seems ready for it then I think moving forward with bonding would be fine.

[Irina]

Ok- I will wait and see how it goes. Butterscotch has been getting lots of extra loving and snuggles and grooming….

I realize there is probably no answer to this, but is there any time frame for which the worst of the grieving takes place? Butterscotch seems fine today… Will he be worse tomorrow and the next day? How long do I worry and keep a close eye on him, before being able to say he is ok? Does the fact that it was a newly bonded pair make it better? I have to work 4 days this coming week- so he will be alone for several hours (8-2 or 8-4) in the day… It is worrying me. Any tips?

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