No fighting… but not a lot of love either?

[foxtailskies]

Riesling and Peanut Butter seem to be coming along very nicely- we haven’t had even a small tiff in several days, even after spending hours together in the “semi-neutral” exercise pen. Riesling is still occasionally grooming Nutter, but for the most part they ignore each other and snooze on opposite sides of the ex pen (conversely, when they’re in their own separate cages, they snooze next to each other). I’m not seeing anything worrying (chasing, fighting, excessive humping etc) but I’m not seeing the snuggly cuteness that Basil and Riesling had either (though there is lots of binkying!). I’m just wondering if I should give them even more time in the exercise pen, or if I can move on to my next step, which is attaching the ex-pen to Riesling’s cage as a kind of hybrid territory. I know that females are supposed to be super territorial, but I have never seen this in Rees, even when bonding her and Basil- she used to let him jump right into her cage, and never made a peep. With Peanut Butter, even the poop wars seem to have ceased in the ex-pen. I’m just not sure if I should wait to see more signs of actual affection, or if we’re OK to proceed since they’re not showing any aggression or bad behavior at this stage. What do you guys think? 

(Quick summary for those who haven’t followed-

Riesling- 2-3yo spayed female; Nutter- 7-8mo neutered male

Riesling was formerly bonded to a 3rd bunny, Basil, who passed away

Riesling and Nutter have been “dating” for about a week)

[jerseygirl]

I agree, move onto your next step. If you can clear some time in your schedule, have them together for a full day and night and if all uis well – you’r pretty much there. You could then leave them together to secure their new bond. It’s gone very nicely for these two!

There’s acceptance and that’s great. Cuddly buns may come later or it may not. I found with my 2 that this came later. They;re still learning from each other and some of it might be due to Nutters age and energy levels.

[foxtailskies]

Success!!! I left them in the ex-pen all afternoon yesterday and they were fine, then since they were being SO good, I really saw no reason to separate them overnight. They did great, no scuffles at all, and so this afternoon I clipped the ex-pen to Riesling’s cage and broke down Nutter’s crate! They are doing wonderfully in the modified setup.

They will actually be getting a new roommate tomorrow, of the canine persuasion, so quite frankly that ought to seal the bond for good He is an older (7y.o.) rescue dog so hopefully there won’t be many problems… I have several contingency plans and a few years’ experience training dogs so unless he somehow proves to be a loose cannon (and he doesn’t seem like the type, from my appraisal) we will hopefully have one happy family!

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