we’re getting another bunny… *BONDED*

[Beka27]

tomorrow.

only a couple people on here know, but i’ve been working on the adoption process to get Meadow a friend.  he’s the boy i saw on Petfinder back in April.  the application process was very long, but we’ve been approved so we’re going tomorrow for a meet and greet, and assuming there’s not a vicious fight, he’s coming home with us.  i know this is against conventional wisdom.  i know this, but i’m willing to take the risk, and i am committed to keeping them separate if necessary.  the longer it’s taken, the more I have fallen in love with him…

edited:    SCROLL DOWN TO MY OTHER POST FOR PICS!!!!!!

this is my set-up.  they are going into another room right off of the living room, just b/c my living room is not that big.

 

please wish us luck tomorrow.  we’re going to need some good vibes.

 

 

[Sarita]

Cannot wait to hear all about it. I love the set-up too!

Sending bunny fall in love vibes to Meadow and friend.

[bigsis7]

OMG!!!! Good luck!!!!!

[JK]

That set up is fantastic!  Now that gives me an idea. Can’t wait to hear!!! Need mega details!

[Lisa_43]

Congrats! We want plenty of pictures when you get the bunny. Great setup.

[Deleted User]

Great set up! Gave me a great idea for my imminent bonding adventure. Are those x-pens?

Lots of friendly bonding vibes to all of you!

[RabbitPam]

Best of luck, Beka. Meadow is such a sweetie that she deserves a beau to make her happy. I hope he’s the one.

BTW: no pix showing of him, just your set up. (Great one!)

[Beka27]

yes, i used 2 36-inch high xpens. i called my sister, who just happens to work at the PetSmart PetsHotel that just opened in our city, and it turns out she gets a nice lil’ 15% discount. i tried to make a NIC enclosure like the one i had around Mead’s Marchioro cage, but it wasn’t going to work. so four hours later and my fingers about ready to fall off, i had to take the dang thing down, it was not sturdy enough, and the way i was imagining it in my head was not going well. so i had to spend more money, but i think it’ll work out better.

we leave at about 3:30 to take Michael to my parent’s, then we need to drive 90 minutes to get to this woman’s house.

[Sarita]

The nice thing about the x-pens is that once you have them bonded you can combine them too – I have 4 of these for my rabbits and one for boarding and they are virtually indestructible.

Can’t wait to meet Meadow’s new boyfriend!

[Beka27]

yes, i was really impressed by the quality of the xpen. it was pretty easy to get together since it’s already connected. we just had to stand it up and bend it the way we needed it. if you’re not creative, you don’t have a lot of building time, or you just want something very very simple, the xpen is the way to go!

[Liza]

Ooooh, that’s wonderful!!! All fingers, paws and toes are crossed over here!!! Hopefully they will kind of accept each other so you can take him home and start the bonding! I wish you just as much luck as we have had over here with Velvet and Dancer – bonded within one week and now inseperable!

I can’t wait to hear updates! You know, it’s actually a good thing that the screening took so long. I mean, you are a bunny person, but I wonder how many people are out there who are impulsive and just get a bunny because… they felt like it at that moment. That lady knows now that you are persistent and are truly committed. It’s a good thing! Yes, very challenging, but hey, the waiting time is over now!

Oooooh, update us soon, please!

[babybunsmum]

ooooh beka i’m so excited for you!  what a great setup you have ready there… xpens really are effective & simple & versatile aren’t they?

i can’t see the pics of your your boy bun     you’ll have to post more later (you’re getting a digital camera right?)…. soooo excited for you & mead

[COOKIE'N FLUFF MOMMA]

GOOD LUCK TODAY BEKA! HOPE ALL GOES WELL. GOOD THINGS ARE WORTH WAITING FOR. CAN’T WAIT TO SEE PICTURES!

[bunnytowne]

oh a new furbaby wonderful. they are going to a nice home too. with your set up and all thats real nice. I like that  if I had the room. yes those NIC cubes can be a challenge I redid mine 3 times now. and still having trouble. the waterpipe is in the way and keeps me from opening it on the side so I put the door on the top and have to be careful it doesn’t hit Puff on the head when i take her out the door on teh side just wouldn’t open cuz that pipe unless I moved the whole cage.     wow congrats on your new bun hurrah.   I want to see pics too. the ones you sent here I cannot see is a box with an x in it.   well next time.

[Beka27]

i didn’t find out until the end that she runs her rescue all by herself.  she does ferret, bird and rabbit rescue and rehoming.  so the long process was more due to her working by herself and us playing email/phone tag.  i also had to make sure we could make it work.  i don’t take getting animals lightly at all.  once he’s here, he is here forever.  so i had to make sure my husband was as commited as i am and that we were going to have money for the added expenses and vet care.  i still have not told Michael at all.  we’ve been spelling over his head… so it will be a bit of a surprise.  even now, we have two xpens set-up and he hasn’t asked WHY once.

i tried to do the pics from my email.  they showed up for me, but not you guys i guess… here they are.

this is his Petfinder pic…

and some pics she sent… she said in the summer, the bunnies have an outdoor run.  i hope he will adjust okay to being an indoor only rabbit.

[Sarita]

He’s cute – he looks like Meadow with longer hair and floppy ears too!

[babybunsmum]

i was thinking thesame thing sarita    he’s so sweet!

[JK]

Beka – Are the pens 4′ wide each? So no more cage for Meadow attached to the pen? You ARE going to cover that beautiful white carpet aren’t you????

[Sage Cat]

I was just thinking how clean those pens look – not for long!

Congrats Beka! Best of luck from me, Kay & Winston

[Sage Cat]

I was just thinking how clean those pens look – not for long!

Congrats Beka! Best of luck from me, Kay & Winston

[Beka27]

no more cage for Mead.  it’s really not necessary.  she’s litterbox trained.  actually the pens are set-up on the rug.  i took another pic so you can see what i mean.  you’ll notice i had to already block off the sides and the middle from her.  of course Michael had to sneak in too.

 

[Beka27]

i know Sage! we put her in last night b/c i wanted to clean up her other area and she already has hay everywhere.

[JK]

Ok now I get it.  So she didn’t mind the move?

[Beka27]

she seems okay with it. she had to walk around and sniff every xpen bar last night… for me, it’s so strange not having her right here in the living room. fortunately, she has so much out of cage time tho… so it’s not like i’m never going to see her. she took right to the litterbox, it’s a new one and it’s not a corner box, so i didn’t know if she’d like it, but she’s been using it. she’s already hopping in and out of the xpen to do her business, so she really does not seem too traumatized by it.

[kimberleyanddarren]

i cant see any of the pics awesome though cant wait to see pics when you get him home!

[LittlePuffyTail]

Congrats on the new addition! Such a cute little flopper!

[RabbitPam]

He’s cute. He reminds me more of Boston.

[Beka27]

well, he’s home! i am exhausted. 3 hours of driving. she lets the buns run outside in an enclosed area, so he was a bit muddy b/c there was rain yesterday. so i had to give him a bath. i’ve never given a bath before and i kinda freaked out, but he seemed okay. i pretty much just put a couple inches of water in the tub and let him hop around. get the mud out of his toes… lol.

i wasn’t able to bring Meadow with us. my husband didn’t think it was a good idea. it was in the mid 90s, and a looooong drive, so we decided not to stress her with it. they’re in separate rooms right now. i put him in her Marchioro cage (cleaned very well) temporarily b/c i want him to be checked by my vet this week before introducing them (seeing as they were outside and all).

i will post some pics tomorrow. he is such a beautiful boy. he loves to be held… and kissed on the nose… and i never knew lops were so expressive with their ears… he’s been moving them up and down and back and forth… and if he hears something he will lift his ear towards the sound.

PLUS… he does Edson’s “waiting for the bus” routine. Knowltons… you know what i mean! he was even doing it in the bathtub! he just stands there, for like a minute!

[Beka27]

he’s munching some hay right now!

[JK]

Awe!!!!! I love the waiting for the bus!  Lops are so incredible!  Sounds like it went very well! Can’t wait to hear how your night goes.  I actually think it’s smart not to have taken Meadow.  Congratulations on finally bringing the boy home!!!! What’s his name??????????????????? Details tomorrow please.

[RabbitPam]

What’s the waiting for the bus?

Congrats, Beka!

[JK]

This is “waiting for the bus”!!!

166355467171.JPG

[Lisa_43]

He is adorable Beka, I can see why you want to take him home.

Knowltons I just love that picture, it would make a great poster.

[Sarita]

Knowltons that picture is too cute!

Can’t wait to hear about your new bun Beka :~)

[RabbitPam]

Oh I LOVE that picture of Edson! that’s a perfect name for it.
All of him is very cute, but I always laugh at his little white toes. Adorable.
Thanks.

[Beka27]

i think he is very scared today. apparently, he was grooming himself during the night (my hubby was up late), so i don’t know if he was nervous, or just didn’t like the bath. he’s drank some water but i haven’t seen any pee. he has pooped some, altho he’s been diggind in the litterbox. i gave him some greenleaf lettuce today. i’m going to do that for a week and then introduce something new next week (i’m not positive what kind of veggies he was getting before and what quantities, so i’m kind of starting over with them.)

Michael just came up to me and asked, why are Max’s ears down? i told him, some bunnies have up ears, some bunnies have down ears. he seemed satisfied with the answer… lol!

^^ as i was typing this i heard the munchy sound of veggies… i looked over at him and he had a big mouthful of greenleaf. YAY!!!

[RabbitPam]

Couldn’t resist

167124442971.jpg

[Beka27]

well… they have met thru the bars. they have been sniffing noses. there’s been no sign of aggression as of yet. she keeps hopping back forth along the length of the cage, he keeps hopping and following her every move.

i might have seen a bit of a head binky from Max. but i’m not sure…

[JK]

Rabbitpam!  That’s great!  How can I print this out to frame?  What did you do to get the captions on? Beka gets all the credit for coining that phrase, now we all say this all the time.

Beka – So you did not get a thump last night?  That’s good.  You know they groom a lot.  That’s just really normal.  So what are you doing with him today?  Are you letting him out of the cage?  Where is the cage? Does Meadow sense a man in the house?

[Beka27]

honestly, i sleep like the dead. Mike was up watching tv on the couch pretty late, he didn’t say anything about any thumps, just that he was grooming a lot. they seem okay when separated. i put them together in the bathroom and there was a scuffle, but i guess that’s to be expected. a lot of chasing back and forth. i moved him into the other half of the double xpen, he seems okay. he’s sitting in there eating veggies, exploring around. when i moved him i noticed he had peed in the hay i put in the bottom of the marchioro last night, so i put fresh hay in the litterbox to entice him. (see… Meadow doesn’t get hay in her box, so i didn’t even think about it. i keep doing everything in comparison to how Mead gets it.) i’m going to keep checking on him. i did put Mead back in her side of the xpen for now. i’ll let her out again later. she left some poos next to the marchioro this morning when she was out.

and… Mike went to a car racing show (Pinks… it’s on tv) so he TOOK THE CAMERA!!!!  i had to tell him about 50 times not to drop it… but alas, no pics today.

[babybunsmum]

he TOOK the camera?!?  what!?!  lol.  i’ll be looking for more pics tomorrow then

this thread has been so exciting to read   i’m keeping my fingers & toes crossed for you that they bond swiftly.  sounds really good so far!  yes, i think a few scuffles are to be expected as they sort out the ranking.  it’s great that he was grooming & eating & pooping.. sounds like he’s settling in.  be prepared for some poo / pee wars until they get used to eachothers smells.  hopefully they’ll bond soon & you’ll not have to bother with that for too long.  did you mention earlier in the thread if your new bun was neutered yet? 

[Beka27]

yes, he’s neutered. the rescue only adopts them out that way. i thought he was younger, but she said he is about 3 years old, he’s been neutered for a year. Meadow left a few droppings next to the cage he was in. you saw the pics, i have the room to keep them separately until… so i’m not in a huge hurry to bond them, i know it will take a bit of time, and i’m kind of excited for the process.

[Beka27]

they’re sitting next to each other, on their respective halves. i have a few inches betw/ the xpens just in case. they both look relaxed.

[Sarita]

He took the camera! How rude :~)

It sounds like he’s settling in nicely though.

[Beka27]

he is mostly white and black, but he has some brown fur at the base of his ears, and a bit of brown in his mustache. he’s such a cutie.

[Liza]

How dare he take the camera?! Haha! My husband knows better than that. I become this really nasty beast if he even gets anywhere close to my camera! Haha!

It sounds like he is is settling in quite nicely!

Good luck with the bonding! I can’t wait to see pictures of both of them roaming around the house! So neat!!!

[Beka27]

i said he could take it. he’s excited about the car show, so i don’t really mind. i just hope it doesn’t get broken. if i had it i’m sure i’d have already taken about 100 pictures!

[Liza]

What’s a car show versus cute bunnies???

Haha!

My husband will get his huge flat screen TV very soon because I got to keep our foster bunnies. Nice trade off… I guess, as long as the significant others are happy, we can keep doing what we are doing… haha! Of course, now my husband thinks it was his idea to keep the bunnies… haha!

You made him happy, he has the camera… but remember, WE are waiting for pictures!!!

[Beka27]

i know… it’s all about making the SO’s happy! when we were driving to the rescue yesterday, Mike said, “that’s it! only two bunnies.” i agreed.

on the way home, after seeing those flemish giants, i said, “you know, when we have a larger house, how fun would it be to have one of those big guys hopping around?”

he agreed.

[kimberleyanddarren]

oh beka the pics are finally working he is SOO cute! and that set up is so well thought out!
i know im abit behind sorry hehe

[RabbitPam]

Beka, Is he back yet? pixpixpixpixpixpixpix
Your new guy sounds like he’s quite content. I think Meadow is wondering what’s going on, but it isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

Knowltons,
Just right click my version of Edson and hit Save As, then save it wherever you want. Then just print it out.
I added the words by using Photoshop – I kept the same image size but changed the height dimension on the Canvas size. It got longer top and bottom. Then I used the bucket to fill the spaces after selecting a color match from your rug. Then I used the T button for text, created a box in the bottom space and then the top. Typed in my words, changed the font, selected white for their color, eh voila!

[Beka27]

the new guy is flopping everywhere, but when i walk in he runs to the back. Mead, as usual, runs up to greet me… i vaccuumed up some of the excess poops and i switched them. they both ran around wildly sniffing everything, but they’ve since calmed down.

[JK]

Really?  Max is flopping already??? What a cutie pie.  Get that camera back!

[JK]

Thanks Rabbitpm.  I’ll try that!

[Beka27]

he’s on his way home… he’s ten minutes away…

[Beka27]

you can see the brown he has at the base of his ears…  it matches the brown in his mustache…

and the little white tips on his ears.  in this pic you can see that his left ear is damaged.  it happened in a brawl when he was a little baby bunny…

flop!

double Flop!!

and one of Ms. Meadow E. Bunny relaxin’…

 

*sorry for the weird eyes… i had to edit to get the red-eye out…*

[JK]

He is just too precious for words!!!!  Great pictures!  He must be getting comfortable because he’s all stretched out!!! So is he peeing in his litter box?  He and Meadow make a great looking pair.

[JK]

I forgot to ask?  Is it that much more work or can you tell yet?

[Beka27]

last night i had hay separately for him, so he peed in the hay. today i cleaned up and put hay in the litterbox, he’s been peeing in there ever since. Mead is actually leaving more territory poos than he is. they are everywhere… but i’m guessing this will subside as they bond. it’s not more work really… not that i can tell yet. he loves his veggies… a lot. i’m thinking my veggie bill is going to triple rather than double.

[Lisa_43]

They both look very similar in colouring.

[kimberleyanddarren]

aww he is soo cute! i think i would get them muddled up hehe

[RabbitPam]

He’s adorable!!!
I think all this relaxing as a great sign with them both. Of course Meadow is leaving poops – she’ll allow him as a guest, but may be more dismayed when he becomes “the Thing that wouldn’t leave”. It looks like she’s so sociable anyway that she’s OK with him. What a pair of bookends.

[babybunsmum]

awwwww!  he’s adoreable beka!  i agree… he & mead make a cute couple.  i think bonding buns is a fun adventure too even given that my pinky poo is such a force to be reckoned with.  you have a similar outlook as i do towards bonding… if it works great & if it doesn’t its okay too because you can keep the setup to accomodate either situation.  it makes for less stress with the bonding i think.  unlike me though, the odds are very much in your favor with this match!  can’t wait to hear your progress

[Beka27]

i switched their pens last night. Meadow is out right now… i’m going to put them on the washing machine in a little bit here (Mike’s home to help me) and see how that goes. afterwards i am going to put her back in and let Max have some time out.

[Sarita]

He really is adorable!

[Beka27]

we took a washing machine ride. it went so well… i was actually really surpised! i brought Meadow in first, put her in the laundry basket. asked Mike to go get Max. he couldn’t… he kept running away from him. so i said, “well stay here with Mead… i’ll go get him.” i get Max, bring him in, Mike was wearing an oven mitt holding onto Meadow. he FREAKS OUT! (Mike, not Max… he is very scared of Meadow getting hurt, thinking that since Max is bigger he’ll hurt her.) i tell him not to worry, Mead can hold her own. we put them in together. i had to take over the mitt, MIke took over the squirt bottle. Meadow got a shot in the face right away b/c she’s the instigator. there were a couple nips… Meadow nipping Max on the back, but no real scuffles. they did end up huddled together. Meadow got another squirt each time she went to nip. Max was licking the water off of her face. she’d stop to groom herself, then huddle back down with Max. the whole thing took about ten minutes. after it shut off, i took Meadow out first and she got a few raisins for being a good girl. she went right back in her pen (she had been out for two hours previous this.) Max got a few rainins in his dish. he won’t take treats from us yet… and he got to run around in the room for about 20 minutes. i sat on the floor in there with him and watched. he’s still getting used to everything, so i kept his time short.

[Beka27]

Max wants to be friends with Meadow sooo badly… he looked absolutely thrilled to be laying next to her.

[RabbitPam]

“…he licked the water off her face” *melts*

[babybunsmum]

sooo sweet!

beka that bonding session went so great… yay! 

[JK]

How precious.  He’s been around a lot of other buns and probably misses them so I’m sure he wants her companionship! The washing machine thing is so funny.

[Beka27]

you should’ve seen the look at Mike’s face when i said, “hey honey, we’re gong to put Max and Meadow on the washer…”

priceless.

[Tracy]

beka….been out awhile….and look at this….a new one….congrads!!!!!

[kimberleyanddarren]

aww that was soo sweet beka congrats! keep us posted! i still cant believe that mine just bonded instantly and there wasnt even one nip or fight! I hope everythjing goes that well for u!! its so worth it when u see them snuggles up together

[babybunsmum]

Posted By Beka27 on 06/08/2008 11:10 AM
you should’ve seen the look at Mike’s face when i said, “hey honey, we’re gong to put Max and Meadow on the washer…”

priceless.

hahahaha… i can just imagine!  my family gets a huge kick out of hearing about baby bun’s stunt double.  well not so much a kick as they think i’m competely off my rocker.

[Beka27]

Posted By kimberleyanddarren on 06/09/2008 2:40 AM
aww that was soo sweet beka congrats! keep us posted! i still cant believe that mine just bonded instantly and there wasnt even one nip or fight! I hope everythjing goes that well for u!! its so worth it when u see them snuggles up together

well yours are still babies tho.  it’s a bit different to bond two adults, esp. when one is already well-established in a household.  but i’m not giving up!

[MarkBun]

The good thing is Max licking the water off of her face. It reinforces that she’s in charge.

[Beka27]

^^^yes i figured. on the washer, today he kept bowing his head (to be groomed) and she wouldn’t do it. so he just sat back up. i’m wondering if i should encourage her grooming him, or just let it go for now…

[MarkBun]

Try dabbing (not spraying) some water on his face. Buns often will simply lick it off as habit. Maybe she will do it too.

[Sarita]

Have you tried yet putting them in an x-pen together to see how they interact with each other – with you in the pen of course.

You can just never tell how these bondings will go. I had 2 that happened in a week and the last one still hasn’t happened but the new bunny slaves don’t care – they are still trying but they love their bunnies and will keep them even if they don’t bond.

[Beka27]

i only have the two xpens that are their cages, so it’s not neutral. i tried the bathroom and there was a scuffle. i might have to try and confine them in my son’s room or mine b/c they never go in there. Meadow was still nipping thru the bars earlier this evening.

the article i was reading said to stress them first a couple times and return to their  respective pens, and then start doing some non-stressful activity after, so i will try that tomorrow.  washing machine, and then a confined area.  i’m trying to keep it short and sweet and end it on a positive note.  they both get a couple treats afterwards.

****i just went to go do some laundry (real laundry, not bunny bonding… lol) and Mike said Max did a few Binkies in a row!

and i MISSED it!!!!!

[JK]

If it doesn’t work out send Max to me.  I’m in love with that boy!

[Beka27]

uh-uh! you gotta get your own! i am in love with my boy!!!

after your vaca i think you should give it some serious thought knowls…  even penned separately, it is so fulfilling having him here.  wouldn’t you just love a sweet lil girl?

[kimberleyanddarren]

aww i cant believe u missed it!!

[kimberleyanddarren]

beka are u going to turn that into ‘the bunny room’ when they are bonded? im sure i asked you before but i cant find the post >.<

[RabbitPam]

Posted By Beka27 on 06/09/2008 6:07 PM

****i just went to go do some laundry (real laundry, not bunny bonding… lol) and Mike said Max did a few Binkies in a row!

and i MISSED it!!!!!

Maybe Max associates the sound of the washing machine with a visit with Meadow.

[Beka27]

Posted By kimberleyanddarren on 06/10/2008 3:19 AM
beka are u going to turn that into ‘the bunny room’ when they are bonded? im sure i asked you before but i cant find the post >.<

oh i think we’re beyond that point!  lol!  yes, we’re already calling it the bunny room.  we’re keeping the pens in there, but ideally, once they’re bonded they’ll have the whole house to roam in, and the two pens will get combined for night and when we’re not home.  right now we’ve been alternating them with their runtime.

[kimberleyanddarren]

sounds kewl! i would love to have a bunny room! and a ferret room.. and a dog room.. and a guinea pig room.. and a… lol

[Author]

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