Bonding four - begins today! U/D now with piccies!!!

Hi all

I am currently sat in the bathroom with all four buns (Charlie, Molly, Poppy and Benjamin) in the bath. Fur everywhere!!

We have had a few scuffles and at the moment Charlie adn Molly and sat at one end petrfifed adn wanted to jump out whilst Poppy and Benji are the other end all cuddled up. Benji keep strying to mount Poppy and she is accepting it and has been grooming him

Any tiem one of either Poppy or Benji attempt to go near Charlie or Molly, C and M want to get out and get spooked which is causing scuffles. Sometimes there is a scuffle and sometimes B or P back away to each others company.

Cant beleive how stressful this is!! Any advice? How long shoudl I keep them under such tense conditinos? Dont want to separate just yet really and have to start from scratch ..... :?

:wave:

Is your bath room and bigger than the bath (but not massive) and neutral? I'm not sure that nay of my buns would enjoy being in the actual bath as it is slippy and really quite hemmed in. If you put them in the bath room with litter trays, hay water etc its a more natural environment and you can leave them in there for a couple of days.

tell scampi (whoops benjamin) to be a good boy or ill tell his parents!

well its been about 5 hours now and Charlie and Molly have been terrified. I took teh above suggestino to put them all on teh bathroom floor instead.. but it stil seems that Poppy adn Benji are bonding lovely but if they go near any of teh others then they get spooked. Benji is very relaxed but Poppy keeps biting the others if they get too cose... still fur everywhere.

I sat on a box in teh corner of teh room and both Molly and Charlie hid under my legs and scrabbling up teh sde of the box to get up to me and away from teh others. I sat harlie on my lap (I know I shouldnt but he has been beggin for hours now so thouhgt i'd giev him time out) and Molly jumped up on the box and climbed onto my shoulders... so aetr them eggin me to make it stop I have taen them two away and back to their room, and am just sat in with Poppy and Benji now, whoare doign fine.

I know I didnt expect it to be easy but I also didnt expect for there to be sheer panic from word go.

What do i do now??
My plan is to set up teh pen in the front room (Charlie adn Mollys room) with Poppy and Benji in it and then see how that goes.
I'm being a bit of a wuss and not sure its going to work :?

Charlie an Molly are so little and are so stressed with it all whislt the otehr two are just getgin on with it, pretty much fallen for each other - bless

I now start all my bondings by putting the bunnies in a carrier and going for a 'walk' with them. They dont have room to fight and cuddle up together for company and safety.

Hia good luck hun!!:wave:

Definately don't bond them in the actual bath tub do it on the floor. Bonding is just a waiting game sometimes it can take hours and if they're like mine then weeks!! Remember don't separate them now as soon as you do you go back to step 1 all over again.

Good luck and Keep at it! x

Hope it's going okay, unless there's serious fighting then try not to seperate. Hope Poppy's behaving herself Good Luck xxx

Well I have stopped for today. I have set up teh pen in teh front room with Poppy and Benjamin in it and Charlie adn Molly free range. DOes that count as separating them? They can still see and smell each other but with far less stress!!
This strategy seemd to work with Poppy and Benjamin as they seem to haev bonded almost straight away today!! Hence them staying together.
I have another 3 days off work so will continue tomorrow.

There seems to be abit of a routine going on with them all in that C and M are absolutely terrified of P (moreso) and B.
Both M and C get chased and nipped by P and there were a few scufffles with gripping on and kickign which I think C and P are rememebring ad so wont go near P.

Poppy also groomed both Molly and Charlie so that bodes well but she does like her bum nipping of them too. She isnt doing any of that with benji now tho no matter howmuch he mounts her!!

You really have to take yourself out of the situation and let them get on with it. If Molly and Charlie are climbing on you perch on the edge of the bath so they can't reach you. Taking them out of the situation is just prolonging what you're hoping to achieve. If there's been no serious fights I'm not sure why you've taken them out? :?

Bum biting and chasing is completely normal and most bonding don't happen without them especially when there's two rabbits of the same sex involved, what's going on with you is not sheer panic - trust me!

Posted at the same time so just to add - yes that does count as seperating them.

This is my perch for bonding!

Chloaster - Nice to see and hear from someone doing the same thing even if the piccie is in the past

I think im a bit over protective and do worry that they are going to get hurt. And when they ook up at me with wide eyes I just feel totally guilty!!

I stopped today moreso because Charlie hadnt eaten of drunk anything for the duration even tho it was all there, has been about 6 hours today.

I had my oven gloves on and split up fights that were a bit 'nasty' and hearig little squeaks and wimpers worried me. Plus both charlie and molly looked like they'd done a few rounds in the ring with mike tyson :lol: fur hanging out everywhere etc.. whilst the other two were happy as larry pretty much.

They do seem a lot calmer together through the pen bars which they werent before today.

Chloaster - how long have you spent bonding buns in teh bathroom and how many have you introduced in one go before? I hear you are teh expert on this

To be honest I actually find larger groups easier to bond than smaller ones. I think my lot know the drill now and it's a case of "here we are again" :roll:

The most I've had in my bathroom was 18, but in the end I had to take one out as she was determined to fight anybun and everybun and ended up getting hurt herself. I've bonded a few foursomes and you just have to stick with it. It often looks worse than it is, (bunny pin cushions :shock: ) and the scrapping but they do need to establish who's boss and sort a heirarchy out. Whilst you are there and they are able to interact with you you are a part of this process so things can't really be fully resolved between the rabbits.

I'm like you I take in an oven glove and just push them apart if the scrapping looks like it's developing into something serious, but apart from that I let them be. I've never had a group of buns in the bathroom longer than two days but I do leave them in there that long however well they seem to be getting on just so I feel confident with it all - the thing I like about my bathroom is I can hear what's going on wherever I am in the house so once I feel happy enough to leave them for a bit if something does happen I can hear them and get there quick.

I know some people on here recommend letting rabbits get to know each other through fencing or barriers of some sort but I haven't actually found it to be of any benefit. I had two girls who were seperated by the soft bendy chicken wire and they used to practically lie on top of each other but the minute I put them together on neutral territory it was mayhem and I originally gave up with them. Rabbits behave very differently when there is boundaries for territory. They live together now as part of my group so never say never!

Good Luck with yours!

Well I must say that that has given me a confidence boost!! 18 wow!!
Its so hard to be detached from the situation but I do have to remember that I am only the chapperone and that once they are altogether then it will so nice for them

Tomorrow I will set up the downstairs bathroom and spend as long as it takes :shock: Just soo nervous!!!

Thanks to everyone for advice today will be needing more tomorrow!! lol

hows it going?xxx

Hi ! Hows it going today, I know exactly how you feel.... its so nerve wracking!! I'm hoping to bond a fourth into mine soon....and I'm terrible, my third came from Chloe and she had to stop answering my calls as I became a useless jibbering wreck claiming it wouldn't work and i couldn't keep her !!! :lol: :lol: :lol: They bonded eventually but still have a hierachy with odd bum nips from top girly to bottom girly.

Chloe is fab and did me a favour...I'm thinking of inviting her round A LOT when i try the four :lol: :lol: :lol:

Wishing you all the best for today x

Thanks for maoral supprt!!AM in desperate need of it today. Jst got in to the bathroom now after a short car journey.... they are just summing up the place now and ignoring each other but its only been 5 mins!!!
Poppy did star with bum biting and scratchin of Molly tho and a few bum nips to both molly and charlie in the car!

Right well so far there have been a few chases from Molly aimed at Charlie. Think he is still freaked out by yesterday and runs even if she wants a sniff head on!! They are all as far away fom each other as they can be and just sat and 'worrying' is the onyl way I can describe it really. Charlie is tryign to work a way out of the door and Molly hasnt left her one man box yet.
Really concerned Charlie wont at much again today :?

Ignoring each other is a really good sign. Are they grooming themselves (not each other) too?

I spoke too soon!! Its Poppy chasing Charlie mostly adn she has chased Molly who is hiding behid bewildered Benjamin now. Charlie is now hiding in a box and Poppy is munching on an alfalfa cube :? :?
Charlie keeps wimpering and thumping his back feet when Poppy chases... he certainly is scared or displeased or both. But he isnt trying to chase her or turn back to chase her etc... all good that way...

Oh and fogot to add to Sooz Q not much groomign going on... there has been a littel but not with all (on themselves)