Adding a third rabbit to a bonded pair

Has anyone got any tips for this?

They have all met on neutral ground and it was OK. I made the mistake of thinkng they had all bonded (it's my first time doing this!!) and put them in our living room, where the pair (Arthur and Martha) live - this resulted on them both chasing the new bun (hamish) and biting him.

Currently, Arthur and Martha are roaming free and Hamish is in a playpen in the front room so they can get used to him. He is only a baby, and a he is a mini lop - so he's very tiny compared to them!

What I wasn't ready for is it really disturbed Arthur and Martha's relationship. They have been together since babies and love each other. Once Hamish was in the living room (in playpen) Arthur and Martha started fighting.

Things look calm now - but I should I pursue this or am I risking ruining Arthur and Martha's relationship forever???

any advice would be appreciated!!

well they are all still relatively unharmed - what happened about the bites - did they break the skin or was it just fur? I would imagine another meeting on neutral territory is the next step - but they need to be left in neutral area for about 3 days, supervised, whilst you make the living room (assuming that's where you want all 3 to live) seem 'new' - paint the walls, shampoo the carpets, throw out old rugs and bedding/toys that can't be cleaned, and rearrange their living accomodation to a different part of the room if possible - at least soak and scrub it out with vinegar to destroy scents.

Some people set up a camp bed in the neutral area and take few days off work so they can supervise - good idea as it can go nasty as you've found. If the new bunny is a baby it's going to need neutering at some point probably too - so it might be best to leave bonding till then, in a few months?

My personal opinion is threesomes are not the best group of buns. I'd go for two pairs or a four. It just means that your bonded pair won't gang up and leave out the third and I've just seen a few people struggling with it really.

If it is what you want though, Elve's advice is good, you need to clean, de-scent and possibly re-arrange the area where the original pair are used to being so they're not so territorial when you reintroduce the three of them. Good Luck.

chloaster said:

My personal opinion is threesomes are not the best group of buns. I'd go for two pairs or a four. It just means that your bonded pair won't gang up and leave out the third and I've just seen a few people struggling with it really.

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Yep, I'm not keen on trio's as it always seems the one at the bottom of the pecking order bears the brunt of everything (just had to take the 3rd out of my trio that have been bonded for over a year, mum and two daughters from different litters)

I reckon the behaviour of Arthur and Martha may be transferred aggression, which most of my buns seem to have. They only have to see or smell on me the scent from the other buns and they attack each other 'cos they can't get to the rabbit they can smell/see. Don't think I know anyone who has managed to resolve this issue???

I was going to try and bond Angel with Smokey and Fudge.After thinking about it i have totally gone off the idea.
Going to get Angel a husban in a few week and leave the boys has they are

Hi
I have a trio of does. Originally I just had Daisy (spayed). then I acquired Rose and Bluebell (unspayed bonded rescue girls). They lived in 2 seperate hutches for a few weeks and became familiar with each others' scent etc. by having the duo loose in the garden and Daisy in the run or vice versa. Then I introduced them in neutral territory (the bath) just a handful of times- a little chasing and nipping did happen but nothing too serious until one day they all seemed to be calmly sitting together- I put them all out in the garden together and have never looked back (nearly 6 months ago). They choose who sleeps with who and where, often all three in the big hutch but they are free range in the day so get plenty of exercise. It does seem that Daisy (a large bold spayed English Spot) and Rose (a tiny timid unspayed agouti dutch)- a strange pair really!!- have the closest bond- they can most often be seen cudddled together but its not always like that. Bluebell likes Daisy too. The original pair are probably the least close but they certainly coexist happily enough. I dont regret going for a trio one bit!!
Rescued Blackberry, an unwanted ex PAH 4th doe at Christmas- she is still living as a housebun- got her spayed last month and am considering bonding her with the others but she is still so stroppy 6 weeks post spay, think she might just upset the applecart!- not sure what to do with her yet like having a housebun but feel she must be lonely!!
I do think buns' personalities had alot to do with the success in my case.
Good luck!!

Absolutely agree that the rabbits personalities make or break it.
I forgot to say in my earlier post that the mum in my group is VERY stroppy with her girls, and I think the aggression was passed down the line until the weakest one caught the brunt of it.
It really will all be down to what personalities your buns have.

Thanks for your suggestions, that's really helpful.

I think I may persevere with bonding, but possibly wait a few weeks. Mainly because the new bun can't eat all of the veg that my existing pair eat yet (a little bit of coriander gave him the trots yesterday) so I can't risk him eating their stuff, and I don't want to deprive them either.

I like the idea of redecorating the living room - I've been suggesting that for sometime anyway - I think if it will help the bunnies My husband will be up for it!

As for the existing rabbits personalities - Arthur is a coward and Martha is dominant. I don't think any injuries were sustained in the scrapping, although Hamish has some little scabby marks on his neck - I can't tell if these are from the scrap or if he came to us with them though.