First Bonding!

Hello! My lady bunny Lola is just about a year old, and has so far lived alone. But I have just taken on a 4 month old male who is a rescue case for me. I hope to be able to bond this pair eventually but having never attempted this before would love some advice from you guys!

Firstly, the little man (unfortunately named Rambo) will be spayed as soon as possible. However, Lola is a tad overweight due to being a food lover who hates to exercise despite having a yard all to herself during the days.The vet has said she won't risk putting her under for the op until she has lost a bit of weight. I was wondering if I can attempt to bond the pair when he is 'fixed' but she isn't or if this is a terrible idea?

Secondly, Rambo is going to live inside for winter anyways because he hasn't grown a winter coat. Lola will be living outside in her hutch. Once the spaying is done can I start trying to bond them in neutral territory over winter even though they can't live together properly until it starts to warm up outside? Or again, is this a terrible idea?

Any advice or help welcomed! Thankyou, (and sorry for the essay) Chloe xx

I would wait until both bunnies are neutered as females can get hormonal/territorial if not spayed.Once bonded keep both bunnies together,separate living wont work.They have to be kept together for the bond to work,constantly separating them will break any bond and stress the bunnies. Good luck for when you do decide to bond!!

Thankyou

So how would I go about starting? Do I introduce them in a neutral environment for a few hours each day over a longer period until there is no longer any indication of aggression or is it better to do it over a shorter period of time?

Sorry for all the silly questions

Once both bunnies are neutered then prepare a small neutral area-too big an area can cause problems.Cleaning tha area with vinegar diluted in warm water will help get rid of bunny smells so that no bun will think the area is theirs.Put them together and watch-there will be chasing,fur pulling and humping.This is just the bunnies sorting out dominence.Unless real aggression is shown then do not split them up again.Separating bunnies and putting them together again is very stressful for them as they will have to go throught the whole whos who dominence thing again.Be prepared to have to sit with them [and sometimes sleep by them] until they appear happy in each others company,for this reason start bonding when you have a couple of days free and dont have to go out etc. There is no timescale for bonding some are very quick-my first ever bond was a love at first sight bond-over and done in about 30 mins :shock:,some take days or even weeks,my second bonding the bunnies were in my toilet for over a week.Best of Luck!