How do I bond my rabbits? Help please

I have 5 rabbits 1 male and 4 girls. I am having them all neutered in a couple of weeks.

How do I pair them up, I know boy and girl will pair up ok (even though they too may have some problems)

What I really want is to bond 2 girls + Male in one cage as its huge (plus nice big landing) and other 2 girls the in another cage which they have access to the garden.

I hear after you have had them neutered the hormones calm down after a week or two.

I would appreciate all your suggestions. Thanks guys

I wouldnt mind taking them to a bonding centre, any near London?

lostsouls65 said:

I have 5 rabbits 1 male and 4 girls. I am having them all neutered in a couple of weeks.

How do I pair them up, I know boy and girl will pair up ok (even though they too may have some problems)

What I really want is to bond 2 girls + Male in one cage as its huge (plus nice big landing) and other 2 girls the in another cage which they have access to the garden.

I hear after you have had them neutered the hormones calm down after a week or two.

I would appreciate all your suggestions. Thanks guys

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hello

I'm no expert but I would leave them longer than a couple of weeks before mixing them together. The male can stay fertile for a while after (I think it's at least 2 weeks so three or four weeks apart might be a good idea to be safe)
I have recently bonded a 1 year old male and female existing pair with a 3 old doe who lost her companion. After lots of research and advice from lovely rabbit people I did it and it worked. The main things I found helpful were:-
Using a small space- 5ft by 2ft at the very most. I used a small animal pen which was good because there were no corners to hide in or guard.
Everything was neutral- Neutral room (none of the buns had ever been in there) neutral bowl and litter tray. Infact I did not put the tray in for a couple of hours because they were attempting to guard it. I bought neutralising tablets and scrubbed the hutch/bowls etc before using.
Have oven gloves to hand in case you need to break up a scuffle.
Put some jingle ball toys in the pen so that if you leave the room you will know if they are chasing or fighting, plus the noise might stop them.
I was finding that the doe was getting defensive when the others came to sniff her because she was scared,. In the end I tried removing the male for 15 mins. The girls sorted out their differences and once they were grooming each other I re-introduced the male and everything was fine. That bit was not recommended to me or advised I just did it because it seemed right in the particular situation.
One bit of advice I am still following is not to increase their space too soon. They seem a bit frustrated at not having much space but it is definitely helping the bonding. If you are putting them ina space that was once occupied by one of the buns make sure you neutralise it thoroughly (apparently diluted vinegar does the trick).
I would definitely do the bonding at seperate times, don't take on too much at once. Then if the trio doesn't work and you think a different bunny would fit personality wise you can try different combinations. And if you were to try bonding when the group can smell or hear the other pair that may cause trouble. you cannot be in two places at once.
I lived (and slept) in the room for three days solid (the most restful days off I have had in ages) to make sure they were ok together and they were. I think the personalities of the buns are the most important factor, they decide for themselves. Stay positive.
Hope it goes ok, good luck. Let me know how it goes x

The male will stay fertile for about 6 weeks after his operation, so don't bond until then. Females also might take a little longer to recover so make sure everyone is fit and well.

Are the rabbits related? If it's mum and kits you could possibly bond more than two and have a larger group. But all other pairings work too. It would be great to have them in a huge group where they could all live together in a shed or similar, but it doesn't always work as sometimes rabbits don't get on.

When you do bond them make sure it's in a small and neutral environment. Increase their space slowly and ask us lots of questions.

We do bondings here in return for a donation :wave:

I would give them at least 3 weeks post-op for hormones to die down.

Thank you so much
:wave:

Starlight said:

We do bondings here in return for a donation :wave:

I would give them at least 3 weeks post-op for hormones to die down.

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Thank you so much for your advise

Jenova said:

The male will stay fertile for about 6 weeks after his operation, so don't bond until then. Females also might take a little longer to recover so make sure everyone is fit and well.

Are the rabbits related? If it's mum and kits you could possibly bond more than two and have a larger group. But all other pairings work too. It would be great to have them in a huge group where they could all live together in a shed or similar, but it doesn't always work as sometimes rabbits don't get on.

When you do bond them make sure it's in a small and neutral environment. Increase their space slowly and ask us lots of questions.

Click to expand...