• Forum/Server Upgrade If you are reading this you have made it to the upgraded forum. Posts made on the old forum after 26th October 2023 have not been transfered. Everything else should be here. If you find any issues please let us know.

Creating A Trio - Which Gender?

LeahsBunnies

LeahsBunnies

New Kit
Hi everyone! I hope you're all well, it's been months since I have last posted in this forum.

I currently have two neutered males together who I bonded myself around two years ago, it was the easiest bond I could of wished to do, and they have got on like a house on fire from day one. For a few months now I have been considering adding to the pair to form a trio - I have my own reasons behind this and I am 100% aware of the risks involved, it's not a decision I am going to take to lightly and it will require a major think.

There is just one question which I would like to ask for you trio owners out there, or those who just know about bunnies. If I were to decide to go ahead and attempt to form a trio, would it be best to add another male bunny or a female? I know there are pros and cons to adding each gender, but I was wondering what would be best. I personally don't mind, as long as they're all happy and healthy.

Thank you!
 
LeahsBunnies said:
Is there a reason why you'd think a boy? I would like as much advice as possible on the gender.
Click to expand...

no better reason other than my girls were a nightmare to bond :lol: they always seem to be the trouble makers on here. I have 2 girls (Boo & Mouse ) & a boy (Joey)

Mouse to be fair was innocent. Boo as the demon. She is deaf so I think that complicated things
 
joey&boo said:
no better reason other than my girls were a nightmare to bond :lol: they always seem to be the trouble makers on here. I have 2 girls (Boo & Mouse ) & a boy (Joey)

Mouse to be fair was innocent. Boo as the demon. She is deaf so I think that complicated things
Click to expand...

Thank you! Do you prefer having a trio than a pair? Did you notice a change in their behaviour (good or bad) when you bonded them?
 
I've had 3 boys and 2 boys / 1 girl. As long as No 3 has been neutered for a while, I would pick whichever you think would fit in best. My preference for an easier bonding is always boys, but 1 girl in a trio is fine as well. Personally, bonding girls always fills me with dread as they are always a bit feistier than boys.
 
Shimmer said:
I've had 3 boys and 2 boys / 1 girl. As long as No 3 has been neutered for a while, I would pick whichever you think would fit in best. My preference for an easier bonding is always boys, but 1 girl in a trio is fine as well. Personally, bonding girls always fills me with dread as they are always a bit feistier than boys.
Click to expand...

Thank you! One boy has been neutered for around 4 years and the other around 2 and a half years, so that shouldn't be an issue. I was leaning towards female but now I'm leaning more towards male.. I just like to hear the experiences of others :D
 
LeahsBunnies said:
Thank you! Do you prefer having a trio than a pair? Did you notice a change in their behaviour (good or bad) when you bonded them?
Click to expand...

my existing pair of Joey & Boo have remained firmly bonded throughout. During the whole of bonding there were a lot of stray poos (probably not helped by placating them with huge piles of forage. They are still more accident prone (poo only) as a trio, Boo & Joey together had impeccable toilet habits.

There have been no real changes to behaviour - Joey stays downstairs with Mouse at night, he used to come up at bedtime . All bunnies have a better bond with us that when we started but that is probably time. I like having a trio very much. They seem so much funnier when they come storming in to the room together & when they cuddle together. I think it suits the bunnies. There is usually one bunny up for loves & grooming & when its all three its lovely . Sometimes they hang out in pairs that change every time you look up .

Down side, they get in the way a lot more, more awkward for attending vets, monitoring poo etc & the biggy - it is emotionally really hard work to actual bond them. Mine took 7 months
 
Last edited:
joey&boo said:
my existing pair of Joey & Boo have remained firmly bonded throughout. During the whole of bonding there were a lot of stray poos (probably not helped by placating them with huge piles of forage. They are still more accident prone (poo only) as a trio, Boo & Joey together had impeccable toilet habits.

There have been no real changes to behaviour - Joey stays downstairs with Mouse at night, he used to come up at bedtime . All bunnies have a better bond with us that when we started but that is probably time. I like having a trio very much. They seem so much funnier when they come storming in to the room together & when they cuddle together. I think it suits the bunnies. There is usually one bunny up for loves & grooming & when its all three its lovely . Sometimes they hang out in pairs that change every time you look up .

Down side, they get in the way a lot more, more awkward for attending vets, monitoring poo etc & the biggy - it is emotionally really hard work to actual bond them. Mine took 7 months
Click to expand...

That seems quite promising, thank you for sharing your experience! I'm still none the wiser of what gender to get, I keep changing my mind on what would be best haha!
 
Yeah I've also heard girls are feistier when bonding multiple girls together. I wouldn't have guessed that before because growing up I had good success with keeping unspayed girls together and IME that's almost impossible to do with unneutered boys longterm.

Good luck to whatever you decide to do! :)
 
William said:
Yeah I've also heard girls are feistier when bonding multiple girls together. I wouldn't have guessed that before because growing up I had good success with keeping unspayed girls together and IME that's almost impossible to do with unneutered boys longterm.

Good luck to whatever you decide to do! :)
Click to expand...

I've just watched a few bonding videos on YouTube and the girls are always the issue haha! I may decide on another male if it happens, hmmm..
 
I am about to start bonding a trio in the next few weeks, my existing pair are male and I'm adding a female. I think it comes down to the individual personalities more than gender. At the moment I'm more concerned about how one of my males will behave during bonding, he can be a bit nippy. The vet nurse who looked after my female after her spay did say she thought that M behaves more like a boy bunny than a girl as she's so friendly and laid back!
 
Just to stick up for 'the girls' - my quad is made of 1 buck (Helios) and 3 unrelated does (Elphie, Selene, Morning). (1 of the does is sister to the buck.) When it first became a trio, Helios + Selene took to my Elphie immediately. They groomed her the moment they met, one each side. :lol: Adding Morning about 2 months later went just as easily. I was shocked, tbh. Now, I'll often see it's all girls united and Helios left alone. Girls aren't always awful to bond. :)
 
Hi, like Casco, I'm going to be attempting to bond a trio very soon. We have a girl and two boys to bond, we didn't really plan it that way, that's just how it happened. The boys have been bonded previously, but fell out, so I don't know if it will work, but have a plan b, if it doesn't.

We also have a trio of girls, but they were litter mates and over a year later are still getting on great x
 
All you about to be trio bonders should start a group thread. The bonding threads tend to get answered less than any others which can be frustrating as you really need the support - it can feel like a lonely business & I for one felt like a big fat meanie for doing it to them. Once it was all over I was on a high for months.

TLC You have exceptional girls. Actually I'm pretty sure Mouse would bond ok in to a trio again, its Boo I don't trust, she has too great a sense of entitlement :lol: She is gorgeous though & you gotta love a bunny that knows her own mind, slightly less lovable when she had a gob full of Mouses fur but thats rabbits for you :lol:
 
joey&boo said:
All you about to be trio bonders should start a group thread. The bonding threads tend to get answered less than any others which can be frustrating as you really need the support - it can feel like a lonely business & I for one felt like a big fat meanie for doing it to them. Once it was all over I was on a high for months.

TLC You have exceptional girls. Actually I'm pretty sure Mouse would bond ok in to a trio again, its Boo I don't trust, she has too great a sense of entitlement :lol: She is gorgeous though & you gotta love a bunny that knows her own mind, slightly less lovable when she had a gob full of Mouses fur but thats rabbits for you :lol:
Click to expand...


This is an important point ... When choosing a bunny for your trio, you must make sure they are of humble origins, and not feeling like they have Princess status. This will wreak all kinds of havoc! :lol:

Oh, and if it were my choice with a trio, I would have two males and one female. Does depend on the female though! (of course!)
 
Thank you so much for all of your replies! I think it really does depend on the personality of each rabbit, my boys were so laid back when I was bonding them but I can't know for sure that they'd be the same if I added a third. It's more difficult when you're able to choose a gender rather than unexpectedly acquiring a new bun haha!! I need to have a think about it and just see whichever gender finds its way to me (if it happens!)
 
joey&boo said:
All you about to be trio bonders should start a group thread. The bonding threads tend to get answered less than any others which can be frustrating as you really need the support - it can feel like a lonely business & I for one felt like a big fat meanie for doing it to them. Once it was all over I was on a high for months.

TLC You have exceptional girls. Actually I'm pretty sure Mouse would bond ok in to a trio again, its Boo I don't trust, she has too great a sense of entitlement :lol: She is gorgeous though & you gotta love a bunny that knows her own mind, slightly less lovable when she had a gob full of Mouses fur but thats rabbits for you :lol:
Click to expand...

They are pretty extraordinary, but I've been so lucky with bonding them. None of my "diva" girls are in the quad though. All 3 of them have their own husbun to boss around! ;)

Mouse and Boo are both exceptional in their own way! Divaish girls can be pretty awesome, if they are treated juuuust right! :lol:
 
I wish I could turn my girls into a trio (I'd find them a lovely husbun) but Daphne is a diva and definitely has that sense of entitlement so I don't think it' be fare on Phoebe or a new husbun to have Daphne trying to boss them both around all the time and getting overwhelmed with it all.
 
daphnephoebe said:
I wish I could turn my girls into a trio (I'd find them a lovely husbun) but Daphne is a diva and definitely has that sense of entitlement so I don't think it' be fare on Phoebe or a new husbun to have Daphne trying to boss them both around all the time and getting overwhelmed with it all.
Click to expand...

That's the thing isn't it! When adding a third into your pair you have to think about how laid back your current pair are, how they bonded initially and if they're super close, bossy, aggressive etc.. Luckily my boys were easy to bond, are close but not overly cuddly and loved up (which isn't a bad thing when adding a third) and they're just very friendly and laid back in general. Considering that, and the fact that I've got the money and space for another bunny I just keep thinking why not! I just don't want to go wrong with the gender and of course I need my parents permission as I'm still at home!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

D
bonding a trio to a quad!
Replies
1
Views
153
Omi
O
H
Bonding girls
Replies
1
Views
38
Shimmer
S
Trufflesmum
Bonding - to continue or call it a day
Replies
16
Views
115
Trufflesmum
Trufflesmum
Back
Top