Dilemma – bonded rabbits now unbonded – what to do? Please advise.

As some of you may know, Albie fell ill recently – GI problems. She was in hospital for a week and came home for one night within that week. She and Middy immediately fought twice (they'd only been apart from 1.5 days)... Then, Albie went back to hosp.

I had asked the vet to keep them together as they were so close but they said they needed to monitor Albie's poos and therefore it wasn't possible as they'd be mixed up if Middy was there.

Anyway, Albie is back home and thankfully fine now. We tried to re-bond them last week in neutral territory and Middy, who is a rex, came off badly. She has bites on her head, neck, side and a nasty one on her back. I've been cleaning them with salt water and putting tea-tree cream on her. She seems fine – eating etc all 100%. But the bites must have been horrible for her. Albie, a fluffy lop, comes off better as she has thicker, longer fur.

The thing is, we have to keep poor Albie in a cage for most of the day (we do make sure she has a run out). The pair of them had been free-range houserabbits. We bought Albie to keep Middy company (thinking it was a male bun) but he turned out to be a she, hence the initial bonding problems. Thanks a bunch, P@H

Now, I'm terrified of trying again. I cannot bear for either of them to be hurt. But they were so lovely together. The lady who helped us bond Middy and Albie said she was a bit dubious about trying again.

Our options are to try again and risk another fight, to re-home Albie , to get another bun for Middy to bond with (though she is very territorial and I wonder if it would work...), or to revert to Middy being a lone houserabbit who would see us every evening and on the occasions I work at home. She is a very 'people' rabbit as was with us solo for a good year and a bit. But is that enough?

I am really at a loss as to what to do. They are marking territory all the time and it's hard work having them like this so there is no way we can keep them separated like this. It's SUCH a shame, as they had got on so well.

Aww that's a shame I had to split Maa up from her 4 daughters when she had extensive surgery last year, and they never rebonded (bonding 4 unspayed females to one is not an easy scenario and I am totally terrified of bonding anyway)

I now have Maa living outside in a hutch, next to Benny, the other (neutered) single bunny I had initially tried to bond with the group. They are very happy as neighbours, since it's security for them to have other rabbits around. Also the scent marking is easier to clean up off the patio than it was off carpet indoors! Could you not consider moving them both outside if their scent marking's got out of hand?

Hope Middy heals up OK - you'll need to check for abscesses after it's all healed over, as this is sometimes a complication from wounds, although hopefully not as you are keeping them so clean.

Hi Elve, thanks for your reply.

We have a small shared garden and can't put the buns outside because there isn't really space, plus Middy hates being outdoors...

I will keep an eye on Middy's wounds. I'm scrupulously cleaning her bites with salt dissolved in boiled water and then applying tea tree cream. I shall be vigilant.

This situation is really tricky. We have a flat, which is great for a free range bun (or two) but not for two living separate lives. Hmm. Don't know what to do... WISH I'd insisted they'd been kept together.

I am not sure whether I would dare to try another bonding session. I saw Albie and Middy last week, they are lovely girls, but they kept in opposite corners of the bonding area and Albie was very aggressive towards Middy every time Middy tried to get near the food bowl. You'd always risk injuries with Middy's fur being so short.
I know someone who has two male bunnies in her flat, they don't get along, so she has a fence between the lounge and dining room. :lol: She is not sure whether she should keep trying to bond the boys, or whether she should give them a girlfriend each, which would make the flat quite crowded.
I hope you can find a solution to the problem, but I could not say which approach would be best.

Despite male female pairings often being said to be the easiest, it's not necessairly harder if the rabbits are of the same sex. I have had a variety of both and a few unbondable rabbis that are now happily living with other rabbits of both sexes. Shadow and Jess fought quite badly at first but these two girls now live together so don't give up hope just yet. One thing you could try is asking a friend if you could take them round to theirs. Put both rabbits in one carrier and drive round there. I'm not a fan of the car journey thing but sometimes it helps with the bonding as they huddle together for reassurance; plus in a completely new environment they might find it easier to sort themselves out. Sometimes unbonded rabbits will never go back together but I'd exhaust all the options before you think about rehoming or adding to your bunny family. Good Luck!

BavarianBunny – interesting that you met Middy and Albie. I had to leave pretty soon after dropping them at J's as I couldn't bear to watch – they had started grappling a bit within 10 mins of us taking them out of their carriers. I'm terrified of Middy getting injured again. The biggest rip is about 50p sized (don't know whether you saw her bites?). It's obviously stressful for them both, so this is a really tough one.

Chloaster, hi, we tried the neutral territory method – this is how we got them together initially. They suffered a few minor bites then but the thing is, Albie is much bigger and very strong now. Middy is a delicate rex with the matching downy fur and easy-to-reach skin, too.

This is going to be a tough one... thanks for your thoughts.

Edited to add: Janice did her very best to help us with the buns and this is no reflection on her!!