Squishies
Warren Scout
Hi everyone, I'm looking for ideas on how to neutralise the wider territory of my bunnies; the territory beyond their cage/aviary.
...my pair have supervised free run of the garden and most of the house when I am home, and are very clear with me and any visitors that they own, well, *everything*!
To give a couple of comedy examples of how territorial they are...
- if I am out in the garden planting new plants, they will attempt to move pots/trays/watering cans etc, if I have put them in a place that is not to their liking :roll:
- when I go on holiday and they have no access to the house for a couple of weeks, the moment I get back and throw open the back doors, they will run in, do a full recce of 'their' rooms, and then drop a few territorial poops in the lounge for good measure in reminding me whose house it really is...
...it's very amusing and cute of course, but it does worry me that they may be incredibly reticent to accept interlopers, even if I re-extend their space from the aviary very slowly.
The basic background is that I'd love to bond in another bunny or another pair with my existing pair, and while I can go elsewhere to do the bond in completely neutral territory, plus I can then neutralise and rearrange the aviary before their return; I am worried that my two are not going to want to 'share' the rest of their territory - especially their beloved garden and favourite spots under the table/under the bed etc. Obviously I can deep clean the house and wipe down the skirting etc, but even then they seem to remember the location/sight of everything just as much as the smells, and of course, the garden is far trickier again!
Any ideas or experience anyone has of bonding with rabbits who have such a big and established territory (and are not used to sharing!) would be gratefully received. No idea is bad idea! ...all rabbits are different with their own personalities of course, and my aim is driven only out of wanting to do a good thing for my bunnies longer term.
...some of you already know the context of why I would like to re-grow my little troop, but I shall put it again briefly here if helpful, or if anyone is wondering why on earth I might want to attempt to bond in more furries!:
I had a sublimely happy trio, and tragically lost one of my boys who was the 'social glue' of the group. In particular, he was inseparable/lifelong mates with my girl bunny, and they went everywhere together (while the other boy was always quite timid and kept himself to himself).
Having lost everyone's favourite bunny, I now have a pair that despite being generally healthy/ok, I would describe as 'rubbing along' rather than actively 'getting on' and my girl bun in particular seems quite lonely, despite having a litter mate around.
[other info! they are just turned 3 years and are both neutered/spayed]
...my pair have supervised free run of the garden and most of the house when I am home, and are very clear with me and any visitors that they own, well, *everything*!
To give a couple of comedy examples of how territorial they are...
- if I am out in the garden planting new plants, they will attempt to move pots/trays/watering cans etc, if I have put them in a place that is not to their liking :roll:
- when I go on holiday and they have no access to the house for a couple of weeks, the moment I get back and throw open the back doors, they will run in, do a full recce of 'their' rooms, and then drop a few territorial poops in the lounge for good measure in reminding me whose house it really is...
...it's very amusing and cute of course, but it does worry me that they may be incredibly reticent to accept interlopers, even if I re-extend their space from the aviary very slowly.
The basic background is that I'd love to bond in another bunny or another pair with my existing pair, and while I can go elsewhere to do the bond in completely neutral territory, plus I can then neutralise and rearrange the aviary before their return; I am worried that my two are not going to want to 'share' the rest of their territory - especially their beloved garden and favourite spots under the table/under the bed etc. Obviously I can deep clean the house and wipe down the skirting etc, but even then they seem to remember the location/sight of everything just as much as the smells, and of course, the garden is far trickier again!
Any ideas or experience anyone has of bonding with rabbits who have such a big and established territory (and are not used to sharing!) would be gratefully received. No idea is bad idea! ...all rabbits are different with their own personalities of course, and my aim is driven only out of wanting to do a good thing for my bunnies longer term.
...some of you already know the context of why I would like to re-grow my little troop, but I shall put it again briefly here if helpful, or if anyone is wondering why on earth I might want to attempt to bond in more furries!:
I had a sublimely happy trio, and tragically lost one of my boys who was the 'social glue' of the group. In particular, he was inseparable/lifelong mates with my girl bunny, and they went everywhere together (while the other boy was always quite timid and kept himself to himself).
Having lost everyone's favourite bunny, I now have a pair that despite being generally healthy/ok, I would describe as 'rubbing along' rather than actively 'getting on' and my girl bun in particular seems quite lonely, despite having a litter mate around.
[other info! they are just turned 3 years and are both neutered/spayed]