How to bond independently

[prettylupin]

I like the idea of 'Bunny dating' I think that may be a good way to go to begin with before putting them in together.
Here is the idea, would this work?

If I build another NIC house same size as Jimby's and split it down the middle, so they both have one side with their own food, drink, potty and hay box, pop them in there for during the day then they go in to their own houses for the night, repeat again the following day and see how they get on, if they are showing friendly interest in each other and not looking agressive, take the divider out on the third day and see how they get on together then seperate again at night and put them both back in together the next day.
Then go from there and maybe on the 4th-5th day put them in to Jimby's house (Which will be cleaned) to live together?

Once each has been in one side - that side will no longer be neutral and you would have to thoroughly clean the space before letting them share it. When I say we did bunny dating we never actually separated them beyond physical sight or smell so in effect they could always sniff and see each other, and communicate through wire if they wanted to, even when separate. We felt usual routine and exercise was important to reduce stress so Nino continued to have free range whilst Poppy stayed in her pen, but we gave her a pen in the garden too beside his so she could also have some exercise - however, we did it over a couple of weeks not days, so exercise is less important in that time frame. If you do do this yourself at home you need to be sure you know what method you are going to follow and who you will turn to for advice if you need it, you also need to be confident as buns can sense this, your anxiety may make them anxious too. I'm not trying to put you off but just wanted to warn you.

We made certain that the pen we used for bonding was always neutral and was not used for any other purposes. When they weren't bonding they were separate but within sight and smell. You will need to gauge first introductions carefully however as some buns may nip another bun through wire... it is often wise to start with a double fence with a gap in the middle if you are planning on keeping them side by side for a bit just to rule this out as damage can be done to noses this way.
We increased time spent from 5 mins to the whole day (always supervised) over two weeks, and after the last day spent together they spent the night together in a reduced portion of the new hutch freshly cleaned. Exercise time was kept to limited space (garden pen only) for a couple of weeks as with any method increasing shared space slowly is very important to guard against an outbreak of territorial behaviour.

Others on here will no doubt advise you of a different method. It is entirely up to you who's advise you follow, as long as you are confident and happy with the method you choose you'll be fine. None of the rescues near us offered to let us bring our bun in to choose his partner and so we took a risk with Poppy. We also had her for two weeks before beginining introductions for quarantine purposes and so she could settle in, but again that is up to you.

 

[rachylou]

Do you think there is any chance someone would be willing to help us at home? I just really think Jimby would get far too stressed being away from home and I do not want to cause him any more problems.

 

[prettylupin]

Do you think there is any chance someone would be willing to help us at home? I just really think Jimby would get far too stressed being away from home and I do not want to cause him any more problems.

All the rescues on here are extremely helpful, and Bobtails, as the Duchess said, would also offer advice on bonding by phone or email if you got stuck, I know they would. But most prefer to do it the other way so would probably advise you in this sense. You might find with your limited space that that would be a better method for you anyway, I can't really say either way, I think both ways have their merits and disadavantages. Bonding, however you do it is stressful on buns. But the end result is lovely.

If you really want to do it the slow way then I would recommend you get a book called How to Live with an Urban Rabbit - by Marinell Harriman (she began the HRS in the US) who describes the slow method very clearly and I would be happy to help you if you got stuck via PM/email but I do not by any means declare myself to be an expert. Confidence is so important when bonding that you might be better off doing it at home at the advice of other rescues on here who i'm certain would suggest a different method which like I said might work better with the space you can offer, or popping Jimby to Bobtails to do it for you. I can see why you would rather do it at home, I do agree that this is less stressful - but only if you are less stressed too, if you find the experience daunting it might be less stressful for you in the long run to let someone else do it for you. Hope that helps a little. x

 

[Daisylop]

I think however you do it the main thing is dont rush it,take your time.If you give too much too quick it can lead to setbacks.Best of luck!!!

 

[nursecroft]

I had no problems bonding my pairs, they bonded very quickly and were in runs within 24 hours..... my current four has taken 3 weeks so far and im still not 100% happy. My original four took 5 weeks before i would say i was 100% happy they were bonded and not worried anymore.

Every bunny is different, you need to judge how you go along when to take the next step.

 

[rachylou]

Have had a brain wave!! (they are quite rare! :lol: )

Right how does this sound? Based on 5 days

Day 1-2 -We build a slighlty smaller version of Jims cage, along side Jims cage so they are together but not together. Girly is in the new one and Jims is in his own, we do this for 2-3 days so they can get used to each other, by sniff and chatting through bars.- This will be where they stay at night time.

(whilst at this stage would it be ok for them both to have seperate 'out time' around the living room or not?... so I can get in and clean potties, hay boxes etc one at a time) They would still be able to see and sniff each other.

Day 3- If it has gone well so far, they both go in to the kitchen for a few hours together supervised (I think that is the easiest place to clean and de scent as Jims does not go in there often)

Day 4- Increase the time in the kitchen but still have them in their own house next to each other at night.

Day 5- If all has gone well, we move them in together in to Jimbys house which I will have cleaned thouraghly.

 

[rachylou]

Bump!! :wave:

 

[prettylupin]

In theory that all sounds fine to me Rachel :wave:

You may find it takes longer than 5 days, it will all depend on how they get on at their first meeting. If it is plain sailing then there is no reason you can't do it in 5 days at all. Ours were love at first sight, we just took it gently but we didn't need to. Bonding in fact takes months - years and bunny relationships will change and grow over this time, you will see

Yes of course they can have separate run around time with this method... it is one of the reasons we used it.

Good luck, it all sounds good to me, the thing is with bunnies is you never know til you try... so you will have to play it by ear and be prepared to be flexible!

 

[rachylou]

YAY!

Okay we are aiming to do this in the next month or so, first we want to get Jim's diet right, get his poops right and then we can start looking for a wife bun

 

[rachylou]

We are going to get a wife-bun

 

[prettylupin]

We are going to get a wife-bun

Good luck x

 

[rachylou]

Good luck x

Thank you!! I am excited for Jims... he is getting married! They grow up so fast

 

[beki]

i am an inexperienced bonder but managed to bond my two bunnies just fine! i bonded in my bedroom so i could sleep in the room with them. Set up a metal rabbit pen with a sheet underneath (as the floor smelt like both bunnies) put a panel down the middle and fed them, then removed the panel and just let them get on with it. I had a water spray bottle and gloves handy but apart from a few nips and chasing they just ignored each other, a couple of hours later they were grooming. I think really ruby was just so desperate for a friend that she was nice to reggie (she wasn't very nice when she had got into his room previously when he was in his cage and she bit him through the bars and then he peed on her). I perhaps moved them too soon into a larger space because there were a few more nips and thumping but then they settled in fine.

Good luck with your new bunnie and bonding.

 

[Smithyrock]

Let us know how this goes- also thanks for all the advice Duchess- not that it was for me but I pinched it anyway!

 

[rachylou]

Let us know how this goes- also thanks for all the advice Duchess- not that it was for me but I pinched it anyway!

:lol:, Helen sure knows her bunny stuff!

 

[flickw]

Rachael I have just e-mailed you some info including my bonding guide.

oh could you email your guide to me too please I am trying to rebond two spayed females who were so close prior to spaying and now when together will always end in fighting at some point and it is now 5 - 6 weeks post op

 

[The Duchess]

oh could you email your guide to me too please I am trying to rebond two spayed females who were so close prior to spaying and now when together will always end in fighting at some point and it is now 5 - 6 weeks post op

Hello there.

If you'd like to Pm me your e-mail address I can send it over as an attachment. It's a basic guide to how I choose to do my bondings and it seems to work with suitable bunnies. It's not the only way to do them but it's the one that works for me.

Helen

 

[flickw]

Hello there.

If you'd like to Pm me your e-mail address I can send it over as an attachment. It's a basic guide to how I choose to do my bondings and it seems to work with suitable bunnies. It's not the only way to do them but it's the one that works for me.

Helen

thank you