RogerRabbit999
Mama Doe
This morning when I got up, I had a terrible shock and a very pleasant surprise at the same time, but I was incredibly stupid and careless, and learnt a very valuable lesson. I have been so ill for over a week now, and what with my horrendous neck and shoulder injuries, I'm pretty much drugged up to the point of it only just remaining legal, in order to manage my pain, and it was this that caused me to be so careless, but not an excuse I know.
I can't have shut Buster and Paddington's, and Scooters doors properly, because when I got up this morning both doors were fully open :shock:, and my heart just sank and I went rushing in to find god only knows what, and found the 3 of them just laying side by side Checked everyone over carefully and found no injuries, had a good look round the room, but no tufts of fur at all, and I just don't understand it, although obviously I am extremely relieved that no one was hurt, and I will never be so careless again.
It's got me wondering now though, as to, is the way to bond bunnies, just simply to let them live initially as neighbours, and in effect choose their partners themselves?? I know that probably sounds ridiculous, but I have never previously had a bonded pair of rabbits, nor have I ever bonded a pair. My buns are all 'special needs' and with varying degrees of disabilities, and to be honest, I have heard such awful tales of when rabbits have been bonded but didn't really like each other, that I felt as though I really couldn't risk putting them through that, and couldn't bear for anyone of them to be hurt.
It started with Dipsy and Pippa as neighbours, who didn't really take any notice of each other, and then who over a couple of weeks, started to sleep side by side with the panels in between them of their separate enclosures, then when being fed, Dipsy would be snatching mouthfuls of food and running over to eat it by Pippa, so I then started to put his food bowl over by the divider between them, and then when they were being let out individually for their free-ranging time, but were choosing to just lie in front of each others enclosure and looking so sad, I couldn't bear it anymore, and decided to let them have a run together and see what happened.
Which was actually nothing, except sniffing, some humping, and running round the house together side by side, finally united in their love :lol::lol: and 10 months on there has not been one single fall out, fur pulling anything, and they just can't lay any closer together because now Pippa actually stretches out her full length on top of Dipsy, or she will lay over his back or head. He never lays like this with her, but she does with him, and they groom each other for ages morning and night, and numerous times during the day, and just seem totally smitten with each other. So I thought I was just incredibly lucky and so very happy that they had found each other.
But then the same thing happened with Buster and Paddington, who have been incredibly happy together since March this year, and then this morning Scooter was in with them, and they all seemed perfectly happy. How can that be, with no fighting or fur pulling etc. I have put Scooter back in his room, as poor old Buster and Paddington have had such traumatic lives, and I don't want anything to spoil their bond, because Paddington especially is very reliant on Buster for checking out any new foodstuffs first, and only trying anything himself when he has seen Buster eat it, and still live :lol:, and it is the same with any new toys or exploring different parts of the house.
I did sit in the corner of the room for about 10 minutes this morning because I wanted to observe Scooter, as he is a new bun, but even when Buster and Paddington started running about, Scooter just lay watching, and then Paddington came up to him and they were sniffing each other, but no aggression or anything, and I was just sat ready to grab whichever one that needed to be, but neither did, and then Paddington ran off out of the room to go and find Buster.
I know that obviously they are not bonded and I wouldn't even ever want a bonded trio, but it still just seems strange that there was no fur pulling, or aggression, as no injuries or fur on the floor, although thank goodness there wasn't, and just wondered what everyone else though to this
I can't have shut Buster and Paddington's, and Scooters doors properly, because when I got up this morning both doors were fully open :shock:, and my heart just sank and I went rushing in to find god only knows what, and found the 3 of them just laying side by side Checked everyone over carefully and found no injuries, had a good look round the room, but no tufts of fur at all, and I just don't understand it, although obviously I am extremely relieved that no one was hurt, and I will never be so careless again.
It's got me wondering now though, as to, is the way to bond bunnies, just simply to let them live initially as neighbours, and in effect choose their partners themselves?? I know that probably sounds ridiculous, but I have never previously had a bonded pair of rabbits, nor have I ever bonded a pair. My buns are all 'special needs' and with varying degrees of disabilities, and to be honest, I have heard such awful tales of when rabbits have been bonded but didn't really like each other, that I felt as though I really couldn't risk putting them through that, and couldn't bear for anyone of them to be hurt.
It started with Dipsy and Pippa as neighbours, who didn't really take any notice of each other, and then who over a couple of weeks, started to sleep side by side with the panels in between them of their separate enclosures, then when being fed, Dipsy would be snatching mouthfuls of food and running over to eat it by Pippa, so I then started to put his food bowl over by the divider between them, and then when they were being let out individually for their free-ranging time, but were choosing to just lie in front of each others enclosure and looking so sad, I couldn't bear it anymore, and decided to let them have a run together and see what happened.
Which was actually nothing, except sniffing, some humping, and running round the house together side by side, finally united in their love :lol::lol: and 10 months on there has not been one single fall out, fur pulling anything, and they just can't lay any closer together because now Pippa actually stretches out her full length on top of Dipsy, or she will lay over his back or head. He never lays like this with her, but she does with him, and they groom each other for ages morning and night, and numerous times during the day, and just seem totally smitten with each other. So I thought I was just incredibly lucky and so very happy that they had found each other.
But then the same thing happened with Buster and Paddington, who have been incredibly happy together since March this year, and then this morning Scooter was in with them, and they all seemed perfectly happy. How can that be, with no fighting or fur pulling etc. I have put Scooter back in his room, as poor old Buster and Paddington have had such traumatic lives, and I don't want anything to spoil their bond, because Paddington especially is very reliant on Buster for checking out any new foodstuffs first, and only trying anything himself when he has seen Buster eat it, and still live :lol:, and it is the same with any new toys or exploring different parts of the house.
I did sit in the corner of the room for about 10 minutes this morning because I wanted to observe Scooter, as he is a new bun, but even when Buster and Paddington started running about, Scooter just lay watching, and then Paddington came up to him and they were sniffing each other, but no aggression or anything, and I was just sat ready to grab whichever one that needed to be, but neither did, and then Paddington ran off out of the room to go and find Buster.
I know that obviously they are not bonded and I wouldn't even ever want a bonded trio, but it still just seems strange that there was no fur pulling, or aggression, as no injuries or fur on the floor, although thank goodness there wasn't, and just wondered what everyone else though to this
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