Bonding...help RU!

My BH Hetty spent all last week being bonded at a rescue. We picked her and her new husbun up on Saturday and kept them both indoors in a dog crate for the night. Sunday I put them both in the playhouse which had been completely cleaned and all has been ok until I checked them earlier and there was fur everywhere

They are back indoors in the dog crate again now and are currently laying next to each other and have even been grooming each other. I'm so worried about trying them in the playhouse again. I also put them in the run today and they started circling and nipping.

Help!!

Sorry I can't really offer any bonding advice but wanted to send you best wishes, I hope they settle down soon. Perhaps just take it slowly and leave them in the pen for a while now maybe and rather then having all the playhouse could you put the crate in/section parts off so they don't have such as large space as soon maybe?

It sounds to me like they've had too many changes in too short a time. You should maybe keep them in the crate for at least a few days, before moving them somewhere else. Also, when you say the playhouse has been cleaned, what did you use? Unless you've neutralised any odours of the rabbit whose house it was, that rabbit will still think of it as their own space and defend its territory... You can neutralise it using a solution of vinegar and water, 50/50. I hope they settle down x

I did think maybe I had taken things too quickly.

I used white vinegar to clean the playhouse and we also replaced the floor with rubber matting so I'm pretty confident there were no smells left. I don't think I should have put them in the run today, that seemed to set things off.

Is the run attached to the playhouse? If not, I wouldn't even think about putting them in it for at least a week after they've settled. Each time you put them in a new area, you shouldn't move them or increase their space until they've managed at least 48 hours with no sign of aggression/humping/circling etc. you just have to do everything really slowly. I know it's quite frustrating, but well worth it in the end.

No it wasn't attached I had a feeling I was doing the wrong thing when I did it :roll: I'm just worried about trying the playhouse again as I obviously can't stand in the garden all day and night watching them x

Well they have been fine all night in the dog crate, lots of grooming and laying together.

What's the best way forward now regarding getting them back in the playhouse?

I agree with ripminnie, possibly too many changes too quickly.

I would leave them for a few more days in the dog crate. I did a bond in the past where it went very smoothly and all looked fine in the bonding pen so after a couple of days I moved them into the neutralised playhouse. They then started chasing, so I had to take a step back and move them back into the bonding pen for several more days. On the second attempt at moving them into the playhouse all went absolutely fine.

I'm bonding at the moment. Minnie and Scooby have got on fine from the start, we only had one scuffle and that quickly subsided. They are snuggled up, grooming each other, eating together, sleeping together. This is day 5, but as much as I want to move them into the playhouse, I am holding back until this Friday. Based on my previous experience, I think it is better to have a few days longer in the bonding pen than to rush into moving them too soon.

When I move them into their permanent accommodation I will gradually increase the amount of space they have. I will only give them the playhouse initially. After a few days and if they are still settled I will then give them access to the run. A few days later I will give them their supervised free range time, again gradually increasing the amount of space they have access to.

Thanks for your advice!

I'm fine to keep them in the dog crate for longer but will they be ok with such a small amount of space? It's 2ft x 3ft. I'm guessing it's a means to an end. When do you think I should try the playhouse again? X

When you next try the playhouse, how about putting the crate in the playhouse and giving them a good 48 hours in the crate in the playhouse, if that makes sense? So they're still shut in the crate, but get to adapt to the playhouse. Then, half the playhouse but still the crate too, then the full playhouse and the crate, and then finally no crate.

They've had had a couple of scuffles in the crate not sure what to do now x

A bit of chasing, fur pulling and scuffling is normal, they are probably still trying to sort out dominance and hierarchy due to the changes they have had. You have to let them do it to some extent, but be ready to intervene if it starts to get nasty.

I've found the info on Fatfluffs website very useful. If you look under 'Rabbit info' there's a section on bonding.

Thanks, I'll have a look.

He keeps thumping and trying to push himself underneath her as if he wants to be groomed and then it gets a bit feisty!

Scooby did a similar thing. Minnie would groom him for a short while, but he wanted more and he would shove his head under her chin and if she didn't respond then he would stamp and get irritated. :roll: It resulted in a bit of chasing, one or two laps around the pen, but it soon settled down again.

Hope your two settle down very soon.

Tracy said:

Scooby did a similar thing. Minnie would groom him for a short while, but he wanted more and he would shove his head under her chin and if she didn't respond then he would stamp and get irritated. :roll: It resulted in a bit of chasing, one or two laps around the pen, but it soon settled down again.

Hope your two settle down very soon.

Click to expand...

Thanks for that, that makes me feel a bit better. She grooms him a lot, he must be needy :lol:

Another question

I'm going to keep them indoors in the dog crate until Saturday, does that sound long enough? Also, is it ok for them to be confined to a small space for that long?

And, do I need t clean the playhouse again before I put them back in? They were both in it for a couple of days so it has both of their scents in there.

Anyone? X

I would leave them as long as you can in a small bonding space. Once they have gone at least 48 hours with no scuffles, chasing, fur pulling you can gradually increase the space. It so depends on the rabbits when the right time to move them is.

I would wipe down their new home with water and vinegar again just to be sure.

Hope it works out well.

Thanks! I've given the playhouse another clean and I will give them another try on Saturday x

well? what happened?

Sorry, new bunny owner planning to do this over the next few months and practically wetting myself with fear!