Can I bond a 1 yrs old neutered male?

:? Hi everyone I need your help please.
I have a lovely (although sometimes moody) Cross Bred male rabbit called Ben. I would really love to add a female bunny to the family. However I have been warned by the vet that Ben is unlikely to take to kindly to another bunny as he has been on his own for so long.

It is only now that we are able to accommodate another rabbit hence why he has been on his own since we got him. Is the vet correct or should I go for it and get Ben a girlfriend??

We got Peppermint for Benny when Benny was around a year old. He had been on his own for 10 months, but we thought he was getting lonely, so we got him a resue bun and bonded them.

I think most people here would tell you that with the right techniques there should be no reason why he can't be bonded.

I'm not an expert on bonding methods myself. We were told to put ours together in a neutral room in the house for arround a week, where Benny wouldn't have left his scent. We could go in and give them food and water, but had to ignore them until they got used to each other.

It worked, but I have my doubts about the technique.

A good place to start would be to consider where to get your new bun from. Rescue centres may be able to pick out a good mate based upon their personalities, ages and backgrounds.

Plenty of people here could probably give you advice on bonding techniques, but I'd say go for it.

Rescues bond bunnies that have been single most of their lives quite often. There are always exceptions but generally you should be able to introduce a female with out more touble that you'd expect from a bunny that had friends before.

Many rescue centres will let you take your bunny to visit their available females (as long as he's vaccinated and neutered). That way you can see how he will react before taking the plunge. He can also meet several diferent bunnies and choose which he likes best himself. (Speed dating for bunnies :lol: )

Tam

Hi Claire - I am no expert on bonding, however, I have heard / read successful bonding stories with rabbits much older than Ben.

I have a three year old male rabbit and we have just started the process of finding him a lady friend. We have found a lovely rescue centre, and are hoping to try and allow Robbie to select his own lady friend. Maybe a local rescue centre in your area would help you with bonding Ben.

I wouldn't be put off if I was you - I think if might take a lot of perseverance and time, but worth it to see your bunny snuggled up with one of his own.

Hi Claire, I believe that girls are easy to introduce to males rather than vise versa. There are plently of people here who will give you sound advice, I personally can't see there would be a problem but every bun is different. Buns love being with their own kind.

I agree with everyone else, you do get exceptions to the rule, bunnies who like to be on their own, but on the whole rabbits being social animals, will welcome a friend, there will be a bit of tussle on first introduction but generally things will calm down after awhile.

As has been said most rescues will be happy to do a bit of 'bunny matchingmaking' for you to find the girl that Ben most likes. This is actually quite fun.

Good luck.

I can't thank you all enough for such positive feedback. I feel much better knowing that Ben needn't be on his own. When I came out of the vets I felt really deflated, but you have all given me a real boost - I can't wait to tell Ben when I get home tonight (mad I know!)

It's really positive to hear that rabbit rescue centres can help with the bonding process. I will certainly get in touch with one near me. I'll let you know how we get on.

Claire :wink:

Hi Claire, my vet told me more or less the same thing. My male (jonesey) was on his own for 3 years until we got him. He now lives a happy and spoiled life with his missus Sophie.

Hi Ange, Just goes to show, if you want sound advise ask the people that love and own rabbits !!

I'm really excited about getting another rabbit

Claire

I think some vets are a little nervous about recommending the bonding of bunnies just because it can lead to some spats, but when you take them both back to see them, you will be able to show him/her that it is possible when done properly.

Lazylops said:

I think some vets are a little nervous about recommending the bonding of bunnies just because it can lead to some spats, but when you take them both back to see them, you will be able to show him/her that it is possible when done properly.

Click to expand...

Sigh!
To be honest I don't think most vets know very much about bunnies at all.
If you have the luxury of choice in your area, try and choose a vet that is a certified small animals practitioner. They have more training and experience with buns, piggies etc. instead of just cats and dogs.

I tried two vets before I settled on Karen Smith in Gossops Green, Crawley. One told me that caecotrophs were dihorrea (bad spelling, I know) and the other had to look up rabbit gestation when Holly was having a very young false pregnancy. Sheesh! I knew more than both of them so I had little confidence in their ability to look after my buns.

A good vet is invaluable if you are making decisions about getting another etc. It sounds like the vet you saw just fobbed you off and didn't really have any experience so took the easy option and said no.

Hi all,

Approximately how long does it take for bunny's to bond ?

How long is a piece of string?

It depends on the bunnies sometimes they hit it off and its instant success, sometimes a week of gradual intros on neutral territory and in difficult cases weeks of careful introductions.

If you take him to choose his own friend thats a good start as you can try several bunnies and see which he likes best and hense will be the easiest bonding. Sometimes the rescue will start the bonding for you which can help too.

Tam

Thanks Tam,

I would much prefer Ben to choose his new partner ! rather than me picking her for him - he's fussy enough when it comes to food let alone picking a new playmate :lol:

Claire

Hi Claire
unfortunately your question is very like - how long is piece of string..... :lol:

It really can vary rabbit to rabbit. I have one pair that took me about 10minutes, as they took immediately to each other, and then I had a pair who took a year..... I find the success tends to related to the personality and demeanor of the bunnies you are trying to bond. A good combination seems to be two very laid back bunnies, or a laid back bunny and an uptight bunny, as the laid back bunny will potentially calm the other down. Really it is just down to trial and error until you find the right combination.
Annie

Hi

I bonded my 6 month old bunny Mr Bump with a 2 year old buns (Tigs) having no experience of bonding whatsoever. Despite various advice saying it would take anything from from one day to months, they bonded in just over 7 days. I put them together in a neutral place (the bathroom in this case) for about 15 mins everyday. To begin with Mr Bump was more interested in me than Tigs and they did have a couple of scraps and were seperated immediately and after a couple of days they settled down. During the times they weren't together they were always in close proximity so they could see and sniff each other through the bars.

I knew when they had properly bonded when they started grooming each other and since then they have lived happily ever after!

I guess every rabbit is different though.

Good luck with your bonding!!

I must have been writing mine when you wrote yours Tam, great minds think alike eh.... :lol:

Hi Claire - How exciting - hope you feel a little better now about the
possibility of a pal for Ben.

When I decided on a Pal for Buffy she was around 12 months old and had been spayed - I popped along to our local RSPCA and they were quite helpful in that I could take Buffy along to meet the prospective mate I had choosen for her - it was at this stage that the choice was down to her now as to whether she agreed with my choice for her.

Dillon from the RSPCA was at that time around 18 months and had been on his own - I had him spayed whilst he was still with the RSPCA and following their first date at the RSPCA centre he took to Buffy immediately.

When I got him home though there was still a little chasing and mounting etc - kind of a bunny conversation going on as to who was going to be top bunny - however after time - their bond was soooo close it was difficult to see who was boss - they were literally joined at the paw - never out of each others sight.

I know if I'd known better then - even when I brought them both back home I would have arranged somewhere a more neutral territory for them as I made the mistake of popping them both back into what was then Buffy's home which I think delayed the bonding a little - You live and learn eh!!

Good luck - hope you find a nice gal for him.