Hi, I'm planning to progress from living side by side to the first meeting of a male and female rabbit this weekend, and I'm seeing a lot of conflicting information about the size of the space you should provide for this and what should be in it (i.e. hidey houses, litter trays, toys, food). From what I can see, general consensus seems to be that food/hay is good as a distraction/for calming the rabbits, but other than this, it seems some people recommend enough space for them to get away from each other and hidey houses in case they're scared, whereas others suggest limited space and nothing in the pen they could fight over or use to avoid interaction with the other.
In others experience, what is the best approach for this? Do you tend to add in objects/houses/litter trays for the rabbits when bonding or leave it empty? Do you sit in the pen with them or supervise from outside the pen? I'm planning to bring them inside and use a neutral area neither of them have been before and will create a pen using nic grids, so I can alter the size if needed. They will have been living side by side for 2 weeks this weekend and are showing positive signs towards each other (curiosity, low aggression, willing to eat close to each other).
I would like the bonding to be as low stress as possible for both of them (so no stress bonding techniques like tiny spaces, car journeys, or bath tubs other than as a last resort), but I'm unsure if adding in places they can hide in is more likely to provide security or a reason to fight with each other. The same goes for space really, so any advice about these things would be appreciated.
Thanks!
In others experience, what is the best approach for this? Do you tend to add in objects/houses/litter trays for the rabbits when bonding or leave it empty? Do you sit in the pen with them or supervise from outside the pen? I'm planning to bring them inside and use a neutral area neither of them have been before and will create a pen using nic grids, so I can alter the size if needed. They will have been living side by side for 2 weeks this weekend and are showing positive signs towards each other (curiosity, low aggression, willing to eat close to each other).
I would like the bonding to be as low stress as possible for both of them (so no stress bonding techniques like tiny spaces, car journeys, or bath tubs other than as a last resort), but I'm unsure if adding in places they can hide in is more likely to provide security or a reason to fight with each other. The same goes for space really, so any advice about these things would be appreciated.
Thanks!