First bond

Hi guys.

I am doing my first bond for my new rescue! I am so fascinated with bonding and so excited to get more and more experienced at this.

So it's going really well on the whole. I'm bonding one of my rescues with an adopter's rabbit. They are both mini lops, fully vaccinated, one girl, one boy. I started off in a small dog cage for one night then moved into bog dog cage for 2 nights and now i'm slowly expanding that making an attached pen slowly bigger. All neutral areas.

The girl starting off with humping and the boy didn't like it at all, throwing her off and then the girl would get frustrated and it would end in a frantic tornado that I would have to stop. I think she has learnt her lesson and hasn't done that again since the first day. The boy humps the girl a lot now but luckily the girl tolerates it really well and eventually runs away and the boy usually gives in and just starts grooming her instead.

My slight concern is that I'm unsure if they've worked out who is the dominant one. Or perhaps as a silly human and first time bonder I haven't worked it out yet!

The boy gives the most grooms by far which makes me think the girl is the dominant but he is the one who does all the humping which makes me think he is the dominant. They both choose to lie with each other sometimes and both go off to get more space when they feel like it. The boy also sometimes persistently digs at the female and pulls at her fur but it never escalates and I feel like he is trying to get her attention but I'm not sure.

Would really appreciate some advice and opinions please! The owner is desperate to get them back but I worry that if they haven't fully worked out who is boss yet it may cause problems at their new home.

Thanks!

Funnily enough I am doing the first bond for other people. Am just about to start. They mustn't expect the bonding to take a couple of days, I have told my people that it will be at least a week as I shall not be in a hurry. The boy needs to be the dominant one initially, they usually groom the female. It sounds good at least there is no fighting, so it's just a matter of time before they settle down with one another and the bond can start to grow. So, don't be in a hurry and when they go back home. I have advised my people they put them in a small area for a few days so they can re-acclimatise themselves and not put them back into the shed they have been living in (separated) straight away. Everyone bonds a bit differently. I must have bonded over 50 pairs so I am sticking to my normal method. Good luck and follow your gut feeling. The owners will have to be patient.

tonibun said:

Funnily enough I am doing the first bond for other people. Am just about to start. They mustn't expect the bonding to take a couple of days, I have told my people that it will be at least a week as I shall not be in a hurry. The boy needs to be the dominant one initially, they usually groom the female. It sounds good at least there is no fighting, so it's just a matter of time before they settle down with one another and the bond can start to grow. So, don't be in a hurry and when they go back home. I have advised my people they put them in a small area for a few days so they can re-acclimatise themselves and not put them back into the shed they have been living in (separated) straight away. Everyone bonds a bit differently. I must have bonded over 50 pairs so I am sticking to my normal method. Good luck and follow your gut feeling. The owners will have to be patient.

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Thank you! Who does it sound like is the dominant one to you? Are there any other signs I should be looking for?

I agree it’s best not to rush the bonding, it seems to be the biggest cause of fallouts!

I'm not sure grooming is as significant in the pecking order as people make it out to be. My Mouse (undeniably the lowest ranking in our warren) took months before she groomed the others regularly. Nowadays I'd say all my trio share groom each other equally. Boo will often flop & be groomed by Joey & Mouse at the same time (she is such a lush). Maybe its just when bonding & a bun demands to be groomed its of particular significance . Maybe grooming signifies acceptance not dominance?? I really don't know - these are just musings.

From the other behaviours you describe - the girl allowing humping, not retaliating but running away etc I'd say the boy is top bun at the mo

I am happy if the 2 bunnies eat together as this is a really good sign they are accepting one another. Real bonds can take a while to happen.