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Bonding baby rabbits

Rackeluk

Warren Scout
Hi, I’m looking for some help, I purchased two rabbits but unfortunately one died as it was the runt and very small, the vet told us that we needed to get another rabbit or the other one would be lonely and stressed, we purchased another rabbit, they are both between 9-12 weeks old, too young to neuter, I’m hoping to bond them quickly as we only have one outdoor hutch, we have an indoor cage but with the heat at the moment I’d rather them out doors.
Can you offer any advice.
I have the original rabbit in the hutch and the new one in the run, they are next to each other separated by chicken wire, we are on 4 hours now since they both met.
 
Hi, I’m looking for some help, I purchased two rabbits but unfortunately one died as it was the runt and very small, the vet told us that we needed to get another rabbit or the other one would be lonely and stressed, we purchased another rabbit, they are both between 9-12 weeks old, too young to neuter, I’m hoping to bond them quickly as we only have one outdoor hutch, we have an indoor cage but with the heat at the moment I’d rather them out doors.
Can you offer any advice.
I have the original rabbit in the hutch and the new one in the run, they are next to each other separated by chicken wire, we are on 4 hours now since they both met.

Hello

I am sorry for your loss. Do you know the exact cause of death ? Was he/she vaccinated ? Any prior symptoms such as diarrhoea ? There are some infectious and potentially serious illnesses that Rabbits can succumb too, babies in particular to Intestinal Coccidiosis.

I would want to quarantine your remaining Rabbit for at least 2 weeks prior to trying to introduce another Rabbit.
 
Hello

I am sorry for your loss. Do you know the exact cause of death ? Was he/she vaccinated ? Any prior symptoms such as diarrhoea ? There are some infectious and potentially serious illnesses that Rabbits can succumb too, babies in particular to Intestinal Coccidiosis.

I would want to quarantine your remaining Rabbit for at least 2 weeks prior to trying to introduce another Rabbit.

The vet told us that as the rabbit was the runt of the litter he didn’t get what he needed from his Mum, he was very small and very lethargic, we only had him a week, the vet checked him over and couldn’t find anything alarming.
Our other rabbit seems very healthy, very bouncy. Our new rabbit is extremely friendly and will hop around the garden then come over to you for a cuddle.
I’ve put the new rabbit in the indoor cage for now so that our other rabbit can use the rabbit run.
 
One suggestion was to swap them over each day so to house the other one in the indoor cage whilst the other one is in the house then vice versa so the scent goes down
 
Hi and welcome :wave: Sorry you lost one of your rabbits. What gender are your current buns? If one is male, he can be neutered as soon as his testicles descend so depending on his weight/your vets he could be done as early as 12 weeks. He will remain fertile however for 6-8 weeks following the op so any bonding can't take place until after that. They should've both had their vaccinations by now, 1 vaccine which covers Myxomatosis & RHD1 and a second vaccine which covers RHD2. There is a new vaccine recently released which covers all 3 but your vet may not have the stock yet.

I wouldn't swop their accommodation since one is outdoors and one indoors, but to swop scents you could swop toys around between the two. When both have recovered from neutering and can be bonded it's best to do it in a small, neutral space. So somewhere neither rabbit has been before. Behaviours such as chasing, humping, nipping and fur pulling can be normal and it's best to not intervene unless there looks to be a fight, in which case make sure you have thick gloves to separate them to protect your hands! Put a big pile of fresh hay and any food they like such as herbs/forage as a distraction. I tend to go by after 24 hours of good behaviour (lied down, eating, grooming) I gradually increase the space. A big change can cause a setback. Best of luck!
 
Hi, one of the rabbits is 10 weeks old and the new one is 12 weeks, I thought they were too young to be neutered.
I’ve swapped the toys around, I’m going to do the same tomorrow and see how that goes, they lay next to each other but with chicken wire separating them
 
My partner let them both run round the garden together, they didn’t bother with each other at first then they started crashing each other and there was some hair pulling, we separated them immediately.
I’ll ring the vets and book them in for neutering, I know it takes time to recover so I won’t try to house them together till they’ve recovered.
 
I would make sure you know what sex they are then you can decide on when they can be neutered. If they fight before neutering this could make it more difficult to bond them so I would keep them separate for now.
 
Are they both boys? They should heal fairly quickly and obviously then can't breed so don't need the full 6 weeks :lol: Boy bonds can be a bit more tricky then the standard male/female pair so keep an eye for fighting at any stage.
 
Thank you for the advice, I was told they would instantly bond, I’ve never bonded rabbits before so I’m frustrated that I was told to get the same sex, I would have preferred the opposite sex but I don’t want them to breed.
 
I’ve booked them in to get vaccinated so I’m going to ask the vet to sex them at the same time and check if they are ready for neutering.
 
Just to wish you good luck getting your bunnies vaccinated, and sexed. Hope everything works out ok, let us know how you get on xx
 
Thank you.
We are going to look for a second hutch so that the new rabbit can sleep outside and they can both use the run at separate times as I’m feeling mean that the other rabbit can’t use the run.
 
Both bunnies have now been vaccinated and booked in first week in July for neutering, Vet told us to hold off any bonding trays until they have had their op done, they are still in separate hutches next to each other and share a rabbit run that has chicken wire in the middle splitting it into two runs.

Do you agree with the advice I’ve been given?

When I let them go for a run in the garden separately they run straight up to the other hutch To see the other rabbit, also, when they are in the run they are always lay next to each other and run up and down playing together but split by chicken wire, I’m just wondering if I could try them in the garden together... what do you think?
 
Both bunnies have now been vaccinated and booked in first week in July for neutering, Vet told us to hold off any bonding trays until they have had their op done, they are still in separate hutches next to each other and share a rabbit run that has chicken wire in the middle splitting it into two runs.

Do you agree with the advice I’ve been given?

When I let them go for a run in the garden separately they run straight up to the other hutch To see the other rabbit, also, when they are in the run they are always lay next to each other and run up and down playing together but split by chicken wire, I’m just wondering if I could try them in the garden together... what do you think?

I agree with the advice you’ve been given by the vet, I would definitely wait until after neutering to try bonding, I would wait until their hormones have subsided too, around 6 weeks post neutering. Bonding will need to be Done in a small neutral area where neither bunny has been before.
 
Thank you, unfortunately both bunnies have been in the garden at separate times so isn’t neutral, we don’t really have any where else they can go.
My main problem is that one of the rabbits is bigger than the other and desperately needs more run space, the plan is for when they are bonded we are going to join the hutches together and build a bigger, higher run for them to share but we can’t do that until they are living together
 
It does seem mean as the rabbits give the impression they want to be together but I have had 2 Bucks (unneutered) do exactly the same thing but the minute you put them together they fought. Which sex are they? Did the Vet tell you? Just to assure you, if you went onto UK Rabbits where there are lots of experienced people, you would be told exactly the same as we have told you. Please keep coming on and let us know how it all progresses. We have to be patient where bunnies are concerned.
 
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