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Get a buddy or not? [emoji848]

cheriseru

Alpha Buck
So I've been debating the past while if I should get Zeus a buddy or not and I'm torn!

Here's my thoughts for getting him a friend... Zeus doesn't appear lonely or bored but I have seen him a few times sitting in front the mirror, which can be a sign they're lonely and last night I actually saw him doing a loaf against the mirror after licking it [emoji24] which broke my heart thinking he's lonely!
I'm starting to go to the office 1-2days a week again.
Everything I read and hear says rabbits absolutely should not be kept alone.
He's not very active, even with a mountain of different toys(he might just be a lazy bunny) but does make me wonder. He's a good weight so not worried about that.

So now my thoughts against getting him a friend...
I have absolutely no experience with bonding and there's no way I can have 2 bunnies that aren't bonded. I also don't have much spare cash to pay much for a bonding service.
I'd get jealous if Zeus stops cuddling me and just cuddle his buddy [emoji15]
I'm still fairly new to being a bunny mum so is getting another one too much too soon.
What if he's the sort of bunny that doesn't get along with any other bunny. He's been introduced to my gerbils and wasn't really interested in them and have even befriended my friends corgy(that's another story I'll explain somewhere else) so he doesn't appear to not like other pets.
What if his buddy is a brat and doesn't like me?[emoji15] or isn't as friendly as Zeus and teaches Zeus to not be friendly with me [emoji24]

What does everyone think?

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I'll share my thoughts. I think it'd be lovely to get him him a friend - there are many things you can do to make bonding much more likely to go smoothly. The best way is to adopt his friend from a rescue that will help with personality matching & bonding. I'm personally a huge fan of letting bunnies meet before deciding & not just choosing for them, arranged marriage style. All sorts of combos work but male & female is best with both parties being neutered

I don't think he'll lose his bond with you. I've never experienced a bunny being less friendly when another arrives (I have noticed bereaved bunnies being more friendly but thats not relevant here). Because you & Zeus have a strong bond it is more likely to give confidence to a new bun that you're trustworthy & Ok. As to whether they'd be friendly to you its anyones guess - I reckon you'd find it didn't matter so much, even grumpy anti social bunnies are adorable.

Bunnies are great in pairs, permanent entertainment & so nice to just sit & watch
 
I'll share my thoughts. I think it'd be lovely to get him him a friend - there are many things you can do to make bonding much more likely to go smoothly. The best way is to adopt his friend from a rescue that will help with personality matching & bonding. I'm personally a huge fan of letting bunnies meet before deciding & not just choosing for them, arranged marriage style. All sorts of combos work but male & female is best with both parties being neutered

I don't think he'll lose his bond with you. I've never experienced a bunny being less friendly when another arrives (I have noticed bereaved bunnies being more friendly but thats not relevant here). Because you & Zeus have a strong bond it is more likely to give confidence to a new bun that you're trustworthy & Ok. As to whether they'd be friendly to you its anyones guess - I reckon you'd find it didn't matter so much, even grumpy anti social bunnies are adorable.

Bunnies are great in pairs, permanent entertainment & so nice to just sit & watch
Thank you :)
Yup absolutely will adopt from a rescue or such. I didn't know you could let them meet before [emoji33] oh that makes it so much better!!!
And didn't know the rescue would help with personality and such [emoji4] that would be perfect.

True even when Zeus gets grumpy he's still a cutie to watch :D and you make a very good point that Zeus's comfort with me might help encourage the new buddy that I can be trusted.

Would a friend need to be the same breed? Or does that not matter much?

Also, not sure where you're based, but do you know of any rescues in West London?

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Thank you :)
Yup absolutely will adopt from a rescue or such. I didn't know you could let them meet before [emoji33] oh that makes it so much better!!!
And didn't know the rescue would help with personality and such [emoji4] that would be perfect.

True even when Zeus gets grumpy he's still a cutie to watch :D and you make a very good point that Zeus's comfort with me might help encourage the new buddy that I can be trusted.

Would a friend need to be the same breed? Or does that not matter much?

Also, not sure where you're based, but do you know of any rescues in West London?

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I don't know any London rescues - sorry. You could maybe start a new thread about that one. Some rescues do pre dates & taking matching seriously - others do not. I think you can afford to take your time. Age & breed don't matter - I'd prefer my bunnies to be roughly the same size. We used to have a very knowledgeable & wise member on here who thought it was easier to bond uppy ears with uppy ears / lops with lops, based on their ability to read each others body language.
 
I don't know any London rescues - sorry. You could maybe start a new thread about that one. Some rescues do pre dates & taking matching seriously - others do not. I think you can afford to take your time. Age & breed don't matter - I'd prefer my bunnies to be roughly the same size. We used to have a very knowledgeable & wise member on here who thought it was easier to bond uppy ears with uppy ears / lops with lops, based on their ability to read each others body language.
Thank you again :D yup definitely not going to rush it. Think my next step is looking into rescues that take matching seriously :)
Ah the uppy ears and lops make sense. Yea the sameish size would be good too, I can't really go much bigger than Zeus either

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I agree with J&B and would certainly consider getting Zeus a beautiful lady bunny. I personally don't think size matters, but that's just a small personal preference. With my two one is almost 5kg and one around 3kg.

I also have personal experience of the rescue that IM has provided the link to. It's where my Tui came from :) I would 100% recommend them. They also do bonding for you with one of their own rabbits for a donation, if you found this too daunting. That's not to say that if I were you I wouldn't give it a go yourself at home.

How exciting :)
 
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I think it would be lovey for Zeus to have a little friend, he sounds such a loveable bun, I think a bond would go well. Good luck if that is what you decide to do xx
 
I agree with the advice you have been given :love: Fern is about twice the size of Frosty but they are the best of friends :love:
 
Thanks everyone for the feedback :D
Decision has been made! I'm going to start the process of finding Zeus a buddy :D seems there's not really many rescues in West London so will be reaching out a bit further, going to get in touch with the rescue IM linked :D
I'm all excited!!! :D

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Thanks everyone for the feedback :D
Decision has been made! I'm going to start the process of finding Zeus a buddy :D seems there's not really many rescues in West London so will be reaching out a bit further, going to get in touch with the rescue IM linked :D
I'm all excited!!! :D

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That's great news, I'm excited for you, and Zeus ! :D
 
Thanks everyone for the feedback :D
Decision has been made! I'm going to start the process of finding Zeus a buddy :D seems there's not really many rescues in West London so will be reaching out a bit further, going to get in touch with the rescue IM linked :D
I'm all excited!!! :D

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Yay, that's excellent! Just imagine, you'll have twice the cuteness that you currently have with Zeus! You'll have two bunnies napping together, eating together, playing together, begging for treats together, getting in trouble together... Once you see them cuddled up together, you'll know you made the best decision! =)
 
My two have only got more friendly and interested in us since bonding. Can't believe the difference it's made, and it just happened overnight - once they were happy, suddenly they have the capacity to do more with us, more playful, more cuddly, more interactive.
Bonding has been quite stressful, but if you use a rescue they can help with that.
 
I've done it [emoji15][emoji16] I'll go make an introduction post for her [emoji16][emoji16]


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