Bonding Troubles...

Hey all,

We are looking for some advice. We currently have two spayed females, Willow 1 and Duchess 2, Willow had previously been bonded with our boy Beano who sadly passed away after a reaction to his vaccine. We had planned on introducing Duchess and making a trio but before we could Beano passed.

Since then we have attempted bonding Willow and Duchess with little success, Duchess seems particularly territorial and will launch herself at Willow as soon as they are in the bonding pen. We have heard from a friend that adding a boy into the mix might help settle down the aggression and give Duchess something else to focus on during bonding sessions.

As luck would have it there is a boy up for adoption from our local centre who seems a good fit but we were hoping to see if anyone else has had a similar situation and has any advice on whether adding a boy into the mix and making a trio would be a good idea.

Many thanks!

Hi Lexo, I’m sorry to hear your having bonding troubles & just wanted to say I get it & I’m sure you’ll get lots of advice from experienced owners here. My Bella was bonded with shadow both females when we took them. Sadly she list shadow a couple months ago [emoji22]. It was heartbreaking. We got Morgan from rspca he’s a male & I tried to do the introduction in neutral space but a fight broke out very quickly. It was very scary & upsetting. Prior to that Bella had accidentally got to morgan in kitchen & a fight happened there first time ever seeing eachother. Thankfully I was in the garden & got there so quick. I then had one bun housed in the kitchen & 1 in the living room. After seeking advice on here I’m now trying side by side living with barrier so they can still see/smell eachother. I’m only a few days set up. Bella is very feisty & was the boss before. She wasn’t a happy bunny. Perhaps doing side by side living could help your 2. Im waiting a good while before then trying another introduction again. I’m really hoping it works out as I love them both. This is my first time having bunnies & also bonding them. Xx


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IME, two girls are the hardest bond.
You need somewhere totally neutral - where no bun has been before.
You have a lot of options here. I would be temped to bond Willow with a neutered boy, then see if if Duchess will make a trio a bit later (maybe with a very long side by side bond via mesh).
Or bond each with a boy and leave as 2 pairs.

You don't say how old they are and how long since they were spayed. It can make a difference if they were recently spayed.

Shimmer said:

IME, two girls are the hardest bond.
You need somewhere totally neutral - where no bun has been before.
You have a lot of options here. I would be temped to bond Willow with a neutered boy, then see if if Duchess will make a trio a bit later (maybe with a very long side by side bond via mesh).
Or bond each with a boy and leave as 2 pairs.

You don't say how old they are and how long since they were spayed. It can make a difference if they were recently spayed.

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Hi shimmer, I didnt know about sex pairing till coming on here & that same sex are much harder. That’s why I got a male for belka. I always wander how she worked so well with shadow as both were girls. Something I’ll never know as they were bonded for years before we took them. Mind you shadow was a dwarf so I think being so small compared to Bella she had to submit to her xx


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Normally, I would for preference go for 2 boys as the easiest bond, with M / F next. F / F is my nightmare. Others find them OK. It does also depend on the individual rabbits.

I currently have a boy who doesn't want to know about another boy, though, which is going to be an issue as it's going to be a M / M / F trio. He's lost 2 partners from the original trio this year and he's not happy on his own, so that's the current option - fingers & paws firmly crossed.

Shimmer said:

Normally, I would for preference go for 2 boys as the easiest bond, with M / F next. F / F is my nightmare. Others find them OK. It does also depend on the individual rabbits.

I currently have a boy who doesn't want to know about another boy, though, which is going to be an issue as it's going to be a M / M / F trio. He's lost 2 partners from the original trio this year and he's not happy on his own, so that's the current option - fingers & paws firmly crossed.

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I’m so sorry he lost his partners shimmer. I do hope that if there’s going to be another female, it might help him to accept more as a trio. Was he with females before? Yes they definitely want another for company but must be so difficult if he just won’t accept the buns you get for him. I really hope your trio works out for all the bunnies. Do you think some can be unbondable? Or would it be more of just not finding the right bun for that particular one? Xx


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He will get another partner - just not exactly sure who it will be. It's not been a good year for the bunnies, and he is obviously unhappy at the moment - so I'm working on it. His other partners were girls. It just more complicated as the year went on. Winter bonding outside is also an issue, as any new bunny would have to be outside and that cuts out a lot of options until March. He's not completely alone - there is contact through bars /mesh with the others.

He has a lot in common with Duchess - he's feisty and very particular about who he will share with.

Shimmer said:

He will get another partner - just not exactly sure who it will be. It's not been a good year for the bunnies, and he is obviously unhappy at the moment - so I'm working on it. His other partners were girls. It just more complicated as the year went on. Winter bonding outside is also an issue, as any new bunny would have to be outside and that cuts out a lot of options until March. He's not completely alone - there is contact through bars /mesh with the others.

He has a lot in common with Duchess - he's feisty and very particular about who he will share with.

Click to expand...

Yes I completely understand about winter. Bella & shadow we’re outdoor buns. When we got Morgan though he had never been out so he can’t go outside till March time. I did take Bella in after losing shadow as I was worried about her & she was depressed. It also was getting cold & she had vet trips so didn’t want her outside. They were in separate rooms prior to the side by side. I have to keep both in till spring now. I don’t even know if I want them back out lol as used to them in but will see. At least he has contact through bars & my 2 also. Morgan’s never lived in a pair but Bella was 5-6 years with shadow so felt it & still will bless her. I hope it works out for your boy shimmer xx


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