Trio bonding advice - help with pros and cons please.

[Craig 1965]

Could I please just put this to all you wonderful RU'ers for some advice and guidance as you are all far more experienced and knowledgable than I am abou these matters.
At the moment, I am just considering this option - nothing in concrete and I've not even begun to work out any logistics, so I would just appreciate some general help please.
I am just in the early stages of considering whether I could move up to a trio but a huge part of me is extremely anxious about it for many reasons. I love my 2 rabbits - Henry and Lillian and they are happily bonded. I/we are comfortable coping with this and the occasional medical emergency that comes with having rabbits. Their bond is strong and Lillian and Henry love each other and are happy with that relationship. The space they have is comfortable for them, but that's not to say we don't have spare capacity for an additional bun.
I was looking at Harlequins the other day - just because I have a soft spot for them after the loss of my soul bun Ben. And I happened to stumble across a dear sweet house bun in Nottingham who is about 2 and is a total softee. He's a licker and loves to cuddle up on hoomans laps. There's a big part of me tugging away wanting to rescue this bun - he is being fostered by a beautiful family who are looking for a forever home for him, but I don't want to jeopardise the relationship Lillian and Henry have.
Is it hard (generally speaking) to bond a trio (and yes there's probably a load of what if's on that). But in general terms, with a settled pair, how unsettling could it be with a third?
Are there any specific strategies for it? Do you seperate the bonded pair?
Who do you introduce first in this scenario? Do you do male to male or male to female?
I can't pretend that any venture like this doesn't scare me - it does. I have no experience at all in this field and my priority has to be the welfare and wellbeing of Henry and Lillian and of course, this other bun who is happy where he is at the moment. Yes I can give a third bun a loving home, a great garden and all the love in the world, but it could only work for all of us if a bond into a trio is successful otherwise I'll end up breaking up Lillian and Henry and also not able to fulfill the needs of a third bun.
But my heart strings are tugging at this rescue bun on his own and I just feel this deep calling to rescue buns.
I have never considered a trio before - but a part of me would like to give this bunny a home.
So, could you please advise me on the good, the bad and the not so good with bonding trios please.
Hope you can help and thank you for any advice you can give. I haven't made up my mind and I would rather leave things as they presently are, than to go headlong into something that I may not feel confident and/or comfortable with.

 

[tonibun]

I think you should go ahead and rescue this bunny and make it work. It could take time and loads of patience. You would need to introduce them in a neutral area, in a small space. Don't separate Lillian and Henry. Lots of people have trios, not me because I like my pairs.

 

[Pets mum]

No advice Craig, as never bonded any bunnies, let alone a trio, but just want to wish you good luck if you do decide to rescue this bun. You have a very big heart, and anybun would be very fortunate to come under your care. Good luck xxxx

 

[Casco]

When I bonded my trio it went much smoother than I expected. They lived side by side for a few weeks until the new bun had recovered from her spay and once I put them together in neutral space it didn’t take long for them to settle. I added a female to an existing male-male pair (littermates). The female was young, around 6 months at the time of bonding, and the males relatively young at around 16 months so I don’t know if that would have helped in any way.

 

[Cuthbert&Dillon]

Follow your heart, if you feel that this is the right time then go for it. Any bunny would be lucky to come to you.

 

[Zoobec]

Personally I wouldn’t do it, for risking breaking the bond of your pair, especially as (I think :?) they have a few ongoing health issues, which can cause problems in a bond. But there’s no rights and wrongs in bonding, I bonded 2 pairs into a quad years ago, which a lot of people wouldn’t have done, and that worked fine. I would have a plan b and c in place if you do go ahead in case you need to alter plans. For example, Would you be able to return bunny if it doesn’t work out? Or have a second pair instead? And what would you do if the worst case happened and you ended up with 3 singles ?

Sorry to put doubts out there but I think you will need to think carefully about this. I think if I were you I’d be more likely to go for a second pair......

Have you read the trio bonding sticky ? http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/showthread.php?317003-Do-you-want-to-bond-a-trio-Read-this-first
There’s some trio bonding videos in here http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/showthread.php?462494-Old-Useful-Topics-Bonding

 

[tulsi]

The only bond I did was to try to get 6 together.

2 bucks (littermates) who had fallen out post neutering

2 does (littermates) who were fine

A doe buck pair who were fine.

The doe and buck pair wanted no part of it. I now have a very happy quad. The pair are no longer with me (rip).

Good luck with whatever feels right to you. You know your rabbits best.

 

[joey&boo]

Pro's - if you get there its bloody amazing. If you think owning a pair is cute, a trio is twice as entertaining & sweet to watch. If one bun dies your remaining pair aren't left grieving and without bunny company.

Con's - bonding sweats, self loathing, guilt, peeing in a bucket, doing absolutely nothing but watch rabbits for weeks (or in mine & Beapigs experience 8 whole months & we work from home!) , territorial wees, lugging them to vets

 

[Craig 1965]

Thank you everybun for your comments and advice. This was exactly what I was hoping for. It is right that your views differ and vary and reflect the love and relationships you all have withou your own rabbits.
I have to say that Zoobec & Joey & Boo's comments do in fact reinforce the general feeling I have. Zoobec is absolutely spot on about the health issues I have - something I was rather concerned about. I don't really have any bail out plan if things went south so from my seat it was commit or not.
I do like joey & boo's take on it - this was just what I was looking for. There are amazing benefits, but there's alot of mental anguish getting there - and if I ask myself the question, mentally I don't know if I am up to that level of anxiety and stress.
But in saying that, I feel as though I am letting other rabbits down because I can't rescue them.
I know I can give (or try to give) buns a loving safe home with a great garden, but I also have limitations and quite rightly, I have to respect and maintain the bond that Lillian and Henry have.
I am really grateful to you all for taking the time to post your honest and valued thoughts. As much as I feel drawn to wanting to expand my current duo, I also think it's probably right that it is a step to far for me right now. There will be a great home for this bun I was looking at - with a wonderful wife bun, and he deserves that rather than a potentially challenging bond which has many ways to go wrong.
Thank you all so much again for your helpful and honest advice - I really appreciate it.
Craig xx

 

[joey&boo]

I'm glad it helped. You would most certainly need a plan B - I had to fudge mine together as you know. You know that sick feeling when you find your bunny is unwell & you think you should have noticed or acted earlier? You can times that by 100 when you adopt a bunny, bring him "home" & he has to be taken to the vet to be glued back together It is a shame you can't adopt this bun who has stolen you're heart though or indeed any other rescue bun who would land on his paws living with you .

If RU had a debating thread on the subject, I could quite honestly argue all day for either side

The crux of the issue is that bunnies are so unpredictable in bonding - especially groups.

 

[Scrappy's Little Helper]

It's a really tough decision and I can imagine how conflicted you're feeling. The problem is that you're never going to know if a group bond would work until you put them all together.

Personally I would love a trio for all the reasons J&B has given. However I've had to let my rational head take charge. I'd only go for it if I was able to implement my backup plan. That is, if a trio didn't work out I'd get the single bun a friend and have them living as two separate pairs because I know I would never be able to send a bun back. They would all have to have plenty of space and because I currently live in a small flat that just isn't possible.

Sent from my SM-T585 using Tapatalk

 

[hoppetylop]

I have 2 trios.
The first trio was part of a newly created bond of 6 which didn't work out but these three obviously liked each other and I kept them together and never looked back.
My other trio are 2 easy going ish,mature females and a younger quiet male who all bonded very easily as the girls had been bonded with a quiet male before and seemed to like having a (quiet) boy about.
However easy the bond though,trios,in my experience take a long time to really form a close-knit bond.The dynamic takes a while to establish.Despite the relatively straight forward bonding with both my trios,it took a good six to eight months before the bond grew really deep.Now I cant imagine the trios living any other way.

 

[joey&boo]

I have 2 trios.
The first trio was part of a newly created bond of 6 which didn't work out but these three obviously liked each other and I kept them together and never looked back.
My other trio are 2 easy going ish,mature females and a younger quiet male who all bonded very easily as the girls had been bonded with a quiet male before and seemed to like having a (quiet) boy about.
However easy the bond though,trios,in my experience take a long time to really form a close-knit bond.The dynamic takes a while to establish.Despite the relatively straight forward bonding with both my trios,it took a good six to eight months before the bond grew really deep.Now I cant imagine the trios living any other way.

two trios, you're so lucky. I've heard that said before - about 8 months to develop fully