Bonding a trio

[kahlin]

Right now I have Finley (female) and Behr (male) bonded. Finley is the boss of the relationship.

3 months ago I adopted Zayne (female) and have just recently started the bonding process. All I've done so far is put them in a shared room so they can see each other. I did have double grids (NIC cubes) up to keep them safe. I have switched to singles and all is fine.

The good: all three bunnies have taken turns stretched out near the 'new' friend. Finley is definitely interested in Zayne. They all copy each other's behaviour...and favourite sleeping spots have shifted to be near the new friend.

The bad: Behr is interested in Zayne too, but less so....and when he gets too close to her Finley chases him away from Zayne. And Zayne is less interested in the other two. She is a bit, but a bit aloof too. I know this is somewhat good (better than a hate on - but Fin demands respect, grooming, and to be treated like royalty. If Zayne is too 'meh', Fin will get mad).

Anyway, I'm not sure where to go from here. I've heard thatI should bond a set at a time (for example Finley and Zayne or Behr and Zayne) before putting all three together. Does that mean completely bonded, or do one date with Fin and Zayne, followed shortly after with a date with Zayne and Behr?

Also, if it does mean completely bonded, who should I start with? Because Finley is so aggressive, I'm worried that if I do her and Zayne first Finley may refuse to let Behr near Zayne.

 

[kirbyultra]

kahlin,

I'm so excited that you're trying for a trio! I don't have any real advice for you because I don't have experience with getting a trio together... but from what I hear, it's somewhat an "act of God" -- sometimes it just happens and sometimes it never happens because of all the egos and personalities involved. But, more power to you for trying and I wish you the very best of luck! :biggrin2:

Behr being protective of Finley seems like fairly normal behavior. Finley is his girlfriend, and any other bun who mayalter that paradigm can be seen as a threat.

I hope someone with experience bonding trios can tell you more about it!

 

[elrohwen]

I haven't personally bonded a trio, but I've followed the stories of those that have. The best advice I can give you is to bond the two toughest bunnies first, so Finley and Zayne. You want to do a lot of sessions with them and really get them comfortable in a space together. Next you would bond Behr with Zayne, which should hopefully be much easier. Then hopefully by that point you will be able to put all three of them together in a neutral space and deal with them as a group.

Good luck!

 

[kahlin]

Thanks.

The concern I have with doing Finley-Zayne first is that Finley is already nasty in terms of keeping Behr-Zayne apart. If he seeks Zayne out without Fin nearby, she charges him.

I'm not sure if she's trying to keep him away from Zayne, or Zayne away from him (although the latter makes more sense).

But all of that aside, I came home to find Finley all stretched out next to Zayne. Behr was stretched out a couple of feet away, but still relatively close. They sort of made a bit of a triangle.

 

[elrohwen]

I think her behavior makes it ideal that you do them first. You'll probably put most of your time in making them ok with each other, and once she's more comfortable with Zayne she'll leave Behr alone when he approaches her. And you want to do Finley and Zayne alone together without Behr there since his actions set Finley off. The two girls need to work out their own interactions before you add the boy back into the equation.

If you did Behr and Zayne first, you'd still have Finley causing all sorts of problems when they tried to be together through the pen.

Basically, doing the girls first will only making Behr's life easier.

 

[kahlin]

That makes sense. Thanks. I can't believe I'm trying for a trio!

 

[elrohwen]

Good luck!! I have mucho respect for anyone who attempts a trio.

 

[Torchster]

I wish you well. I had two, but went for the trio. I left my buns with rescue to do the first part of bonding there. Everything was fine unil Popeye got sick. Right after he got sick, Petunia (the most shy, scared bun in the world) became uber aggressive towards him...and I have a trio no more.

I've been giving them supervised time together in my laundry room (because it is small) and they seemed to be OK. But if I'm not around, Petunia will go after Popeye and come away with clumps of fur.

Since things didn't work out...I'm probably not the best source...I wish you well.

 

[Boz]

One piece of advice I'd give you is wait until Zayne is a little older until they stay together permanently. When Marley was 2-3 months old her and Domino got along fine, then hormones kicked in for Marley and she was extremely aggressive towards Domino.

Good Luck! I wish my trio was still together. They were so fun!

 

[elrohwen]

That's a good question - how old is Zayne and is she spayed already? I assumed she is, but I just realized she may not be yet.

 

[kahlin]

Torch - sorry yours didn't really work out. This attempt is technically attempt number 2. A bit over two years ago I adopted a lop to bond to Finley and the brat. Sadly, only one week after bringing Teagan home, we lost the brat. He had to be put under to get his teeth worked on and didn't come back up.

And it did change Finley after that, but in our case for the better. She went from being bullied to being the bully (what, is that better?!)

Returning to the present....Although I call her 'baby Zayne', she isn't really a baby. Zayne was a stray picked up by rabbit rescue. She was spayed 4 months ago. I'm no vet, but I estimate Zayne to be almost a year old.

And I did a date, and will update to my blog (unless people want this to be an ongoing progress report) as soon as the video is uploaded.

 

[elrohwen]

I'll check out your blog. I'm working on my first bond right now and though I generally know what to do, it's a lot more stressful to actually do it!