How to start bonding

[Kokkiniklosti]

I know it is very difficult to bond two female rabbits but i would like to give it a go! Odisseas is a 10 month-old neutered male and Aftias is also 10 months old and got neutered the day before yesterday!

So, to give you a clue here are some clues about their personality:
Odisseas is very short tempered, never grooms others and he only accepts being groomed from others when he likes it! He gets easily angry, and when he does, he growls and bites sometimes! He is very energetic and loves running around!

Aftias on the other hand is very easygoing, he likes pets, but sometimes he prefers grooming others and i think he is going to be the submissive one! Rarely does he get angry, he is more of a couch potato, but he appreciates being groomed!

Each of them has a separate room and i keep a time schedule for their free roams!

I am going to leave it this way for a couple of weeks for Aftias' hormones to come down and maybe i will later start switching litterboxes and toys so that they eventually get used to each other's scent! And after a couple of weeks after that i may try to introduce them!

Any suggestions? I really need them because i am a newbie on bonding!

 

[Flashy]

Aftias is probably still very sore, and will also have a great deal of male hormone still in him, so it's probably best to wait for a little while. As I understand it, it can take 6-8 weeks for the male hormones to go, so maybe try and wait for that.

As for bonding, there is a link in the Bunny 101 forum, but I think it might have suffered from the forum change, so my best idea is to google it.

In the meantime, put them somewhere where they can both see and smell each other from their hutches, swap their toys around and food bowls, etc, so that they get used to the smell of the other.

It can take a long time to bond some rabbits, as in a few months plus, so if it goes badly at the start, don't be too despondent.

Good luck

 

[Kokkiniklosti]

I keep them indoors because i do not have a yard! They have their own rooms but there is no other neutral territory that i can split in two! Do you think that maybe if i clean very-very well one of these rooms, so that there is no bunny scent left, i could put their cages side-by-side, with no problem? I am afraid that it is nearly impossible to wash all the bunny scent off of the bunnies' rooms!

 

[missyscove]

Do they already free roam in the same area- just at different times? If they do they're probably already used to eachother's scent.

I'm sure there are still some neutral areas in your house for when it comes time for the actual bonding part. I used the bathtub, kitchen table, and tub, for example.

 

[Flashy]

Those exclamation marks scare me, lol, I'm such a wuss.

If they are kept in different rooms, would you be willing to give them a set up where they are both in the same room? This will mean they can smell each other and get used to their scent, in this instance, you don't need to worry about the scent because, in my eyes, the more the better.

When it comes to actually putting them together, many people try first in the bathtub, because it is easy to reach safe, neutral and new, so maybe it's worth trying something like that. Also, are you willing to let them try other rooms in your house? They would also be neutral territory.

When you come to trying in non neutral territory, if they arein the same room normally, then letting them run in that room might be an idea because it will feel like a space where theya re used to having the other bun around.

 

[Kokkiniklosti]

Well when it is their "run-around" time they both have free access everywhere except for the other bunny's room, my bedroom and the bathroom! When the tme comes i may use the bedroom or the bathroom to introduce them! But there is no enough room in my house to make two different setups next to each other, in a neutral territory, or a common room! So, does is sound right that i may put them both in Aftias' room, but each one in his cage? Or Aftias will freak out because he has claimed the room as his?

 

[Flashy]

Kokkiniklosti wrote:

So, does is sound right that i may put them both in Aftias' room, but each one in his cage? Or Aftias will freak out because he has claimed the room as his?

This is exactly what i was getting at, but not explaining myself well, lol. Each bunny having their owncage in the same room as the other is the ideal setup. It might mean that they get less run space for a while, but eventually the benefits should outweigh the slight compromise.

Until you have this all sorted you could swap them in their cages every two or three days or something so that they get used to the other buns smell.

Most likely to start with Aftias won't be overly chuffed, but he will adjust pretty quickly to have someone else there, but expect a bit of spraying until his hormones have died down.

 

[Kokkiniklosti]

Oh, yes, i am ready to see that happening! Thanks for the tips!