Nibbles' and Junie's Bonding Adventures, Part 3

[mdith4him]

Hey everyone!!

I've been away from the forum for awhile. School was so crazy (I teach 1st grade) and I just didn't have time (or energy) for a whole lot else. BUT (!) next week is the LAST week of school and I am so ready for summer vacation! Hopefully I'll be able to hang out here a bit more.

Anyway, I last had this thread going for Nibbles and Junie:
http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=70633&forum_id=48

It ended with what I would call a stalemate. No new progress or signs of anything happening. With our busy schedules and Nibbles' seemingly bad attitude, we decided to stop trying to bond the two bunnies for the time being.

Now that it's (almost) summer, we're trying again! We've had a couple dates over the last two or three weeks and they've gone similarly to the last couple dates described in the last thread.

Tonight, we put them together again in the tub and as soon as Nibbles saw her, he started his rough grooming (it looks like he's biting her, but she doesn't run away). After a bit of that, he mounted her!! She looked a bit freaked out, but stayed still for a few seconds before trying to move away. There was some chasing and more mounting and some light fur pulling from Nibbles. I was so excited! He's NEVER done anything close to that before and hopefully now he'll feel like he's "in charge." I'm planning to do another date tomorrow and hopefully we'll continue to see things progress.

 

[ZRabbits]

Glad to see you back Meredith. Glad to hear all is well with Junie and Nibbles.

Look forward to hearing how the continued bonding is going. Wishing you all the luck.

K

 

[mdith4him]

Currently in the middle of another tub date. Nibbles was doing a lot of rough grooming and she was doing a lot of running away. She groomed him a bit and then both just were laying there looking sleepy. Just a minute ago, though, Nibbles sat up and groomed Junie!! Like actual, nice, licking-with-tongue grooming!!

She looks much more comfortable and is grooming herself now. So excited!!

 

[ZRabbits]

Glad to hear. Thanks for updating.

Keep going! Sounds like the bond is starting to form. They are actually working it out themselves. Nibbles is getting the idea of what nice grooming should be. And Junie is accepting it. Definitely so much better without the raging hormones.

Please keep us updated.

K

 

[mdith4him]

Just finished a morning date. Nibbles was nipping/grooming (I don't know what to call it) for most of the time and occasionally trying to mount her. She's pretty fast, so the only times he actually got on her was when I helped by covering her eyes for 5-10 seconds. As soon as I moved my hand she was gone!

About 5 minutes into the date, Nibbles went to the side of the tub and completely flopped over! Not just stretched out, but FLOPPED. I couldn't believe it! He sat up again pretty fast, but I thought that probably shows he's comfortable.

After about 20 minutes, Nibbles flopped over again! When she started sniffing around him, he propped himself up so that he was just stretched out. She crawled between him and the tub and flopped over, too! It was so cute. They stayed that way for about 5 minutes and I decided that would be a good way to end things for today

 

[ZRabbits]

Great! Thanks so much for sharing the pic.

Definitely looks like a bond starting to form IMHO. Wishing you continued success.

K

 

[mdith4him]

Our last two dates haven't been quite as nice. Both Sunday and Monday night started with Nibbles either mounting or nipping at Junie. When he mounts her, I think he's nipping her back, too, so she doesn't really hold still.

Last night, he licked her ears for about 5 seconds and she licked him a couple times, but that was after 20 minutes of scurrying, nipping, and thumping. He did flop over at one point, but she didn't snuggle up with him like last time.

Two steps forward, one step backward!

 

[mdith4him]

Oh, Nibbles and your mixed signals...

Our current date started with lots of nipping/fur pulling/mounting from Nibbles. After awhile, he started ignoring her and was grooming himself. She groomed herself a bit. Later, Nibbles flopped over, the sign of a supremely happy bunny. Junie isn't quite relaxed enough to flop, though she did lick his ears at one point.

More updates as they happen...

 

[mdith4him]

Last night, Nibbles and Junie just sat on opposite sides of the tub for several minutes. Nibbles largely ignored Junie the whole time except when she got near him. He nipped at her a bit, but didn't seem to be going after her on purpose to nip. He flopped over twice (still the cutest thing I see all day!) and she licked his face and ears quite a bit. They ate some hay together and I ended things after about 30 minutes.

 

[agnesthelion]

Very cute! I have no personal experience with bonding buns but it sounds like their dating is going well. I look forward to reading more! They sure are cute