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kdubbz117

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Dec 19, 2010
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Location
monmouth county, New Jersey, USA
So I had my Sweet Pea in one of those massive Oxbow cages with the xpen add-on (that couldn't be used because I messed up putting the cage together and stripped a screw, just as I found I had put a panel on wrong). Back in August, I brought home two buns that a co-worker had to rehome due to a medical emergency. They came with pens, not cages...

The vet I go to has seen all three buns, my Sweet Pea (~2yrs), Luke (found to be 4-5yrs upon getting neutered), and Harriett (est. to be anywhere from 8-10yrs old). During Luke's re-check following his neuter, my vet suggested some of the behavioral issues could be solved by him having a friend. He and Sweet Pea had seemed to take quite some liking to one another. I'm nervous about doing bonding wrong.

They've been around each other freely in neutral territory, but whenever there's been cage and pen cleaning, Sweet Pea would run to the bunny room-- right to Luke's pen and more or less flop down right beside it. He'd flop either right next to her or across the pen from her. If Luke's the loose one, he'd leave the room and go to her cage to check on her. The neutral territory is typically downstairs in the kitchen and dining area. He'd occasionally mount her, and my understanding is to let it be unless it appears super aggressive or he mounts her head (risk of genital damage if she were to get mad). She just kinda lets it happens. It only ever looked like a near-chase situation once, but I quickly stopped it by blocking the chaser (Luke, who looked more confused as to why Sweet Pea was running off, and he could have caught her before I could have stopped her if he wanted to).

They've never really had a bad hang out session any time I've had them out together. Nothing to really cause alarm on my part, just simply take precaution.

My concern comes in recently. I hated Sweet Pea being in a cage, even though she regularly gets to run around like a mad woman downstairs and climb the stairs at her own discretion to back up to her 'room' (cage, but I used to call it her room). But she was still in a cage... So the other day, I decided enough was enough and rearranged the bunny room so that there could be three pens, but Luke & Harriett didn't really lose any space in theirs overall. So Luke and Sweet Pea's are side-by-side..

I *did* kind of goof and not realize until it was too late. I also didn't think it would be too much of an issue, since Sweet Pea regularly would go into the room and hang by Luke's pen.... But I didn't really 'neutralize' the area. Part of Sweet Pea's pen rests where Luke's used to be. So when I had both their pens set up, Sweet Pea went to go greet Luke by the divider, he kind of pushed on the divider at her, not like a lunge but kind of? And when she went to lay down , it almost looked like he went to bite or nip at her through the bars. It definitely startled Sweet Pea, because she sort of steered clear of the divider for some time after that...

This happened within five minutes of her being put into her new 'room'. He did flop by the divider. Since I didn't want Sweet Pea to be afraid to go near the divider, and I didn't want Luke to feel like the boss or think it was acceptable behavior to do what he did, I put her food and water dish near the area that happened. Mind you, after the initial incident, I did spray that border area between their pens with Nature's Miracle in hope that it would prevent further incidents.

My end goal is to have Sweet Pea and Luke bonded, so they could live together... But I'm hoping I didn't just screw up. I'm not sure how much time I should take. I only really have the time on weekends to have them around one another.

I know there are threads on bonding, but I'm awful at searching through. My home doesn't have a layout where I can set up a neutral pen for a first "bunny sleepover" type of deal. But I also feel like I'm doubting myself every step I take in trying to bond these two, despite how much research I do on the matter or how much I consult with the vet on the subject either.

Was I wrong to put them side by side? I know I've only really done limited sessions, but every session has ended on a positive note. There were weekend sessions had since he was cleared by the vet post-neuter and mass-removal in December or so.

Are there key cues I should watch for while they're side-by-side with a divider? Anything that may tell me where their 'relationship' stands? Or any red flags?

And has anyone else ever experienced the second-guessing or the doubts when they had their first attempt at bonding two buns?
 
Second guessing? Check. Doubts? Double check. All I can say is take it slow and don't rush them. If you see issues or aggression I would suggest some stress bonding type situations such as a car ride or a top of the dryer in a box ride. Everything I read says that neutral territory is key so I don't know what to suggest there. But I feel ya, I am trying to bond two rabbits myself right now. They are living side by side but cannot touch due to a couple inches between their enclosures. I am dealing with a territorial female who has already rejected two previous rabbits. There's nothing like bonding rabbits to put the grey in your hair!
 
When I first brought home Luke and Harriett, it brought out a bit of a territorial side of Sweet Pea. It definitely didn't help that neither of the new buns were altered. Harriett still isn't; given she's anywhere from 8-10yrs old from what I could estimate. I had her checked for a scar; only other way to find out for sure would be ultrasound or something along those lines. I'm not about to put the ol' girl through that. lol.

Since the Nature's Miracle border blast that I did, Luke has been back to himself. It may have just been frustration on his part since literally everything got rearranged. I can't help but do the second guessing thing, but it's nice to know that I'm not alone on it.

I hate the thought of doing any kind of stress bonding, since they never really seemed to need it in the beginning. They just kinda gravitated toward one another once he and Harriett were settled in. I took it as a sign that it may not be a bad idea. I've been keeping an eye out for any signs. I haven't seen anything to lead me to believe it was a bad idea. I'm just kind of kicking myself for having forgotten to neutralize the area in the first place, whether that was a factor or not... But aside from that mishap within the first five minutes, I haven't seen anything else to be overly concerned about.


It seems like no matter what, the mounting won't really stop. He's chewing at the divider between them like he wants to be in there with her... But like I said, it seems like he won't stop mounting her. For the most part, she'll just lay there and let it happen. When she gets tired of it, she removes herself from the situation-- and for the most part, he won't follow her after that. I'm just wondering at what point the mounting may stop. I may be a bit more concerned about that in the long run, because I'm worried he may push to the point that it actually has Sweet Pea snap on him. I'm guessing these are all concerns, worries, or fears that everyone has when bonding a pair--- especially the first time around?
 

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