Advice on a house-mate for Jezebel?

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Cher

Cher

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Location
, Alberta, Canada
It has been three weeks since the passing of her sister. I would love to hear some stories and/or advice on a house-mate for Jezebel.
Jaden was the alpha bun, and Jezebel (we think) would do well with somebun to 'take care' of her, not in that replacement for human contact or replacement of Jaden type way...her personality seems to suit that which needs a partner.
She will be six years old this christmas, and is a 'fixed' bun~
If we get a clear stamp of approval of health from our vet, we are debating another bun. Does it have to be a female or can it be a male mate too (fixed of course) ?
thank you all so much again,
You have been an invaluable source of support for us xoxoxo
cheryl, jezebel & aaron

 
From my experience, a neutered male is the easiest to bond to a female. Of course, that doesn't guarantee it will work out though. I also find that young, energeticbunnies can annoy older bunnies if the older bunny is pretty quiet and lazy. I had this issue with Chase and Reese until Chase got through the hormonal stage and calmed down, and I also had this issues with Zoey and Mocha at first. So I'd highly suggest not getting a baby, but something near a year or older means you have less hormone issues to deal with.

But once again, there are no guarantees. I've had extraordinary luck bonding rabbits but I do believe part of it is because I knew my bunnies personalities and had an idea of what type of mate they would get along with.
 
Well, we went to the humane society today and 5 potential bunnies interviewed us. I was bitten by one, as was my hubby ;)
And then we saw the sweetest boy.......3 years old, neutered and agouti to boot!
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we are going out this eve to get him some of his own things, and then adopt him on christmas eve!
 
Thanks so MUCH!! (not that I made him beautiful lol) I hope Jezebel feels the same....
now I have been doing a lot of research on bonding and I have read two conflicting procedures
I am hoping for input from those who have done this as to which one I should do:

1. Benedict comes home, both bunnies go in separate carriers in neutral territory and after getting each others `scent`they come out of the carriers for a brief meet and greet in the neutral space..with myself and hubby armed with water sprayers, treats and gloves ! This process repeats itself for as long as need be, but each bunny retires to their own cage.

OR

2. Benedict comes home, both bunnies go in separate carriers while the cages are cleaned, de-scented so to speak, and then each bunny moves into their own home a few inches apart (so there can be no fighting through the bars) They stay in their respective cages for a day or so until they are used to seeing and smelling each other. The meet and greet waits for these few days to pass.

and during these days, does each bunny just come out onto Jezebels living room for daily exercise....not sure about that one..
thanks again
cher


 
I think I'd go for #1 -- although I have a bunny with half his ear torn up and a slice down his boy bit (ouch!) and others with all sorts of nicks and lumps, so I may not be the best person to ask. ;)

But I have found that neutral territory (and a lot of space) works better than adjoining cages.

Most of mine bonded themselves when I let them out at the same time.

Most of the injuries are from having two un-spayed sisters who turned out to be two un-neutered brothers housed together, a few territorial escape artists and a friendly and ridiculously clumsy rabbit who kept jumping on the roof and falling in somebunny else's pen.


sas :goodluck
 
When I bond bunnies, I always do the this procedure, and it works well for me.

I house the 2 bunnies side by side with a 'safety zone' between the 2 cages to prevent any injuries. I typically leave them like this for 2 days until they stop getting aggressive when the other bunny moves.

Then I put them together in neutral territory (with only excess hay, some bunnies can be pellet protective) and have a spray bottle and leather gloves on hand for any major issues. I also always make sure there is no where a bunny can be cornered, I always make sure there is at least 2 escape routes for them. As they become more comfortable with one another, I gradually add food and hidey boxes, and toys until they seem very comfortable with one another.

Then I move the bonding sessions to one of the cages (typically of the bunny that is less protective). And eventually they I allow them to move between both cages and gradually increase the time together until they are comfortable together for an entire day with no issues.

That's how I do it, but others may have input as well.
 
thanks so much to both of you for your input...so far we have had them side by side (with the"safety" space in between)
we put up another gate in front of whomever is staying at home while the other one is on 'playtime'
Initially Jezebel approached his cage and started to nip him through the bars and then did that digging/standing thing at him..so we thought it might be beneficial to protect who ever isn't out.
no grunting or growling (yet)
I think he loves her LOL but she swings between not caring about him or wanting to kick his little bunny butt
But the amount of flops she is doing in her own cage is unreal!!
so keep you posted
AND I can't thank you all enough for your help on this
Jez & Benny
 
Thanks guys :)
Miss. Priss (aka Jezebel) has shown complete indifference to her new building tenant! She allows him to gaze at her with complete adoration, and then flops over showing him her underbelly and fluffy white tail (from afar of course, he is in one cage~she in another)
He pines after her...
BUT
We took them both in yesterday (for Jezebel's 10 day check-up) and his after adoption check up.
She is doing well, her eye is taking a long time to heal (viral ulcer there) and she remains on 12 hour meds and 6 hour eyedrops~ but she is nibbling on kibble and soon we are hoping to take her off syringe feeding completely and that might entice her to drink from her water bottle!
Benny on the other hand has a clean bill of health, a good sturdy 'solid' bunny~our bunny savvy vet would like them to remain separated for a month :(
Understandable, he may still have some malingering issues from the humane society and with her vulnerable immune system~best to have as close to 100% as possible.
and vice versa from her to him
I have a feeling (based on their approaches to each other so far) that this will go well in a month.
Thank you so much for enquiring, I know my girl over the rainbow bridge is smiling down on us, so very happy about Jezebel's improved health.
cher

 
Good luck with bonding, and congrats on the new bunny by the way!

I hope the ulcers heal well. I too am dealing with ulcers with Zoey. Unfortunately Zoey is not as lucky, she has lost one eye to the damage and I am praying I can save the other eye.
 
awww MBB I feel for you and Zoey, and will keep our thoughts with you for her (eye) recovery.
As will Jez and Benny :) we send you good healthy thoughts from the 'city' here....
My vet brought up a really good point with jezebel's eyes~at first she thought it was bacterial and after a week when it wasn't clearing up at all, she knew it was viral.

 
Me and my vet have been working to heal Zoey's eye ulcers for the last 6 months. The vet has been in constant contact with the veterinary college in Saskatchewan talking to experts for other possibilities so I am confident in my vet.The ulcers themselves have healed with treatment but the right eye had external damage to the cornea (which is how this started) and would not heal. As for the left eye, the ulcer was considerably smaller with treatment but the stress of having the cone on after having the surgery to remove her right eye has set her back again as the ulcer in the left eye has grown again. We think this is all pasturella related as I have had ongoing medical issues with multiple bunnies that are all different from one another but are all symptoms of pasturella (cultures have been inconclusive).

Anyways, I am truly glad that Jezebel is improving and your boy is getting on so well. I wish you and them the best of luck in weeks to come!
 
Yes yes of course :) Today I will transfer the photo's to a post-able size and get them on here (I have pictures of the 'nose-off' when they were deciding who would be the dominant bun) The little dude won, he is pure delight and relishes being near Jezebel
xo thanks Susan
c
 
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