Bonding 4 Rabbits? Is it possible??

[morganforte]

Recently, someone from a local shelter has contacted me (because I volunteered there this summer) and asked if I was looking to adopt a pair of rabbits.

I already have a pair; a fixed holland lop and a fixed mini lop. They are a male and female pair. They bonded in about 2 hours- I know, crazy! They've been the best of friends ever since and hate to be seperated. Their bond is very strong. My rabbits are very confident and good with strangers and other animals, even my two dogs!

At my local shelter, theyre having a huge issue with over crowding, expecially with the rabbits since there is only one person on staff who knows how to properly care for the bunnies. She asked if I was open to adopting a pair, or another single rabbit.

Before even considering this, I wanted to know if bonded two PAIRS was even possible? I've never heard of it before. If not, obviously I would not be able to adopt another pair, or I would have to keep them seperated from my rabbits.

If anyone has heard of this or if you think it's possible, please let me know!
Also, what about trios? I've heard theyre very hard to bond and can sometimes cause the other two rabbits to "unbond". What are your opinions on it? Thanks!

 

[JBun]

It is possible. A lot really depends on the individual personalities of each rabbit, on how difficult or easy it will be, or if it will even be possible. You also need to be aware of and ready for worst case scenario possibilities. Which can be, bringing in new rabbits can disrupt your current pair and can cause loss of litter habits, destructive behavior, and/or referred aggression and attacking their partner. There is also a very real possibility of your current pair breaking up from attempting to bond new rabbits into the group.

So these are some of the things that can go wrong, but not definite. There's also the possibility that the bonding can go really well and you'll have a happy quad in the end, but it is important to be aware of what can go wrong when considering if this is something you want to attempt.

http://www.rabbitresidence.org.uk/bonding-groups.html
http://www.wheekwheekthump.com/2013...rs-guide-rabbit-bonding-everything-need-know/
http://www.wheekwheekthump.com/2014/01/02/rabbit-bonding-series-part-3-bonding-quartet/