Bonding troubles

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Stacey82

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Hi this is my first post.. I have a male/female bonded pair and I am currently trying to bond them to my other bun a female.. all are spayed/ neutered.. my bonded pair have been together since birth they are 13 months old and my newest bun is approx 6 months old.. today is day 3 of bonding.. they will all eat together, play together, use the same litter box, sleep together.. the bonded pair will groom the youngest but she will not groom them back and she won't let either of them mount her.. tonight as things were going really well I let them out into ' bunny bungalow' for a bit.. everything in there is cleaned or new.. things then changed.. the oldest girl is trying to mount the youngest which ended up in a tornado.. there was no injuries and they didn't appear to be trying to hurt each other.. I broke this up straight away and separated them using a cage as it was the closest thing.. they can see and touch each other through the mesh and havnt tried anything just lying either side of the mesh and calmed down within minutes.. any advice on my next step please? I have had bunnies for years but this is my first time bonding.. sorry for the long write up 🙂
 
Hello:) it sounds like you are doing a fantastic job right now, sometimes honestly they work it out themselves, but if it looks like things are getting messy defiantly separate them. Sometimes they just need a minute and then you can put them together again:)
 
Whenever you change a bonded pairs space or expand too quickly, it can result in territorial disputes and even fights, especially newly bonded rabbits. My suggestion would be to keep them in the same area they were being bonded in and doing well, for a longer period. Then expand their area gradually after they've been doing well together for a while.

If you have to move them from their bonding area to their permanent space, it 's best to start off with a smaller area, then only gradually increase as they continue to show no problems.

https://rabbitsindoors.weebly.com/bonding-bunnies.html
https://wabbitwiki.com/wiki/Bonding_rabbits_together
http://cottontails-rescue.org.uk/information/bonding-bunnies/
 
Thank you for replying 🙂
As soon as they calmed last night and hubby got home to help me I moved them back to the bonding area.. they went straight to each other and fell asleep.. since then they have played together.. eaten together and are still using the same litter box with no signs of any issues.. this morning they were even in the litter box together with the male lying next to them.. at the minute they are eating their bunny salad together.. I will keep them in the bonding area for longer and reduce the space in their permanent area ready to try again.. hubby will be home in a few hours and is off for a couple days then so will try moving them again when he is here too.. thanks again for the replies 🙂
 
What are your bunnies so freaking adorable!!!!!!! That is one of the best bun family’s I have ever seen😍😍😍
 
Just 3 days doing well together is too soon to be trying to move them. As @JBun explained, it is when they are moved that issues can arise. It is best to be sure they have a super solid bond before moving them to a new area. I would suggest a bare minimum of a full week (starting now). Two weeks from now would be even better.
 

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