I’m also bonding 3

[wabbitlove]

Hi all-

I haven’t been on for awhile, but here I am again! As an update: I have two really big rabbits, who are already bonded to each other. They are in love, and have been since we got them. Wabbit and Thumper are their names; Wabbit is a male, about 4 years, and Thumper is female, about 5 years.

Now’s the tricky part. My boyfriend and I got a baby bunny. Long story short, we were at a pet store to buy bunny toys, and saw this bunny. We watched her there for a couple of weeks, and had to rescue her from that bad place. I know, I know.. it’s better to adopt.. our first two are adopted. We just loved the little bunny so much, and hated to leave her there in that bad glass tank at the pet shop.

Anyway, now we have a bonded pair, and one young female, Bella. She’s about 9 weeks. We’ve tried to introduce the two to Bella, and it started out just ok.. Thumper lunged at her, not very nicely, but Wabbit licked her head. Since then, it’s been up and down. Mostly down. Both Wabbit and Thumper have tried to bite her (me and my boyfriend closely supervise, and we get bitten instead…). We tried putting them together 2 at a time, and also tried feeding them together 2 at a time. There’s really no progress though (it’s been only 2 weeks, and we’ve only tried to introduce them in neutral territory maybe 5 times).

The real problem now is that when we put Bella next to the two big rabbits (separated by a fence), the two big rabbits get aggravated.. Wabbit and Thumper have started actually getting mad at each other, and today they bit each other and chased each other.. not in a nice way..

Is this going to break up the already bonded pair? Is it better to just accept that they’re never going to be a trio, or could this possible happen with some work? Our first priority is to keep our already pair bonded… Baby Bella can have her own space, if necessary, but it would just be so much nicer if they could all run around together (side note: the two bonded ones have the run of the living room… Bella is in an X-pen in our bedroom).

I’m attaching a pic of me with Wabbit and Thumper, and then one of Bella..

Help!!

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[Beka27]

welcome back!

oh my gosh! she’s precious!

i don’t have experience bonding into a trio… but i wouldn’t even start doing anything until after Bella is spayed. for the time being, i’d keep her separate so it doesn’t threaten your pair. after the spay, you’d be able to start bonding sessions with one of the pair and her. and then with the other and her.

[MooBunnay]

i agree that the first step is getting the bunny fixed, this isn’t only because it helps calm down the hormones which makes bonding easier, but it is also because if you make any progress before Bella is fixed, it could be undone if you’ve got to separate them when Bella gets spayed.

My bonded pairs also start fighting if another bunny is near their cage, and for that reason, I wouldn’t let the bunnies see each other until you have made some more progress on the one on one bonding sessions. I have not previously bonded 3 myself, but there are a few different threads in this forum about trio bonding that you may be able to learn from. I know that trio bonding can be difficult and will take some patience, but I also know a few different people with trios, so its definitely possible!

[wabbitlove]

Ok – more updates:

The people who sold us Bella said that she was already spayed. We were skeptical, as she is so young.. Is that possible? I was just going on the assumption that they were telling the truth, and she’s already fixed..

[Beka27]

never assume they are telling the truth! we have heard many stories about people buying “speutered” bunnies form petstores and then they find out that they were not altered at all… i would contact that store and ask for a spay certificate signed by the vet that the surgery WAS done and for the contact info (name, number, address, email of the vet). and then contact him or her and verify that this operation was performed and it was done *succesfully* with both the ovaries and uterus removed. your pair is spayed/neutered so there is no risk of pregnancy, but the risk of cancer is very real if she was not truly spayed.

[LittlePuffyTail]

I can’t imagine any vet spaying a rabbit so young. She’s very cute though, so are your big bunnies.

[bunnytowne]

Yes some of those pet store breeders have the buns spneutered young..  When you go to buy a spneutered bun at 8 weeks it should have a dot in the ear a green dot for female 2 green dots for male.

And the bun is usually about 100.00    If you paid 20 or  30 it is not spneutered.  Sure is a cute little thing.

[wabbitlove]

Went back to the pet store to get verification that she was spayed and.. surprise surprise… the manager said we got bad information. Looking back, I should have investigated more but, when an employee tells you “oh yes, she’s a female and she’s already fixed,” you just assume you’re getting the correct information. Lame.

So now, we’re keeping the bonded pair away from Bella until we can get her spayed. I’ll keep you all updated on the process..

[osprey]

My bonded trio gets into chasing games whenever I have a foster in the house, so there might be some drama between your pair during the process of bonding the trio. One thing that I learned when bonding my trio was that introducing the pair to the new bunny at the same time is a big mistake! The pair will see the new bunny as an outsider, an intruder, and they will try to gang up on her. They may also fight between themselves. After the baby is spayed, try doing individual bonding sessions with the new bun and one of the others first. Once the new bun and each of the pair are comfortable with each other, then you can try all three together. As in any kind of bonding, neutral space with no residual bunny smell is really important.

The picture of you on the floor with the pair is great. When I was bonding my 3, I would end each bonding session with a snuggle session with me. I would line up the three of them right next to each other on my chest, and give them ear and nose rubs. This is a good way to end each session on a positive note.

[Beka27]

that is frustrating about the petstore. they’ll tell you anything if it means a sale. makes me wanna go to my local store that sells buns and ask an employee if their 30 dollar buns are neutered. if they say yes, i’m gonna yell out, LIAR!!! make a big scene… lol. just kidding of course…

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Yeh that stinks!!

How are things going now? She definitely looks way too young to be spayed, but a rescue here does spay puppies and kittens so you just never know!

[wabbitlove]

Things are good now.. We’re letting her grow up a little, and researching best places to get her spayed. I contacted the Humane Society, and they gave me a few numbers for low-cost spays, and those who will accept payment plans. In the meantime, we’re letting her have her own run space, and the two big buns are kept away from her. They’re getting used to each other’s smells, which is good. Wabbit doesn’t grunt anymore when he smells her on me, or hears her running around in the other room! So now we’re just playing the waiting game, and letting her get a little older before the spay and more attempts at bonding.

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