No Progress Being Made Bonding Lily and Squeeven

[MeowBun]

Hi there! 



I’m new here and created an account because I could really use some insight into my bunny bonding situation. My boyfriend and I rescued Lily, a female Mini Rex about 10 weeks ago. I was told she’s fixed and approximately 5-7 years old (but her energy level makes me think it’s probably closer to 5). 5 weeks later, we agreed to take in Squeeven, a 2 year old fixed male of indeterminate breed, on a trial basis to see if bonding was likely. He has now been here so long t would be impossible (and heartbreaking) to give him back, so he’s now a permanent part of the family.



Lily is housed in a 3-story bunny condo I made with wire cubes and we started housing Squeeven in an exercise pen inches away. After I had spent close to 20 hours reading about every bonding trick on every bunny forum, we started bonding sessions in a neutral space and, at first, there was trouble. The fighting never got out of control thanks to a broom and some loud pot banging, but both bunnies were instigators and nobody was happy. We did this once a day and then twice a day until fighting ceased, but cuddling never happed. I tricked them into licking each other with banana smears multiple times but, other than that, no grooming. They are clearly comfortable around each other though and will groom themselves, binky, eat, flop, sleep etc. We carpeted the living room and began letting them out of their cages together most of the time, and just putting them back in separate spaces at night. We even switch enclosures every night. 



Now, weeks later, they have full run of the living room and both enclosures except for bedtime, and there is no fighting. Occasionally, Squeeven will approach Lily and she will make weird squeaky noises. Sometimes she nips him if he’s getting too touchy and pulls out some fur, but no injuries or chasing. They still switch enclosures every night and often lie together (meaning: heads touching, or only an inch or two apart) on the top level of the condo, so I don’t think territorial behaviour is the reason. They sleep close together, but don’t touch other than head-lowered standoffs where both want grooming from the other, but neither will submit. It’s just mostly ignoring and peaceful coexistence. After a while of being close, Lily will often give Squeeven a sharp nip on the head/neck/side, seemingly unprovoked and Squeeven will startle, stand up, then lie back down again after a minute or so. We seem to have been at this impasse for about 2.5 weeks with no real change. Every time I see her nip, I let out a high pitched squeal and firmly tell her “No Bite!” because that’s how we trained her not to nip our ankles (and if she’s already done it a ton of times that day, gently but firmly put my hand over her shoulders/head to get her into a submissive position for 5-10 seconds). I also try to pet them/give treats when they’re close to each other. It’s clear that Squeeven would like more affection for Lily, but she is clearly the dominant one and is simply not interested. I have tried stress bonding to no avail as well. 

Has anyone ever heard of bunnies like this? Is it possible that they will more or less ignore each other forever? To be safe, I have to keep them separate every time I’m away or sleeping, which negates the whole point of getting two bunnies – for them to keep each other company! Any personal experiences that relate or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

[MoveDiagonally]

Hello and welcome!

It sounds like you’re pretty close to having them bonded. My advice would be to make the final push and go through the cementing process. This is where you would remove both of them from the living room/cage area and deep clean it really well. Deep clean their habitats so they’re like new and re-arrange them if possible. Combine living quarters and make one place for them to live. Put them back in, confined to the cage/pen and supervise them until they’ve not had any fights for 24-48 hours. During this time don’t interact with them any more than you need to for feeding, cleaning, ect… They need to focus on each other so their relationship can grow. Don’t intervene if when they nip or scuffle if they’re not hurting each other. Intervention can actually delay bonding because they need to figure out how to work it out on their own. Again, as long as they’re not hurting each other.

Hopefully going through the cementing phase will help them grow a little closer but at the very least allow you to comfortably be able leave them together 24/7. It’s okay if they’re not best buddies right away. Some rabbits totally fall in love with each other and others learn to co-exist and become closer over time. With my five bonded rabbits I’ve seen both types of relationships a couple times.

Best of luck!

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