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BUNNY 911 – If your rabbit hasn’t eaten or pooped in 12-24 hours, call a vet immediately!  Don’t have a vet? Check out VET RESOURCES 

The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

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Forum BONDING Bonding 4 unaltered does?

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    • Mopsy Cottontail
      Participant
      3 posts Send Private Message

        Hello, people of the binkybunny site! I’ve found lots of helpful information from you guys in the past, but as you can see it was only recently that I decided to actually join the community. This being the first thread or topic I’ve created here, please excuse me for any misunderstanding of the format. It’s still weirding me out a little.

        That being said, I would deeply appriciate some advice in regards to my quartet. To begin, Macy and Jay are sisters, and have been in my care for maybe four years now. I’ve never had any trouble with them as far as bonding goes, and they’re about as close as it’s possible for them to be. Rue I got only recently from a coworker of my dad’s, and due to my inexperience her bonding process was longer than it should’ve been. Things turned out okay, though, and she’s an accepted member of the team.

        And now for the problem. Not too long ago the trio moved into a large outdoor run we had made for them, and I decided I had the resources for a fourth bun. This time I actually did the research and bought the new addition – Jane – with the conviction that I could anticipate and handle any situation that might crop up. I followed through with what I had learned – keep them separated for the first few days to give the newbie time to settle in, dating must be in neutral territory for the first few times, etc etc. nobody showed any interest in Jane, and I took that for a sign that all was going well. After about a week of this, I switched tactics and took all four of them on a car ride with a date in the bathroom directly afterwards. Jane quickly became the center of attention; it seemed as though the other three thought she would make a good bed or something. Nobody was hurt, it was just a big pile of bunnies with Jane in the middle!

        So, everything was going well! No chasing, no fighting, just a bunch of buns staring at each other and flopping around. I wasn’t really sure what to do at this point, so I gave in to impatience and put her in the outdoor pen with Macy, Jay, and Rue, sticking around to supervise and make sure nobody was harmed.

        Now, I can see this is a really long post, so I’ll try and sum up from here. Jay, being the most territorial, chases Jane whenever she’s bored (which thankfully isn’t very often) and bites her when she gets close enough. Macy doesn’t seem to mind most of the time, but sometimes chases only because Jay does it. Rue is a fluffy blob and doesn’t mind as long as Jane stays away from her while she’s eating. Generally Jane is ignored. there have been no serious injuries, still no actual fighting, and it’s still more or less a bunch of bunnies staring at each other and flopping around. However, I would like for the chasing to stop and the cuddling to start, and I’ve tried everything that’s in my power to do so – car rides, neutral-territory dates, banana paste, etc. nothing’s worked, however, and I’m approaching my wits end. Are there any tips, tricks, suggestions, or methods you guys think I could try?

        I will make a note, however – as mentioned in the title, none of the four are fixed, and I doubt that’ll change unless the price drops drastically, as I believe the cost in my area is $80 per bun. Sorry for making this so long!!


      • tobyluv
        Participant
        3310 posts Send Private Message

          The first step in bonding rabbits is for all of them to be spayed or neutered. I’m surprised that you haven’t had trouble with the 2 sisters, then with adding Rue. Rabbits can severely injure each other when fighting. At some point, Jane is going to get tired of being chased and being bitten, and a real fight could occur. $80 for a spay is very inexpensive. Many people would consider you very lucky to only have to pay that amount. Besides the issue of bonding, females should be spayed to eliminate the very high incidence of uterine cancer in unspayed rabbits. A vet bill to treat a rabbit who had injuries would likely be more than $80, plus the upset it would bring to you to see one or more of your rabbits hurt.


        • LittlePuffyTail
          Moderator
          18092 posts Send Private Message

            Completely agree with tobyluv. Female bunnies are very territorial and it would be nothing short of a miracle to bond 4 unspayed girls. They could get really hurt.

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        Forum BONDING Bonding 4 unaltered does?