Newly bonded couple

[SierraMist]

Hello all! I am new to binky bunny and I thought this would be a good place to ask this question. I was wondering what normal behavior is for bonded bunnies. What I mean is, I know there is a lot of snuggling and grooming etc. but what else can I look for as signs that they are happy. I am not trying to figure out how to find out if they are bonded, I know that, and they are almost there. They are snuggling as I type this. I just want to know about others experiences, what your bonded bunnies do. They have one more day until I think I can move them to their perm. home (they’re still in the neural area), They snuggle and groom and are happy together but I was wondering what else I could look for. 

My main question is my female rabbit, Nova, keeps going over to Jesse, her newly bonded mate, and thumping at him. I think that maybe she wants him to move, sometimes he is laying in a space where she likes to lay but, sometimes she is far from him and is thumping. I was wondering if this was normal, or bad? As a new bonded bunny mom I am not sure what I am looking for, or why she is doing this. 

[Dface]

Im sure other people will probably know more, but for what it’s worth, my female is always doing that to my male. She does it to me too if I’m not paying attention to her/petting her/ giving her the food Im eating but she wants/ in her way or if she gets a bit startled.
She’s not angry, she’s just alerting me to her needs, maybe your bun is just doing the same? as long as it’s not aggressive behavior

[SierraMist]

So to update: Nova and Jesse got into a huge fight. At first, I just thought it was Jesse freaking out because he got his foot stuck in a slinky but then I heard that they were really fighting. It was so scary. I have them separated now and they have been since the fight and I think that I am going to start trying to rebond here soon. I emailed my local house rabbit society but no one responded, ever since I complained about one of the workers (the president’s daughter) throwing Nova down on a couch after trimming her nails and saying that putting her back onto that couch with Jesse (before they were bonded) might not be a good thing, they haven’t been the nicest to me. But don’t throw my bunny, and especially don’t throw my bunny into a potentially serious situation like that.

[Mikey]

Dont try and rebond them soon. Keep them separate for about 2 weeks to 1 month then try again. Itll give them time to calm down, drop their grudges, and heal any wounds they may have. If it doesnt go well, then keep them separate for another 2 months then start over from square one. Remember that not all bunnies will get along, so dont beat yourself up over it if they dont work out in the end

[Mikey]

Dont try and rebond them soon. Keep them separate for about 2 weeks to 1 month then try again. Itll give them time to calm down, drop their grudges, and heal any wounds they may have. If it doesnt go well, then keep them separate for another 2 months then start over from square one. Remember that not all bunnies will get along, so dont beat yourself up over it if they dont work out in the end

[SierraMist]

It has been almost a month and I had them together for some joint veggies the other day while I cleaned up their cages. It seemed to go pretty well. They ate all the veggies and the little bits of banana. They weren’t cuddling or grooming like they had been before but they also weren’t fighting so I guess that is a win. It’s been a couple days now so I might try them again sometime this weekend. Is there a method that works best for couples like this? Stress bonding doesn’t really work for them firstly Nova doesn’t (seem to) get stressed and Jesse gets TOO stressed. They bond better in a neutral space with just hay or a snack, Nova very much likes to eat and she is the primary humper. After a few dates like (neutral small area with snacks) that I originally moved them to a neutral space and gradually added pieces of a cage i.e litter box, bowls, toys etc. They were cuddling, grooming and acting very nice together. Then I moved them to their permanent home and there were some humps but not a lot, not enough, I was told, to be worried about. Then I moved them home for the summer and set them up, neither had been in my room previously. Jesse got more and more aggressive and I blame myself I should have seen it coming because he bit me once when I separated the humping that picked back up in the new space, so I probably should have separated them right then but I assumed it was a fluke. Now I am scared that they will never get back their bond. Like I said on these snack dates they seem less than interested. I know that they can have a great bond because they seemed to have had one. I will gladly take any advice, maybe I did something wrong when initially bonding them? Between what I read on bunny sites and the multiple ways I learned at the house rabbit society I thought I had done what I was suppose to but maybe not. Maybe they just had a fight? I don’t know? I really need/want them to bond. We went through 12 bunnies before Nova picked Jesse and he takes care of her weepy eye which is the whole reason that we decided to bond her. Jesse has been alone at the shelter for 4 years and I think that they both need each other, Nova is just stubborn. Anyway, I digress, like I said, any advice about this is welcomed. This is my first bonding and unfortunately there is no definite way that works for all bunnies at least that’s what I’ve been told lol, so help is welcome!

[Jorin]

I’m brand new at bonding and at first Luna and Artemis were very aggressive toward each other. The best advise I was given by the HRS was to learn their body language and to be patient. I went much more sloooowwwly than what I read on the Internet. I put them in side-by-side x-pens, at first separating them with a 1-1/2″ wooden dowel. I took them to neutral space at the HRS (it’s only 20 minutes from my house) in separate carriers since I was by myself and didn’t want them to break out in a fight. Other stress bonding techniques did not work – they fought in close quarters! I noticed that Artemis (my new bun) was easily startled by the dog barking, so I gave him a few weeks to just get used to me and his new environment. The side-by-side pens worked really well – I gave them “bunny buddies” and put pieces of fur on the “buddies” (they both had several fur pulls laying around!) and watched how they reacted. At first Artemis bit his, but yesterday I caught him grooming it! I put them in the bonding pen together about every 3 or 4 days, and for short periods at a time. I switched their cages after a while about every two days. I gave them plenty of free time where they could not reach each other but could see each other. Eventually they wanted to close to each other more and more. I spent several long days in the bathroom with them ignoring each other in the bonding pen. Finally I was able to add a litter box but put hay in two places so they wouldn’t squabble over the litter box. Last weekend they spent the night in the same X-pen in my bedroom and I also moved their bonding pen to my office (less neutral space). When I let them out in my room Artemis started chasing Luna right away so I separated them – back to the side-by-sides. I made sure though to get them in the bonding pen together as much as possible at this point. I opened the 4’x 4′ pen up so that they had an extra 2 square feet of space. Today after being together in the slightly larger pen all day I let them out together in my office. Artemis started chasing Luna again so I intercepted him and gave him pets so he’d stop. They’re not yet cuddly without my intervention and not much grooming as they’re both pretty stubborn. Artemis is very bossy when he doesn’t get his way but as long as Luna seems ok with it I allow it. I watch her breathing and her body posture. Fur pulling has turned into light nipping, and she’s constantly turning her back to him so I know she’s not afraid. Once they can get along in my office I’ll extend the space out into the hall with the x-pen. Once they can handle that I’ll see if they can handle the office and the whole hall/loft. As long as they’re not fighting I let them “do their thing” but don’t leave the room unless they’re completely calm, and then only for a few minutes.
I hope this helps – good luck!

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