BONDING

We are often asked about the process of bonding two or more rabbits, as it is quite a different process from introducing a new dog or cat into a household. Placing two or more rabbits together spontaneously can have devastating consequences! Remember that rabbits are by nature a territorial animal, however they are also extremely social, so in the end often appreciate a friend or even two. Please also visit the House Rabbit Society (under Socialization) and the Ontario Rabbit Education Organization (OREO) websites, for extensive articles on bonding.

Before reading on, please note that all rabbits should be spayed and neutered before attempting a bond. Even if only one is altered (or they are of the same sex), it can be difficult or even impossible to achieve a successful bonding. If you are a newcomer to bonding rabbits, a male/female combination is typically the easiest.

STEP ONE: THERE'S A RABBIT IN MY TERRITORY!

Partially Free-Roaming Rabbits
When you bring your new rabbit home, place his or her cage alongside that of your existing rabbit. They can thus start to accustom to one another's scent and the existing rabbit can adjust to having another in his space, without the risk of injury. Allow separate run-time.

At this stage, it is beneficial to either place a scoop of each rabbit's soiled litter in the other's box while you are cleaning OR switch litterboxes from time to time. It has also been said that placing their food bowls in adjacent corners can encourage a future bond, as eating together is quite a social activity for rabbits!

Please remember that patience is key and that this stage may be lengthy. Wait until both rabbits are either ignoring each other or seem interested (investigating one another through cage bars during run-time, etc.) without aggressive body language.

Free-Roaming Rabbits
It can be more tricky to introduce a new rabbit into a home where the existing rabbit is accustomed to free-roaming priviledges (of course, the rabbit has claimed far more "territory"). As such, the beginning process in particular can be quite different.

Start by confining your new rabbit to one room only, divided by a baby gate to allow your existing rabbit and the new rabbit to interact, again without injury. The same rules apply here: switch litter-boxes from time to time, place food bowls in adjacent areas and observe both for signs of interest and aggression/agitation.

Again, once they seem comfortable, you are ready to proceed to the next step.

STEP TWO: THE DATING GAME

You are now ready to begin daily bonding sessions with your rabbits!

Before placing the rabbits together, gather a couple of supplies just in case. You will want a squirt bottle with plain water to break up arguments (more on this below) and some healthy treats to reward good behaviour. Prepare for only a short session in the beginning (perhaps only 5 minutes), working up to longer sessions as they get to know one another. Try to end each session on a good note. In other words, it is best to end the day's session with positive behaviour, rather than nipping and mounting.

It cannot be stressed enough that the rabbits MUST meet on neutral territory, that is a room/space that neither go. A slippery floor (although not typically best for rabbits) is ideal for bonding purposes, as they cannot get a strong grip if they do decide to bite, thus reducing the risk of serious injury. A bathroom, kitchen or even the bathtub (a good choice for free-roaming rabbits) are all excellent ideas.

Expect frequent mounting, primarily a gesture to assert dominance over the other rabbit. You may find both the male and female asserting their dominance in this manner. Allow mounting to occur to a reasonable level - this will help each rabbit decide who is to be the dominant one in their "relationship." If the rabbit being mounted is clearly frightened or "backwards" mounting is occuring, discourage this behaviour with your squirt bottle.

Nipping is also a frequent occurence and should also be discouraged. If you find the rabbits meeting face to face without aggression, etc., reward each with a treat and some loving pets.

With patience and dedication, you should find with time that the mounting, nipping and other dominance related behaviour diminishes. "Grooming wars" may begin at this stage, in which you will see one of the rabbit's forcefully push his head underneath the other's, demanding to be groomed (sometimes the other will fight to get their head underneath and the "war" begins!).

Once you are at this stage, with the rabbit's ignoring one another, grooming themselves or demanding grooming (usually without result at first) from the other, you are likely well on your way to a successful bonding!

STEP THREE: AN ARRANGED MARRIAGE

At this stage, the two rabbits may need a little encouragement in order to fully bond. Encouraging grooming is a excellent idea, as grooming is a sign of affection between rabbits. If they do not start grooming each other on their own (and continue with "grooming wars") a good idea, as silly as it may sound, is to smear a little bit of their favorite fruit or unsugared fruit juice on the tops of their heads! Banana is a good choice for this. Hopefully, this will get either or both rabbits grooming one another's heads and get them moving on to the next step: rabbit "marriage!"

If you are unsuccessful with moving them on to the next stage, there is a trick some have found to be successful. A car ride together in an open box (with a passenger keeping a close eye on them for both their safety and road safety!) will often bring them together, as the stress of the situation forces them to find comfort in one another. However, if one of the rabbits is unaffected by car rides, obviously this method will likely fail! If you do not want to go as far as a car ride, try placing the box on top of a running clothes dryer. It may sound strange, but the movement mimics the motion of a car and creates a slightly stressful situation. IF EITHER RABBIT IS VERY NERVOUS BY NATURE, PLEASE DO NOT ATTEMPT EITHER OF THESE METHODS! We do not encourage endangering your rabbits IN ANY WAY FOR ANY REASON!

Another method that rescue volunteers have found effective is to create a slightly frightening disturbance in an adjacent room or nearby (such as dropping a broom, book, etc. on the floor). The sound may be startling enough (but not too much!) for them to seek comfort in one another.

STEP FOUR: HARMONIOUS LIVING

At this point, you are hopefully ready to allow the rabbits to interact on a mutual territory. If your rabbit is only partially free-roaming (or has a cage for overnight only), you will want to clean their new cage as thoroughly as possible and make some rearrangements so that they understand this is now their space together. We recommend a new cage entirely, and for bonded pairs, a "Neat Ideas Cube" cage is ideal, as it is cost-efficient and able to be customized to be an appropriate size for two rabbits.

For more information on construction and where to find supplies, please contact New Moon.

If your rabbits are free-roaming, again, clean all surfaces (i.e. floor, upholstery, litterboxes) prior to allowing them together. Buying "wedding" presents such as new litter box, toys, etc. that neither has seen before can help solidify that this is a new place for them together.

Please remember that observation is key not only through all steps of the bonding process, but particularly for the adjustment period of being together 24-7. Expect a recurrence of mounting and/or nipping when "released" into their new mutual environment, especially in the case of free-roaming rabbits, so do keep your squirt bottle handy as you observe them together.

BONDING MORE THAN TWO RABBITS

Apply the same methods at each step above. Even if two of the rabbits are already bonded, we recommend introducing them two at a time. Once each combination is comfortable with one another, start the bonding sessions from the beginning with all rabbits present.

We are always more than happy to answer your questions about bonding. Please feel free to Contact Us if you do not see the answer to your question above!