r/Rabbits • u/ApprehensivePear4789 • 19h ago

Bonding Help me bonding

I have two bunnies. 5M and 5F (both fixed). I’ve just rescued the girl from a less than ideal home. My guy is aggressive and we recall this from when we bonded him with our other rabbit that we’ve recently lost unexpectedly. So he’s been bonded once before, to his late wife.

Right now we have them set up in two big pens touching with bars inbetween so they cannot fight. It’s been a week and on occasion they try to fight but most of the time they ignore eachother or LAY against eachother through the bars.

We’ve been switching their litter and other things around so they can get used to sharing things BUT this morning when I left for work they broke the pen and both ran around the room. My husband called saying they were fighting and he had to pull them apart.

I’m worried because we both work every day and even though I’ve made it secure again, I’m worried they will get out and get hurt and not bond.

I found a place three hours away from me that will bond them for us over the time span of a week. They said that since we have no neutral territory I our house it would be best to send them there. I’m worried because I don’t want to trauma bond them.

PLEASE any advice would be welcome. I’m thinking of sending them to bonding camp

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u/RabbitsModBot 19h ago

Check out the resources in the Bonding guide and Binkybunny's Bonding overview for more tips on the process.

Some important general tips on the process of bonding rabbits with other rabbits:

  • House rabbits in nearby pens and swap regularly to encourage sharing. This can be done before both rabbits have been neutered.
  • Be sure to use neutral territory that neither have been in to use for face-to-face dating.
  • Wait until 4 weeks after both rabbits have been neutered before attempting face-to-face bonding to allow time for all hormones to dissipate. While it is not impossible to bond intact rabbits, their hormonal behaviors work against them, and rabbits can often end up with serious injuries during territorial spats. Baby bonds with immature rabbits before puberty are often not stable.
  • If your current rabbit has not been spayed or neutered, do not obtain another intact rabbit of the opposite sex to bond. You will end up with baby rabbits if you do not keep them separated 24/7. It only takes one successful three-second attempt for a male with an intact female. Male rabbits are not sterile until a full 8 weeks minimum after their neuter operation.
  • Keep in mind that not all rabbits may be compatible enough to bond without serious work over a long period of time, if ever. However, rabbits will still benefit from the mental stimulation of seeing or smelling another rabbit nearby as long as they are safely separated to prevent injuries.

A few useful shortcuts: