Secrets of Bonding Rabbits: Matchmaking for Bunnies, Part 3

Not Losing a Rabbit but Gaining a Bun
Your trusted rabbit bonder volunteer assures you that everything will be fine and you have an understanding and arrangement about what she should do in case of medical emergency. This would be a rare occurrence, especially if you've taken the precautions I outline in Part 1 of this series.

You will not be present at the bonding because the rabbits need to be in neutral territory. The reason for this is that rabbits, even if spayed or neutered, are territorial animals. They live in large social groups in the wild and so even in captivity, they have a very well developed sense of their space versus everyone else's. This doesn't mean they can't learn to share and that is what the bonding is all about - your bunny learning to share his life and space with another rabbit.

If you don't have an experienced rabbit bonder in your area and you have to do the bonding yourself, I will detail that as well. The rabbits should be placed in a part of the house where there are not any other rabbits. If you have to do your own bonding, this should be a part of the house your original bunny has never been in - even if it is the laundry room. Just be sure the room is bunny proofed and there aren't any chemicals the rabbits could get a hold of and ingest.

The Bunnymoon Suite
Here you will set up an x-pen that has been disinfected with bleach and then dried and wiped down with vinegar to completely eliminate any scent of another bunny. A small pen is usually best so that the rabbits are forced to share a small space. Provide a litter box, food and water bottles. You may need to add another litter box if there is a bit of early squabbling over the one.

The bunnymoon normally takes about one week, which happens to coincide nicely with human weekends so that the newly bonded pair can be delivered home on a weekend. The official end of the bonding is achieved when both rabbits are mutually grooming each other and they have worked out between them who is going to be the alpha and who will be the beta (2nd in command) or omega bunny (submissive). In some couples, it will be alpha-beta and they may always be just a little competitive. That is fine. Some couples will be two alphas and I've seen that work out just fine too. Other couples will clearly be alpha and omega. Each bunny's personality is what often dictates which part of the arrangement they will fulfill.

So how does all this come about? During a typical bonding, humping will be observed along with chasing and even little squabbles. A bonding that is typified by extreme humping, chasing and squabbles is probably not a good match and is unnecessarily stressful on the bunnies. The best bonding is a non-bonding requiring minimal supervision by the bonder. My favorite bondings only require about 24 hours of supervision and then I can sleep. I always set up the x-pen in my bedroom so I can work in my room and sleep and always keep an eye on the interactions between the bunnies.

The first day always seems to be each bun in one corner of the pen eyeing each other. If I'm lucky, they might hop in the litter box and munch some hay together. One might hump the other a little bit in a mild manner. I discourage the humping by clapping my hands and/or shouting 'no!'

Lassie to the Rescue
It's always a good idea to have something unusual or potentially scary but harmless present. For instance, I have 2 parrots who have overseen a good number of my bondings. The sight of these large green birds - about the size of crows - is intimidation enough for the bonding bunnies to seek each other for comfort. These birds are very bunny friendly though and love bunnies, often cooing to them or throwing them kisses.

In the golden days of my bonding experiences, my 110lb. collie, Wolfgang, used to help me with bondings. He would sit on the couch next to where I'd set up the x-pen and if the bunnies started squabbling, chasing, or humping, he would let out one of his thunderous barks. This immediately ceased the unwanted behavior of even the most stubborn, fearless rabbits. I didn't even train Wolfgang to do this, he just knew he was supposed to do this and he loved it. I guess it's part of the herding group characteristics. There are only a few breeds of dog I would even attempt something like this with and you must be 100% sure that they are bunny friendly dogs.

Once, recently, I took in a pair of foster rabbits from the shelter who had been badly neglected by the people who abandoned them. They were used to being fed irregularly and so they would exhibit resource hoarding or fighting over food and water. The male would chase the female and bite her back. She had no fur on her back for a while until they got used to regular care again from me. But if he got scared, he would still attack her. I was walking by their pen one day with my female German Shepherd, on leash of course, because she was still in training, and the male bunny got scared at sight of her and started attacking the female rabbit. My German Shepherd saw this and her reaction was to want to attack the male rabbit and save the female rabbit! So although the herding group are mostly good bunny dogs, only the most well-trained and obedient dogs make good bonding dogs.

This element, the fright element, works wonders during bondings if handled very carefully. A non-biological approach to the idea of fright-induced bonding would be to place both rabbits in a cat carrier and take them for a bumpy car ride on a gravel road. About a half hour's ride should do the trick. Any longer and they might be woozy for a whole day as they get nauseous similar to how we do if we're on an airplane flight with too much turbulence.

Rites of Passage
Putting the buns in a carrier and placing it atop the washer when it's running can also accomplish the same effect without burning gasoline during a car ride. Just beware not to use bleach or strong detergents for that load! Fumes from these could make the bunnies ill. If any of this sounds evil or cruel, it is not meant to be. It is only meant to bring two bunnies close together in a timely fashion.

The fright night approach to the bunnymoon can be circumvented if you happen to have enough room to do a different kind of bonding I like to call an 'open bonding.' This is when you have a large enough room that the rabbits can easily get away from each other and let them work things out on their own terms over a period of several weeks. I have done bondings this way and prefer this but it is not always possible. I might not have a big room available or be able to keep an eye on the bunnies until I feel confident they are not going to hurt each other.

Love is in the Air
By the end of the week, you may notice that the bunnies have entered what I call 'the shy stage.' They have been secretly mutually grooming and loving it up but they are shy about it and don't want you to know. If you are stealthy, you can sneak up on them and catch them in the act. I remember one bonding, a trio, where I peeked around the corner and saw the two males just feasting adoring kisses on the female rabbit but when they noticed me, they all pretended to start fighting. I just laughed and they kind of shrugged and gave it up.

To encourage this mutual grooming, there are several things you can do to create a romantic atmosphere. One, play Luther Vandross songs, no really, rabbits do love music so some cool jazz is not a bad idea at all as long as it's not loud. They can hear well enough. I use a papaya mist spray, which is pure water and papaya extract actually made to be a coat conditioner for cats. Rabbits love papaya and they will be sniffing each other all over to take in those smells.

Take papaya tablets, for instance, Oxbow's papaya tablets, and crush them into a powder with your mortar and pestle. Sprinkle the powder lightly on their fur, all over them. They will have lots of fun and romance grooming it off each other. Some say to put jam or jelly on their foreheads but then you have sticky fur which is a mess for a long time, sometimes until the next shed. Also give them a cardboard box (tape and staples removed!) to go snuggle in which is barely big enough for both of them to fit inside.

Another thing I like to do is to take a great big wad of hay and toss it on their heads so they are hidden from view underneath. I imagine this is the most romantic thing of all, snuggling together under a mountain of deliciously aromatic hay. And of course, serving large amounts of incredibly irresistible veggies is wonderful too. Make the serving large enough so that there is no squabbling over who gets what.

These guidelines and tips should bring on mutual grooming within the space of a week and have your honey bunnies ready to go home and live happily ever after.

Preparing for the Homecoming
Be sure that when you bring your bunnies into the area where your original bunny has lived that you de-scent is as much as possible to prevent any territorial disputes. Vinegar is great for covering over scents. For carpeting, just vacuum and do the best you can.

In the last part of this series, I will discuss trios, quartets and their special bonding needs and quirks.