Bonding Do's and Don'ts

Do's

• Do – House the rabbits separately but close together. They will get used to seeing each other and each other's scent if they are close to each other. Make sure the cages are not close enough for them to be able to bite each other.
• Do – Be prepared for this to take several months.
• Do – Let your rabbit choose their partner. The bonding process will go easier and in the long run, your bun will have to share its space with this new bun. (Your mom can't choose your friends for you, its something you want to do on your own.)
• Do – Expect that there will be bumps and setbacks.
• Do – Make the effort to think like a bunny. Is a bunny jealous you are interacting with the new bun/resident bun? Is he mad you just gave his favorite toy to another bun? Is the bunny stressed and ready to stop for the day?
• Do – Interact with the buns, but give equal attention and provide a positive/relaxed atmosphere.

Don'ts

• Don't – Play favorites. At all. EVER!
• Don't – Expect love at first sight.
• Don't – Hold a bonding session in the resident bunny's territory until after the bunnies can spend at least 30 minutes together in neutral space. Be prepared for the potential the resident bunny may become defensive or aggressive at first.
• Don't – Try to bond if you have had a bad day – your emotions will transfer to the bunnies and can undo weeks of works.
• Don't – Leave the bunnies unsupervised, even for a minute, until they are fully bonded.
• Don't – Assume that because yesterday went well, today will too. They are working through relationship/dominance/territory issues similar to those humans do during a dating process.
• Don't – End on a bad note, if at all possible.