introducing bunnys.

Question
Hi, i recently had to rehome one of my bunnys as my 2 were both boys and fighting badly. Since then my remaining bunny (thumper) has been very depressed and lonely. My next door neighbour has 2 females and needs to rehome 1 for the same reason. If i was to offer a home for her How would i go about introducing them? Would they fight? can i keep them in the same hutch from day 1? I know breeding will occur, do i take care of a pregnant doe the same way i would a dog or just leave them to there own devices and finally if and when babys were born can mum dad and babys live outside in the hutch together? Regards, mel  

Answer
Hi Melanie,

please know that some of my advice is based on my opinions about breeding, overpopulation, etc.  Nothing personal to you.

The fact is that thousands of unwanted rabbits are abandoned or dropped off at shelters each year, and thousands are put down, otherwise happy and healthy and highly adoptable.  The bottom line is that the supply of rabbits in the USA and UK far outweighs the demand for them.  

I would not suggest putting intact male and female rabbits together.  She will get pregnant.  And once she is pregnant the male and female will fight in the same space as he will still want to mount and she won't.  Also you'd need to separate them because males aren't housed with females and their young so you're really stuck with separate rabbits if you keep them intact.

Part of the problem you are experiencing (and your friend as well) is the fact her gals and your boys are still intact.  They have lots of hormones coursing through them, and this causes them to behave more aggressively and behave certain ways that if they were spayed our neutered, would greatly reduce or eliminate the aggression and other hormonally-driven behaviors.  For females a spay literally will save her life, as over 80% of females by age 5 develop uterine cancer if they are not spayed.  Spaying females lets them live twice as long.  And spayed and neutered male and female rabbits can live together in the same cage just fine if they like each other.

If you do get a female rabbit from your friend, I would suggest keeping them separated so that there is no way he can mount her, but that the can see each other - like across the room.  Set up appointments with your rabbit vet to get her spayed, and him neutered.  You will have to wait a month from the last operation (so that the existing hormones in their bodies are used up) before trying to introduce them in a neutral space (a space neither calls their own - like a bathroom).

The House Rabbit Society has excellent articles on bonding rabbits (keep in mind the articles are written from the assumption your rabbits have been spayed/neutered).  Here are a few URLs to look over, and print out:

http://www.rabbit.org/chapters/san-diego/behavior/bonding-tips.html

http://www.rabbit.org/journal/4-4/tough-bonding.html

http://www.rabbit.org/chapters/san-diego/behavior/bonding.html

http://www.rabbit.org/chapters/san-diego/behavior/expect.html

Lee