In general, the only time you should give up on bonding rabbits is when they have injured each other. You should also reevaluate the bond if one rabbit is a bully, making the other rabbit anxious and afraid to eat, use the litter box, or even move around too much.
Babies can be removed from their mother at 8 weeks. The babies should not be weaned earlier because they need to receive necessary gut flora and antibodies from their mother. At 8 weeks, you should also separate the male and female offspring, so they do not breed.
Once the rabbits have bonded, DO NOT separate them. If one rabbit needs to go to the vet, both need to go. If they're separated and one rabbit comes back with a different smell or change in health, they may reject each other and begin fighting.
Watch for aggressive behaviors: tail up, ears back, growling, boxing, circling, chasing and biting. If one of these behavior occurs several times in a row; if neither rabbit backs down; if it leads to further aggressive behaviors, it should be interrupted.
Rabbits can be left alone together safely once they're showing positive behaviours towards one another. Always speak to your vet for more detailed advice before attempting to bond rabbits. Be aware of the signs of positive and negative behaviour, and if you're concerned about your rabbit's behaviour, ask your vet.
Make sure to spend some time with the rabbits in one or more neutral space every day. When you're not actively working with them, they should be apart if they fight when together. If they do not fight, then they can be left alone if you're not working with them, but not when you're not home at all.
Rabbits are a social species and have evolved to live in groups. In the wild, rabbits do not live alone. Rabbits kept as companions are not biologically different from their wild counterparts and so their innate need to be kept in the company of other rabbits is just as strong.
Bonded rabbits can also break their bond. This can happen if they've been separated, for example if one bunny needs to spend a few days at the vet. It can also happen if you move house, move or change your rabbit enclosure, or upset the hierarchy by introducing new rabbits.
Rabbits are social creatures and live a longer and happier life when bonded. They provide emotional support to each other when one bunny is sick, bored, lonely, or stressed. Once your bunny is bonded it doesn't take any extra work to care for two bunnies.
A lot of people worry that their rabbit will be less affectionate towards them once they have a bonded partner. We have never found this to be true. The only change we see in rabbits is that they are a lot happier! If you have a friendly rabbit who likes human company, the chances are that they always will!
Rabbits can also exhibit distress at separation. As with dogs, symptoms include destructive behaviours such as chewing on slippers and carpets and reverting to unsavoury toilet habits.
As a general rule, rabbits are bonded once they can spend 48 hours together without any chasing or aggressive behaviors. You also want to see positive signs such as grooming, sharing food, and sleeping next to each other to confirm that your rabbits feel safe around each other.
If two previously bonded bunnies stop getting along, the best thing to do is to separate and restart the bonding process. For most bunnies, this will go much quicker than the first time because they do already know each other, but be prepared that it might still take a little time before they're best friends again.
Put the rabbits in nearby enclosures, where they can sniff each other through the wire. If your existing rabbit is free range, put the new rabbit in a small separated area so they can get used to each other's scent. You can swap around their litter trays and rub a cloth over each transferring scents.
Ideally you want to provide them with up to 4 hours daily of supervised time out of their cage. Rabbits are subject to depression and poor health if they're not provided with daily interaction and mental stimulation. Rabbits are intelligent, busy, and active pets.
Bonded rabbits spend the majority of their days and nights together. They tend to visit the litter tray at the same time, eat together and groom together. A lot of time is spent simply snuggled up together sleeping.
Rabbits that become depressed will usually sit around for most of the day. They will often lose interest in eating, grooming, or even socializing. Some rabbits who become depressed will even resort to aggressive behaviors, such as biting and swatting.
Rabbits are social animals, so a single rabbit is likely to feel lonely and depressed. Rabbits can live alone, but you'll need to provide your pet with the attention (company, petting, grooming, exercise, playing, and enrichment) that a bonded rabbit partner would provide.
Rabbits are very loving, social animals, which means they not only love to spend time with their humans – they require it. Without human interaction, rabbits can get bored, even to the point of becoming lonely and depressed.
Your rabbit may show signs of wanting attention from you by nudging you, softly biting or even making digging notions directly on you. On the other hand, they may show signs of withdrawing from you, refusing interaction and not responding when you try to pet or play. A lonely rabbit may become hyperactive and angry.
Rabbits take the protection of their home and territory seriously. If they feel that another rabbit is attempting to steal their territory, they'll fiercely defend it. Another common cause of aggression is establishing dominance. Like all pack animals, rabbits live by a strict hierarchy.
If your rabbits are mounting each other a lot, instigating fights, stop them, place them side by side. Pet them together and talk to them quietly. Do not let much chasing ensue. If they are persistently aggressive, separate them to prevent injuries.
If fighting is serious, the bunnies should be separated when unsupervised. Once they seem to be getting along, they can be re-introduced into familiar territory. Often they start to fight again in their own space, so be ready with the water, and don't give up.
Put the rabbits together in the neutral pen full time.
After they can spend a number of hours together, you can speed up the bonding process without adding too much stress by immediately moving to full time in the neutral area. You will need to plan to spend the next 24/7 with the rabbits.