As some of you will be aware we will not rehome our rabbits to live alone. This is something we are particularly passionate about....many rabbits do sadly live alone but owners do not realise the importance of rabbits having company of their own kind.
We hear things like:
"Our rabbit is quite content and happy alone"
"Our rabbit is a house rabbit and gets plenty of attention from us"
"We have a cat our rabbit is best friends with"
"Our rabbit is too hormonal and wont accept a friend"
"We've tried bonding before but he hates other rabbits"
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Like their wild cousins rabbits are very sociable and would never choose to live alone. We chose to domesticate them and even after 100's of years they still have all the same instincts they had back then.
They usually live in groups of up to 30. As a prey animal they feel safer in numbers. Kept alone they can show health and behavioural issues due to frustration and stress levels. We have been asked to take rabbits in the past due to them being destructive by chewing carpets, skirting boards, destroying hutches etc which allows them to escape, disturbing neighbours by thumping. These are all behaviours which could be avoided or lessoned by having the stimulation from a friend or two. This is boredom!
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I, Leah was observing one of the rabbits recently having free time in the garden. Watching him graze on grass and constantly lifting his head looking out for danger. Also observing a group of 4 siblings having their turn, it was interesting to see that they were able to spend more time grazing than looking around. This is due to them knowing they're looking out for eachother and do not have to be on alert quite so much. A rabbit living alone will constantly have to 'look out' for themselves, this compared with boredom must be the most miserable existence. Yes being an indoor rabbit helps with the stimulation a little but attention from other pets/owners cannot replace that understanding of their own kind. As dramatic as it sounds i liken this to a person living with a pack of dogs and not seeing another person for their whole lives. Imagen not being able to offload all that pent up frustration and putting the world to rights with your friends/family. Im obviously not suggesting rabbits do this but they do feel that comfort from having others around that can understand their body language and give them what they need in the form of grooming and snuggling etc.
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In all honesty, rabbits do not make it easy to get them a friend. As they have a hierarchy in their groups, when meeting new potential friends you will usually see some sort of display of dominance as they sort out for themselves where they stand in the pecking order. This display can be in the form of chasing, mounting, fighting etc which people often panic and separate them as soon as they see any of this type of behaviour and believe their rabbit hates other rabbits and doesn't want a friend - when in reality they just need to figure this out for themselves. Obviously this needs to be done carefully so that injuries do not occur.
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If you have a single rabbit, please do consider getting them a friend!!! If you still have any doubts or worries please contact us to discuss!
It does not matter if your rabbit has been alone for 7 years or didn't take to a previous bonding attempt. Their new friend doesn't have to be the same age, shape, breed, gender etc as your current rabbit. They are just like people and they either get along or they don't. It all comes down to personality.
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Please be aware before you do bond your rabbit(s) all involved need to be neutered and recovered prior to starting the process. Their hormones mean bonding will be hard to impossible not to mention the injuries that may be caused whilst fighting.
Removing hormones from the situation makes the process easier and a much less chance of them fighting constantly.
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It is important to neuter all rabbits, not just boys, not just the girls. The rabbits not neutered are likely to constantly mount other rabbits in the group and this can result in them retaliating and possibly breaking the bond. Even if they put up with this behaviour it is not fair to let this continue as it can suppress the other rabbits personality and cause stress.
The other benefits of neutering include preventing cancers, unwanted hormonal behaviours such as spraying, preventing more unwanted litters and makes them easier to litter train.
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