#bunnypairing

[sour-lemmi]

The internet is back to normal again and I made a Hetalia  NorLiech picture in the week of little to no data left over.

My sister loves these cuties and she got me loving them too!

[tonsofbunfun-blog]

The Upside of Getting your Rabbit a Companion

As with any animal, adding a second one to the mix can always seem like not the best idea. There's more work, more cleaning, concerns about them getting along and many other speed bumps. But the rewards of such efforts benefit both rabbits and you if you put the time into it. Domesticated rabbits are quite social animals, and generally benefit from a furry companion. European rabbits, (domesticated rabbits ancestors), have a need to live in groups, which in turn has deeply ingrained the bunnies you see at pet stores with a need to have friends.  It's quite lovely watching them groom each other, snuggle, and play, and in my opinion is worth the extra work.

Although there are not rules set in stone to what age, breed, and gender will be the best mate for your rabbit, I always recommend a spayed and neutered female-male pair. They seem to have the lovey-dovey, marriage type relationship that makes people swoon. However, male to male and female to female pairs work well, but watch for territorial behavior. This goes double for unaltered animals. You may notice the alpha rabbit not using the litter-box as well as he/she did before. Random droppings are usually a way of a rabbit saying "hey this is mine", and is best fixed by spaying/neutering, or very strict litter-box training. Face-mounting and regular mounting is also very common in any pairs and may freak you out at first. This is another dominate behavior, that is usually very frequent at first but dies down as the rabbits bond with each other. My pair are both females, and the albino still occasionally mounts the mini lops head. Catching them in the act and correcting the behavior usually gets the point across, but still expect the occasional hump. 

The best way to introduce to rabbits to each other is gradually. Make sure you keep them in separate cages at first, as rabbits can be very territorial of their homes. Over time, the little ones will begin playing together, maybe even allowing the other one to hop around in their opened cage to explore and even re-decorate. Very closely bonded rabbits will start to nuzzle and snuggle together, (which is an overload of cute). Grooming for rabbits is very important. If rabbits groom each other at all that indicates affection. A few nips near the butt also can be an affection thing believe it or not, just make sure you monitor them and watch for missing fur or distress from either party. Never leave them alone together until you know for sure they're bonded. 

You'll notice a lot of pros to having two rabbits. Rabbits are very emotional creatures, and can get very depressed if bored. With two of them, there's always excitement and in turn may give you more time to do the things you need to do. Litter training may even be easier if one rabbit start copying the others good behavior.

In closing, a second rabbit to your household can be a rewarding, awesome experience for any rabbit owner. I highly suggest owning a pair from personal experience, and I hope this entry helped you!