bunnylove

We have 5 fur friends in our home, 3 cats and 2 rabbits. A week ago we only had 1 rabbit (Honey - a giant albino - spayed female), but our neighbors gave us theirs (Binky, a black dwarf intact male), and I spent some time researching how to introduce bunnies to eachother. Bunny dates are recommended to get things going. The dates must always be on neutral territory, aka my bathroom.

On date #1 Binky took a few minutes to come out of his carrier and check things out, and then he took 1.7 seconds to mount Honey. Right in the middle of her back. Later attempts that same first date were a bit more on target if you catch my drift. The date lasted about 30 minutes. Date #2 - more mounting, lots of chasing, and they both seemed completely relaxed. Binky even got mad at me when I told him the date was over and he needed to go back home.

After the 2 neutral dates I brought Binky into Honey's enclosure - his future home sweet home - and things were a little crazy for awhile, as they figured out who got to be in charge. And, as it turns out, Honey kinda led Binky on in the mounting department. The behavior she somewhat tolerated while dating just doesn't fly anymore. So now instead of trying to mount Honey in order to make babies (I haven't yet told Binky he'll never be a father), he's out just for pleasure.... he'll groom Honey's ears, get her nice and relaxed and then attack her face. Yes, her face. All while still grooming her. She tolerates Binky gettin' it on on her face, which I so do not relate to, but they've figured out what works for them. And the girls think they're just playing.

So neat to see how quickly they've bonded, though. After Binky's 4th night here, his former owner came over. Stuck his hand over the enclosure to pet Binky, and Honey attacked him. Not the way Binky attacks Honey, just to be clear, but was obviously protecting Binky from the man she doesn't know. And, just a litte while ago, Honey worked her way under her blanket so that only a small patch of her hiney was exposed. Binky freaked out. Ran circles all around her, lookng for her. Holy crap, it was hilarious. He knew she was there, but he couldn't see her. Kind of like when Mommy wants to take a bath, and she closes the bathroom door (maybe even locks it) and her children are left outside screaming "Mommy! Can I come in?" "I'm thirsty!" "Can I have some candy?" "I havta pee." "My sister hit me, so I hit her back!" I foresee Honey hiding under her blanket often, to get a break from Binky or to mess with him, depending on her mood. And how often Binky has tried to score with her face in the last hour.