Rabbit owners: when one rabbit dies...

[AngusDuck]

...what have your experiences been for the one left behind? We were really shocked and upset to find that our lovely, gentle, sociable girl rabbit (aged 5) had died in her hutch a few days ago. She had always been in great health and still looked in excellent condition (I checked her fur, teeth, claws, bottom etc.) When I removed her body, our other (male) rabbit was going absolutely berserk. Since then, we haven’t really seen him, he’s buried himself away in his bedding and doesn’t want to come out. He usually loves running around all day every day. They had been paired together since they were tiny. I don’t really know how to help him, he’s a bit of a grumpy old git and i don’t know if trying to pair him with a younger rabbit would be a disaster. But I don’t want him to grow lonely either. He spends time both in and out of the house so does get to spend time with us, even though he acts like he doesn’t want to!

I got another rabbit to keep the remaining one company. I found females dealt with the loss better than males.

A good rescue centre would temporarily take him into their care and work to find a bunny to bond him with. He does sound very depressed and he could potentially live another 5 or so years if he was the same age as the girl you lost.

You mentioned a hutch. Is he locked in there most the time? What size is it?

If you find your local rabbit rescue they are probably able to help you find a good match for him - right age and temperament. Ours were great at helping them bond

@Aloe6 of course he’s not locked in there most of the time. I’ve taken really good care of both of our rabbits, hence it being quite a shock. Surely most rabbits have a hutch in some form, it’s their base and where ours have always chosen to sleep and go when they need quiet time, but as I said in my OP, he usually spends a lot of the day running around, both in and out of the house as the hutch is in the side entry and both the garden and the house can be used most of the time and I work from home so can keep the doors open.

I would agree that he’s depressed, but it’s not because he’s mistreated by us.

I’ll try local sanctuary’s.

And it’s a 6 foot double hutch. The side entry acts as an indoor run, it’s a small room. And that’s what he has when he’s ‘locked in’, most hours of the day it’s more. They/he has had plenty of room.

No need to be snippy Angus you’d be surprised how many rabbits are locked in a hutch. I didn’t suggest you were mistreating them. Any credible rescue would check your housing is up to scratch before rehoming to you, that’s why I asked how much space he has.

You can bond him with another neutered bunny but it takes time. Basically you have a run with a fence they can sniff each other through and build up the amount of time they spend in there each day, then remove the fence and let them spend a bit of time together and build that up.

I'm sorry for your loss. Rabbits are such intelligent and loving creatures.

I’ll be as snippy as I like, thanks @Aloe6. I didn’t ask for my rabbits living arrangements to be questioned or to be asked if they were ‘locked in there most of the time’, I asked what people’s experiences were for lone rabbits who were used to other rabbit company, ie. is getting another rabbit beneficial in the long run or have people found it hard to bond an older rabbit.

Thank you @Bluewavescrashing, we’re really upset about it. She had seemed so normal and happy and it’s awful to see him on his own. Our children haven’t taken it very well either.

We've had rabbits for years. A new rabbit can take a long time to "bond" and some never will. You have to introduce them VERY slowly and cautiously. Trouble is, if you get another and they don't bond, you end up with 2 lonely bunnies and two separate hutches. (Been there, got the T shirt).

What has worked with us (and you'll get people telling you it's insane and not to do it), is a guinea pig. We've regularly had a guinea pig and a bunny in a hutch together. Never had a single problem with it. They just ignore each other most of the time but will often snuggle and wash each other when the mood takes them. We must have had 4 or 5 of these pairings over the years (40+ years) and never had any problems. Yes, I know other people will give you horror stories, but for us, it's worked well as Guinea Pigs are usually pretty docile.

That’s interesting @user1497207191, as you say I’ve always seen people say not to pair them. I do love guineas but not sure I’m brave enough to try that! Also concerned that I could end up with two bunnies who don’t get on. He is a big lovely ball of fluff and he adored our girl rabbit, but he’s never taken very well to any other animal intruders in the garden!

First thing to consider before considering getting a friend is cause if death. Are you bunnies vaccinated? If not VHD is a risk and there's risk that your other bunny has been exposed and that your Bunnys house is contaminated for atleast the next 4 months.

No respectable rescue will rehome a bunny if there has been a sudden unexplained death. If bunnies aren't vaccinated the first step is to vaccinate and then consider a friend

Until then make sure he is eating and pooping and give him some time 🙂

Yes sorry, should have said that they’re both up to date with vaccinations. Local vets very good with rabbits although luckily they’ve both been in very good health up until this happened so have not had to visit often. Normal poo, wee, ravenous appetites.

She was keen to eat her food as normal the last time we saw her in the evening before finding her in the morning.

We did give the hutch a huge extra deep clean after finding her though, just in case.

That’s okay @celebritydave, thank you

Please please please don’t get a Guinea pig for your bunny! They’re different species and therefore can’t communicate properly with each other and a bunny’s back legs are too powerful for a poor pig, it can and does end in disaster some times. They also carry diseases that don’t show any clinical signs in rabbits but can be fatal to pigs.

I’d suggest trying to bond him with a rescue bunny

The RSPCA shelter near me does bunny speed dating. See if your local one does.

So sorry for your loss OP. Losing a beloved bunny is awful, even harder when it’s so sudden. We lost one of our beautiful does in November & were worried about her bonded buck but actually he’s been ok. We got another doe fairly soon after & have gradually bonded them, although they still don’t live together as she’s been spayed & needs a month before she can go in the same hutch as him.
I read somewhere that you can leave the body in the hutch for a while to help the partner “ come to terms” with what’s happened. Obviously that’s too late for you but you can give your old fella lots of extra attention & as pp have said, find another match asap. Wishing you all the best 🐰🐰

Ah that sounds nice @Puds11. I’m going to call round some rescues tomorrow.

This might sound silly, but does anyone know how long we should leave it before trying to introduce a new bunny? Will he be more likely to reject a new rabbit if he’s still pining for our old girl? Do rabbits pine for each other in that way?

I don’t know for certain but I’d guess given their nature they don’t pine for too long. I think if he were introduced to a younger, smaller female and could be dominant, he’d recover quite quickly. I could be wrong.

I think it was only a week afterwards that we collected our new doe.