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!

Thank you for your kindness @Bunnylady54. It is very hard, much harder than I had anticipated! I wish now that I had left her for longer as I have read that in the past too, but I think I panicked and freaked out a little as it was so sudden and I was shocked by it. I was also worried about how our children would react to seeing her like that.

Even now I keep on shuddering when I think about how cold she felt when I had to move her and place her in the blanket and box we’d sorted for her.

We've been through this twice. In each case the bereaved bunny was grieving...nippy with us, obviously upset. We tried to give extra time with us then adopted another.

We gave it 2-3 months in each case. The bonding did take weeks and a lot of time/ effort. The rehoming place helped us with advice.

So worth it though, to see them content again. I'd say the second time around the resulting bond was better. Not sure if because we gave it more time, or just because of the temperament of the respective individuals.

I'm sorry to hear about your bunny. I had two who were bonded for 8 years. Unfortunately after we had to put the male down (he was 12 and his back legs had gone) the other healthy one (a female) followed a couple of months later without explanation. She had always been very nervous and completely relied on the male. I'd say make sure you give your surviving bunny extra cuddles and check in on them more, especially in the cold as they wont have the other bunny to cuddle with/keep warm.

The hutch is inside the house so the heating is on low, it’s about 18/19 degrees at the moment, but I did wonder about putting a heated pad inside the hutch for him too, as they used to huddle up together every night and I wonder if he misses the warmth.

I'm so sorry for your loss. RIP bunny.

I'd be getting him a new friend ASAP. Preferably use a rescue with a bonding/introduction service and then continue the bond at home. Otherwise you might end up with 2 single bunnies and before you know it you'll have four...

This happened to us last year and we currently have one bun indoors in a huge pen and one outdoors. We have tried to bond them but every time we take the separation away he goes crazy and chases her about trying to hump her.

We got 2 sisters and everything was great until one became unwell and despite 3 trips to the vets died in my arms (bloat the vet thinks). We waited a few weeks and DD3 fell in love with his boy bun at a rescue. We got him neutered then waited 6 weeks to try bonding. But it’s been unsuccessful this far he just wants to hump, even the poor cat got it recently. It’s been 3 months since he’s been done (she’s spayed too).

I’m looking for hints and tips on trying to bond them and stop his humping.

@sweetkitty Humping can sometimes be part of the process! As long as bunnies are not getting distressed or fighting to the point of injuring each other sometimes they just need to work it out. All under supervision and with a pair of gardening gloves and a broom handy, of course. It's difficult to watch as the natural instinct is to jump in and separate them but sometimes that's the worst thing.

Assuming you're starting off trying to bond in a very small, neutral area with a clear barrier between them at first? (some people bond in the bathtub!)

So sorry to hear about your bunny girl Angus. We lost our girl a year ago and have her brother still with us. He is 5 and we never tried to bond him with another as heard so many stories of it not working and having two separated bunnies which we knew would never work for us.

We gave him a cuddly bunny (rubbed over with some fur of our girl bunny) in his bedroom and he goes and lies next to it for company - would that be an idea for your boy bun?

I had to give our boy extra food as he would leave half for his sister (not realising she'd gone) but after a few weeks he got used to the new situation. We make sure we cuddle him lots and give him company and he seems happy and content.

Is your boy grooming himself? That's a sign that he is happy.

Did the vets do a post Morton to determine how this happened? So sorry again for your loss 🐰

Don't put a guinea with a rabbit! They need to be with their own species! Terrible advice you'll have two miserable animals!

Sorry to hear you lost one of your buns.

Definitely contact local rescues, a bereaved bonded bun is a much easier bond than one that's never been bonded. When my poor old girl was widowed, when she saw another rabbit she was like "OMG ANOTHER BUN, FINALLY" and ran and stuck to him like glue. He was a bit bamboozled but rolled with it and hung with her until I lost her (at age 13!). He has been rebonded with a similar-aged bun and they happily amble round with each other causing mischief.

Do NOT get a guinea pig like @user1497207191 suggested. This is VERY outdated information and definitely NOT recommended. It can result in injury, even death, for one or the other.

With the housing - most rescues rehome to a minimum of 60-70 square foot, so not just a hutch, it should be attached to a secure predator and escape proof run. My guys have a shed and aviary set up.

@Synecdoche we’ve done the barrier thing but as soon as the barrier is down his tail is up and he goes for it! I think she would be fine as she doesn’t fight him just sniffs him. I think she’s lonely missing her sister and wants bun company. She’s faster than he is and just out runs him until he needs a rest then he flops, then he has a burst of energy and starts again.

He’s a rescue who was found wandering the street, he was chipped but when his owner was contacted they didn’t want him anymore. I don’t think he’s seen another bun for most of his life (they reckoned he was 3-5 yo)

We’re in the process of converting a large playhouse into a bunny shed with a 6 foot run attached.

@AnneOfCleavage awe that’s so sad about your rabbits him leaving food for her

Thank you to everyone who offered their sympathies. Just thought I’d post a little update.

Our boy bun seems MUCH happier. I have set our children to task every day to come up with tons of hand made toys for him (with his favourite food treats hidden inside) to keep him busy and it seems to have worked, he’s happily shredding things apart as I type. He’s also been venturing out into the garden as normal and is generally just much brighter and more active. Appetite good too and he looks healthy although I’m keeping a close eye on him.

I’ve rung around some local rescues. The closest one doesn’t have any does at the moment, but a couple that are a bit further away do, so we’ll be popping to those this weekend to have a chat and see the rabbits that they have available for adoption.

I hope you find him a new friend!

When one of our girls died unexpectedly, we didn't realise the impact it had on her sister. She was very lazy anyway but definitely seemed more depressed. After a year we got her a toyboy bunny and she has literally sprung into life!
Amazingly they bonded within 12hours and she follows him around everywhere. It actually bring tears to my eyes seeing the difference in her.

We did look at getting a rescue to do the bonding but she doesn't like being picked up or travelling so we thought that would be too stressful .

Re the bonding - yes he humped her a fair amount to start with, and there was a bit of hair pulling but we just let them get on with it and monitored them closely. Gave them enough space and food to be distracted. Because she has free run of the garden we couldn't do it on neutral ground either.

In all honestly it was the complete opposite of what all the information said to do but it worked and they settled down very quickly (literally 12 hours)

Who was the dominant bunny in your pair before your loss? And how old is Mr Bunny?
If the female was dominant then I'd get an older female from RSPCA/re-homing centre. ..the usual vetting etc applies.
I'd wait until nicer weather is here then divide the run into 2 with wire, and let them bond....it can take days or even weeks but don't be put off by nose biting and tail lifting to start off with.
You'll need to put new Mrs bunny in another hutch though while you're waiting!
If mr bunny was dominant then get a younger female.
I lost my darling Netherlands dwarf a few years ago .