1. Desex both bunnies
Most bunnies would love a bunny friend, however, finding a perfect partner and bonding rabbits is not as simple as people think. Rabbits are very territorial and aggressive when another bunny enters their home. The best bondings are a desexed boy & a desexed girl and best if they pick out their own friend. Bringing just any bunny home and introducing that bunny to yours will just end up in tears and trip to the vet when one of the bunnies gets hurt.
2. Let your bunny find their own friend
The best thing you can do (if your bun is desexed) is to take your bun along to a shelter for a "bunny date". Your desexed bun is introduced to a number of desexed buns and they can equally agree who they find the nicest bun to live with. The best place to do this in Melbourne (assuming you're in Melbourne) is the Australian Animal Protection Society in Keysborough where they have a fabulous bunny adoption program.
3. Bringing home a new bunny
Saying all that above, however, it doesn't mean smooth sailing even if your bunny finds a friend and all seems good at the shelter. When you get home, it's still your bunny's territory so you need to change all towels, rugs and thoroughly clean out the litter tray (preferably get a new neutral tray that both can claim). I find it better to re-introduce in the bathtub when you get home (with a towel on the bottom) so you can see how they go when home. If they seem to be okay, you could put them together in a neutral zone with all neutral things and supervise. If there's any chasing, humping or aggression, you'll need to keep them separated until they get used to each other.
Saying all that above, however, it doesn't mean smooth sailing even if your bunny finds a friend and all seems good at the shelter. When you get home, it's still your bunny's territory so you need to change all towels, rugs and thoroughly clean out the litter tray (preferably get a new neutral tray that both can claim). I find it better to re-introduce in the bathtub when you get home (with a towel on the bottom) so you can see how they go when home. If they seem to be okay, you could put them together in a neutral zone with all neutral things and supervise. If there's any chasing, humping or aggression, you'll need to keep them separated until they get used to each other.
4. Introducing your buns safely
A barrier helps when you bring a new bunny into the home. Swap each bun over into the other's territory so they can smell each other's zone and get used to each other without any close up contact. Keep swapping them over every day & introduce in a neutral zone for a short time every day until they start to groom each other, snuggle & share food together. By that stage, the buns are usually very happy together unsupervised.
From Boing Online - a great Melbourne based site for rescue buns.
**In Sydney I recommend contacting Porsches Small Rescue.
**In Sydney I recommend contacting Porsches Small Rescue.
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