Update On Our Progress

Has it really been three months since my last post? What's been going on? Well, I'm happy to report that Rose and the rabbits are very peacefully coexisting. All parties seem to be quite used to and even comfortable around each other. Much co-lounging, co-snoozing, and happy bunny romping (unimpeded by the dog police) has occured.

Here is a picture from about two weeks ago of Mouse and Rose. This is completely unposed - they chose to relax next to each other like this. Looking back, you can see that we've come a loooong way in 5 months!


Rose's painful hip dysplasia has continued to hamper her mobility. We are hoping to replace her worst hip, but in the meantime, she goes to swim therapy every 10 days, which really helps her to feel better. Thank you Andrea Z. for your good advice! Here's a picture of Rose hard at work in the pool.


I've received several comments from people bringing dogs into their bunny homes, and I want to reiterate some of the basics of the bonding process that I believe really work:

First of all, be patient. Be willing to move through the process slowly. Remember that you are dealing with a sturdy predator and a delicate prey animal.

You can introduce the animals to each other via smells (brushed fur, litter box, bedding, etc.) long before they ever meet face to face. This will help take some of the surprise out of the face to face meeting.

I can't stress this enough: set your dog up to succeed. Start out on a positive note with your dog and reinforce her good behavior! Use praise and treats and reward her whenever she meets your expectations.

Try to make each interaction a positive experience for both animals. Don't make the bunnies a source of frustration for the dog and don't make the dog a source of fear for the bunnies.

Train your dog well. Use cues that your dog can understand to reinforce his "lower" position in the pack: feed the bunnies first, put her (on leash) in a down-stay while the bunnies have free roam, greet the bunnies in the morning before you greet the dog, etc. Make sure your dog has a "Ph.d" in Sit, Stay, Down, Down-stay. I also use the word Gentle to indicate "relax, calm down, no sudden moves".

Never let your dog chase or bully your rabbits. Don't let your dog bark at your rabbits. This is unacceptable behavior.

I strongly discourage you from making your first move waltzing a dog into your home to "show" your bunnies. Holy terrifying startlement for the bunnies, batman! Holy over-excitement for the dog, Robin! This is called setting up for chaos. Please don't do this.

I wish you success in bonding your dog to your bunnies and creating a happy multi-species household. We know now that it certainly can be done!

Rose Finds Her Voice and It’s a Growl! Plus 5 New Pics!

In my last update I reported that I was using a bunny bonding technique sometimes called “dating” to introduce Rose and the bunnies. Shortly after writing that update I discontinued the “dating”. The bunnies were spending the whole dating session obsessively biting the bars of the enclosure trying to return to their house. Rose would sit patiently on her bed and practically fall asleep. There was no interaction between the three, and none of the benign neglect that you might see in a regular bunny bonding session: grooming, flopping over, nose-to-nose greetings, etc. It didn’t feel like the sessions were productive, so I had to rethink my approach.

Since then, I have just focused on letting the rabbits out of their house whenever they wanted and supervising as they came out to explore. Rose would generally be snoozing somewhere, and I discovered that when Mouse would hop up to sniff her she would sometimes utter a low growl under her breath at him. She wouldn’t sit up or assume any aggressive body language. She didn’t show any teeth. This was more of a very quiet warning growl. Unfortunately, Rose doesn’t understand that Mouse doesn’t speak her language, and her ‘growling as warning’ has no effect on him whatsoever. He would continue to invade her personal space and get right up in her snout.

This worried me quite a lot. At first I would give her a very stern and forceful “NO” command. Saying no always gets her attention and she acts very submissive when it happens. But saying no seemed to have no lasting effect: she would growl again in the same situation a day or two later. I really believe that the negative reinforcement of “NO” is much less effective than the positive reinforcement of saying “good dog, gentle dog”. So I started really watching what was happening when Mouse would hop up to Rose. Before she had an opportunity to growl I was already praising her, saying “good dog! Gentle girl!” After a week or so of this positive reinforcement we haven’t heard any growling at all.

We have now gotten to the point where the bunnies can be out of their house whenever there is someone home to casually supervise what’s going on. If I am taking a shower I put them in their house. If I am in the kitchen making dinner, I let them out. Mouse has gotten so bold with Rose that he has used her body as a launching pad for jumps several times. And Rose has gotten so good with the rabbits that she only looks perplexed when this happens. Thankfully Rose hasn’t shown any signs of food aggression, and just looks on when the rabbits get a treat on my lap. Of course, this led her to believe that eating a prune might be of interest to her too, but after several minutes of rolling it around in her mouth she decided maybe not.

There is a tendency for a dog like Rose to want to police or supervise what the rabbits are doing. I have made it clear to her that this is not her job, but mine. When Mouse is creating a ruckus in another room and Rose hears it, she is likely to go trotting off after him to police his behavior. I will intercept her and remind her to mind her own business, that it’s my job to patrol the rabbits. I also never speak in a threatening or angry way with the bunnies. It’s important to never give the dog reason to think she should step in to protect me or to support me in opposition to the rabbits.

The most important things that we are doing right now are keeping up with the praise and positive reinforcement of Rose’s good behavior. I keep reinforcing her role in the pack as “below” that of the bunnies. I feed the bunnies before I feed Rose. I let Mouse climb on her and praise her for being gentle. I also make a point of talking to Mouse and Duchess in front of Rose, telling them that they are good bunnies, I love you, etc. This way she can learn that they are valued members of the pack.

She is a really smart dog and it hasn’t taken much to drive these points home to her. We are hoping that as things become even more comfortable and stable that we will see more friendly interactions between the three.

Training News, Vet Update, And The Meet & Greet

We met with Rose’s personal trainer (The Spotted Dog Obedience Training: anna_mann72@yahoo.com) the evening of May 23rd. After taking a long walk with us Anna somewhat jokingly said, “I can’t help you – this dog is already perfect!” Anna gave us some instruction on how to work on a few concepts with Rose: Focus, Sit-Stay, Down-Stay, and Come. We think that Rose already knows most of this stuff and it’s just a matter of waking that knowledge up and reinforcing it again. Over the last few weeks I have been working a little each day with Rose as Anna instructed. Rose is incredibly responsive and happy to work – of course, that could be the result of the chicken jerky treats she gets during the training session!

Rose saw an orthopedic surgeon on June 2nd. He doesn’t believe that Rose is experiencing any pain from her hip dysplasia. In addition, he didn’t see any evidence of spinal neuropathy, which is great news. He didn’t think that Rose was a candidate for a total hip replacement surgery and considered her to be doing really well, especially in light of how her x-ray’s look. I’ll probably get yet another opinion because I’m just paranoid that way.

Okay, so here’s the biggest and best news: Rose, Mouse and Duchess have been ‘dating’ since May 26th! I’ve been treating their getting to know each other (all up close and personal) just as I would a bunny bonding session. Rose and the bunnies have been fabulous. Rose knows that I expect her to lie down for the entire session (about 15 minutes). She will turn her body from left to right to watch the bunnies wherever they are, but she stays down the whole time. The bunnies mostly ignore her, but will occasionally hop up to smell her, or to touch noses with her. The bonding takes place in a space about 6’ x 6’ with nothing in it, just us. I try to remain in the background as much as possible, and just stay alert to supervise.

After bonding several times over a period of about one week, I moved the bunnies and their house from the second bedroom back to their original place in the living room. I just missed the rabbits too much for them to be in that bedroom any longer. For now they must be locked in their house except during these three times: when I am directly supervising run time, when Rose is out for her morning and evening walks with Ed, or during the bonding session.

Rose has been an angel with the bunnies, very patient and gentle. Mouse is getting braver and braver in interacting with Rose, regularly touching noses. Duchess doesn’t seem fazed by Rose during the bonding sessions, but hasn’t approached her outside of a bonding session yet.

I’ll be continuing with Rose’s individual training and with the bonding sessions a little bit every day. Stay tuned for more bonding updates!

Good News & Bad News

Let’s get the bad news out of the way first. Rose had her first veterinary exam this past weekend and after a series of X-rays we found out that she has stage five hip dysplasia. Sad news. This diagnosis explains why she moves like a much older dog when she is getting up from a nap or climbing the stairs. After checking her over the vet thought that she is probably closer in age to seven years old than six. We are waiting to hear back on the blood work and urinalysis test results. We are hoping that in every other way she is strong and healthy. In the next weeks we’ll be exploring our options for ways to manage or treat Rose’s hip dysplasia. If anyone has experience living with an older dog with hip dysplasia, we’d love for you to post a comment and share.

For the 24 hours following the veterinary exam Rose was completely knocked out – obviously feeling very uncomfortable and ill. This was our first experience seeing her in pain. Today she is back to her usual good spirits and enjoying being outside on walks again.

The good news is that Rose and the bunnies have been very peacefully coexisting (the bunnies from their side of the baby gate and Rose on her side). All behaviors are very positive: mostly just benign neglect with some inquisitive sniffing and looking by both parties.

Everyone has been so good that Ed and I decided to try a little more direct exposure. I brought Rose's doggie bed into the second bedroom and placed it next to my desk. Then I shut the bunnies into their condo, put Rose on leash, and brought her into the second bedroom. I let her smell around the bunny house for just a minute, and then had her sit down on her doggie bed. The bunnies did not thump or react with fear. Mouse immediately commenced biting the bars of the cage door (always his reaction when he discovers the door closed, whether he wants to come out or not)! Rose whined at me and got some attention, then settled down on her bed. I think the bunnies made her nervous because she was whining quite a bit and seemed to want a lot of attention from me. I talked to her soothingly and told her she was a good, gentle dog. I kept the total time of the event to about five minutes.

Ed and I are really missing the presence and companionship of the bunnies at this point. It’s also obvious that the bunnies (especially Mouse) are eager to leave the restrictions of that one room. It is tempting to make introductions before Rose has had her training but we are determined to not rush. We have our first training session tomorrow evening, which will help us move toward our ultimate goal.

Welcome Home Rose

Though allowed free roam of the house, Mouse and Duchess do have a fancy two-story condo that Ed built for them that they use as their home base. To prepare for Rose’s arrival, I’ve moved the bunny house from the living room to the second bedroom. It’s not ideal, but the bunnies will have to be isolated in the second bedroom for the time being. We’ll be starting off this process using a “belt and suspenders” approach to guarding the doorway: the door itself combined with a sturdy wooden baby gate.

Ed attaches NIC cube panels across the baby gate to ensure that there will be no bunny escapees and no dog jaws pushed through the bars of the gate.

We’ll start off with the door closed so there is no visual contact. Eventually we’ll open the door and just use the gate to prevent physical access. Even at that point we will always be closing the door between the animals when there is no one around to supervise them.

Ed brings home several double thickness boxes and we together we build a large cardboard castle for Mouse and Duchess. We’re putting it in the second bedroom for their entertainment – we’re really sorry you’re limited to the second bedroom right now!

May 4th, 2006. Rose comes home! She thinks this place smells really funky. I’ve deliberately not vacuumed so she is smelling rabbit everywhere. I’m acting like it’s completely normal to have bunnies living in your ‘den’ – “Good girl, Rose!”

It’s easy to understand that everything is new and overwhelming for Rose right now. She’s a senior dog who has been in a shelter, a foster home, and a kennel over the last few months. Right now we’re focusing on helping her to settle in and to feel safe, secure and comfortable. We’ll be providing her with a regular walking, eating, and sleeping schedule. This is what we want to focus on during the next few weeks. Well, plus loving and welcoming her, of course.

My friend the dog trainer, Anna (anna_mann72@yahoo.com for those on the Westside of LA) has recommended that we not dive into training just yet, but rather let Rose settle into her new home and start to relax first. I’ve been told that it can take quite awhile for rescue dogs to truly unwind and ‘be themselves’.

Over the next few days I’m letting Rose smell bunny things as they come out of the bedroom: litter pans, bedding, brushed out fur, the works. “Gentle girl, Rose!” She is learning that my expectation for her behavior when she smells bunnies is to be gentle, calm, relaxed. This is a time for lots of praise and positive reinforcement.

We’ve gotten really lucky because it’s obvious that Rose has been obedience trained. She’s not like a soldier marching in formation, but it’s clear that the basics are there. At this point on our walks I’m mostly reinforcing good behavior and only introducing one or two new things to her.

On one of our walks through the neighborhood, we make an amazing and fortuitous discovery. There is an empty corner lot with a 6’ chain link fence surrounding it that has a domestic bunny living inside! According to the neighbors, the bunny belongs to one of the families living next door and he’s been hanging out in the lot off and on for the last six months. This rabbit has become quite the local mascot. Neighbors bring offerings of vegetables and walk their kids and dogs past the lot, while the bunny -- apparently completely fearless -- hops around, grooms himself, flops over in full recline, eats, or greets his adoring public as the mood strikes.

I’ve got my treat bag with me the first time we see the bunny, and Rose and I spend about five minutes watching the bunny eat about two feet away from us. Rose is pretty excited, but responds when I tell her to sit down. I concentrate on stroking her, giving her treats, and repeating “Nice, Gentle Rose. Good Dog! Good Dog!” The second time we visit the rabbit, he hops directly over to us, bold as can be and he and Rose sniff each other -- nose-to-nose -- for about 15 seconds. Rose behaves like a dream! I think the rabbit’s complete lack of fear has something to do with this reaction. I’ve seen other people bringing their dogs over as well and getting similar reactions. Over the next several days, during which we visit the rabbit at least once a day, Rose becomes totally bored with the rabbit. “Can we go now, Mom?” This is just the result I was hoping for.

We’ve had so much success with Rose’s behavior toward the neighborhood mascot bunny that Ed and I decide to open the second bedroom door. It’s almost anti-climatic. I’m on the bunny side of the door and Ed is with Rose on the other side. He pets and praises her for her calm reaction. Not a bunny thump emerges, even from the Queen of thumping, Duchess. Mouse comes over to investigate and I pet him and feed him a little dried prune. He’s not acting scared, just interested in what’s going on and hungry for prune.

Now that they can see each other here’s the general scene: Mouse hops over and gives Rose a sideways glance and then hops leisurely away. Rose looks through the gate but loses interest quickly (these are lazy rabbits…there’s not much to watch when they are lounging around all day). Over the next couple of days she only goes to the gate if I am in the bunny room and talking to the rabbits. She’ll generally lie down in front of the door to wait for me to come out. Otherwise she pays no attention to them. Mouse will occasionally come within two feet of the gate when Rose is outside it, and Duchess – does she even realize that there is a dog in the house? I thought she’d lose her marbles, but she’s acting completely blasé.

Next Up: Down-stay & sit-stay – Training for Rose

Step One: Choosing the Right Dog

My husband and I have had dogs as a part of our family for most of our married life. Our last dog, Nan, died in 2001. It was a difficult loss to recover from, and we were left with a house and hearts that were strangely empty.

That fall we visited our local Humane Society to get our animal groove on, and spent the evening talking with two volunteers from the Minnesota House Rabbit Society. They shared tons of information with us about living with a house rabbit and the joys of bunny companionship. The next day I went back to the Humane Society and adopted my first house rabbit, a fuzzy grey lop-eared bunny named Mouse. Shortly thereafter we became members of the Minnesota House Rabbit Society (since morphed into The Minnesota Companion Rabbit Society, a fabulous organization www.mnhouserabbit.org ) and adopted our second rabbit, a mini-rex named Duchess.

Fast forward to Spring 2006. We’ve moved to Santa Monica, California, bought an 800 square foot condo (of which the bunnies have free roam – a whole 800 square feet?! Where do they find the time? LOL), and have a major Jones on for doggie companionship. We love our bunnies tremendously, and their safety is first and foremost, so what are we going to do?

I’ve heard it’s possible to have a multi-species household that includes bunnies and dogs living in peaceful harmony. My husband and I are experienced with both dogs and bunnies. With advice from the MCRS educators I’ve completed a very successful bunny bonding. My best friend in Los Angeles is a certified dog trainer and has promised her assistance. I guess we’re going to move forward and pursue the dream!

To prepare I read everything I could find about bunny and dog households. Www.rabbit.org has a brief but informative article on this subject. There is also some good advice given in The House Rabbit Handbook. I also re-read all the advice I had been given by our very own MNRabbits chat group.

We had been advised to choose a dog from amongst the working breeds and to avoid the hunting breeds. There is definitely a lot that I don’t buy into about specific dog breed attributes, because I really believe that each individual is different, and a lot depends on nurture as well. However, we did decide, for the safety of our bunnies, to heed the advice to steer clear of hunting dogs.

We were open to adopting a mixed breed dog with working breed parentage, but we first happened upon a great organization that rescues German Shepherd dogs, so that is how we ended up adopting a “pure bred” German Shepherd.

We decided to adopt through a rescue organization instead of the city run shelter because we found that many rescue organizations have many of the dogs in foster homes and can provide extensive behavior profiles on the dogs. We looked at pictures and personality profiles on their website, filled out the adoption application online, and then scheduled to meet the dog that we were interested in.

Before we met the dog we kept three things in the forefront of our minds. 1. That the bunnies cannot become a source of frustration for the dog. Positive reinforcement must be used at all times. All interactions must be a pleasant experience for both parties. As George Costanza on Seinfeld said, “Always end on a high note”! 2. That the dog would need to be extremely well trained in the “down-stay” and “sit-stay” commands. 3. That I wanted the concept of “Gentle” to be introduced and reinforced right from the start.

In preparing to meet the dog, I brought along a few items from our bunny house to see how she would react to them. I brought a handful of bunny fur, a small litter pan with fresh pee and poop in it, and a towel that had been in my bunnies house for a week: it had fur, hay, a few poops and a pee spot on it. I also came prepared with a dog comb to bring a few tufts of dog fur home with me to see how the bunnies would react to that. These ideas may sound familiar to anyone who has done a bunny bonding – I was basically borrowing these bonding concepts from what I learned when I bonded Mouse & Duchess so successfully four years ago.

I also brought along small training treats, thinking that I could reinforce positive reactions with food. However, dogs in a high stress situation with strangers may not eat, and this was the case here. But it can’t hurt to bring along small food rewards in case the dog will respond to them.

We met Rose, a 6+-year-old female German Shepherd. She was described as being very mellow, good on the leash, good with other dogs and cats, and a good car traveler. We found her to live up to her description. She was very interested in all the bunny smells we brought with to show her. I didn’t really know how to gauge her reaction, but as she smelled each item I calmly pet her and repeated, “What a good, gentle girl! Be gentle.” I just knew that we would end up adopting her and I wanted to start introducing the concept of “Gentle” right away, and to reinforce her non-aggressive reaction to the bunny smell.

Based upon her mellow and obedient nature we decided to adopt Rose. We filled out the paperwork, paid our adoption fee, and then took one day to prepare for the new arrival.

Things in the forefront of my mind at this point:

This bonding will require a significant investment of my time. I must be committed to this process 100%.

Shortcutting the process could mean injury or death for our bunnies. I must be prepared to move forward very slowly.

Safety must be our #1 concern.

We will be working with a professional dog trainer who uses a positive, non-painful training approach.

This dog’s background is a mystery, so we must be prepared to deal with the unexpected.

It’s great to be giving a home to a senior dog! We are so excited to get to know the newest member of our household!

Next Installment: We Bring Rose Home – the First Week

Dog Meets Bunny

A while back Ed and I were considering adopting a dog. Our biggest concern, of course, is for the safety of our two bunnies throughout the whole process. Can it be done? And
are we prepared to do it? Well, we finally made a decision! We just adopted a 6+ year old German Shepherd a few days ago. Over the coming months we are going to be slowly integrating our new dog and two bunnies into one peaceful, happy multi-species household. : )

This blog is for those of you who are interested in a sort of ongoing reportage as we go about how we are doing it and how it is going at various stages. I thought it might be a good learning experience for us to share, especially if there are others considering bringing a dog or cat into their bunny household.

Amy in Santa Monica

THE CAST

Rose: The Unsuspecting Dog


Mouse: A Rabbit with Attitude


Amy & Ed: Along for the Ride