Chonken Needs a Friend: A Rabbit Bonding Story

Author: Radhika Sakalkale, HRS adopter

One day at the end of June 2025, my husband and I came across a Reddit post: "Take care of a rabbit for two weeks." Sounds cool, we thought. We were planning to spend the 4th of July at home, and how cool would it be to hang out with a rabbit?

We went to House Rabbit Society not knowing what to expect. We'd never taken care of a rabbit before. We walked around with treats in hand and set out to find our new house guest. What was special about Chonken was that he was such a little scaredy-cat. He ran and hid when he saw us approach his cage, but when he heard the crinkling of the treat bag, he denied his natural instincts and ran out to greet us in exchange for a cranberry snack. The volunteers at House Rabbit Society were very helpful and taught us everything we needed to know, sending us home with everything we needed.

Two weeks turned into two months, and two months turned into we-can't-give-him-back. Chonken is extremely lovey but a real scaredy-cat. The poor guy was too scared to step on wood floors, so I always had to lay out fleece blankets for him. Random noises would freak him out, so I had to make sure he had plenty of hiding spots. The cute guy weaseled his way into our hearts by nudging us for pets, watching our favorite shows, and grooming our sweatpants. However, every time we left town, we would feel awful leaving Chonken on his own, so we had an idea: what if we got Chonken a friend?

Chonken went on quite a few dates and... the ladies always picked on him. He got bit, peed on, and pooped on. After enduring these indignities, he would just squish himself into the corner of the date area, willing the date to be over. Enter Squilliam. When I first saw Squilliam, I could tell he was a crazy little guy with a vibrant personality. Every time you'd say his name, he would do head binkies and run around in circles. Squilliam could be Chonken's other half, a contrast to Chonken's mellow, sweet personality. On their first date, Chonken was on his stubby feet, actually curious about little Squilliam! So, on February 4th, we brought Squilliam Fancyson home as a foster bunny.

When we first started bonding them, it was HARD. If their pens were too close together, they would box through the bars. During their dates, we would employ a ski glove to break up any boxing matches. Chonken's little eyebrows would furrow in fury every time Squilliam approached him during dates. Squilliam had NO manners. Instead of approaching Chonken's face, he would go straight for Chonken's butt.

Despite this aggression, there was something there. At a distance, I would catch Chonken mirroring Squilliam, and Squilliam grooming himself in front of Chonken. Sometimes I would catch them just staring at each other. One weekend, we went away and boarded them at House Rabbit Society. Shortly after dropping them off, we started getting videos of Squilliam grooming Chonken, and I felt like I was being punked. Chonken, who was SO territorial, was letting Squilliam cuddle next to him. When we came back, we found that Chonken and Squilliam were in love.

The conversation went something like this:

Me: I am so sorry about Chonken. He is so mean with Squilliam, which is so weird because he's so sweet around humans.

Amber (HRS staff): Chonken was fine. Squilliam just needs to learn some manners.

We took them both home and I was left confused by this change in personality and wondering what rabbit manners are. While we were out of town, the staff and volunteers at House Rabbit Society worked tirelessly to bond our bunnies, and now it was clear that they were inseparable. In March 2026 after 21 grueling dates, Squilliam moved in with Chonken, and we officially adopted him. The rest is history. The two can now be seen loafing together, hopping on the couch, and bringing out the best in each other. Chonken taught Squilliam some manners. And guess what? Squilliam helped Chonken get over his fear of hardwood floors.

You can find Chonken & Squilliam hopping around Instagram at @chonkenandsquilliam. We're grateful to House Rabbit Society for introducing us to our new family members and providing us all the educational resources we need to take care of them!