My fiancé and I stand in our backyard watching our four-year old, 70+ pound, male Staffordshire Terrier (a.k.a., Pit Bull), Tango. We're discussing my rabbit, Thumper, and his living arrangements.

"How can Thumper live downstairs? He has to stay upstairs in our bedroom. Just think what Tango would do to him!" As though Tango hears Aron's words, he suddenly takes off after a Cottontail. I yell to him, but the chase is on and he ignores me. When he reaches the end of his chain, it actually moves the 150+ pound doghouse that it's attached to. He growls and barks at the poor Cottontail.

What was I thinking? Of course Tango and Thumper can't live together!

That night when I go upstairs to bed my heart breaks when I see Thumper's face light up at the sight of me. He's already at his cage door, so happy to see somebody.

That was five years ago. Now Thumper and eleven more of his kind live downstairs with Tango and Max, a 10-month-old male Doberman Pinscher that we rescued five months ago.

How did we get to this point?

It was not easy. It took a lot of patience, even more praise, hundreds of treats and most important of all- NO YELLING OR PUNISHING.

First, I read everything that I could find about introducing rabbits to dogs. I couldn't find much and what I did find did not seem practical or reasonable to me. What did help was reading dog books about bringing a new baby into a dog's home. These tips made sense to me. If the dog is yelled at or punished for inappropriate behavior toward the baby, he will think negatively of the child, associate the baby with punishment and grow to resent and hate the child. The dog has to learn that baby means good things (treats and praise). The key is rewarding positive behavior and heading off negative behavior before it begins.

Surely this would apply to rabbits as well. Now I had something to start with. Unfortunately it wasn't that simple.

Ideally your dog would be obedience trained. If he isn't, don't give up hope. Tango is not; however, he listens well enough to basic commands.

Hopefully your dog is not a barker, if he is (as most are), you will need to accustom your rabbit to the noise so that he isn't frightened to death. Keep your bunny in a room with a door that can be closed when the dog barks. At this point the doorway will need to be blocked off or closed all the time to keep the dog out. When the dog barks, go into the room and speak soothingly to bunny while he thumps, try offering a favorite treat. Soon enough the bunny will stop thumping and won't even acknowledge the dog's barking.

Bring the dog into the room where the rabbit is, if he barks take him out and try again later. If all is quiet, give Fido a treat and lots of praise. Let the dog walk up to the cage and sniff around. Again, more treats and "Good Boy/Girls." If your rabbit is afraid, keep these sniffing visits brief.

I've seen three reactions from bunnies; Curiosity (Bunny's at the cage bars sniffing right back), Indifference (I'm too busy grooming, eating, etc. to even notice the dog) or Sheer terror (At the back of the cage, thumping frantically). I've only encountered this last reaction once and we did conquer it.

Any time bunny shows fear or Fido barks or gets too excited, end the sniffing visit and try again later. Constantly reward and praise the dog for calm behavior. REMEMBER- -NO YELLING OR PUNISHMENT, NO MATTER WHAT!

Allow your rabbit to run around the main living area (i.e., living room) while the dog is outside or in another room. This way both animals get used to smelling each other's scents regularly.

Now, it's on to bigger and better things. Hold bunny on your lap (try bribery--a favorite special treat to get bunny to want to stay), have someone bring the dog in on a leash. Constantly praise and give treats while they meet nose to nose. If Fido shows his teeth, if the hair on his back stands up or he growls, end this visit--IMMEDIATELY. These are signs of aggression and someone or "somebunny" is going to get bit. Don't try another nose to nose meeting for a couple of weeks but continue with the above exercises.

By now your bunny should be used to your dog walking around his cage and the novelty of the bunny is most likely wearing off for your dog.

Next, let bunny run around the living room while Fido is behind a baby gate so that he can see but not chase. If he is calm, reward him, if not ignore him. When Fido continuously remains calm behind the gate, put him on a leash and remove the gate. Now is where the obedience training comes in. Tell the dog to sit and stay. By now, you know--treats and praise. If Fido tries to chase, in an upbeat, happy, calm voice give the sit and stay command. Treats and praise. Sooner or later, your bunny, being an extremely curious little creature, is going to approach the dog. Then he'll probably run away and come back. Continually praise Fido for not chasing. When Fido no longer tries to chase at all, he can be left off the leash. Your dog should love your bunny by now, because Bunny means "treats".

NEVER leave your dog and bunny unsupervised (A CHILD DOES NOT COUNT AS SUPERVISION), even for a brief moment! Always supervise, even if your dog and bunny can be found sleeping beside each other. You must never forget--your dog is a predator and your bunny is prey.

I did not give specific time periods (i.e., do this or do that for two weeks, etc.) because every animal is going to be different. By paying attention to the behavior of both your rabbit and your dog, you will know when it is time to proceed to the next step. It might take weeks for them to become friends, or months. Possibly even a year or more. In the end, your patience will be well worth it.

Although Tango still occasionally chases Cottontails, he never chases our house rabbits (even if they happen to be Cottontails that are temporarily recuperating in our home). Tango rarely even acknowledges that there are bunnies in the room. Max on the other hand is still learning. He's great when they're in their cages, on my lap, or behind a baby gate. We're still working on quelling his natural instinct to chase. Actually our biggest problem with Max is that he licks our bunnies until they're wet! Luckily, they don't seem to mind in the least.

I am not saying that all dogs will get along with all rabbits, but I do think that if I can turn a rabbit chasing Pit Bull and an unsocialized Doberman into rabbit friends, you should have a pretty good chance with yours. All you need is patience, treats and praise. Pay attention to the signals coming from both of your pets. Stop negative behavior before it starts. Reward positive behavior. Never yell or punish. Don't turn your back for a minute. And have fun! GOOD LUCK!

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