Cottie Takeover

In the past few weeks, our bunnies' wild relatives have taken over our play yard.
It seems that, even in the wild, the Patterson yard is known to be a safe and friendly place for bunnies of all sorts. First, there was smart Mama C ...

who knew Jeannie would do everything to keep her little babies safe:

Brad was under strict "orders" not to mow anywhere in the vicinity, and Hogan, the "big white one" so used to free-ranging in the yard was miffed beyond belief that he was limited to enjoying the yard in a play pen.

This was the beginning of the "invasion" - suddenly, there were cute little cotties all over the place, and it is amazing how close they let us get to them. One cottie teenager took to hanging out under the wheelbarrow right by the path leading to the warrens, completely undisturbed by human feet trampling back and forth beside him.

One of the youngsters loves to play hide-and-seek in the tall grass right outside the south warren and has presented us with the most wonderful photo opportunities:

Little cotties, you are so amazing and beautiful! Thanks for being around; it's an honor having you.

T Gets a Bath

My poor little T has a disapproving tummy and frequently has "poopy butt". In the few years that I've belonged to him, I've never had to give him a "bath", but I had to step in a couple weeks ago and give him his first. Because his back leg sticks out to the side, I put a towel in the sink to give him a little traction. He was not happy at first, but eventually settled in. He kept trying to groom the rest of him and just ended up splashing the both of us over and over again with his little foot flicks. :)


[Note: For all you new bunny parents, you don't need to bathe bunnies, usually, and you should never submerge them in water, which would be very stressful and potentially life threatening. Like cats, they groom themselves, continuously. They can be quite vain. ;) You can find more information on grooming at www.rabbit.org.]

Puzzle of the Month - May 2008

Just a little bit late, but better than never. ;) Putter - trying to find a quiet place to nap in the play yard.

You tawkin to me?

Tango causes a lot of fear and trauma when I take her to the vet. Everyone is very alarmed by her. Anyway, today was nail trim day for Tango and Nemo. The puppy spa is about a 1/2 a block from my house. I tucked Nemo in my hoodie and zipped up and off we went. Easy, Easy done in five minutes and back home. The lady that usually does it was outand her husband was there. I told him I was going home to get my big girl and that she was a handful. He said "no problem, I have trimmed a raccoon's nail so a little bunny wont be a problem" I told him I just wanted to warn him but he didn't listen. So I go home and get Miss Tango and put her in the carrier. (she wouldnt fit in my hoodie and would whip my butt if I tried) When we walk in I told him we needed to go into a room and that I needed her carrier to be on a table when I took her out. He seemed skeptical still. Poor man. I reach in to get her out and she does her usual growling and thumping the back of the carrier with all her might. His eyes got big as saucers."Is she growling"? "I have never heard a rabbit growl before" So I get her out and he says "holy crap". I tried to tell him!!!!!!! Every time he trimmed a toenail she grunted and tried to bite him. I honestly thought he was going to cry. It was over pretty fast. He didn't charge for it because her back feet didn't need trimming and I am fairly sure he just wanted her out. He said as I was leaving " Do you have anymore like her at home"? I laughed and said yes but I wasn't bringing Mojo in because she didn't need a trim. (Mojo is big but NOTHING like Tango but I wanted him to worry a bit.) Next time I think I will bring them both at the same time and see how he reacts. Cant help myself. It was so much fun. Tango doesn't scare me at all but she sure scares the heck out of everyone else. Raccoon Smaccoon. Just had to share that story with you all.

Christina

P.S. Sorry how this is split up. I couldnt get it fixed properly.

Snuggle Sweet Honeymoon

Its not a trip to Hawaii or Niagra Falls, but its still a honeymoon to remember. Congratulations Joey and Rhoda! (sorry about the playpen wire - we grab a picture when we can)

Is THIS Close Enough.....?

They don't like the cameras do they? Joey is so cute, and his pictures DO project his personality. We have many, many pictures of him in our picture file. But I wanted some more of him and his new bride, Rhoda. I just love the basket picture of them (wish the playpen hadn't been in the way) We had a lovely couple who were interested in adopting a bonded pair come out to visit us yesterday. They adopted Joey and Rhoda. Rhoda is shy and sweet. Joey is a bold comedian. Both enjoy the affection (and of course the treaties) from people. I envy the new bunny parents of the laughter they will enjoy. No shortage of laughter here though. We have many 4 footed comics here that keep us well within our dmrol (daily minimum requirement of laughter). I think research proved that we need a minimum of four episodes of laughter a day, right?

Angels among us.

In response to the post below I just have to say a few words.

I am not a religious person by any means. With that being said, I think there are angels among us. One is an animal control officer named Shelley who must have a horrible job sometimes but cared about a little bunny so much. The other ones I know are the people at Heartland. I knew zero about the plight of bunnies a year ago. After I got my first 2 I started researching the net like crazy trying to find the best ways to take care of them. I discovered Heartland Rabbit Rescue. They were so kind and informative and answered every single one of my questions and went out of their way for me numerous times even when I must have been a pain. I just wanted to try and do everything right and they were wonderful. There is such a need for those people in the world who care about the little animals, children and the elderly and ill. So on behalf of Mojo and Tango ( who I found out later were actually intended to be meat rabbits) and Dudley the most scardy little bunny in the universe and Nemo whose head is slightly tilted but whose heart is like a lion. THANK YOU HEARTLAND FOR BEING THE ANGELS AMONG US.

A Very Special Friend

I met Cadbury's special friend, Shelley, this last February. She called us hoping she could get help for a little white rabbit she had picked up as a stray a month earlier. Shelley is the animal control officer for a small town in northeastern Oklahoma. She explained his story, that she had tried for a month to adopt him out, but no one was interested him - at least not as a pet. Most small towns, having very small budgets, will hold a stray for 72 hours only. A rare few will hold them a week. I don't know how much time Cadbury's town allows (I didn't ask), but Shelley had already broken the rules in holding him for a month. Her voice sort of trailed off as she asked if we possibly had room for him. I sighed and she added quickly, "He is very sweet." As I pictured in my mind that corner of the warren that has - had our one remaining 'emergency' cage I heard myself say, "How shall we get him here?" We made plans to meet half way on the turnpike - an hour and a half drive for each of us. She had left early in the morning and was waiting for me as I pulled up to the rest stop. Taking him out of her carrier and putting him into mine was done in my van. We talked for a little while about Cadbury and how she came about giving him that name, all the while she was stroking his forehead. He had his eyes closed and his nose pointing up to her. It was obvious they had shared moments like this before. She smiled and said, "Have a good life Cadbury" and thanked me again as she got out of the van. She handed me gas money for which I tried to refuse. But she said, "Please take it, I want to help." I told her she already has helped. Her act of kindness towards a little white rabbit that nobody wanted comes to my mind often. "Thank you officer Shelley." Here are a couple of pictures of Cadbury being a goofus I took in the play yard Sunday. He is neutered and ready for that special family to love him. Thanks to his very special friend Shelley.