Bunnies!

Usually I post cute photos of the bunnies, with (hopefully) clever remarks. But today I am feeling a bit more serious. Since we take care of about 100 rabbits at any given time, with some getting adopted and new ones arriving regularly, it's a given that some will get sick. And some will come from bad situations they can't overcome. And some will have hidden health problems we can't do anything about.

So I've learned to give bunnies medication, put ointment on their wounds, balm on their feet, and drops in their eyes. And I've learned to go on when they die. One of our Flemish Giants, Delta, died on Saturday while I was at the shelter. She's been very sick for awhile now. She had lots of digestive troubles, and as a result was very thin and small compared to the other "Flemmies". (Flemish Giants are one of the largest domestic rabbit breeds, growing to 12-15 lbs. or even more. The ones we have at the shelter are only about 10 mos. old, and they weigh at least 10 lbs.)

We'd brought Delta out to bask in the sunlight and nibble on the wild greens in the yard every day lately. She seemed to be getting weaker, but appeared to enjoy being outside. On Saturday, when I arrived, she was moving her head in an odd way. She seemed to be trying to get comfortable, or like something was bothering her. I decided to feed a bunny or two, then check on her again. When I checked back, 5 min. later, she was lying still with her shiny dark eyes wide open. Poor bunny.

Also on Saturday, some new bunnies arrived from the Humane Society. They, and some other animals, had been seized from an abuse/neglect situation by the authorities. These babies are so skinny, they are just fur and bones. It's weird to hold them and feel every bone in their bodies. They seem sweet, and are beautiful satin bunnies.

We brought the new bunnies out to play in and eat the grass and greens that grow in the yard yesterday. A few minutes later, while we were bringing other bunnies out to play in the other pens, we spotted the little black female, Clementine, loose. I caught her, returned her to the x-pen, and secured a fitted sheet to the top of the pen with clothespins.

A few minutes later, when we were thankfully right nearby, she escaped again. This time, the friendly, bunny-loving dog started chasing her, wanting to play. The little bunny screamed in fear. We headed off the dog, and I scooped up the bun. She was fine as soon as I held her. We realized to our surprise that she is so skinny, she can squeeze through the bars of an x-pen (2" wide, or less). Thankfully, we have other pens with a lattice pattern, so we put the females in one of those.

I do hope these little ones make it. We will give them lots of food and love and playtime.