Getting ready for my first buns!

[prairieknitter01]

Well, I have been reading about house rabbits for years and have often thought of having one or two myself.  Now I have bought a home and am settled in a job that does not have any traveling involved, so I am getting ready to have buns of my own.

I have been approved by the Minnesota Companion Rabbit Society and I will be meeting some rabbits on March 2nd at an event.   My original rabbit dream was for a pair of angora rabbits that I could use as fiber-sources as well as beloved pets since I love to spin, but it didn’t take much research to see that angora rabbits are bred and that since I could provide a good home for an abandoned rabbit, maybe I should open my home to a rescued pet and keep buying angora from the small professional angora breeders who have blogs detailing their love and care of their buns. 

I have asked the rescue adoption coordinator for a pair of big, bossy bunnies, preferably already bonded.  I am so hoping for a big white bunny with bright pink eyes.   I really love pink-eyed rabbits.  I have adopted all my cats over the years from the Humane Society or rescue groups, and I do know that the best adoptions are adoptions where the animal picks ME, not the other way around.  The only adoption that has ever not been stellar has been an adoption where I walked into the cat room with a fixed idea that I must have a ginger tabby.   I got one, and he was just sort of bland.  Pretty to look at, but bland.  Poor Luis, I did love him though.  He died at 14 years with a kidney problem that my vet could not fix.  I hope a big, bossy pink-eyed rabbit sizes me up at the adoption and decides *I’m* the *One*!  

Spent my two days off this week building a condo for my new pets.  I went with the NIC concept, but I reinforced it with large dowels since I am hoping for large rabbits, and I built in on a sort of dolly – a platform on wheels that lock so that I can move the very large cage easily for cleaning underneath and behind and around.  Also, I have the whole house to myself so the rabbits can find a room they like and I’ll just move the cage there.  I have miles of cord protectors and I made little blankets out of polar fleece.  I have cardboard tubes and I did some early pruning on my apple trees for sticks.  I have wood fuel pellets for litter and shredded paper from work for bedding.  I will buy the food pellets, veggies and hay closer to the actual adoption day so that it will be fresh – also, what if I don’t come home from the event with a bunny?  So that part will wait.  I have water bottles and ceramic crocks and litter boxes that have high backsides.  Lots of stuff!  My vet has been put on the alert.   He really loves rabbits, and I have tested this.  We have many wild rabbits in town (this is real prairie country) and I have “hedge rabbits” well established on my property.  I have brought injured wild rabbits in for treatment or to be put to sleep (one of our hedge rabbits was hit by a car and suffered a head injury – it was still alive when I found it, but unable to move) on occasion.  I tell the vet staff when I pay the bill that it may be a wild rabbit but that doesn’t mean no one cares about it! 

Well, please keep your fingers crossed that things go well on March 2nd!   I feel badly that I live on the other end of the state from the event, but the buns will only have to make that trip once – I promise! 

Thank you for reading this long post; if you have any holes in my preparation or philosophy, please let me know!  I appreciate all the words of wisdom I can get.  I have never tried to care for a “prey” animal before, and I understand many things are very different from my previous pets.

Andrea

[JK]

Wow are you ever prepared!  I’m very impressed!  I wish everyone was as prepared as you before getting a rabbit.  You deserve the best!  Some very lucky buns are going to be so lucky to have you as their mom!  Hopefully you’ll find a pair soon. You crack me up that you want some bossy ones.  I love that.  Good luck in your search and do let us know what you find. And post pictures! 

[prairieknitter01]

knowltons4, thanks for the vote of confidence!  I have been planning for these bunnies for quite a while! 

I guess I want a bossy pair because I am hoping that whatever these rescue rabbits have been through previous to me, at least if they are outgoing and willing to try to communicate, there will be hope that we can come to a happy understanding between us.  If they are nothing but nervous, fearful, and shy, I worry that I do not have the experience to make such rabbits happy and peaceful.   I will need a patient, persistent rabbit that takes an interest in me and forgives me my shortcomings in understanding! 

Andrea

[babybunsmum]

aww… you sound like such a good bunny mom already and you don’t even have your buns yet!  i think all you’ve said sounds wonderful.  the rest will have to be on a learn-as-you-go basis when your buns find you & start telling you about themselves    i just adopted a big white red-eyed bun from my local shelter – already named pinky – who is just plain adoreable!  

[Beka27]

welcome here Andrea!!!

wow.  i am sure impressed with the time and preparation you’re taking before you bring home buns.  one of the more frustrating things (for us here and people involved in rescue) is when folks get rabbits first and ask questions later (usually on the verge of “getting rid” of them).  obviously, everyone needs to start out at level one… but you’ve got a head’s up and your bunnies transition will be that much easier for it!

i don’t know if you’ve browsed BinkyBunny before posting or not, but we have all kinds of wonderful resources here and great links to other sites.  and feel free to ask any questions that might come up.  bunnies are famous (infamous?) for *letting you think* you know what’s going on and then turning that on its ear.  but that’s why we’re here… we’re always learning new things about our furbabies and sharing our experiences.

keep us posted how the adoption event goes.

[MarkBun]

Also, very happy that you are looking for the pink eyed buns. They always get the short end of the leash. I was just introduced to a HUGE pink-eyed boy at SaveABunny that was saved from being fed to a python. They poor guy looks a mess and he’s still a little bit shy of people but knowing Tracy, in a couple of weeks he’s gonna be a very happy white fluff ball.

You could also find an angora that has been given up to the shelter so don’t dismiss their possibilities yet.

[JK]

Markusdark – Are you talking about Abercrombie?  He is HUGE!  I heard his foster mom gave him up as he was hard to handle.  Is that true?

[JK]

This is sick!  It just kills me.

Hawthorne, formerly Sander at San Francisco Animal Care and Control

 

Hawthorne, formerly Sander at San Francisco Animal Care and Control

Status: Available

Shelter of Origin: San Francisco Animal Care and Control

Hi. My name is Hawthorne and I am very grateful to be alive.
I was rescued from a horrible life being sold as a “meat” rabbit at a flea market in San Francisco. I am a big bunny and I was crammed into a tiny cage with other rabbits and we had no food or water or space to move. As you can see from this photo, I am urine stained from being underneath other frightened rabbits. And this is my “after” photo—after I was brushed and cleaned. It will take me a few months to grow in the soft, silky white fur that I have underneath all this mess. I am ashamed at the way I look, though I know it is not my fault.

Even though humans had not been kind to me so far in my short life, I am still a sweet, gentle boy. I am a little shy at first and not sure if your hand coming toward me means that I will be hit and hurt, or stroked and loved. I am so grateful for a tender touch and kindness.

I really crave a forever home where I can experience the joy and safety of being an indoor companion rabbit. I would also welcome a foster person who will work with me for a few months to allow my gentle, playful spirit to emerge in a healing environment.

My sense is that life CAN be good and that I have a purpose on this earth other than to be someone’s dinner, but I need your help.
Will you please adopt or foster me and show me the love I deserve?

>>>>>>>>********************************<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

I am named after a SaveABunny volunteer named Mark Hawthorne. Mark is the author of “Striking At The Roots”: A Practical Guide to Animal Activism.

With great empathy and clarity, Mark presents the most effective tactics for speaking out for animals and gives voice to activists from around the globe. Learn how you can get involved. Mark’s writing is concise and full of practical examples and resources. “Striking At The Roots” dispels the myths surrounding animal activism and will empower you to make the most of your skills. From simple leafleting to taking direct action, each chapter clearly explains where to begin, what to expect and how to ensure your message is heard.
http://www.strikingattheroots.com/

Click here for a review.

strikingattheroots

I’m currently being housed at SaveABunny waiting to be adopted.

Please tell me more about: Hawthorne, formerly Sander at San Francisco Animal Care and Control
(Click Here!)

 

 

 

 

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Welcome to binkybunny Andrea!! You’ll love it here! You sound like an awesome bunny mom!! I can’t wait for March 2nd for you!!!

THat is just one of the saddest things ever….Why do ‘meat’ animals have to be treated soo badly! Thank goodness there are rescues out there!!

[JK]

I know it is beyond words the torture some animals must endure. I wonder if Save a Bunny rescued them all. I have to turn my brain off when I think about this stuff.

[prairieknitter01]

Hello everybody!  Thank you for your warm welcomes! 

I wish I was near San Francisco, poor Hawthorne, I would take him home in a minute!   I will think of him often if I am able to take home a pink-eyed bunny from Minneapolis.   Definitely stories like that are what made me decide to find a rescue bunny rather than buy an angora bunny from a breeder.  If a rescue angora bunny showed up, I would definitely be excited, but I have been watching the Petfinder site and they are scarce.  There are lots of spinners in the Midwest, I guess, and angoras are our dream bunnies (especially since you can’t keep a wooly sheep in the house)!  

There seems to be so much random, careless cruelty towards animals these days.  I know there has been a lot written about the decline of civility, etc., but I’m not sure what could explain the upswing in vicious treatment of animals.   Maybe since it is getting to be routine to be unkind to other people, it would naturally follow that it’s getting to be okay to treat defenseless beings badly.  I don’t know.  It’s just not okay with me, and this is what I can think of to do about it.

[wendyzski]

Aww – I’m so happy for you!

I too researched and waited for quite some time before I got a bun – mostly because I finally found out that I am NOT allergic to them.  It’s beenabout a year and a half and I can’t imagine life without at least one now.  (It will be one for quite some time – my loppy-girl has made it very clear that she is not silling to share me).

[MarkBun]

Yup, that’s the guy. Although I am also offended by the condition that Hawthorn was in (yes, that yellow on his fur is what you think it is), I also understand that other pets do require things that many of us feel offensive. At a young age, when I cheered watching a bunny escape from a wolf, my dad turned to me and said, “But what about the wolf? It will starve if it doesn’t catch another animal.”

And, unfortunately, SaveABunny, like most rabbit shelters, aren’t able to save everyone. I am always amazed at how strong these people who run these shelters are. Tracy told me about a situation that was happening that day that she just didn’t have the space to do anything about. I’d have given up at that point but she, and others, do what they can to make as many bun’s lives happy ones.

That’s why adoption is so important. There’s too many shelter buns as it is. And with the stupidity that comes with Easter right around the corner, it’s only going to get worse…

Okey, I’m done with the depressing stuff.

This morning, I got a treat watching Dono and Maryann eating out of the same bowl and when I went to give them their morning treats, they were side by side, cheek to cheek, pressing their noses forward for those blueberries. I REALLY need to find my memory stick for my camera.

[JK]

I hear what you are saying but we as a civilized society can certainly treat animals humanely  even if they are being sold for meat. I just can’t go there.  You did hear about that awful treatment of lame cows being led into the slaughter house? And then they had to recall millions of pounds of beef because of it. Sick sick sick. I just can’t read this stuff anymore because it’s so painful. I should not have read about Hawthorne either because of course I keep envisioning it. Yes this is why we rescue animals!  Marcy at Save A Bunny is an angel and she has a tough job one that I could never do.  She always has to make extremely difficult decisions on who to take and who to leave behind.  I would not wish that job on anyone.  Now that I’m thoroughly depressed I’ll stop here!!!

[Scarlet_Rose]

Welcome Andrea!   I just wanted to chip in and say that if you really have your heart set on an Angora you can call the shelter and ask them to notify you when one comes in and put a reserve on them so you can come visit and see if it is *the one* for you. It sounds like your bunny home is really nice, do you have any pictures?  Also you’ll want to sit on your floor and look around at what you need to bunny proof (check out BUNNY PROOFING under BUNNY INFO).  You’ve got to think like a bunny and look for nice big fat juicy eletrical cords, yummy wood table legs, a dangly piece of fabric, tassels on floor rugs etc.  I use pure lemon oil and dab it on stuff that I do not want my rabbits to chew and it works well, perfume also works too.  You’ll also want to purchase grooming tools like brushes, combs, nail clippers styptic powder, syringes etc.  Take a look at our FAQ section and Emergency Kits to help you prepare for your rabbit/s as well:

Emergency Kits: (both for rabbit health emergency and for Disaster preparation for our rabbits)

https://binkybunny.com/Default.aspx?tabid=54&forumid=2&postid=15369&view=topic

https://binkybunny.com/Default.aspx?tabid=54&forumid=1&postid=24389&view=topic

Emergency Preparedness:

https://binkybunny.com/Default.aspx?tabid=54&forumid=1&tpage=1&view=topic&postid=17363#17382

[Gravehearted]

welcome prairieknitter01 – I am so pleased that you’re putting in so much care and thought into welcoming bunnies into your home! There are so many larger bonded pairs that have a very difficult time finding forever homes. I am so pleased you’re going to be adopting rescue buns too, that really makes my heart happy!! Good luck on March 2nd, we are looking forward to hearing how it goes

[kralspace]

praireknitter! I thought about you when I read a post on craisgslist this morning, here is the text:

So cool 02/28 07:46:36

My best friend is an amazing breeder of English Angora rabbits. She shows them nationwide, and they are just such beautiful rabbits..Anyway, She groomed them all yesterday, considering that they are going through coat changes and were lookin a little rough, and as a result, she had a huge pile of angora fur in various colors. She called a local natural fibers yarn spinner and is going to have some small pet blankets made. I told her I wanted one for the chi’s…it would be so warm for them :o) I just thought it was really cool to hear about the process and to be able to “recycle” shedded fur. The lady told her you could use dog and cat fur as well, it was interesting.

——————
The rabbit blankies sound wonderful, but I wouldn’t want one made from my dog…..

Kathy

[kimberleyanddarren]

welcome to binkybunny! it is nice to hear that you did your research first! you sound very well prepared, i too hoped that i had all the information i needed to give my bunny the best home but it has been nearly a month and even now i still panic everytime he does something new! he tried to climb the stairs and i was behind him keeping him safe but letting him explore and i was sh*ttin myself going omg omg omg dont fall! even though i knew he would be safe hehe good luck with your new bunnies and keep us all posted when you get them ok?

[prairieknitter01]

SO…I *thought* I knew something about bunnies…..

Oh dear.  I did not come home with a bonded pair.  The bonded pair they brought to show me at the adoption event were Flemish Giants and they were gentle and sweet, but then all I had to do was gaze in the general direction of the New Zealand whites with their big pink eyes, and I was a goner.  Luckily I had prepared two carriers for transport. 

There were two females and one male, all spayed and neutered, of course.  But the male had turned into an Internet sensation, garnering enough hits on the Petfinder website to startle the adoption coordinators for the event.  I got there an hour before my appointment, but dear Harvey was already claimed.  A very sweet lady, hearing my distress, flung herself across his cage, waving cash and pointing to her watch, and that was that.  Harvey definitely took his big pink eyes to a loving home!

That left me with two white females.  We tried a date and smaller-but-still-large Sandy (who has a history of being aggressive with other rabbits but not people or other types of pets – and she has the scarred nose to prove it) won my heart immediately but made no positive effect on the other white female, Sally, who is also considerably larger.  We tried a different tact, which only made me love Sandy more (she is a fierce white ball – like a cool snowball with the heat of the SUN and a thousand burning stars inside!) and ended up with Sally getting nipped.  It was only the first of many instances in which Sally looked like the star of the Disapproving Rabbit website.

The adoption coordinators were looking a little strained.  They wanted to make this work – for me (a six hour round trip drive) and for the rabbits (very large and very white).  Sandy had been in foster care for some time, and Sally was on her second foster mom (who loved her, I must say). 

Well, I have a big house and there’s nobody in it but me and my kitties, so I figured an Upstairs Rabbit and a Main Floor Rabbit would be fine for a while - okay if they eventually bonded or even forever separate if they didn’t.  So I took them both (say, they are shedding like leaves in the fall and I was able to roll a lovely soft thread from what they shed at the event- maybe New Zealand white is as spinnable as angora – just shorter and therefore the halo will be more pronounced – hmmmmm….)

I had to tear up everything I had set up for a bonded pair and relocate half of it, etc, etc, and in the meantime Sally was getting a very Disapproving look.  Her head went back against her broad shoulders, puffing out her dewlap, and she kept looking at me down her long nose.  I felt very much like a…Beginner. 

They ate well, however, and continue to eat well, drink much, poop and pee and the adoption coordinators assure me that Sally will probably stop Disapproving my every move in time.  Sally’s foster mom thinks I got the rabbits mixed up, sure SANDY is the Disapproving Rabbit, not her sweet Sally!  But Sally would tunnel out of Blue Earth and hitchhike back to Apple Valley in a nanosecond if she thought she could get back to that foster mom!  Sally’s foster mom sent me pictures of the set up where Sally was living, sent me her usual schedule, and feeding schedule.  I have eventually set everything up so it almost identical to her “previous life” and she is less Disapproving every day.

Sandy the Nipper is just a treasure.  She does a happy dance whenever she sees me and seems to love everything here!  I have three cats, two of whom are bonded like glue, and a third who is smaller and much more passive.  Well, Sandy bumped her forehead against that little cat, and they have been best friends ever since.  Sandy thinks that cat needs more attention and she never lets it out of her sight.  She herds it around the room, chasing and bumping if necessary!  The cat sleeps when Sandy sleeps.  Sandy’s allowed area of motion is much smaller than the cat’s, he can jump over the gate easily and roam the house, but he never does.   Happy cat, happy rabbit! 

I am going to try having both rabbits on the same floor, making sure Sandy’s cat is present so she will know she is the Boss of Somebody.   I just don’t have the strength to do it just now …

Thanks again for all your good wishes!  Just wanted to post an update.  Also – it was very excellent advice to sit on the floor and look around like a bunny would.  The world looks different!

Andrea

 

[JK]

What a great story! Thanks for the update!

[JK]

What a great story! Thanks for the update!

[babybunsmum]

oh andrea, i’m so excited for you!  congrats!!!  it was really fun reading your adoption story.  lol. 

i adopted a new zealand white with beautiful pink eyes too – named pinky – a month ago.  i visit my local shelter to pet the bunnies there and she stole my heart.  i have a 7yr old lop bunny who i will try to bond to pinky after pinky’s spay, so right now they are leading separate lives, each with their own bedroom and different free roam times.

sandy & sally sound like very interesting and adoreable buns!  so sweet that you are making sally’s new place similar to her foster set-up.  i’m sure she’ll warm upto you very soon.  pinky sounds much like your sandy… she’s also a nipper and has decided to be the boss of the 66lb dog.  poor dog has 2 buns who are the boss of him now.  its adoreable that sandy has found herself a cat of her very own.  seriously adoreable. 

here’s a pic of my cutie… do you have any pics to share with us?

136183072271.jpg

[prairieknitter01]

I think New Zealand whites are a magical bunch, no disrespect to the Flemish Giants, of course! 

I tried to take a picture but Sally was nearly driven out of the room by the flash, so I think I will wait until they settle in more.  Sandy is very cute sleeping with “her” cat, and I will post a picture when I get one.   That cat has been living for the day when he would really belong to someone – he was a feral barn cat and it was a bit of a trial to litter box train him AND he was persistently infected with various worms and parasites, requiring nasty medications frequently forced down his throat  - so he is loving but suspicious with me.    He has been parasite and worm-free for several years, of course.  I am not exposing the rabbits to any kind of infestation.  He loves Sandy the Rabbit without reservation, and I am very happy for him.

The one thing I cannot believe is that rabbits are not to be rabies vaccinated.  I have to admit, I have never heard of rabies decimating rabbit populations, but we here on the prairie have BATS.  They are lovely, big, brown bats who feast on our mosquito population, but every spring, everyone here can count on chasing at least one bat out of the house at 3 a.m.  I only had one last spring!  It’s a matter of not going out the back door in the dark, I guess.  Hard to say.  The bats live in the caves and trees by the river, they just wander a bit to eat the insects that fly around the big streetlights at night.  There have been no reported cases of rabies in our county for quite some time, but everyone is very religious about vaccinating their pets.  I have a hard time accepting that I should have caged, captive mammals in my house who are not vaccinated against rabies.  

Any thoughts? 

Andrea

[prairieknitter01]

babybunsmum – Pinky is beautiful!  There is nothing like those pink eyes to look right through you.  Maybe that’s why they make some people uncomfortable.  Don’t even TRY to hide a secret from those penetrating pink eyes…

 

[Beka27]

how cool!  congrats!  (geez… two flemish giants… they would have eaten you outta house and home… lol!)

i can not wait to see pics of Sandy and Sally.  are they identical looking or are there differences?  that’s neat that the cat is bonding to Sandy.  it’s good for her to have some companionship.  if push came to shove, you could always speed date with Sally (for a boy bun for her) and just let Sandy keep her kitty.

as far as the rabies thing… you may want to talk to your rabbit savvy vet.  i don’t think it’s impossible to have them vaccinated, just not required.  someone may know differently, but if the area is bad in terms of bats (ew.) you may want to do that if the vet will.  please, someone correct me if rabbits cannot be vacc. against rabies.

[prairieknitter01]

Beka – well, my two look much like Pinky, only half again bigger!  They are very, very large rabbits.  They eat a LOT, but I expected that! 

The newest development is that Sally, given room to roam, has also taken a liking to my cats and while she is not so deeply attached as Sandy is to her personal cat, Sally does like to chase my kitties!  My kitties love to run, so they like a good chase.  

I am still worried about the rabies thing.   I put in a call to my vet.

Andrea

[Beka27]

i think that’s a good sign they’re getting along with the cats.  theya re getting socialized and hopefully that would open up the possibility of them getting along well with each other.  you may just have a big happy fur family yet!

[Scarlet_Rose]

Prairieknitter, that is a wonderful tale and you have two very lucky and happy rabbits and one much happier cat!  You are a doll for driving so far to adopt!

[prairieknitter01]

 My Disapproving Rabbit, Sally, actually did binkies today!  She didn’t disapprove of a single thing until I put her back in the cage so I could go to work. 

andrea

[Author]

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