Funny Bunny Monday Meme*day

 

Funny Bunny Monday Meme*day

 

Treat time temptations

 Who placed their bets on Lana as first to venture out of the pen? (I did)

Backstory: Fed them their greens dinner and left the gate open. Sat on the floor nearby, which still freaks them. After dinner, sat in my usual place but left the gate open.

Before bed, I got the box of treats, which I have broken into smaller pieces. They get half a cookie a day, but now it's broken into 3 or 4 bites.

I got on the floor far from the open gate. I had their curiosity.

Then I rattled the treat container. Now I had their attention. (Django reference)

Basically, I shot marbles with the pieces, but far from the gate. Lana was the first to come out enough to get treats and then explored a little, even looking in on her fenced mates from a new angle. She explored enough to chin the entrance to the fun house and peek inside.

Clark stepped onto their "doormat", then ran back to his comfort zone, putting the fence between us. He begged for his piece though the fence and he looks so cute, I caved. (Translation: I can't resist his soulful puppy eyes.)

Then Lois chased him down to try to take it away from him.

Lois ventured out onto the mat, but never as far as Lana. She's in constant motion so I will have to try harder to take non-blurry pictures of her.

Bunnies...

Funny Bunny Behavior

"Did I say you could stop?"

Ethel will not take "direct" head rubs from a human, so when Bunya settles in for a massage, she puts her head as close to his as she can and allows herself to join in... while she closes her eyes and pretends that it is Bunya grooming her.

(Note massage indent on Bunya's head.)

Trip to the vet for bunny cataracts

We wanted to take Bunya in to check his cataracts - his previously "good" eye has started clouding now, too. It also coincided with their 6-month wellness checkup.

Ethel does not like to leave home and her ears shake like carrot tops in a hurricane as soon as she is in the carrier. She almost buries herself under Mr. B. When he is examined, she just shakes. When they are switched, he starts tearing up the towel and eating it until she's back with him.

Whenever one goes to the vet, they both go to reduce the risk of bonding breaks - which we had happen early on when we first had bunnies.

Since Bunya is losing his vision, their setup and the furniture in the room will stay where it is. No more changing configurations of castles, bridges and tunnels. At night, their pen door will be closed to limit his territory in the dark to a very familiar "safe space" for them. It's where they hang out 80-90% of the time anyway, even when the gate is open.

At 11-1/2, Bunya knows that growing old is not for sissies.

Miss Ethel may be mellowing... just a little

Mr. Bunya was our first bunny (and a surprise from our daughter, who left for college a few months later). As we learned about bunnies and bunny care, we wanted to adopt some companions for this sociable animal.

However, before we learned that, Mr. Bunya was a solo bun and got all of our attention. He became familiar with humans and is not as stand off-ish as the adoptees.

Ethel will not come for head rubs by herself. If you try, she'll jet away after a second.
However, she has come to realize that if she snuggles up real close to Bunya, she can PRETEND it's Bunya grooming her.

At first, she would only self-delude for less than a minute, maybe 10-30 seconds. Then she'd look up all surprised-like: "Who is this!? You're not Bunya!" - and run off. Bunya always stays and melts like a puddle into the floor to suck up the love.

In this video, Bunya settles next to my recliner for some head rubs (but never too close, so I have to extend my arm way over to reach him). Ethel hung around for more than 30 seconds. This is only an excerpt from a longer video, but Ethel actually hung out and accepted some pets!

This is a huge development with her. On the bunny pages, people often ask how long did it take for your bunny to trust you?
So Ethel may be mellowing... just a little - and after only NINE YEARS.

Bunnies require patience.

Friday bunny butt bonus meme

Bunny love

Bunya and Ethel were shilling for extra treats. They got tired of waiting so Ethel assumed the position (under Bunya's mouf) and got some lovin' from Mr. B.

The love nest

On pen cleaning day, Bunya and Ethel will try to get out of the way, at least for a while... until it's time for them to inspect. One of their places is this love nest, up high (a castle tower perched on top of their fun house). Ethel is loving on Bunya and he is loving it.

Thankfully, the daredevil Ethel did not fall out.
Bunya can take up a lot of space.

Snuggle Bunnies

After an exhausting "No live bunnies for Easter" campaign, Ethel and Bunya are relaxing in their favorite box (under their elevated princess bed).

#BondedBunnnies #SnuggleBunnies #AdoptDontShop

Funny Bunny Monday Meme*day

Mutts by Patrick McDonnell

Adopt - don't shop. Bunnies are very social animals - consider adopting a bonded pair. If you already have one bun, contact your local House Rabbit Society (HRS) or other animal shelter about arranging some speed dating for your bunny (this should be supervised by someone with experience).

Ethel lovin' on Bunya

Ethel was grooming Bunya - until she saw the human with the camera. Then she just settled in for the snuggle and glared at me for ruining the mood. She's shy.
Bunya doesn't move - just keeps hoping for more.
(~20 sec)

More Bunmuda Triangle

A true Bunmuda Triangle from early Saturday evening. The bunnies all put their heads together awaiting affection.

Amazingly, Bunya broke first and doled out a few licks to get things started.

More Bunmuda Triangle

Our little pile o' bunnies!

Bunya trying to make sure he's included in the snuggle with Lucy & Ethel.

This was soon after their pen had been cleaned (the gate was still open), so all the toys are in a pile that had been dumped when we put everything back. Soon after, somebunny will walk through the middle of the pile, life each toy up and toss it to the right or left (best odds are it will be Lucy; second place is Ethel).

Ethel & Bunya "necking"

Caught Bunya & Ethel "necking". With bonded bunnies, there are different ways of expressing affection and this is one of theirs. (Shot through the fence because if I moved, they would have stopped. BTW, the gate was open, as it is most of the time.)

They start off necking and then Bunya pauses to enjoy Ethel's loving. After grooming himself for a few seconds, Ethel bows her head under his, asking for some more. He obliges by cleaning her eyes.

Adopt - Don't shop.
Consider adopting an already bonded pair.
If you would like to consider bonding your bunny, one important thing to remember is that the bunny chooses its bond mate, not you. Here's some reading about the process from the resources at the House Rabbit Society:
Bonding Rabbits
The Most Important Work in Bonding: PATIENCE

Bunny lovin'

Bunnies are very social creatures. As we learned about rabbits and this aspect of their nature, we looked for a companion for Bunya. We ended up bonding Bunya with two sisters, Lucy & Ethel.

Here, Bunya is demonstrating his affection for Lucy by grooming her. The head, face and ears are very popular among the buns.

Another way they show their love is just laying together. There's a reason for the term "snuggle bunnies". In the picture below, however, Bunya is trying to get Ethel to groom him (as he did for Lucy in the video).

Not everyone can afford more than one bunny as a pet. In this case, you have to realize that your bun will bond with you - this includes lots of "free time" (out of any pen), snuggling and you rubbing their head and ears (the bun is alpha). Of course, this must be on the bunny's terms. A rescued bun, especially, may have a bad back-story involving neglect or abuse. You have to build trust and comfort with your bun so the two of you can bond. You also have to figure out where your bunny likes and will allow grooming. Discovering your bunny's personality is part of the fun adventure.

Bunny Lovin'

Bonded bunnies keep each other company and love on each other, as demonstrated here by Bunya and Ethel...

Bunya has a spot above his tail that when you scratch it, he begins to lick. Ethel seems to have discovered this, much to her delight, and even gets to coast a little near the end and just enjoy being groomed by him.

Lucy & Ethel - Loving & Lifting

This clip is a couple of minutes but I could not cut it down any more. When I grabbed the camera, I was trying to get Lucy grooming herself and talking on her "ear phone". By the time I got focused, the video turned into something completely different.
Here are some highlights:

0s: Lucy is loving on Ethel. While Lucy was grooming herself, Ethel came over to get some loving, even if only pretending Lucy was loving on her by Ethel inserting herself under Lucy.
Lucy scratches and then grooms Ethel. Ethel is just happy to soak up the love.

12s: Lucy decides she wants to snack on their new cardboard tube (discussed in a recent post).

18s: Ethel wants more loving and tries to remind Lucy of that fact by sliding her head under Lucy as Lucy is chewing. So even if Lucy doesn't groom Ethel directly, Ethel can pretend. All three of them do this behavior a lot. Lucy continues to chew and Ethel gives up.

30s: Lucy takes another tug on the tube and lifts it up - and Bam! - right into Ethel. Ethel acts like she's going to chew on the tube, too, but then decides to give the loving another try; she gets tube-smacked again for her efforts. Ethel addresses an itch. Lucy's lifting like she's showing off at the gym. This is where it really reminded me of the coordinated physical slapstick comedy of the Lucy and Ethel from "I Love Lucy".

1m: Ethel's thinking about just playing with the tube, too. No - not really! She decides she'd rather be receiving some lovin'. And gets repeatedly smacked in the face for her romantic overture.

1m39s: Ethel senses an opening when Lucy decides to clean her paw... to no avail; Lucy goes back to the tube.

1m55s: Ethel finally gives up and under the "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" theory, begins to chomp on the tube with Lucy.

This video has been added to the Rabbit Ramblings YouTube channel.

Bunny loving

We believe little Miss Ethel to be the most generous and loving of our bunnies. She is most likely to be grooming her bonded bunny buds. Lucy & Bunya. Here she is grooming Lucy on the cool bricks of the fireplace mantle; this is one of their ways to stay cool during summer (resting on the cool bricks).

Adopting a bonded pair is good for you and the bunny. Or you can try some speed dating with your bunny at your local bunny shelter with their bunny-whisperer. Bonded bunnies keep each other company and make for happier bunnies; they are less bored, which is a good thing for all involved. Lucy and Ethel were abandoned together on the steps of GHRS and have always been together. When looking for a bonded pal for Bunya, we ended up with a threesome instead, so that Lucy & Ethel did not have to be separated.

The leaning tower of Ethel

How do I lean? Let me count the ways...