Funny Bunny Monday Meme*day

Bunya and Ethel eating hay

Just about a minute of bunnies peacefully eating hay. 

That's all. I like watching bunnies chew. Or yawn. Or flop. Or binky.

Clean litter box, fresh hay

Sunday is the bunnies' top-to-bottom, clean-everything day. Here, Bunya and Ethel enjoy a clean litter box and fresh hay.

What makes that perfect piece of hay that they seek? I've always wondered as they sift through. Don't know but a good bet in this case is the third cut hay mixed in. (~38 seconds)

Like I've said, I like watching bunnies eat.

Toilet trained bunnies (not "litter box" - toilet!)

And we're happy because our bunnies are litter box trained... these bunnies are toilet trained!



Please note that this is a specially modified toilet seat for the bunnies.

What makes that perfect piece of hay?

Often wondered, what makes that special piece of hay that the bunnies go after?

In a fresh littler box, Bunya, buries his face
under a pile of 5 or 6 different kinds of hay
to find that one perfect piece that Paul Masson would bless.

Lucy really likes our home-made hay server. Of course, it's atop a litter box, since efficient little bunnies often like to eat and poop at the same time. All of them, especially Lucy, will work on one of the holes that has the flavor she wants. She will eat a little cave into the container of hay, to get the ones she's after.

One of these days, we will have to conduct a hay taste test.

Bunnydom activities of daily living - 3

As noted in earlier post: This week, RR will try to explore the Activities of Daily Living for bunnies. Won't hit them all in a single week, but we'll see what we can do.

#3: Pooping!

Who pooped?
(Two "Cleopatras" - Queens of Denial)

While many readers commented that their bunnies also love hay cubes (yesterday's post), this one is applicable to anyone who has a bunny, because they love to do this.

One of the many nice things about bunnies is that they can be litter box trained. If they are "fixed", then this is easier. It's also easier when they are a little older. Once Lucy & Ethel approached a year, the number of free-range poops (i.e., not in litter box) decreased substantially.

Everybody gets a corner

Bunny poop is very important for gauging the health of your bunny. Healthy poops are round pellets. Not-so-healthy poops may be smaller than usual, runny or strung together (someone's been eating carpet fibers). No poops might be the worst. Read up on poop in the resources; it can indicate some serious medical conditions that need to be addressed quickly.

Some direct links for you to learn about bunny poops (please, contain your excitement):
Georgia HRS - look under the heading RABBIT POOP & DIGESTION for relevant articles.
Check here under Rabbit Health 101, specifically Disorders of the Digestive Tract
HRS has a page of medical topics here.

Wishing you all a lifetime of healthy, round poops.
Well, wishing that for your bunnies.

(I know ... this should have been Activity #2.)

Bunny delight

If the bunny delight is not a treat, then it's a clean litter box with 3 kinds of fresh hay...

All together now: Nom, nom, nom

C'mon in - the hay is fine!

BunnyFest 2012 - The Bunnies of ...

This is just a small sampling of the many bunnies at Bunnyfest.

Look at this incredible English Angora, Wallace.
I asked if there was another bunny named Grommet at home, but Wallace is a 3-1/2 year old rescued bachelor bunny.
The most difficult part of taking Wallace's picture was that I couldn't tell if the camera was focused. In every picture, I assume there was some fluff of hair somewhere that was in focus.

Wallace laying down quietly
to be loved on by his human slave.

Wallace chinning the ticket jar.
(English Angora, or part Wookie ...
or Ewok?)

Can you tell I found Wallace fascinating?
Don't you love those ears!
This was one big bunny. You could get tennis elbow
just from the grooming required ... "grooming elbow".

Bunny pens lined up for
your cute viewing pleasure.

This couple was obviously a bonded pair.
One's head was smushed flat to the floor
and the other was gently grooming its head,
despite the surrounding noise and mayhem.
Very sweet.

Not only a handsome bunny, but I loved the name:
Mr. Coffee

At first, I thought this might be a doppelganger for Bunya,
right down to the furry tufts shedding from the butt.
But nah - wait until you see Bunya's mirror image
(in a separate, future post).

More bunny pens

This cute couple shows that with bunnies,
"size doesn't matter."
The white one was twice the size of the little lionhead.
(Don't you love that spiky 'doo between the ears?)
This is not uncommon with the pairs you might find for adoption
(and don't try to predict which is "he" or "she" based on size).

Okay, here's the one I thought was really adorable. I kept going back to this pen; finally, this shy little baby came out of his carrier to try some hay. So tiny - palm of your hand tiny.
You may "SQUEEEE" at will.

In upcoming Bunnyfest posts:
T-shirts
Vendors
Services
Look-alike bunnies
Miss Waffles and her contest

GHRS did an INCREDIBLE job.
If you missed this one, do not miss next year's!

Hey, Lucy, hay!

Lucy does love her hay!

"Crumbles" may have been served ... even greens.

When the hay hits the ground, Lucy is in. Even before all the hay gets there.

So sometimes,

she starts the day,

wearing a little hay.

Now, if she would just quit nibbling carpet ...

Please, sir, I want some more

Ethel Twist prays pleadingly for some more hay, especially the treat hays.

The other buns keep an eye out to see if her pleas are answered.

She is so cute, how could they not be?
Beats the Dickens out of me...

Good signs of bunny re-bonding

Less hair tugs. That's good.

So, they're all together again, but not sharing activities quite like before. Hopefully, that will evolve to what it was before Bunya's illness/separation.

We have an extra litter box in the pen at the moment and are thinking about removing it now that they are all together again. As you can see here, they do enjoy the convenience of a 3 bathroom pen.

We were happy to see the "Bun-muda Triangle" trying to re-form.

They are all back together but Bunya happened to be running around the den and Ethel was in the pen (yes, the gate was open). Here, she smushes her little head through the fence to try to give Bunya licks and maybe get a few in return.

Another time, another Bun-muda Triangle.
*Sigh*
This is what we want to see more of...


The Buncam lets us peek in on them from work once in a while. It's nice to see the detente.

Re-bonding bunnies, Chapter IV

[Have you caught on ... read prior posts.]

Woke up really, really, REALLY early, worried about the bunnies.
The sleep over in their pen did not go as well as it could have...

Sampling of "morning hair" (hare hair?) -
Everyone contributed.

On the other hand, it could have been a lot worse and it has been in the past. Everyone got a physical exam. No one was bleeding or had any apparent cuts or scars.

Stayed with the bunnies all morning watching them. Lucy pulled a NASbunny (check the definitions at the bottom of the Bunny Care page) which got everybody nervous for a couple of seconds, until all realized she was just expending a little pent-up energy and checking out the paths in the rearranged pen and den.

Oh yes, more of the re-bonding efforts ... a lot of the boxes they were used to (even the ones around the den) went into the recycle bin and were replaced. There were a couple of exceptions: the "warren" (just have not been able to find another box like that one, big and low) and their tunnel, added back to the pen the morning after the first reunited night. But any stray poops and cardboard shavings they had chewed were gathered up and tossed. Everything was thoroughly vacuumed.

And then we allowed them to run around their usual area.

There are two bunnies in this picture.
It's funny how Lucy most always plops against the black frame
and Bunya against the bricks.
It's like they're trying to blend in to their surroundings.

Bunya was "loafing" and
Ethel settled next to him, just to be close.

We are breathing a little easier.
And hoping everyone stays healthy and that there are no separations in their future.
But still keeping a watchful eye...

Thank you, everyone, for your well wishes and good thoughts for the bunnies!!!
Couldn't have done it without you!

Re-bonding bunnies, Part C

[Read the prior couple of posts, if you have not already.
Or just tune in, in the middle of the story.
Maybe that's how you read books, too.]

Carrier ride.
Small exercise pen with clean litter box and new cardboard box, on strange turf.

Next step:
To a small, restricted part of hallway they usually roam but do not usually park themselves in. More of a bunny run, for exercise, an extension of their basement den.

Bunya started off talking on his ear phone.

This was too important and so we removed everyone's electronics (except me and my Kindle ... I was standing guard with a broom to break up any altercations. But I had to move the broom when Bunya started chewing on the straw. I think he's got ADHD.)

With fewer distractions, Bunya and Ethel tried to make nice...

Reasonable behavior so far, for another hour or so.
They tried their group bunny triangle and got some head-rubbing assistance, so no one has to be first or last - everybody got some good loving.

The next move - back to their primary pen.
The same as we started this process:
All litter boxes clean and fresh.
Fresh hays.
New cardboard boxes.
Familiar toys, but just purchased new at the GHRS store, so no prior ownership smells attached to anything.

Insert bunnies, mix and pray...

To be continued.

Re-bonding bunnies, Stage 2

[Read the prior post, if you haven't already.]

Got them home from the carrier car ride to GHRS (and re-stocks on lots of supplies, including a variety of hays).

Emeril, if you please ...
BAM!

Into a small exercise pen,
with a fresh litter box,
and a new cardboard box
in a neutral area in which they do not normally roam.

Strangers in a strange land.

None of the bunnies had any claims staked to these environs.
After they exited the carrier (Ethel was last and seemed the most shell shocked), we removed it and put in the new box. Bunya was the first to hop inside to explore.

Sat and watched them not fight each other for about an hour.
Time to move on...

To be continued.

One day at the bunny races...

Kids have soap box derbies.

Maybe bunnies have litter box derbies.

 Looks like Lucy's racer won by a hare.
(Groan amongst yourselves ... my mind ... a terrible waste.)

Pull over - I gotta' use the facilities

When you are pulling into the hay station to refuel, you just have to hope that they have clean rest rooms.

Oooh - crowded here, but worth waiting your turn.

Or hop back into your transport and try the next stop.