New Bunny Room

View of Bunny Room.  Louie was having playtime so he's not in his pen.  

Louie has done well adjusting to life without his sister.  On the Saturday after Mo passed, we moved foster siblings, Theo and Maya into Louie's room.  This was to keep him from being completely alone.  Louie has always been around his sister so he doesn't know a life without another bunny near by.  Of course, Theo and Maya are in their own pens but can still be seen by Louie.  He did well but was skiddish at first with them in his room.  As time has gone by he seems to have eyes for Maya.  Louie watches her a lot.  We have even caught them playing chase in their pens.  Maya runs back and forth in her pen as Louie does the same in the open space beside her pen during his free time.  It is adorable and almost impossible to film.  Every time we try to get video... they stop doing it.

Damon framed Mo's Wildcat jersey this week and added my favorite picture of our girl.  This frame hangs above Louie's pen in the bunny room so she is still "watching" over him.

With broken hearts...

 

                        

 


My heart is broken today as my sweet baby girl, Mo, crossed the rainbow bridge yesterday morning as I held her in my arms. Our girl has been through so much in the last few weeks after her cancer diagnosis but we know that she is now at peace. She was surrounded by so much love in the last 2 weeks that I know I my heart she knew how much we loved her. We are so grateful that we were given time to say good bye and love her until the very end. We can’t describe how lucky we are to be mom and dad to Mo and Louie for about 2 ½ years now. Though, they have been a part of my life since I began volunteering at the rescue in 2009. After we lost our first baby, Benjamin, and when we were ready to love another bunny, there was no question in my mind that it would be Mo and Louie. Between their crazy antics and strong bond to each other, I knew they belonged with us. Yesterday that strong bond has been weakened and now it’s our job to take care of Louie as well as his sister took care of him. Please keep Louie in your thoughts as he adjusts to life without his sister. Our sweet boy has never been away from her and we worry so much about him right now.

                      

 

Binky free our sweet Momo!  We will always love and miss you, baby girl. 

Our Sweet Mo

Last week (August 11, 2014) Mo had three masses removed from her back. The lab results are in, and it turned out to be cutaneous lymphoma. This is a cancer that can pop up in any part or organ in the body. Removing the masses from the skin are not the end of it. She has developed swollen lymph nodes in the surgery, which have been pushing on her trachea causing her to cough and have difficulty breathing. After being examined, Mo was given a steroid medicine to help with that, and it seems to be working. She's not been coughing as much and her breathing seems better overall.

The Queen has had quite the appetite, though! She has mowed through quite a bit of hay as well as salad. Louie has been keeping an eye on her and taking care of her like a good brother.

I am posting pictures of our big girl below.  Please note that she is wearing the jersey because we have to protect her incision.  The shirt keeps her or Louie from pulling out stitches, ripping the incision open and just bothering it.  Once more fur grows in and she leaves the are alone, we will remove the jersey for good. 

When she first came home after surgery. Dr. J loaned her this shirt. 

"It's a Ruff Life" alright for our baby girl. 

Napping with her baby after a long day of surgery and recovery. 

Dirty face from eating her salad. Daddy bought her this new shirt so we could return Dr. J's. 

Binge eating her hay since Mommy put it in the toy box instead of the litter box. 

Brother flopped by Mo to protect her from our kisses. 

Cuddling with brother after fighting Daddy to avoid her medicine. 

Henryville Confiscation Case

Today I took a break from classroom set up to help Mary and Judy with the Henryville Confiscation case and the 34 rabbits that are being housed at an equine rescue. This was honestly one of the toughest things I have ever done.

Background on case-

31 rabbits as well as a pony and mini dwarf were taken to Heartland Equine Rescue in Henryville due to possible neglect and abuse.  Originally, we were told the rabbits were being fed and looked after once a week.  Now, we are being told someone fed them once a day which I personally think after laying hands on these rabbits that is not correct.  Even so once a day is not enough for any rabbit and especially not for the larger breeds and nursing mommas.  As of right now, these rabbits will remain at Heartland until the prosecutor decides whether or not to press charges against the responsible parties.  We were told the Indiana State vet came in this afternoon to lay hands on all the rabbits and document their conditions.  I believe once this is compiled it will be given to the prosecutor to make his/her decision.  We are hoping charges are filed or the owners are told to surrender the rabbits.  Once either is done we will be able to place these rabbits into rescues and foster care to seek further medical assistance.  

The Rabbits-

There are 31 of various breeds and health conditions in 17 different cages.  Included are 4 nursing mommas with babies of varied ages.  The litters are no larger than 3 kits but that doesn’t mean there may not have been more at one time.  One litter actually lost a kit last night and that added to the heartbreaking things I saw today.  Some of the breeds of the herd today include:

A Flemish Giant who had the worst case of ear mites in the bunch.

Several black and white Dutch rabbits and one brown and white Dutch.

2 Jersey Wooleys and one of them might actually be an angora considering how fluffy he/she was.

Several lops of various types (mini, French)

A Rex

A Chinchilla Buck who can do a very scary performance of a bunny flop.  

2 or 3 Lionheads of varied sizes/age.  One is a little ball of white fluff.

Plan/Goal-

Today’s plan/goal was to medicate each rabbit for the ear mites and rabbit syphilis.  The babies luckily did not get the injections for syphilis and only received the ear drops.  To accomplish this goal we worked together in almost an assembly line fashion to treat each rabbit. We set up an “exam table” with towels and all of our medical supplies then surrounded the table with 2 large pens in case of an escape.  The ex pens also allowed us to give the rabbits sometime in the grass to stretch their legs and move around.  Many of the rabbits enjoyed munching on the grass and clover. Once our treatment area was set up we were able to begin the process of medicating the rabbits. 

 First, Mary, our resident bunny wrangler, would bring the bunny to our “exam table”. At the table I would already have the ear drops measured out and ready to be put in their ears.  Once a rabbit arrived at the table, we would weigh them and document their weight.   This was done so I could determine the dosage of Pen-G as it’s administered based on weight.  As I prepared the Pen-G injections, Mary would put the ivermectin into the rabbit’s ears.  Then I would run around the table to hold the rabbit’s head and comfort them as Mary injected the Pen-G.  We would then let the rabbit have some time to hop around in the grass (within the ex-pen) for a few minutes.  Next, came nail trims with Mary and Judy. Mary would trim and Judy held or comforted the rabbit.  While they did nail trims, I was preparing the next rabbit’s ivermectin syringes, documented the former rabbit’s Pen-G dosage and cleaned up around the table.  We followed this process with all the adult rabbits.  The babies only received the ivermectin in their ears and did not get time in the grass as they could easy slip through the bars of the ex-pen.  

Along with the process of medicating the rabbits, Judy also gave all the rabbits hay, pellets and fresh water.  Before we left she gave several rabbits more water as they had already drank more than half of the bottle in the 3(?) hours we were there. 

Positive moments-

Even in a situation and time surrounded in heart breaking sights there were some positive moments to help keep us going.  When Mary put the Flemish Giant on the grass he/she was so excited to have room and a softer ground that he/she binkied.  For those who don’t know what that means, a rabbit will “dance” by kicking out their back feet like a bucking bronco when they are happy.  One of the Dutch rabbits was so grateful for the play time that they were digging in the grass.  A sweet tan and white lop found the box for our scale on the grass and claimed it as theirs by chinning it multiple times.  One non rabbit related positive moment was watching Jo-Claire’s grandson playing with one of their rescue donkeys named Radar.  Radar liked to serenade us with song and stories while we worked.  You could tell he is a loving boy and adores Jo-Claire’s grandson.  Watching Radar chase and play with him did a good job of distracting us from the sad work we had to do.  

Grateful-

Thank You to many who have helped these rabbits as they sit in limbo waiting to find out what the future holds for them. 

Heartland Equine Rescue, Jo-Claire and her sweet family- deserves a big thanks for taking these rabbits in and caring for their daily needs (food, water, clean cages, etc.) I know the day to day care in taxing especially if you are not used to it.  If these wonderful people had not agreed to house the rabbits, their fate would definitely be very grim. 

Mary- For agreeing to help Heartland by representing Harvey’s House and taking supplies, food and the medicine to the rabbits.  Her professional bunny wrangling skills were put to great use today and I know she must be completely exhausted.  Mary’s knowledge of rabbit care and leadership are what make Harvey’s House such a wonderful rescue.  I have learned so much from her and look forward to following her leadership in the future.  Mary also brought two rabbits that were in the direst condition to the rescue so she could get them direct veterinarian care. 

Judy- for all her help in bunny wrangling as well.  Judy is one of our bunny snugglers and did a fantastic job helping Mary during nail trims on the wilder rabbits.  She also made sure each rabbit had fresh water, lots of hay and pellets.  Refilling water throughout our time there as some rabbits (especially the cages with mommas and babies) drank more water than others.  Judy’s knowledge of legal procedures came in handy to help me better understand how these cases can sometimes go. 

Dr. Jewell- She supplied us with the medication and supplies we would need to treat these rabbits.  She was also kind enough to make a “cheat sheet” to help when determining the correct dosage of Pen-G for each rabbit.  I am especially grateful for that as these poor rabbits have been through enough and did not need to rely on poor math skills to get the medicine they desperately needed.  Dr. J also saw the two direst rabbits that Mary brought into rescue and is helping with their ongoing treatment. 

Thank you to any and everyone else who has donated money to Heartland or Harvey’s House to help with the care of these rabbits.  Also, to those who are sending thoughts and prayers for these sweet rabbits and the possibility of a better future for them.  

Other pictures from today-

Meet Maya

Picture that was sent to me from when she was first rescued. 

On May 29^th, we were told about a bunny in need.  A sweet woman had rescued a bunny that was running down her street and was almost hit by her sister’s car.  The women rescued the bunny and did what they could to keep her safe.  They also put the word out about finding a better home for the girl and called several shelters to see if anyone may be looking for bunny.  This is how we were notified.  Damon and I met the rescuer in the parking lot of a local store and brought her home.  

Her first day with us before her health check. 

After giving her some time to adjust to her new cage and surroundings, we did an initial health check.  I used my monthly maintenance checklist to exam the bunny’s health.  Things looked good except for an obviously case of urine scald on her bottom.  Her tail was so matted that it was completely rock hard.  During this exam I could also determine that this bunny was a girl.  The next step was to get her to our vet so Damon made an appointment for the following day.  Her vet exam (Friday) went well though she did in fact have urine scald.  Dr. J had to shave her bottom and her matted tail.  She would then need to be treated with Silvadene cream on the shaved area (this went on for 10+ days). That night, while Damon was away… Mary (from the rescue) and I wrote back and forth to each other trying to determine a name for this sweet girl.  We finally settled on Maya.  Since this sweetheart was initially rescued on the day the world lost Maya Angelou.  Maya is still living with us and has recovered from urine scald.  She will go to the vet this week to confirm her progress and to discuss her spay.  Maya is a very sweet girl who LOVES attention and gives kisses freely.  She is very under weight and our vet estimates to be about 6 months old.  

I just can't understand why someone would turn this sweet girl loose.  I know all the typical reasons but they just don't make sense.  This baby girl is so sweet, loving, curious and friendly.  Not to mention utterly adorable.  People can seriously irritate me. How could you throw that sweet face out into the wild to fend for herself?  

More updates will come as Maya spends more time in foster care.  

Happy Easter

Happy Easter from our Easter Bunnies.   

                                                     Theo checking out the goodies in his basket.

                      Louie and Mo playing with some Easter eggs while their Peter Rabbit supervises.

In Memoriam 

Today we said goodbye to our dear sweet Charlie Brown.  He has been through a lot but his poor 13 year old body could not hold on much longer.  Charlie was a precious boy who loved soaking in the attention of volunteers.  During his months at Harvey's House, he grew to be one of my favorites and I always tried to make an effort to spend some time with him.  Charlie was the first rabbit I featured on this blog as a way to share is story with the world so others could learn about rabbit care through the eyes of a elder bun who has been through and survived a lot in his many years.  I am so glad he was able to make it to his 13th birthday and allowed us to love on him until the very end.

Charlie Brown
2001-2014

Beyond the Rainbow

 As much as I loved the life we had and all the times we played, 

I was so very tired and knew my time on earth would fade. 

I saw a wondrous image then of a place that's trouble free, 

where all of us can meet again to spend eternity. 

I saw the most beautiful rainbow and on the other side 

were meadows rich and beautiful lush and green and wide! 

And running through the meadows as far as the eye could see 

were every sort of animal, as healthy as could be! 

My own tired failing body was fresh and healed and new 

and I wanted to go run with them but I had something left to do. 

I needed to reach out to you to tell you I'm alright, 

that this place is truly wonderful - then a bright glow pierced the night. 

'Twas the glow of many candles shining bright and strong and bold 

and I knew then that it held your love in it's brilliant shades of gold. 

For although we may not be together in the way we used to be 

we are still connected by a cord that no eye can ever see. 

So whenever you need to find me we're never far apart 

if you look beyond the rainbow and listen with your heart.

~ author unknown ~

White Fury Chocolates Easter 2014 Update

4/3/14   EASTER 2014- White Fury Chocolates

Well, we have begun taking and filling orders of chocolate bunnies.  Damon and his mom made TONS of mini bunnies to be bagged and sold at our rabbit-approved vet's office.  I am very pleased with how many friends and family have ordered chocolate bunnies.  We still plan to make several extra large and bags of mini bunnies to be sold next weekend at the Egg hunt fundraiser that our rescue is hosting to raise money for the medical fund.  I am excited to see how well the chocolates sell and hope this continues to be a successful fundraiser for our rescue.

4/7/14- Packaging 

We have begun packaging the orders we received for chocolate bunnies.  These are the bunnies we made to fulfill specific orders.  There are 28 bags of mini bunnies and 42 large single bunnies of various flavors.  We have also molded a ton of minis that were bagged and are being sold at our local veterinarian's office.  This week Damon is going to make additional large and minis in milk chocolate, dark chocolate and cookies n cream for the upcoming egg hunt for our friends at the rescue.

Thank you so much to all of our family, friends and coworkers who have ordered bunnies from us.  Your support will go to help many rescued bunnies.   

Rescue Visit - March 29, 2014 (Guest post by Damon)

Former foster bunny Fluffy came for a visit, and we spent a little time with him. The little fella was fun and playful, but wasn't being a cooperative model for the camera. He just didn't want to pose.

As energetic as those little dwarves are, they eventually wear out. Once back in his cage, Fluffy dozed off......and snored. And snored. And snored.

Gytha came out to play, too. She and her sister, Esme, had to be separated recently, and Esme has since been adopted. Gytha is still uncertain when it comes to interacting with people but we're working with her to gain her trust. She's slowly coming along, but it will take some time before she's begging for pets and kisses.

Charlie's Big Day

Today is a special day for one of my buddy's at the rescue.  Charlie Brown turned 13 today!

Happy Birthday, Charlie Brown!

3-6-14 Theo returns to school

Theodore decided to go with me to school again today.  He played the role of ambassador bunny by showing the kids the work it takes to care for a bunny.  We set up a playpen for him by my desk and the kids were able to observe him throughout the day.

During Daily 5 time, my reading groups enjoyed "reading to him" as his pen was right by our horseshoe table.  I think Theo loved being read to while eating hay or watching the kids from his hidey house.


 In writer's workshop, we have been learning about informative writing and it's different forms.  Theodore's visit allowed the students an opportunity to experience informative writing in a new way.   Their assignment was to write an observational journal entry about Theodore and what he was doing.  I allowed the kids to sit on the carpet with Theo in the middle.  Once they were supposed to begin writing, a few students were able to persuade me (with evidence of course ;) ) to let them write a fictional narrative about Theodore the Superhero bunny instead.  I will post some of their writing below.  Theo hopped around the carpet, sniffed the kids, jumped in/out of the litter box and climbed in my lap several times.  He even showed them that he can pretend to be a meerkat (stand on back feet and look around).  Theo definitely gave them plenty to write about during our 30 minute writing block.  Once workshop was over and it was time to line up for lunch, I had to put our guest back in his desk area.  He was none to happy with me and was sure to let me know with lots of sad stares while I ate my lunch.  Though, he had the attention of many teachers during our lunch break and even got a snuggle from one of them. ;)

After lunch, was a chance for a brain break where the students sang and danced for Theo.  Then our reading clinic time began.  During this time, small groups ( 4 kids) would come to the horseshoe table to read together.  This was naptime for Theo as he settled into his box for the stories and a snooze.  He stayed in his hidey box for almost the whole hour of clinic.  

Not too long into math, foster dad came and took the boy home.  You would think after such a long day (about 6 hours) surrounded by first graders, this little man would be exhausted.  NOPE! He was still full of energy at his regular nightly "play time".  He did ask for a little more snuggles than usual but they never lasted long.  

The kids informational and narrative writing 

Informational writing
Translation (as written by child except I cleaned up the spelling)-
 Theodore hopped to me (pedidme 2 tioshim ?) He is eating hay.  He is sitting in his pen. He is licking himself.  There are 3 kids petting him. I think he is staring at Mrs. Atherton. There are a teacher. He is staring at a kid. There is 1 kid petting him. Theodore looks like he Theodore is smelling his mom. He is sitting. He hopped out of his cage (no cage in room not sure what child was talking about). There he got put it up.

Narrative writing
Translation (as written by child except I cleaned up the spelling)-
Once upon a time there was one guy named Batman and Ironbun.  We were looking for criminals then one day we saw 10 bad guys rob a jewelry store. So me and Ironbun, me and him, flew down and beat them up but but then we were wrong. Me and Ironbun did not know what to do. We tried to think then we thought of a plan I jumped and he bust him then we won.

Narrative writing
Translation (as written by child except I cleaned up the spelling)-
Theo is superhero. Theo is super cute. I am going to write a story of him.  The super bunny named Theo. The super hero saves people and bunnies that are in trouble and are about to get ran over by a train or something else like a reindeer or Santa and sometimes we call him Ironbun and he saves a lot of people.

Informational writing
Translation (as written by child except I cleaned up the spelling)-
Theo is getting close to Logan and now he is eating. Now he got close up to Chase and he's eating again. Now, he got close to Josh and Terra and Caden petted him and he's just sitting there.  And now, he was next to Nathen and now he came near me and Daniel and Terra is petting Theo again. He's eating hay and he's still eating. He's not getting out and I want to pet him again. And Hailey said he was asleep. Daniel petted him again and now he's standing on his two feet and now he's staring at me. And Mrs. Baldini is petting him. Three kids were petting him and he jumped. Theo must like Nathen really bad. And Mrs. Atherton moved him and I petted him again. And 3 people petting him and they're still petting him. And a bunch of people were talking about poop and Mrs. Atherton might have to put him up at lunchtime. And I thought she's gonna put him back. He's sniffing his toy box and he got out of his litter box.  It's time to put him back now.

Damon's rescue visit (3/1/14)

Damon here, writing a guest post. April wasn't able to visit the rescue with me, so I took my Mom, who hadn't been in some time. Mom spent time with Charlie Brown, playing Scrabble and loving on him. Charlie enjoyed soaking up the attention as he always does. While Mom was keeping Charlie company, I had to spend a little time with my girl, Malani. Malani, despite her limitations and past health issues, hopped around the pen and investigated every corner. She would snuggle against my arm for a bit before making a few more laps around the pen. The main reason for the visit was so I could take portraits of the yard rabbits. The yard rabbits came to the rescue after a confiscation from a local meat breeder. Prior to the confiscation, they were found in deplorable living conditions - a muddy, fenced-in yard with no vegetation, minimal shelter and little to no food or water. 16 of these poor bunnies were brought to our rescue, and six of them are still in foster care - Vilthuril, Hawkbit, Acorn, Dandelion, Buckthorn and Rigel. These six bunnies were not very cooperative models! Once we got each of them out and ready for photos, they all just wanted to get away and go back "home" to their cages. I did manage to get some good photos of each of them. Hawkbit, Dandelion and Buckthorn seemed to be a little curious about the bright flash of light. Each time I'd snap a picture of one of them, they seemed to look at the light as if to say "Hey, what's this thing?" While each of the yard rabbits were not very playful and just wanted to get back "home," I enjoyed taking their pictures and getting to spend a little time with some different bunnies.

   

Dandelion                                  Hawkbit        

* Interesting Factoid- The "Yard Rabbits" are named after characters from the book, Watership Down.*

Updates

I have posted an article on monthly bunny health maintenance in the pages section.  The Toy Box page has also been updated with directions on how to create a homemade toy for your bunny.  Additionally, in the next couple of days, we will have a guest post by Damon about his more recent visit to the rescue.

This week is also "I Love to Read" Week which was kicked off today with Read Across America.  To celebrate this week, I always read lots of Dr. Seuss books to my students.  I am sad that I was unable to read our first day today because of a snow day. So, instead I read books with the twins.  My babies are voracious readers like their momma.  Enjoy this adorable picture of them reading a new book I recently bought them.

Featured Friend: Charlie Brown

Every couple of weeks I hope to share the story of one of the foster bunnies.  This week I have chosen a sweet old guy who claimed my heart the minute he came into rescue.

Mr. Charlie Brown

 

Background-

Charlie was in a home with a family for 10 years until the kids went off to college. Then he was given to a head start program where (we were told) the children under the age of 5 would torture him, we believe one way was to poke him with pencils.  This went on for about 2 years before someone took him home. He was then kept for a few months on their porch before turning Charlie over to the rescue. 

Health-

Charlie has splay  legs which is probably due to a birth defect.  He is also battling an enlarged heart with fluid building around it. He will remain on medication for his heart issues and this also means he's anemic. Poor Charlie's troubles continue as he was recently diagnosed with having 3 parasites.  We believe this would account for his loss and inability to gain weight even though he eats all the time.  A mass has also been discovered on his liver.

Personality-

Despite all his health concerns, Charlie craves attention and enjoys snuggling with people. His favorite activity is to snuggle with his foster mom while she plays Scrabble on her Kindle.

My experience with Charlie- Charlie is a lover, hence how easily he has stolen my heart.  He will come over and snuggle with me when I put him in the playpen. Charlie rests his  head on my arm due to his splay legs which keeps him from being able to hold his head up for long periods. He will then quickly fall fast asleep.  One of my absolute favorite things in life is a bunny falling asleep in my arms.  It is such a rewarding and peaceful moment to know they trust you enough to go to sleep.  That is a true sign of that a bunny loves you.  Especially for a bunny who has been through so much in his life to feel that safe around people.  Charlie is a gentile old man who has been through a lot in his 12 years.  His 13th birthday will be March 20th.   We hope he continues to progress so we can throw him a big celebration. He deserves it!