Saturday, February 21, 2009

The Bunny Update


Hello all! Well, we have some very good news regarding our baby rabbits. When I came home from class on Thursday night, the bunnies were still in the yard, right where I had left them. I lined a small cardboard box with soft towels and fabric, and went outside to pick them up. I thought there were only three little bunnies, but I ended up finding four with my flashlight. Four baby bunnies slept in a cardboard box in the laundry room Thursday night. When I got up Friday, I went to the feed store (Cowboy Corral) and bought some kitten formula and two tiny little bottles to feed the bunnies. I tried to get them to eat, but only two of them would suck, and they only took a drink or two before turning away and squirming. I got on the internet, and did a lot of reading about wild baby bunnies. The internet is such an amazing thing. I found out that baby rabbits only eat once a day for maybe 5 minutes. So if you are trying to raise them yourself, you only should feed them twice a day, since the kitten formula is less caloric than rabbit's milk. The bunnies went back into the box for the morning.

Later in the afternoon, it warmed up nicely, and I decided to give the mother rabbit another chance to claim her young. So I took the whole box outside, and put it near where the original nest had been. I laid it on its side, so that the mother rabbit could get inside to her bunnies. I had an appointment for a haircut at 5 pm, and when I drove into the driveway after my haircut, I noticed the mother rabbit leaving the front yard. So Pono and I used the back door the rest of the evening. When my friend, Lily and I went out with flashlights after dark, the baby bunnies were all gone!!! Mama rabbit came through, and moved them to a new location. Yay!!!

I felt so much better knowing that they were with their mother, in their natural home. This morning, Pono and I were returning from our morning run, when Pono cornered something under a bench in our front yard. Imagine my dismay when I realized it happened to be one of the baby bunnies, who had a broken leg. I couldn't let Pono have it, so I ended up taking it inside. I knew what I had to do, but it was hard!!! I took little bunny to the vet, and asked them if they could put it down, since I couldn't bear to do it myself. They kindly agreed to help. As soon as I turned over the box with baby bunny, I cried. I pretty much cried all the way home. Of course the bunny would not survive with a broken leg, but still it was sad for me to let go of that exquisite little baby bunny. I have consoled myself with chocolate chip oatmeal cookies from the local bakery. I do take comfort in the knowledge that the other three bunnies are safely ensconced in a new home.

Opening exhibition for my show at True World Gallery is tonite!!! 7 pm. Perhaps that will take my mind off of the tiny ball of fur I left with the vet.

10 comments:

pRiyA said...

Gosh, what a story! I am so, so glad the mother came and took her babies back in the end.

High Desert Diva said...

Oh....yay and then boo hoo. Glad you had those cookies.

Hope the art opening went well!

ArtPropelled said...

Hope your exhibition opening went well. Looking forward to hearing about it.

Sorry about little broken bunny. Glad the others have been reclaimed by the mom.

Anonymous said...

I am glad that the ending was good for the majority of the baby bunnies. So sorry for the trauma!

Patty said...

Congratulations on your opening. Hope you were able to enjoy it completely. Thank you for sharing your huge heart with us. Karine, you are a lovely inspiration!

Amy Schimler-Safford said...

What an incredible story! You did such a good job taking care of them and getting them back to their mom. It was so sad about the little one you had to put down, glad you were able to have the vet's help. Congrats on your show. Your photos of the gallery show look great. It always so great to see a body of work hanging together. Glad it was a success for you!

bindu said...

So glad the mother came back for the little ones. Wildlife rescue places take injured animals. Maybe next time you could try that too.

Unknown said...

Bindu, I actually was in contact with a wildlife rescue organization. The one here is all volunteer run. The woman who I had a number for didn't contact me for three days about the injured bunny. I did not wait, because I felt the animal was already suffering and couldn't bear to watch it anymore. Thanks for your suggestion, and hopefully I will have better luck with them if I ever need them again.

julie king said...

what a fun experience. you and pono are heroes to me.

Anonymous said...

HI Karine-

I saw your link on High Desert Diva's blog and stopped by. Congratulations on your gallery show and your sales. Always so rewarding. I'll have to visit True World Gallery next time I'm in your neck o' the desert.

Your report on the little wild rabbits was so charming, and sad too. You did your very best to reunite them with their mother, so bravo!