I was thinking I should do something scary for Halloween, but the scariest thing I could think of was Whisky's vet bills. So I added the total up for 2014 so far...
When I was writing this mornings post about Einstein it reminded me that with all the Whisky stress last week I didn't get a chance to tell you that my dear little Spangle passed away on 24th October. Very sadly, after suddenly coming down with severe snuffles a few weeks ago and with swabs and tests revealing nothing conclusive, she failed to respond sufficiently to antibiotics or nebulising.
Spangle came in to the Rescue late in 2010 with her mother Camilla, her uncle/father Wellington, her brother Sprat and her sisters Porridge and Zara. Here she is hanging with her mum in November of that year:
Whereas Camilla and Zara seemed perfectly healthy, Wellington and the other little ones all appeared to have wonky teeth issues. Zara was indeed re-homed fairly quickly but passed away shortly after, having succumbed to an upper respiratory infection in much the same way Spangle would.
With their teeth issues making them difficult to home, Spangle, Porridge and Sprat came to live with my own dentally challenged boy Whisky. They set up camp in his room, separated in their own areas. Although we had intended to bond them all, the first friends Whisky would have after Megan's passing in January 2011, this was the period he became very ill from his tooth-root problems and the bonding was delayed. After he got better, they would all play in the garden at the same time without fighting, but Porridge in particular was unwilling to let Whisky join their group. With no sign of it ever likely to get better, we eventually decided Sprat and the girls should go back to the Rescue, by this time bonded as a trio.
Porridge having the worst incisors of the lot was frequently having them clipped (not something we do now) so they had to be removed. Although the operation seemed to go well, she passed away in the days that followed leaving Spangle and Sprat as a pair.
Spangle's teeth actually settled down quite well compared to her siblings, but Sprat's needed burring so regularly that both bunnies really did look destined to live the rest of their lives at the Rescue. Having lived with me for so many months they had become my special little friends so they always got the prime veg when I did breakfast and of course extra attention. I try not to think about having more bunnies of my own, but since Jemima died last year there have been very many times I have come close to taking Spangle and Sprat back home with me.
My dearest Spangle, you gave me so much happiness, all those summer days watching you bounce around our garden and the Rescue! (Her binky pic was used with permission by Best4Bunny and regularly pops up on various rabbit pages.) Binky free my sweet little girl.
It is with great sadness that I report that our beloved Einstein passed away this week.
Einstein was an interesting fellow, a great big French Lop with a huge personality. He could be a real growly grump in the wrong environment who would even full-on assault you if you didn't listen to him, but for the most part he was a massive lump of adorability who loved attention. I, like many of the volunteers, whiled away many a happy lunchtime giving him all the head-strokes he demanded.
Because we all spent so much time with him he regularly featured on this blog and our Facebook page, but for the last 8 months or so he had been living at Caroline's house being fussed, along with his (not-so-fussed-cos-she-hates-it) partner Neroli.
Then last Monday Einstein became suddenly withdrawn, something was obviously wrong and Caroline rushed him straight to the vets. After a few days of treatment he seemed to be doing better, but then again on Monday, 27th October, it became clear that he was still unwell. Caroline booked him in for a scan to try and find out what was going on, but very sadly he passed away later that day.
We will all miss you dearly Einstein. Binky free, you big cuddly hunk of bunniness.
Whisky is doing much better now. We still don't know what made him ill:- it came on late evening last Sunday and from that time until Wednesday morning he wouldn't eat, drink or leave his bed (which from early Monday to late Wednesday was at the vets). When he came home Wednesday evening he was still confused and not himself, but he was at least eating and drinking again, even if I did have to move a water bowl so he could reach it from his bed. But he gradually improved, via some ups and downs, and by yesterday he was mostly acting like regular Whisky, joining me on the sofa to watch TV and con extra treats out of me.
Here's hoping he is over whatever it was and that we have some time before whatever evil next decides to attack his weak little immune system. In the meantime, it looks like I'm back on regular servant duties...
Whisky is very poorly this week, we don't know what is causing it but it came on quite suddenly Sunday night. I probably won't be posting here for a few days while I focus my thoughts on my little boy. Thanks to everyone who has already sent their kind wishes.
The best way to start the week is with a smile - and even better if that infectious smile is sat on the face of a bunny!
For the last few weeks Whisky has been coming to the Rescue with me one day a week. Far from being just a day out for him, we have been introducing him to Rhianna, a very sweet natured girl who came in with Tatiana (they look very similar, I am guessing they are sisters).
Whisky and Rhianna had a couple of days in a bonding shed staring at each other through cage bars. Whisky being a fragile little soul, we wanted to take it easy so last week she moved into his room in a cage. With zero sign of tension between them over the week, yesterday we put them out in a neutral space at the Rescue together. It started OK, but ultimately he can't get over his fear of other rabbits, he lashes out in a panic and she would only take so much before she started fighting back. So it seems it wasn't to be.
After a long day, Whisky chose to stay in his room last night looking absolutely exhausted. I thought he'd be cheerier today, but after a series of super-flopped-out naps I'm now mostly getting a lot of this:
I don't know which part of the experience he is holding against me, but I am hoping the resentment goes away soon. Ho hum.
A number of Texas' seven offspring were digestively challenged and have needed to be kept on a strict diet. With the trio of brothers we are careful not to feed them certain types of veg as that generally leads to a rather messy run.
Fonzie is such a character, totally in-your-face, I could easily spend the whole day hanging out with him given the chance!
Oops. Better get on then...
Whisky was having a lazy day today so this post was going to be about...I don't know...maybe how it suddenly got cold last night so we need to make sure outside bunnies have enough straw/hay...or how Anouska had fun in the garden this morning but the grass was still damp so I got a cute pic of her cleaning her feets...or maybe just about Whisky taking cute naps during his lazy day (he did look adorable!). But the MOMENT I sat down to write something he came racing out of his room, down the stairs and decided he DID want to go out today after all. [sigh]
So today's post is a reminder about how bunnies want to do things to their schedule, not ours...
In early March of this year, the Rescue took on 12 medium-sized rabbits in one go and promptly named them all after cheeses. Wensleydale, Dairylea, Stilton, Halloumi, Roquefort, Edam, Parmesan, Mozzarella, Cheddar, Brie and Camembert were all beautiful, beautiful creatures with neat, soft, short fur in wonderful colours and with distinctive markings. And then there was Red Leicester. Who was brown.
And yet, instantly, he became my favourite of the cheesy dozen. Rabbits arriving at the Rescue will usually be very nervous at the sudden change in their habitat so it takes a while for their personalities to come out, but not Red Leicester - his was, from the start, somehow written all over his face.
Friendly though he always was, he never appreciated strokes like the other bunnies. If you tried, he wouldn't move away but he'd dodge his head out from under your hand and glare back at you with a look that told you it was time to stop that nonsense and get back to the nice conversation (or snacks) you'd been having.
People tend not to be interested in the agouti (brown) rabbits, so Caroline paired Red Leicester with Alabama, a similarly sized and coloured girl. If I remember correctly, we were a bit unsure if they were getting on at first, but they soon showed us that they were made for each other and a great couple. They were even featured as our "Bunnies of the Week" at the end of May, perfect, healthy and ready for re-homing.
But sadly, the couple never found their forever home together. On the 20th June I was volunteering at the Rescue when I spotted a strange swirling shape inside Red Leicester's left eye. We suspected some sort of parasite and treated him, but it turned out to be the first of several probably related problems that his treatments never seemed to be able to get ahead of. Over the summer he steadily lost weight, finally succumbing to kidney problems earlier this week.
Red Leicester, my dear friend. I have never before met a bunny quite like you and I suspect I never will again. I will always treasure the memories of our little conversations. I wish you peace and pray you have found relief from your suffering. Binky free Red Leicester.
