Making a nest, just in case Peeper (yes, the stray bunny has a name now) has gathered hay for a nest, like you see in the pic above, twice in the two weeks she's been here. On her third or fourth day she pulled out a lot of fur from her belly, which is what bunnies do when birthing is imminent. This pic was taken last Wednesday. The timing is important to me because I'm hoping that the sporadic nature of her nest-building behaviors means that she is just very hormonal and may only be experiencing a false pregnancy. False would be good.
On the advice of an experienced bunny person (thanks Sharon!) I've prepared a place for her nest, just in case. A smallish litterbox lined with a soft fleece, tucked away in the downstairs part of her cage should give her the privacy and safety that she will (hopefully not) need. I've also draped that part of the cage with an old folded curtain so that it is dark and draft free.
When I first made these changes a week ago, like any bunny, she was very curious and pushed and pulled at the fabric and rearranged everything to her liking. Since then she has completely ignored it. Hasn't been in the box or even peed on that soft bit of fabric like most bunnies would have to do.
She is enjoying her twice daily salads and plenty of hay. She is a master of the *dead-lop-flop* and has started to act a little silly; almost dancing sometimes when she is out for play. She is comfortable here and is working her bunny magic on me day by day.
15 comments:
Can a vet do a little bunny ultrasound or something? You know how they used to say "the rabbit died" when a pregnancy test was positive? What dies when a bunny test is positive?
I kind of hope she has babies and kind of hope she doesn't. At least she is in a loving home.
Do we get to call you Grandma Laura if she delivers?
;-)
Sorry...don't get mad!!!
Ah- Peeper is so pretty!
Laura,
I am hoping so hard that she is not preggers. It does seem that here random behavior would suggest hormones rather than pregnancy. But I am no expert by a long shot, just thinking if she was pregnant with 30 days, there's little time to dilly dally with the small things when you're about to be a mom. I hope bunnies are of the same opinion. LOL.
I can't get over how pretty she is. I am glad she is growing on you. It makes it easier :)
It sounds like she knows she's "home" and is settling in! I do hope you're not about to get baby bunnies, though!
Susan: I've tried to get an appt. for my vet to palpate her, but can't manage it. Anyway, from what I've been told there is only a small window at about two weeks when the gorwing babies can be felt. Time will tell.
Lynne + Michelle: Yes, she gets prettier every day (I'm doomed, I know).
Bunnygirl: Hey! Me, too. I'm not prepared to have babies. Happy enough to see her safe and content.
This picture of Peeper sure looks like a Disney drawing of Thumper! She looks like she has a twinkle in her eye!
She is so CUTE. I'm so glad that she found you. Peeper is very lucky girl.
My friend Sharon from PetBunny called her a *brownling* - she is pretty ordinary looking, but so cute in her *plain*ness.
I'm secretly hoping for babies, because then those of us who are bunny-deprived because of old scary mean bunny-eating beagle type dogs will at least get to see cute baby bunny pictures!
I remember when I first brought Hazel home. I thought she was so homely. Just plain brown wrapper bunny. DH thought she was gorgeous from the start. But it took me a bit, then I fell in love with the heart shaped white outline of their noses, and that super soft orange patch on the back of their neck, and the cute whiteness of the underside of their tail that shows up when the "flag is up" LOL.
Susan - just because you have a beagle doesn't mean you can't have bunnies, I have been meaning to mention this to you, but I have 2 bealge dogs - well 1 beagle and 1 bagel (half basset hound half beagle) and they get on just fabulously with my rabbits. Each dog is different, IMHO it's not the breed of dog, but the personality. Just my 2 cents :)
Ooops - should proofread - Laura not Susan about the Beagle dogs! Sorry
you failed to tell me that you may be a grandmother... did it slip your mind or did i not give you a chance to talk....
Yes, the brownness makes you notice all the little things that are so beautiful about them.
Michelle is right, Laura. There are ways for bunnies and dogs to coexist.
My dog is older and listens well, but I am very, very careful. Babygates make just about any combination possible. I think.
Ummm-no, not this beagle dog. He's actually beagle/jack russell/something hairy, just turned 15, can't hear, and in his mind, rabbits and squirrels were put on the earth for chasing. There would be constant chaos and a terrified bunny. Not fair to either one of them, and at his age, I'm not going to try to change his mind...
Laura: My Buddy loves to chase squirrels and the rabbits outside, but somehow he understands that the inside bunnies are different. Plus, they don't *run* around him - I'm afraid to provoke the chase response in him.
You know your dog. Someday, maybe a bunny will be in your future.
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