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The view from our kitchen gets a bit grey at times but never for very long,
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And now that winter is done, there are other interests.
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“My toofs grew long while I was sleeping!”
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It’s as if they are still a bit dozy.
More interested in bird seed than carrot which might be better for those long teeth!
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Carrot will never go to waste, though.
The squirrels have developed a taste for it and we’ve seen chipmunks making off with bits too.
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While this is an archive photo, we know there are bunnies around.
When there was snow, we saw their tracks every day.
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Who doesn’t love bunnies?
But I never knew anything much about them until I agreed to take one that suddenly needed a home.
Joely was a big, handsome lad.
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He was fine with the cats and I didn’t mind him hopping about, but for the sake of my carpets I mostly kept him in one room where I could contain the mess.
He had a large pen which the cats jumped in and out of.
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Thimphu thought timothy hay was grand.
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Before long I decided Joely should have a companion of his own sort and I found out that to make such an adoption, I needed to take him to the shelter in order to be sure of a good pairing.
So Joely had a date.
He was introduced to a pretty black and white girl and to little grey Macy.
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Joely was polite but non-comittal, so I had to choose.
It was easy. The pretty bunny would easily get a home, but Macy had been waiting for months and as it turned out, Joely liked her a lot.
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Bunnies are not hard to care for, but they need their teeth trimmed periodically as well as their claws and they are delicate creatures that don’t handle stress well.
Fortunately my vet was a bunny expert.
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Joely was only a little bit older, so when he died I didn’t want to get a new companion for aging Macy.
Instead I moved the pen into the living area where she would be a part of daily life and I spent extra time with her.
She enjoyed snuggling into my neck.
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In all, I had bunnies for only about ten years, but I was very fond of them and I often think of those sweet creatures.
So I especially enjoy the little wild ones that live on my property.
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The bunnies of my childhood were in stories my mother read to me like Pookie and Peter Rabbit.
But I remember too the epidemic of myxomatosis which devastated the rabbit population in England between 1953-1955. I was very sad about that.
Undoubtedly, the rabbit population had been excessive, but those were among the first animals I ever cried about.
I too remember myxomatosis. There was a whole extended warren near where I lived and the sight of the sick rabbits was very disturbing,
Bunnies, Groundhogs, and Squirrels. All delightful! We kept Angora rabbits when I still lived with my parents, and my mum knitted the wool from them into wonderfully soft jumpers. (It was just comed normally, not plucked)
Best wishes, Pete.
*combed*
Thank you, Carolyn, for the wonderful post and photos of many friends! I don’t know if you read my message about not being able to comment yesterday but I loved the post.
Joanna
Until very recently we have always had bunnies, a tradition that one of my daughters now follows. Lovely, peaceful souls…
The introduction of myxomatosis into the UK was a horrible thing, and it was so cruel to see the horrendous extended deaths that occurred in vast numbers.
I haven’t been in blogland in a very long time, so my surprise was huge when I saw your old friends from summer back in your garden again … I can’t belief your winter has come to an end (which means it’s slowly making its way towards us here in the South)! I usually only see bunnies in the wild, but it’s nice to watch them and see how they constantly move their little noses. No doubt, they are cute!