Rabbits – Day 16

Originally published December 29. 2017

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We have the bunnies… and they aren’t feeding as planned. They won’t take the formula, and force feeding is becoming a necessity. I was super concerned at first, as they barely had 0.1mls each… they’re meant to be having 15 a day by this point, in two feedings. But they’ve been increasing amounts each time we feed them, and by last feeding last night they all had 3mls each, though Meeka and I spent over an hour sitting with them doing it. Can’t wait until they get the hang of it, or we do, or they reach 4 weeks and can learn to lap from a bowl. That’ll be amazing.

They’re cute though. They’re already developing names, though we haven’t got them all names yet. We also don’t know their genders, or who is getting adopted out, so the names are likely to all change, but oh well. There’s Lymeria, a beautiful one that is white with grey speckles, originally called Lightest Grey. Then there’s Fluffy, or Big Fluff, originally called Big Black. Then Little Black, of course, who is crazy explorative and jumps everywhere, though is one of the hardest to feed. There’s Dark Grey, who is a colour I’ve never seen before. The two creamies, Little Creamy and former Big Creamy, who is now known as Buttercup. And last but not least is Goopy, who is a wild rabbit grey colour, though still a really nice colouring. He was named Goopy because when we got him his eyes were still shut, but only because some conjunctivitis goop was keeping them closed. That’s cleared up now, and for a bit I was calling him Grumpy because his eyes were half closer from the goop, making it look like he was glaring at me.

They’re developing personalities, and we are all in love. Even the housemates that don’t feed them are. They are the most adorable little things. Already nibbling on hay (eating a little bit of it), chewing and tasting the pellets. A pain with the milk, of course. They’re on Divetalax (I need to check that spelling) mixed in with dairy free light thickened cream (unfortunately I could only find light). With Vetafarm pellets there waiting to be weaned onto. They won’t get much veggies for a while in their little lives, which will probably be a lot easier than if they did need fresh veggies. It’s simply because being hand-raised they don’t automatically get their mums gut bacteria, and have sensitive stomachs for a lot longer while their bodies learn to make their own and keep the balance between good and bad bacteria in check.

We already have a lady interested in two, and willing to pay for vaccinations, which is amazing. Yet as soon as she said she was wanting to take two (I think she was interested in Lymeria and Goopy), I had this horrible sadness fill me. My little babies going to new homes is going to be really hard to see. I’m selling them for $50 each, or $40 each in a pair ($80), and will probably make up a care sheet for them, and everything else to go with it. But, if the prospective new owners want to pay me for vaccinations, I’ll sell the bunnies for $5 each and keep the receipt for vaccination costs. I just want my babies to have the best start, and especially with this new Calici virus being released, vaccinations are a must.

I’m already in love. So is Meeka. We failed the instant we saw the bunnies in their little box.