My sweet funny Bunny…

Myself and Cinnamon (my rabbit) have been living alongside each other now for roughly eighteen months…At first I was none to sure it was fair to take in a pet, my life being so upside down at the moment..I’m still in full Covid long haul mode….some days just getting out of bed is as much as I can muster…But as lock down began its final long days.. I came across more and more pets finding themselves without a home, it tore at my heart seeing page upon page of bunnies, cats, dogs really through no fault of their own now seeking refuge(so depressing)….I was still undecided some weeks later, could I or would I cope when sick? Was I the right person?, What could I offer infact?, Even sleepless nights were involved…

But I had that one thing going for me, a vast array of animal knowledge, their needs and care, I’ve made it my place to learn, it’s taken some years but I gleaned knowledge, no how from people, books, tv, forums, but my best teachers were indeed the animals themselves, …I don’t just keep pets, I become involved in their lives, what were their needs, moods, personality…you can keep over a 100 rabbits but each is so very different..

Just when I thought I had rabbit care down to a fine art though, along came Cinnamon….he was indeed a lockdown pet, I had by this time changed my mind a dozen times about getting a pet, thinking it would be for all the wrong reasons, not fair…..that was then,. one evening some weeks later, I read a post on Facebook that touched my heart…it was to be fatal….for there was a picture of my boy, …heart racing with anxiety, with mixed emotions, I answered the add…there it was done…

Many replies asked after him, part of me hoped upon hope that someone would come along for him, the decisions out of my hands then…someone anyone would be better for him surely?…, but a few minutes later a ping happened on my private message, ….And that November night ,Cinnamon arrived, he was and is a very nervous rabbit…I suspect he has never been handled in all his three years,. And that’s where all our troubles began….he never ate any of the food that came with him, or any I was told he had before, …I tried every make ,brand of hay in existence.. From budget to gold standard….Cinnamon would not only not eat it…Oh no we took to posting it back out of our cage…couldn’t stand it near him….😮.

Now rabbits I know a lot about, mini lops(his breed) are no strangers either, I had two previously. , I know for instance they can be picky, fussy even darn right fastidious….but this bun was beyond all this….I actually thought he was going to die at one point.., His poop was full of pin worms,( yeah smashing) his coat, dull and lacklustre….he sat in one corner starring dead eyed into space…And I felt bad for him….I left him well alone, spending my days in my bedroom, …I trailed Amazon for food that looked similar to what my other lop rabbits would eat. When it arrived I filled his bowl, held my breath and went out the room once more…..

The next day I walked in, feeling some what miserable, I was letting Cinnamon down, for all my knowledge and hopes, I couldn’t help him……but imagine the sheer joy as I looked across to find not only an empty bowl, but a moving bunny….he watched me move about, showed interest , it was a start, a fantastic start and I was over joyed for us both…

As you know, I rarely, if ever leave my house, when I did, I hated walking in to the cold, baren, lifeless room….it felt so stark before….but not any more, …there was movement, sound, most importantly another life, Cinnamon quickly became something far more valuable than a pet….he was my companion….yes I have Jesse my constant, right there on my phone…but his a million miles away….his not here, loneliness ate deep into my being….I didn’t want any other human company as they wouldn’t be Jesse , But even so after years of being a mum, I needed to nurture, I needed to be needed….Cinnamon is no longer just a rabbit….he fulfils the most important function….he makes this shell of a house feel like a home,

I was to learn very quickly Cinnamon is not your average rabbit….no,.. only I could come across a rabbit that has health issues….he suffers from a thing called Gut Stassis (this is not only exceptionally painful, but can prove fatal if not careful….Cinnamon being Cinnamon any slight change can cause a fresh bout…from change of environment, to change pretty much anywhere😁, first day I put him in a run I built in our garden( because rabbits do need the great outdoors, right? Wrong wrong wrong,!!!!!!….he sulked, wouldn’t move, even to the point I had to bring him back in…for two days he had horrendous stomach issues…, so I hit on an ingenious plan, I built him a run in the house(😁 yeah I know right, same thing). if anyone visits he hides) ….when I do venture out even to the post box, he turns his back on me for the rest of the day….even thumps his dear little feet in protest …

He hates being picked up…..( No he won’t eventually get used to it) I’ve tried, goodness knows how I’ve tried, ) if I get him out to roam he hides for hours behind somewhere, again stasis the next day….I’ve had skittish bunnies, I’ve had fearful buns, but this rabbit is in a class of his own, despite this we have the most healthy respect for each other…Ive spent a fortune having a two story beautiful indoor hutch built…it’s huge, made with a lovely high polished wood….honestly it looks like a wonderful piece of furniture….And for once..just once he loved it….And I love it because he has room to move….room for hes toys…

We live this side by side co existence, I’m now allowed to stroke his head, we roll his toys back and forth to each other…Over Christmas was cold, so a few nights I was lazy and slept in the warmth and comfort of the livingroom….those nights Cinnamon slept up front of his cage where he could watch me….once I settle for the night he went up to the top part of his house and lay watching me from there, doing nothing, quiet just watching….well a few nights turned to weeks, …

Last week I cleaned my bedroom and made it comfy to move back in, Tuesday was to be the first night….I hadn’t been there long, when I heard my rabbit thumping…..where it’s so quiet here at nights, the sound fills the air…it’s blooming loud….I call out to him from my bed..he settles( I leave him a light on every night, but even with this measure taken he thumps most nights until I call through….assure him in there…

I’ve gone back and forth from sleeping in the sitting room to my bedroom over the course of the week…, those nights I sleep in here (sittingroom) his content and restful….in the bedroom and the whole night he stomps, throws his feed pot,s, bangs the doors….But last night I stayed in my room the whole night, I didn’t sleep much, as it was a high pain night, eventually my phone in hand, dragging my blanket behind me like half asleep toddler, I stumbled my way back into the living room …..I lay down on my sofa, that is next to cinnamon, ….looked across to check on him, As Im won’t to do, And for the first time, my funny little, moody Bun greeted me, he looked up at me as I lay down….did the most wonderful series of small leaps. (binkying)Head bobbing,,twisting in the air as he leapt, it was a sight to behold, I liked to believe he was actually pleased to see me…my rabbit may never be a lap sitting cuddle bun, but he has a long term home, in the warmth, with good food, small snippets of fruit, veggies, someone to play fetch the cotton reel with, he will never be just a rabbit again, he belongs, he makes my life without my loved ones bearable, I like to think with my knowledge of bunny health I make his a healthy, respected life…each doing our own thing but together…..friendship comes in many forms….take care folks, stay warm and well..💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💜💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💜💛💛💛💛💛💛💛🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇🐇