I love photos like this one of Boomer sleeping in a patch of sunlight! The sunporch where they live is south-facing and the winter sun is low enough in the western sky in the afternoon to send the sunbeams down to floor level where Boomer naps. Many bunnies somehow manage to sleep with their eyes open – I like to call it *contemplating the universe* when I catch them at it – but Boomer just zonks out in the afternoon with his eyes closed and belly up. He’ll allow me to ruffle the soft white fur on his belly, but if I dare to kiss it he wakes up and regards me with a pfuftf ! I’ve not ever found him sleeping on his back like some bunnies are known to do, but he does a not-so-graceful jump-twist-flop to get into this position, often beside Cricket. Sometimes I find them spooning together, but Cricket doesn’t sleep soundly enough to allow a photo.

This explains why Santa didn’t bring any gifts for the bunnies – Boomer ate his list!

I’d been trying to get some *posed* pics of the bunnies to maybe use next year on Christmas cards and brought the Santa doll from its usual spot just outside the bunny room and placed it next to where they were lounging. For the most part they were afraid of it; then they did what all bunnies seem to do to learn about new things – they tested it with their teeth. They are very suspicious of anything new or out of place and will approach the suspect object on tippy-toe with their necks stretched out – very cute to see this survival strategy in action. Usually it’s nothing more dangerous than a misplaced dog toy, but anything smelling like the dog is enough to send them to the other side of the room with a thump.

They’d been investigating the Santa doll for a week or so during their daily forays into the living room – they still won’t hang out in there other than a quick dash behind the couch – and I had hoped they were comfortable enough with it that I might get a few cute pics. Not exactly what I had in mind, but they made me laugh, as usual.

Santa dropped the ball with not having these available in time for Christmas delivery. Just what every bunny-loving gadget geek needs!

For the past couple of years I’ve done a Christmas Card Swap with other members of the PetBunny email group; most years there are about 40 people who exchange cards. Most often the cards have *bunnies* as a theme, but as you can imagine these are hard to come by at Christmastime, so instead some people make beautiful handmade cards or send photos. Sometimes people will also send along a little gift with the card.

This year I decided to send refrigerator magnets with my cards. I made the mosaic above from some favorite pics on Flickr and asked a friend of my husband’s (who owns a sign shop) to print up the magnets for me. We got them tonight and they turned out beautifully, plus he did them for free! Now I just need to find some nice bunny cards to mail them in.

The card swap is one of my favorite things about the PetBunny list – most of the members are total strangers to me, but we all share a fondness for pet rabbits. Each Christmas the bunnies here get more cards than my husband and I do!

Cricket’s happy to be home, but not so happy about having her picture taken or medicine shoved in her sore mouth twice a day. I can see that the right side of her mouth is a little swollen. She’s on antibiotics and pain meds for a few days and I need to be sure that the discomfort doesn’t keep her from eating.

Yesterday she had a growth removed from her lip; the doc couldn’t be sure what it was so he sent the tissue off for testing and we can expect a histopathology report in about a week. He thinks it might be that a scent gland in that area became inflamed.

This is the third time that Cricket’s had odd growths removed. The first was within a month or so of when I got her from rescue and the vet found that her mammary glands were swollen and severely infected. It took two months after surgery with daily antibiotic injections to get rid of that infection. I’m sure that it was a result of the slaughterhouse that she was rescued from. The second time was an odd little growth on the bottom of her foot that made her limp around. No surgery was required for that, just my vet rooting around in her foot enough to get a tissue sample. That turned out to be nothing. I’m hopeful that this time will also turn out to be nothing.

In the meantime I’ll worry and fuss over her. As will Boomer. Lynne at Hasty Brook did a post a while back about the difficulties with medicating her bunny. I had given her some suggestions about how to do it more easily – none of which are working with Cricket! I have to actually sit on her and force the syringe into her mouth. I just hate it and apologize to her the whole time. But I think it’s better than giving her shots like I did two years ago. Wish us well.

Boomer and Cricket went to the vet on Tuesday for a check-up. Because they are so closely bonded, I send them together, with the idea that they won’t be as frightened if they have each other for company. They are big bunnies – Flemish Giants – as a breed very laid-back, but my two were rescued from a slaughterhouse so they tend to be a bit high-strung for their breed.

We go to an animal hospital that treats dogs and cats, but that also has two vets who see *exotic* animals only. One Flemmie causes a stir in the waiting room at the vet’s, but two together is quite a show. Me trying not to throw my back out carrying forty pounds of bunny is even more of a show.

The most difficult part of the ordeal is getting the two of them into the carrier at the same time. I’ll usually bring the carrier up out of the basement a few days before the appointment so that they might not be so afraid of it. They’ll go in an out of it, and Boomer might even take a nap there, but as soon as I try to force them in and close the door they panic on me.

The visit with the vet went well and both bunnies had their nails trimmed and scent glands cleaned – two things I’m not able to do myself at home because they won’t let me hold them for long enough. They behave beautifully in the arms of a stranger though – go figure! Cricket has an odd growth on her lip that I found a few months ago and wanted the vet’s opinion on. He suggests removing it so both bunnies will be going back next Wednesday for the procedure.

When we came back to the house, rather than lugging the carrier out onto the sunporch where the bunnies live, I let them out in the kitchen, which is a room they haven’t had the courage to explore in their 2 1/2 years here. Cricket quickly found her way through the living room and dining room and into her favored napping spot on the porch, but sweet Boomer roamed around for a while as if lost.

Boomer and Cricket raiding and looting

A new occasional series documenting bunny mayhem as it occurs. No *cute overload* here; these will be the poorly-lit and pooty-strewn examples of real life with a rabbit (or five) that I wouldn’t normally subject you to. Some might consider this ongoing series of pics as reason for not keeping rabbits, but to those of us who love them, these are just the minor annoyances that we look beyond because we love them so.

Tonight’s example finds Boomer and Cricket pillaging the hay supply. They’ve managed to knock the bag of timothy hay off of the filing cabinet where it is kept safely out of their reach and are helping themselves to the contents. Cricket (with her face in the bag) is resting atop the bin used to store other hay. If I’m not careful when I’m refilling their baskets with hay and leave the top ajar, I will often find one of the two of them sitting inside the bin, pillaging and pooping there as if it were a litter box. What makes this pic funny is that just outside of view is a perfectly clean, hay-filled litter box. They’d rather steal and pooty on the floor.