Really Runty Rats, Baby Bunnies and other stories

[inulro]

Last week's foster pets was (part of) a family of Really Runty Rats. Mum was thin and all the babies were small, but three were particularly small and sickly looking. I took Mum and the three tiny babies home and after a week of an intensive feeding regime of cheesy mashed potato, pasta, and large portions of kitten milk, they'd all plumped up nicely. The babies had sleek, shiny coats. They are all still small, but strong and healthy and small. I really wish I'd taken before and after pictures because the change was quite dramatic. I also thought it would take longer than a week.

This week we have brand new baby bunnies! Which is actually less fun than it sounds, because they are still in the nest and we can't touch them yet. When I was working at the shelter on Saturday it was discovered that one of the rabbits had given birth overnight (thankfully, only 3). There's nowhere quiet to put them at the shelter at the moment, so I took them home and put them in our spare hutch. Like all mummy bunnies, she's built the nest right against the door of the sleeping section of the hutch, so in order to check on the babies, they might fall out, an effective way to keep people away from them. They will just be starting to move around and get really cute when we go on holiday - brilliant piece of timing on my part!

Having said that, the mummy bunny is a good substitute for a baby bunny. She's a dwarf rabbit and is terribly tiny - my rabbit was bigger than that when I got her at 10 weeks. Even Socks, Jason's "little" bunny, is about 1/3 bigger than her. I think my guinea pig may be heavier. She is all black and is only six months old. She is adorable. Pictures may be attempted but black animals can be notoriously difficult to photograph.

In other news, I'm starting to panic about not getting my shit together for the trip to France - only two weeks to go! I'm struggling a bit with work again. I'd be struggling less if some idiot hadn't set fireworks off on Sunday night at that crucial moment I was about to go to sleep. Have I mentioned lately how much I hate the locals?

Comments

[sheepthief.livejournal.com]

I don't know what the Hell it is with fireworks these days. Okay, so we live in a multicultural society now, but it seems that someone somewhere around here is having a bloody festival or celebration every damn week.

On a lighter note, I found a place called Bunny World just a few miles outside of Whitby. It's small, but has a variety of rabbits. I was amazed at how big some of them are - I though Snuffles was quite large but there were a couple of rabbits there that would dwarf her. One in particular was huge and jet black - quite sinister really. I managed to pick up a copy of Watership Down from the second-hand bookshop in the old part of town - I've not read it for years but I recall the black rabbit that was Death.

[inulro.livejournal.com]

There's nothing multicultural about the yobs who set off fireworks in our area. We live in a very local area for local people.

I've heard about Bunny World, but since I started working in the shelter, I have a bit of a problem with places that breed.

[sheepthief.livejournal.com]

I wasn't aware that they were breeders - it was a flying visit and I didn't pick up any leaflets or anything. I can understand your concerns. There did seem to be quite a few adults on their own though, come to think of it.