Goodbye, Jenna

Yesterday and today, Jenna seemed worse - weak, not very active, and the sparkle had gone from her eye. I decided to make an appt. to have her euthanized tonight.

When I got home from work, Jenna had fallen onto her side at some point during the day and wasn't able to get up. So much like poor PJ had been. I set her upright, then gave her treats (carrots and craisins - she ate them, but still no "sparkle"). A few minutes later, I loaded her and Conner into the carrier and took them to the vet.

Jenna was very brave, and Conner was very supportive. He solicited attention while also staying near Jenna. Jenna went quietly, and she was peaceful. Conner lay with Jenna's body for a while after she had passed, and he went into the carrier when I offered it to him.

My vet has called with the necropsy results. It was a problem with Jenna's gut and liver, with a lot of fluid in her abdomen, the liver shrunken, and the intestines very swollen and stuff.

So far, Conner shows no signs of having caught anything from her, and I'll be scrubbing down their house this weekend to clean everything up. I'll clean the litterbox tomorrow and the extra hay etc. in the house, but the place will still smell like Jenna until I scrub it down. Hopefully that will help Conner cope with being alone again.

Jenna and PJ are together again. Hopefully they'll let Jessica hang out with them. Jenna was such a great wife and nurse to PJ, and she enjoyed being married to a young guy for a second husband. She loved using Conner as a pillow, draping herself over his middle, making a squished plus sign. She didn't need to intimidate Conner much - he fled from her glare alone. I'm glad I was able to give Jenna two loving husbands and (of course) a very loving Mama.

Mama

Jenna and Flannery Updates

Well, Jenna is still weak and very messy with her stool, but she's hanging in there. She's going to get a butt bath (sure to be annoying to both of us), and that should clean her up a bit. The vet is investigating what else to try. She's eating and drinking well, but so did PJ. Conner still seems well, so hopefully it won't pass to him. He had some medication to ward it off, but since it hasn't helped Jenna get back to normal, it might not be the right kind.

Flannery hasn't hit it off with Julia or Calvin, or even DeVille, so she's going back to Red Door and go to a foster home tomorrow. I feel bad, for Flan really wants to be with someone, and she's had a lot of changes in her life. At least she's been here for a month. Hopefully she can scale down her neediness, not be so possessive of what she sees as her human or so desperate when dealing with other buns.

Mama

Jenna Gained Weight :-)

Jenna gained .4 lbs since Tues, so I'm a little more optimistic. I thought her spine looked a little less pronounced. Now if her hips and muscles fill out, we'll really have a better outlook....

Mama

Jenna Update

Well, Jenna lost weight and is weak. She's anemic, too, so we're treating her for coccidiosis (again) and giving her some stuff for her blood. They're still doing a few tests (slides of her blood and a fecal exam - she left a big clumpy icky pile of stuff on the towel at the vet's office, so they have a nice sample size), but I'm sure they'll find coccidiosis at least. Liver values and stuff all looked fine, so we'll see if I can get weight on her. If not, then the decision will have to be made again. I'm glad to take two buns to the vet and come back with two (Conner came along for moral support - at least it wasn't a goodbye).

Mama

Sad Future for Jenna

Jenna, PJ's widow and wife of Conner, is showing signs of wasting away like PJ did. I've noticed over the last week to week and a half that she's getting a bit weak. Considering she caught the same coccidiosis that PJ had shortly after bonding to him, which I'm guessing was a hepatic strain, I don't hold much hope for this special girl.

We're going to the vet tomorrow to see if they could find out anything that might help. With my main vet on vacation and my secondary off tomorrow, I might wait until Sat. to make the choice to euthanize her. She's not suffering much yet, but she will, and it's a very hard decision to make to do it now. She fell once today onto her side, but was able to get back up. She also slipped or something when she and Conner were out while I was cleaning their house. (Conner wasn't near her, so it was all her.). I can't let her get so weak like PJ got, but I could wait a few days while the clinic did some research into what might help. Or I might ask that she be euthanized tomorrow, if my secondary is willing to come in to do it. He's the one who did PJ, and I'd feel more comfortable with him doing it. Like it's ever comfortable.

I had wanted to get some pictures of Jenna and Conner together, especially how Jenna will use Conner as a pillow, but now that I know time is short, I don't really want to take them, for I'll know when they were taken and how soon before the end that they came.

It will be hard to work with Flannery, the girl who is dating Calvin, for she looks a lot like Jenna. I know that one day, the time will come for each of them, but it's still so hard. It only hurts so much because I love so much, but I'm not about to change that.

Mama

Caspian's Doing Better :-)

It's so funny how bunny parents can get so excited when there's poop in the litterbox! Caspian passed some pretty small pellets, but it's a start. His butt is very wet, so he's peeing, too. He's fighting me more when I syringe feed him (yay!), and he's up on the shelf in his house. He's grooming, itching ears, and getting mad when I blow on his nose.

I'm hoping I don't have to take him to work with me tomorrow. Though I'd love to have him there (despite not having a good spot for him there - just moved cubes last week), I don't want to have to haul his heavy butt for the walk from and to the train station (about a mile total).

Mama

Need Healing Thoughts for Caspian

Caspian decided to go into GI stasis, and thus far is still being a lump. Sub-q fluids hasn't helped, and I forsee another trip to the vet tonight. His belly seemed pretty big, but he wasn't too gassy. He might have a touch o' sludge, too, but we need better films. He'll probably get knocked out later so we can get better pics. I have no idea what set this off. I noticed he wasn't up on his little shelf yesterday, and last night he didn't express any interest in his food (even pellets!), though he did eat a craisin. He ate a craisin this morning, too, but I still dragged him to the vet.

So, here's hoping he can get over this. He's my favorite kid, and I'd be so lost if he doesn't make it.

Mama

Cal and Flan Dating Update

The bunny dates between Calvin and Flannery are going pretty well. I do have to laugh, though. Flan will groom Cal's back and he looks so rumpled. After she groomed one of his ears tonight, he immediately groomed it himself. I can't figure out if that's like someone giving you a peck on the cheek and you immediately rub it off.

Mama

A New Resident

Julia's bunny date on Saturday went pretty well, I thought. We brought home Flannery, a Mini-Rex girl who was grooming Julia during the date (and mounting too, but Julia didn't protest). At home, Flannery eventually took over the pen I put her and Julia into, resulting in a few fights come daylight, and I'm not sure if it was Julia telling Flannery to go away or that the big litterbox was her territory and Flannery should stay away.

So, I tried Flannery with Calvin. Again, Flannery was aggressively grooming Cal on the neck and back, eventually making it to his ears. She mounted him a few times, with no reaction (well, Cal did eat some hay while it was occurring, which he'd do with Jessica and I took that as a good sign). They dated later in a pen outside, and Flannery wanted nothing to do with him.

So, Flannery and I had a talk Sunday night. She just lost her people last week (they lost their job and their house), so I thought to give her some time off from dating to settle down a bit. Last night, we were cuddling on the couch, and she peed on me and it. I was still smelling like all of the other bunnies (cleaned litterboxes), so that might have had something to do with it. She had gotten pretty relaxed at one point, so maybe she just lost control. With all the poor girl has been through, I can't be mad at her. (I mean, Caspian's peed on me and the couch several times to let me know he's litterally pi$$ed off, so it's not like it hasn't happened to me before.)

Flannery will be dating Julia and Calvin again tonight (she's more a prospect for Cal at this point), so we'll see how it goes. I think she's trying too hard to be liked. I can't keep her if she doesn't click with somebun here, but I'll feel bad to take her back to the rescue shelter.

Mama

Julia has a Date :-)

Julia and I are going to Red Door on Sat. to seek a partner for her. They have a ton of boys (IHRS only has 2 right now), so I figured that'd be the best place to start. I'm really hoping for love at first sight. I've seen it once (Jenna and PJ, at least on Jenna's part - PJ looked like a deer in headlights after she moved in LOL), and I'd love to see Cupid's arrow strike Julia and her prospective boy.

Mama

Actual Escapee and a Few Humorous Thoughts

This morning, Julia jumped out of her house. She hopped over to Cadence (who didn't try to rip her face off, which surprised me - I thought for sure Ms. Hormonal Evil Doe would want to eviserate any competition she'd see). Julia then checked out Jenna and Conner, who also just sniffed her. I put a little stuffed toy bun in Julia's house for the day so she'd have some company. Tonight, she and Calvin are going on a car ride together in a carrier to push things along. An 8 1/2 year old bun has to be pretty lonely to jump out of her house (24" off the ground or so) and go nosing around at the other buns near her. If nothing sparks tonight, I'll have to try her with DeVille again. If nothing there, seek to adopt somebunny for her.

I also either left Caspian's door open again on Friday or else I'm not securing it, making it easy for him to push open. He exhibited common sense again (I'm sure the third time will be the charm, so to speak) and stayed in his house.

Whenever I take Caspian out to the living room for a "couch cuddle", we pass Cadence's pen. I often wonder that if I accidently drop him in (or he jumps away from my hold and falls in), if Cadence will start singing "It's Raining Men." :-)

Enough rambling for a Monday morning.....

Mama

Exercise

I took Stew out this afternoon to stretch his legs for about an hour. He had fun, though he still won't go onto the top floor of the bunny vacation villa. I then took Jenna and Conner (the pellet marking maestro) out for an hour as well. Jenna seemed rather subdued, so I hope she's feeling okay. She has some matted fur around her butt from urine (not true urine scald). I have her on almost no pellets, so I'm sure that is messing her system up a bit. (She needs to lose weight again.) She ate weeds for most of playtime, so that was a good sign.

A neighbor walking by couldn't believe how fuzzy Conner was and took some pics of him with his cell phone. I picked Conner up so he could feel him. Conner looks like a hopping afro right now, so I need to give him a haircut tomorrow if the weather stays okay. Too windy today to do it. I end up eating way too much fuzz when I do it as it is without Mother Nature blowing more into my mouth.

Mama

Disappearing Stew

This morning, I was giving everyone their breakfast, leaving cage doors open until I'm done with each bun. I look over at Stew's house at one point, and I don't see him. Now, he's a big boy, so it's not like he can hide easily like one of the Lionheads can.

I thought, "Hmm, now if he'd have jumped out, I'd surely would have heard him hit the floor." His house is as high as Caspian's (see post below), but I still looked around on the floor to see if he was around. Nope. I walk over to his cage and I see that Stew is hiding beside his litterbox, keeping it between him and me. When we were visiting Grampy back in May, Stew would hide behind his litterbox, but he hasn't done it much at home here, and certainly hasn't done it in the middle of getting breakfast. I don't know what prompted his "I've gotta hide" instinct, but it sure gave me a scare for a second.

I think the buns are trying to "Gaslight" me, I swear!!

Mama

I'm Very Proud of Caspian

Yesterday it seems I forgot to close Caspian's cage door when giving everybun their breakfast. Amazingly, he was still in his house when I got home. Mind you, his house is on top of Calvin's two-story bunny condo, so it's quite far off the ground. (Caspian and I are at eye level when I'm standing in front of his house.) Still, Cass doesn't exactly have great common sense, so I was so happy that I didn't find a dead bunny boy on the floor after breaking his neck jumping out or after eating whatever the stuff is in Damp-Rid (which works well to get rid of humidity, by the way).

So, I'm very proud of Caspian. Maybe some lingering effects of wearing those glasses at the Spa Day are in play here....

Mama

Caspian in Wonderland

Photos from the Alice in Wonderland themed Spa Day at Red Door, a Chicago shelter that rescues rabbits and where I adopted Calvin and Jessica. Caspian is so attached to me that I had hoped he'd be a good sport about getting his pictures taken in costumes. His expression says it all, I think.






These two remind me of the Who song "I'm a Boy"




And yes, I told the wonderful ladies doing the photos to dress Cass up in drag, for I knew the pics would be priceless. And they certainly are.

Mama

Stew in Wonderland

Photos from the Alice in Wonderland themed Spa Day at Red Door, a Chicago shelter that rescues rabbits (and where I had adopted Calvin and Jessica). I had to take Stew since he's my white rabbit.

I love this big lug :-)

Mama

Cadence the Floozy

Poor little Cadence doesn't seem to realize that all the attractive boy buns in my warren are all neutered. When I get home, I let her out into a pen to get some exercise, and she is constantly flicking her tail up and down. It's not like when Jessica would wiggle her tail like a duck (when she was being mischievious) - it's more like when a mare "winks" at a stallion, a come-hither of her nether region. I tell her that none of my boys can help her out in that department (and I tell the boys to stay away from that crazy unspayed girl), but of course she can't understand.

She also likes to circle my feet and bite at my ankles when I enter the pen to put her back into her house. I guess when you're in the mood she's in, any attention is good attention.

Mama

Pics of Cadence

Finally, pictures of Cadence. (Pics of Heath, Jake, and DeVille coming soon - want to take them outside in the yard and the weather was spotty all weekend.)




She's 4.4 lbs., so too big to be a Polish. Her face/head doesn't look like those of any Havana buns I've seen, so she's probably a dwarf mix of some sort.




She takes photos really well, posing and holding her look until after the pic is taken.




She's quite the looker. Here's hoping I can find a home for her. If not, she'll join the rest of the crew. :-)

Mama

Cadence is Settling in Well

Cadence (pics coming soon) ate a baby carrot and a few craisins I gave her as a welcome treat last night. She folded the newspaper in her litterbox over the hay. I tried to fix it for her this morning, then got to see her EDS come out. (EDS, as my vet will tell you, stands for Evil Doe Syndrome. She half lunged at me and growled. Not intimidated, I started to pet her, where she started some moans and vocalizations like she was afraid. Poor thing.) She flipped the paper right back where it was, so I gave in and just gave her more hay on top of the paper, and she started munching away on the hay right away.

She learned two lessons today:

1. Mama isn't impressed with my inexperienced displays of EDS.
2. You can't eat hay if it's buried under newspaper, but Mama will give you more on top of the paper.

She was stretched out on top of her salad when I left for work this morning. She takes the phrase "A bed of lettuce" a bit literally. :-)

Mama

Hi, I'm Cadence

Hi. I'm a chocolate dwarf bunny girl who was dumped into someone's backyard garden. Harumph! I'm a sweet girl, and I don't know what I did wrong. Anyway, the guy who found me (I let him catch me pretty easily - I knew there were hawks in the area and didn't want to be anyone's snack) called Mama's landlady, who then called Mama. Mama promised me that she'll either find me a forever home who will value me for the gorgeous girl I am or will keep me herself. I'm letting her see a bit more of my personality, so she'd better polish the diva crown, for I'm gunning for it

Cadence