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TH E B U N OL OGIST

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December 2011
In Black & White Myxo campaign Christmas & your bunny Repelling mozzies Presents for your bunny Your bunny & the holidays Life at the Do Hop Inn The 12 days of Christmas when you live with house rabbits

In Black & White


16 December 2011 Herald Sun (Aus)

Christmas & your bunny!


Keep your bunny safe this Christmas!

Check out this great plug for the Melbourne Rabbit Clinic. Thanks Sue for driving past & not knowing what happens at this clinic! You obviously dont have a bunny but we are very glad you were curious! It reads: Sue says she drives past this sign in Ferntree Gully and shes spent months wondering what a rabbit clinic does. Well, we rang them and, amazingly, its a clinic for rabbits. Its the only one in Australia, and possibly the world, which specializes in vet care for rabbits and guinea pigs.

Make sure that your bunny is supervised at all times near the Christmas tree. Rabbits will nibble on tinsel and other decorations that could be harmful to your bunny. Bunnyproof your Christmas lights so no little sharp teeth can nip a plugged in power cord and hurt themselves. Keep presents out of reach of your bunny. Rabbits can easily get tangled up in ribbons and sticky tape. Keep foods and drinks up high and away from your bunny. Many foods and drinks will be toxic to rabbits so better to be safe than sorry. Ensure that bunny is safely out of the way of guests. Not everyone looks down when they walk and could easily step on your bunny.

Myxomatosis Campaign
Its the start of summer and we need your help to remind Mr Joe Ludwig in Canberra that we still want the myxomatosis vaccine for our bunnies. He may have forgotten our beloved bunnies, but we havent!! You can write, email and send him something to remind him of our bunnies (toy bunny, photo, painting, whatever you like!). Joes email joe.ludwig@maff.gov.au

Write to: The Hon Joe Ludwig Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry PO Box 6022 Parliament House CANBERRA ACT 2600

Repelling mozzies
by Karen (www.boingonline.com) At the Do Hop Inn we have a number of water pots and ponds that naturally attract mosquitoes. Before the summer weather hits and the mosquitoes increase in numbers, we have chosen to act on the problem areas so we lessen the chances of a mozzie infestation. Our pond was cleaned out last summer and replaced with new water plants and goldfish. The goldfish in the pond will eat the mosquito larvae so we now dont have to be concerned about the pond. We also installed a pond net so the fish will be safe from the birds. Our water pot is too shallow and small for goldfish so has to be netted to stop the mosquitoes breeding. The net we used is one of those over bed nets. They are very cheap from $2 shops and can be cut into whatever lengths you need.

Presents for your bunny


Fun stuff you can give your bunny for Christmas:

Throw toys or a bunny toy to snuggle with

Treat ball or seagrass chew ball

Our water fountain has also been netted with the same netting as above (cut to size). It just sits on the top so the mosquitoes cant access the water to breed.

Going away?
If you are planning on going away over the summer break, ensure that someone responsible is going to look after your bunny. Never assume that the well meaning neighbours will remember to feed or check your bunny if they are not familiar with rabbits. Its a busy time of the year and they may not think it is important to visit every day or could forget. Never leave a rabbit to free range unattended and go on holiday. Your bunny will be subjected to extreme changes in weather and no protection from insects that spread myxo & calici. Predators lurk at all times and if your bunny is left to fend for itself, you may not come home to a living bunny. If youre looking for someone to look after your bunny whilst you are away, call around pet sitters or call vet clinics to see if they have a list of responsible people. Always ask lots of questions and make sure you choose a person you trust. If youre in Melbourne, The Melbourne Rabbit Clinic has a list of people who board rabbits. You can call them on 9758 9879 but do give lots of notice to the person you call as Christmas is the most busiest time of the year and many could be booked out months in advance. .

And we can always take off the netting when people come over so it doesnt look so odd.

Life at the Do Hop Inn


By Karen (www.boingonline.com)

More Critical Care feeds and some fluids, and fortunately, she was feeling better the next day.

Sick bunnies
In recent weeks, we have had a number of sick buns due to the heavy moulting season. No matter how much fur we removed daily, its still a difficult time of the year and sick bunnies occur. Mr Charlie Bun (left) wasnt feeling well on one day. He didnt want to eat his dinner but his tummy was making a few gurgly noises. A little bit of Critical Care and he was bouncing around and running off with his carrot within a few hours. The next day, however, he was back to feeling unwell again. I was silly to not ensure that he was eating and happy the next day. It is easy to assume that if okay the night before, that the next day they are fine. By the evening he wasnt feeling well at all. He didnt want to eat his greens and Critical Care wasnt fixing him up at quickly as it did the night before. His tummy felt solid and wasnt gurgling much at all. As an angora, I was worried that he was suffering from a blockage of fur. Charlie received Critical Care every 2 hours, fluids under the skin, a little bit of pain relief and some water orally threw a syringe. By 3.30am, I was relieved to feel his tummy had moved and everything was gurgling again. More Critical Care and fluids the next day and further monitoring. Fortunately, by the next day, he was back to his happy self and eating by himself. He was given greens all throughout the day so I knew that he was feeling well. The next night, Tessie wasnt feeling well. Again, not many tummy gurgles and her tummy felt quite firm. She had been moulting badly too and no matter how much fur I removed from her coat, it had caught up with her. This night he didnt want to get up and walk around. His friend Peter (above left) was very concerned (as was I). He didnt want to eat and his tummy wasnt making many noises. He had also been moulting but I think the pain of his joints caused most of his problem. More Critical Care feeds and fluid under the skin, some pain relief and his cartrophen injection and fortunately he was feeling much better the next day. Peter was very cute whilst Ally wasnt well. Peter is devoted to Ally so is always found snuggled up next to him and following him around. When Ally didnt feel well, Peter gave him lots of kisses. When I was trying to give him medication, Peter didnt want me to harm Ally. He would push me away with his nose and nip me gently until I would leave them alone.

Next night, Princess (above) wasnt feeling well. She fortunately only needed a feed of Critical Care and she was back to her happy self. A few nights off from sick bunnies and then Ally wasnt feeling well. Ally (below right) suffers from bad arthritis and he was due for his cartrophen injection (he gets them every 3 weeks for his joints).

Bonding buns
Last month I mentioned that we had been trying to bond Isabelle and Finn together. They did have multiple dates and it went well, however, things never moved forward and there was never any grooming or positive bonding. Both buns loved being patted but, once they were left unsupervised for a few minutes, the relationship was too unstable and one fight broke out.

On the twelfth day of Christmas my bunnies gave to me, Twelve minutes of snuggling, Eleven cordless lights, Ten nose nudges Nine gnawed on packages, Eight big arm scratches, Finn (left) & Isabelle meet face to face Seven sweet kisses, Six bunny binkies, Five big THUMPS, Four vet bills, Three chin rubs, Two chewed cords, & a pile of bunny poop under the tree.

Isabelle & Finn share a meal together Isabelle is a hard bunny to read. She seems to want a friend but her socialising skills are a bit strange. She nips instead of grooms. She is a big girl and she has to be watched when trying to show her domination. She humped Finn once and flattened him. This, in turn, caused Finn to become very upset. He then tried to bite her. The photos above look good but sometimes you just know it may be best to give both buns a bit of time out. So we are now introducing Finn to Tinkerbelle to see if that could be a better match.

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