Friday Foster(s) - Wendy & Waldo
Finally, you get to meet Wendy & Waldo! These two laid-back house rabbits are what we in the rabbit rescue world like to call a “bonded pair”, which means that while they are spayed and neutered, they are housed together. Bonded pairs can become despondent when separated, so Indiana HRS will only adopt them to a home where they can stay together. Naturally, since most people are hesitant to take on more than one rabbit at a time it can be very hard to find a home for pairs.
Wendy was originally rescued from a neglect situation in Paragon, Indiana in 2004. She was being housed in a wire-bottomed cage beneath other rabbits (also in wire-bottomed cages) — the feces and urine were piled pretty high, and she and the other rabbits on the bottom were covered in urine stains. Other rabbits from that rescue had god-awful ear mites, upper respiratory infections, and toenails a mile long. It took a while for Wendy to come around to people in general, but today she’s a very sweet, outgoing, affectionate rabbit.
Waldo was actually born in foster care. We were called in April of 2004 to capture a white rabbit that had been spotted in a northside neighborhood. She presented us with a litter before we could schedule her for a spay — I can’t remember how many babies there were, but Waldo must look like his daddy, because Mary Alice — his mom — is pure white. Waldo was so named for the “W” that spreads across the top of his head as he sheds. Which is constantly. Fortunately his gray fur sort of blends with everything.
Wendy & Waldo were adopted into a pairing situation in late 2005, but were returned in 2006. The family that adopted them really didn’t set Wendy & Waldo up for success… they were allowing the children to be the primary caregivers, despite all our education to the contrary. Children simply cannot — and should not — be primary caregivers for animals. They aren’t intuitive enough to know when something subtle is wrong, and for prey animals especially this can be a death sentence. Prey animals hide their symptoms well so as not to appear weak, and by the time symptoms of illness are visible it can be too late. Anyway, they moved in here, with me, and they’ve been with me now for almost two years. These two are my “bedroom bunnies”, and they keep me company in my room. They love their playtime, although Waldo, who is more timid, prefers to be where he can see Wendy at all times. She’s his protector.
If you’re interested in information about adopting Wendy & Waldo, or any other Indiana HRS adoptables, please visit our website at www.indianahrs.org. You will also find information about upcoming events in the state.
Filed under friday foster, photos, rabbits | Comments (3)Friday Foster - Claudia & Miriam
Welcome back to the Friday Foster series! This week I’d like to introduce you to a couple of hip chicks — Claudia and Miriam. These girls are purebred lionhead rabbits, for whatever that’s worth. I don’t believe in measuring the worth of an animal by whether or not it’s purebred. Every rabbit is different, and these two are certainly no exception.
Claudia and Miriam were adopted by another Indiana HRS fosterer almost a year ago, but were returned to foster care when their new “mom” died tragically in a car accident just a month later. The girls have been waiting to find a forever home since then, and are hoping to be adopted soon.
Claudia is the more reserved of the pair, though she becomes more outgoing when her sister is in close proximity. With her “feathered” hair, she’s quite a glamour girl, don’t you think?
Miriam is the nosy bird, always interested to see what’s going on? What are you doing? Whatcha up to? Can you stop to pet me? She obviously gives her sister confidence… they’re pretty sweet together, and will make some lucky person, or family, very happy.
If you’re interested in information about adopting Claudia and Miriam, or any other Indiana HRS adoptables, please visit our website at www.indianahrs.org. You will also find information about upcoming events in the state.
Next week… more bunnies! Believe me, I could go on with this forever. And maybe I’ll actually do Wendy and Waldo, since I keep saying they’re next. You’ll have to tune in to see.
Friday (or Sunday) Foster - Lucky
I completely forgot about my Friday Foster feature! I’m a dolt. I was so wrapped up in the new phone and getting it set up just so… but not to worry. Lucky is the Friday Foster this week.
Lucky was originally rescued from a shelter where he had spent several months just waiting for the right person, or family, to come along. He was adopted out to a family with children a couple of years ago, and returned to Indiana House Rabbit Society a few months ago. We do a lot of education with every adopter, and sometimes it just doesn’t click… it’s unfortunate that it took this family two years to realize that a rabbit wasn’t the right type of pet for them. At any rate, Lucky is one of my foster rabbits, so I can tell you from personal experience that he is a clown!
He loves play time, when he gets to come out and have his way in the rabbit room. He does crazy leaps and twists in the air, which we bunny people call “binkies”. He loves to dig and shred, so he gets lots of old phone books to play with — they satisfy that natural urge for him and save my flooring, all at the same time. He just went through a huge bundle of apple sticks in record time, courtesy of our friend Amy, taking all the bark off each one of them before moving on to the next twig.
Lucky is also an affectionate rabbit. He loves attention, and he’ll dig at you and grunt and growl until he gets it, but he only wants to be petted. One night last week I was sitting on the floor with him, and he just flopped himself down in a big bunny puddle right beside me so I could lavish attention on him. I really felt bad when I finally had to get up… he’s just so sweet.
If you’re interested in information about adopting Lucky, or any other Indiana HRS adoptables, please visit our website at www.indianahrs.org. You will also find information about upcoming events in the state.
Filed under friday foster, rabbits | Comment (0)
