Wagging

I've noticed throughout the years different rabbits occasionally flicking their tails in a manner which appears similar to when a dog wags.  I never really thought much of it.  However, the past few weeks I've noticed a few particular rabbits doing quite a bit of 'wagging'.  

Above is my Flemish Giant female, Pumpkin.  Below is my Lop female, Olive.  These two have been my main tail waggers lately.  I thought maybe they were eager to breed.  Usually when females live with other bunnies and they're ready to breed, they become somewhat aggressive, humping everything and everyone.  But I wasn't sure about tail wagging.  Especially with Pumpkin, as she lives by herself.  After looking it up, I saw that tail wagging in rabbits is a sign of excitement. 

Everything I read pointed to happy rabbits, eagerly awaiting either their food or a treat of some kind.   I then went out to feed all of my bunnies.  And while I took out their food bowls and was scooping their feed into it, I noticed their tails wagging as they watched, or while they jumped happily around their cage.

Even after a few years of raising, I'm still learning new things about my rabbits all the time.  And for the fact that rabbits wag their tails in joy is really sweet.  And every time I see one do it, it puts a smile on my face to know they're happy and looking forward to their dinner. 

Flemish Male

I decided since the only Flemish Giant male I have is Rhett Jr, that I would keep another male.  That male happened to be this albino from Ruby's last litter.  

I didn't name him, as I kept going back and forth as to whether or not I was really going to keep him. I loved his coloring, his broad head, and his sweet disposition; but wasn't sure if I really wanted another male. 

However, I currently have 6 female Flemish Giants.  And if I ever wanted to breed more Flemish Giants than just one, I wouldn't be able to having just one male.   And because of that, the decision to keep this fellow became definite. 

All that was left was for me to pick a name.  However, I just couldn't seem to find one that I liked or that suited him.  When talking about it to my mom, she suggest naming him the "Mad Hatter."  And with suggestion, I now have a very handsome Flemish male named Mad Hatter. 

Lionhead Names

The other day I finally named all my Lionheads (male and female) and got pictures of them today. 

First up is my Orange VM female.  Her mother is Tasha and her father is Phantom.  She's 1 of 4 females that I kept from Tasha's last litter.  Her name is Damara.   Damara means "Gentle" and fits her perfectly as she's a very sweet, gentle female.  When people come to see my bunnies, I always bring her out for them. 

Damara also has really beautiful eyes, as both of them are brown on the top and blue on the bottom.

Then this is Damara's sister, from the same litter.  She's a Chocolate Tort and very sweet.  Definitely the smallest female in the litter and a little on the petite side.  Her name is Fawn.  I picked it simply because her coloring has a fawn hue to it and when I think of a fawn, I think of a baby deer. 

This is Damara and Fawn's sister, also from the same litter.  Her stunning markings and beautifully bold, blue eyes made her a definite keeper from the beginning.  She's the largest in her litter and very noble in stature.  Her name is Raine, meaning "Queen" or "Warrior".   Her proud appearance made her the perfect candidate for the name. 

Then the last of the 4 sister, this beautiful Black Tort VM female.  She looks the most like their mother, Tasha.  Because of this, I actually chose the name Natasha for her.  The biggest difference between the two is Natasha has white on her nose, while Tasha does not. 

Then this Blue VM female is the daughter of Rosie and Phantom.  Rosie passed away when her litter was about 3 weeks old.  So I bottle fed them and raised them in our basement.  This female was the only girl to survive, all the others that lived were males.  So I kept this girl in memory of her sweet mother and named her in her memory as well.  This is Rosie II.

This is my first BEW (Blue Eyed White) Lion Head ever.  So when she was old enough to sex and I found out she was female, I decided to keep her.  Her mother is Misty and her father is Phantom.  Both of her parents have blue eyes.  She's extremely solid, but petite in her build.  And she has a little attitude to go along with it.  But over all, she's a good bunny.  Her name is Pebbles.  This is because pebbles are tiny rocks, and this bunny is a tiny bunny.  So the name seemed appropriate. 

This is Pebbles' brother.  Like her, he has blue eyes.  He's a broken Tort color with a small mane.  When he was little, his mane was beautiful. But his litter mates pulled most of it out.  His name is Napoleon.   I picked this because he's a very small bunny, similar to my old Piccolo.  Plus, he's got a real attitude at times, and Napoleon somewhat fits with the other male Lionheads names (Zeus and Phantom.)

Then this is my Blue Tort female.  Her mother is Neptune and her father is once again, Phantom.  She is never in the mood to be picked up, but once you're holding her, she's happy to cuddle in your arms. I named her Zina.  Zina means "Beautiful" and "Strong."  She got sick when she was only a few weeks old, but with the aid of herbs, she pulled through! So "Strong" fits perfectly and I think she's adorable, hence the name Zina. 

I must confess, rabbits that are all white, no matter their eye color, are really hard to get pictures of.  The camera (especially when they're really fuzzy) just doesn't know where to focus.  So while it's not the best photo of the female below, it is one of the clear ones.  This pure albino is the daughter of my female Kizzy and male Phantom.   From a different litter, Kizzy had another albino female that I named Marshmallow.  Marshmallow ended up being sold, although I ended up regretting it.  So when Kizzy had another litter with another albino female, I decided to name her Marshmallow II.

Then from the same litter as Marshmallow II, came her sister, a Black VM female.  With Kizzy and Phantom as her parents, this little girl had a gorgeous coat.  However, the rabbits she was sharing a cage with aided in ripping it out.  She had been sold, but was brought back about a month later as the couple lived in an apartment and their landlord discovered this bunny.  He gave the couple the weekend to find her a new home or he would evict them.  So they brought her back.  I believe they had named her Emma.  However, I changed her name.  She is now Koko.  This name means "Black." And with her gorgeous coat, I thought it was a perfect fit. 

Then last but not least, my Calico female with blue eyes.  She's the sister of Pebbles and Napoleon.  Like her two siblings, she's solid but petite.  She definitely has a feisty side to her.  She just got her own cage as she was pulling fur from Pebbles' sides.  While her mother is Misty and her father is Phantom, this little girl only has a single mane.  Her name is Iris.  I chose this name from mythology, the goddess of the rainbow's name is Iris.  And since this little girl is so colorful, I felt it was a perfect fit.

I still have to name my Albino Flemish Giant male from Ruby's litter, along with his broken Tort sister.  Although I'm not sure if I want to keep her or sell her.  However, for the current time, I'm definitely keeping the male.

Rabbity ~ Jan. 2017

It's been a little bit and my rabbitry is looking quite different!

My old bench with the sink has been completely demolished.  You can actually see the old sink on the ground, next to this new little bench.  It is much smaller, however the bottom section to hold tools and such is really nice! But I do miss being able to use it as a structure for a cage or two.  In front of the bench (I forgot to take a picture of it) is my herb garden.  Being winter, it's all mainly dead, but today I raked all the dead leaves out of it and consequently, it's looking much better!

Some of my hutches, all lined up and in a row! 

Then my newer hutches, lining the top of our garden area currently.  In this location, the hutches get a lot of sun, which is particularly nice during these colder months.  This spring I'm hoping to paint them so they match the others. 

We've been going through lots of hay to help keep the bunnies warm this winter, as you can tell by all the extra on the ground.  

And in this picture, you can see all 3 structures.  The middle one will also be painted to match the other 2 this spring. 

This structure, holding all my Lion Heads.  The tarps lying on the ground in front of each structure goes up in the evenings or on windy days to help keep the warm and safe. 

The middle structure is holding all my Lops. 

And then the last structure is holding my Flemish Giants.  Beside that structure are 2 of my 3 Velveteen Lops.  

Currently in the hutches there are a few 'odd ball' bunnies, however most of them are empty.  From my mixed breeds, I only have Dustin and Buttons left to sell and if all goes well, they will be going to their new homes tomorrow afternoon. 

Lop Names

After quite a few months and still not having named the Lop females I'm raising up, I finally managed to pick names that I think fit each bunny rather well.

First up, my broken Chocolate colored female.  Her mother was Bonnie who passed away when the litter was only a few weeks old.  Luckily though, my Giant Flemish female, Dadooshka only had a litter of 5, and was able to take the entire litter and raise them up.  Her father is Bruce.  And her name is Eva, meaning "Living One."  I thought it suited her well since she was able to survive, being raised by another female after her mother passed.

Next up, my broken Blue female.  Her mother is Cupcake, my very first female Lop of any breed to own.  And her father is Gorman, my BEW (Blue Eyed White) male.  I absolutely love her ears, how they look like they're blue that's been dipped in some white paint.  Her name is Olive.  The olive branch is a symbol of peace.  Since this particular female is very peaceful and sweet, I felt Olive was an appropriate name for her. 

This sweet girl is one of 3 sisters which I kept.  Her mother is Cora, one of Cupcake's daughters.  And her father is Gorman.  She almost sold this summer, but the people who looked at her bought 2 of her sisters instead.  I was really glad when they didn't pick her, after having debated back and forth as to whether or not I wanted to keep her.  I named her Myra.  Myra means "peace" and "wonderful".   She's very sweet and so this name fits her perfectly!

Myra, as you can see from the picture below, has one eye that's marbled.  It's mainly blue with a little brown on the top to create a beautiful eye.  Her other eye is completely blue. 

Then here's Myra's sister from the same litter, same parents.  I knew from the beginning that I was keeping her, especially when her eyes opened and I saw how beautiful a blue they were.  Her name is Hope, simply because she's a really sweet bunny and Hope just seemed a suitable name.

And the last of the 3 sisters, is this beautiful broken Blue female.  She, like her sisters Myra and Hope, has blue eyes.  I named her Charity.  This name means "Dear" or "Beloved".   She was a definite keeper from the day she was born.  Her beautiful markings and colors, plus her wonderful disposition made it a no brainer.  

And just as before, she still loves standing on her hind legs for pictures! Only today, she kept looking all around, basically anywhere but at the camera.  :)

So finally, after quite a few months, all my Lop females have been named and have been made sections in my rabbit book for Spring breeding. 

Another Blog

Quite awhile ago, I actually set up a second blog for rabbits.  More of a 'professional' looking blog to direct serious buyers to.

On this blog, I have individual sections for the specific rabbit breeds I have with pictures and other information, as well as sections for rabbits that are for sale, extra supplies I have available for sale, a sales policy and a contact page.

When I put rabbits up for sale, I can attach the link for this 'second blog' and people can immediately see whatever it is they're looking for, whether it's a Double Maned Lion Head, Mini Lop, whatever.  They can easily find the information.

However this blog is my main focus.  I will continue to post as often as I can on this blog.  And will still try to keep it updated as much as possible in the 'for sale' section on this blog.   Anyway, if you're interested in checking it out, here's a link: http://pennsylvanianrabbits.blogspot.com

Thanks!

Mr. Molly

A few days ago I sold my first male rabbit ever, Oreo.  Then today, I sold my other Black/White male, Bull.  And while that put me down 2 bunnies, a friend of ours at church asked if we would take in their cousin's Lop bunny.

We said yes and picked up Molly today...

After bringing her home, I decided I'd check her and discovered that Molly is actually a boy!

And well, we instantly began calling him Mr. Molly :)  However, his officially name is Mr. Charlie Molly.

And considering that he's an unfixed, one-year-old male, he's beyond laid-back! While I was originally excited to get another girl, I'm still happy to have him and I think he'll be a nice addition to spring breeding in a few months.

I believe he's a Mini Lop, and other than him, I only have Bruce to breed with my Mini Lop females. One of my Mini Lops, Eva, is Bruce's daughter.  So it will be very nice having Charlie here to breed with some of the females. 

Cayenne Pepper

Yes, this is a rabbit post with spices in it.  No, this is not a recipe.  :)

My sister noticed that this particular female had fresh blood on one of her front, right paw.  She brought her inside where I was able to look at it.  Turns out, one of her nails broke off, causing the quick (section holding the blood supply) to start bleeding. 

I was able to use an old and easy trick I learned since owning dogs. 

Just take a little bit of cayenne pepper (also known as Red Pepper) and put it on the cut. The cayenne coats the cut and causes the blood to the equalize, usually under a minute.  This stops any extra flow of blood to the cut, allowing the blood to clot easily and quickly. 

And the great thing about cayenne pepper, it's easy to find in stores and inexpensive.  It's always a good idea to keep on hand, just in case.  And incase you're wondering about possible infections caused by cayenne pepper in a cut, you'll be happy to hear that it's actually a strong disinfectant which aids in keeping the cut or wound from any infection setting in.