Independence Day

Independence Day...July 4th.  What does this day mean to me personally? Well...it represents something that was hard fought and won by my ancestors.  It's here to reminds us that freedom is NOT free because of our brave. 

People who live in America and are raised in this current era don't realize just how amazing their lives are because of all the toil and hardships their ancestors went through.  The wars that were fought to win our freedom and the ability to live our own lives as we see fit.

Freedom is a gift that is taken lightly in America today, but should not be.  America is a unique country in how much freedom each individual has and the rights they have just for being a person.  While we take it for granted, America is an amazing country that was truly founded as a nation under God.

I'd like for you to just look at these pictures of past American pride as we've proved to pull through each situation thrown at us as a nation.

 

 

 

 

So to conclude? What exactly does the 4th of July mean to me? It means freedom which was hard earned, family, unity, strength, and most importantly...faith.  After all, "In God We Trust".

 

Feeding Fodder

Feeding my rabbits is an occurrence that happens every single day.  Something that my rabbits love eating and keeps their food bill down is fodder.  Now, if you don't know what fodder is, let me shed a little light on the situation.

(Fodder trays with fodder inside of them)

Fodder is actually barley seed which has been soaked for a 24 hour period in water and then grown for a few days to a week.  This gives your rabbits a nice quantity of food.  They can eat the whole thing, seeds, roots and grassy top!  The roots all intertwine, forming a kind of mat. 

(Fodder should look green and lush, like in this picture)

 Since we've been using fodder, I've cut the amount of pellets I feed my rabbits down by 75%!  Not only that, but my rabbits would rather eat the fodder than their pellets!  Consequently, all pregnant females and/or mothers with litters always get pellets. However, males and litter-less females who aren't pregnant only get pellets every other day.  They do, however, all get fodder every single day.

 

Here are some pictures of a few of my litters eating the fodder...

 

(This is Pumpkin with her litter)

 

(These 4 babies were Nutmeg's litter)

 

(This is Buttons with her 2 remaining boys)

 

(This is Dadooshka with her litter)

 

 

(This is Cottontail with her current litter)

 

 

 

And that's all there is to it! Fodder grows within a few days, so it's extremely easy to grow and a 100 pound bag of barley seeds is only $15!  Now, some rabbits will like the top better and others will like the roots better.  Don't worry though if they don't eat the whole thing.  All in all, it's just a great way to cut down on feed costs!

 

Oh and by the way...my camera dried out and works great! :) 

 

 

 

 

Backyard Water Fun...Part 2

Well...the water fight happened and is now over.  It started out tame enough. We each had a bucket full of water balloons that my sister and brother had filled up and separated by color.

 

 

The porch looked like a bomb full of confetti had exploded and by the end of the water fight, so did the backyard!

 

 

There were little pieces of colorful plastic everywhere! We spent a good 10 minutes at the end doing nothing but cleaning them up. 

 

Well...it was all very tame in the beginning...until the rule about not using the hose was broken about 5 minutes after starting.  However, it definitely made it MUCH more fun! If we were judging the winner of our water fight by whoever got the least about of water balloons smacked into them...then I definitely lost. 

 

We all had a great time...win or lose, it was definitely fun--and cold!  The hose is hooked up to our well which is filled by the water that comes off the top of the mountain.  It was nice and refreshing!

 

 

 

We had people constantly trying to steal the hose because the one with the hose was definitely the 'temporary winner' of the games.  

 

After about half and hour, we began filling buckets full and chucking them onto each other.  It was really fun!  Even later after we'd finished and I went to water the rabbits, my siblings continued to spray each other with the hose and chase each other around the yard.  

 

 

So...even if you cannot go to the dollar store and get stuff like water balloons and all that stuff; you can still have a great time! Besides, the most fun we had was just with the hose and buckets.  So, anyone can have an awesome time with simple things like water and friends :)  

 

And well...I'd have more pictures for you, but my camera got soaked on the porch during the water fight and it's currently drying out now.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it will still work!

 

 

Backyard Water Fun...Part 1

Well...if you're bored there's nothing better to cure that then a trip to the Dollar Store! My brother and mom went there this morning and got us a bunch of stuff to make our afternoon a little more interesting than usual...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My younger sister's outside right now filling water balloons up!  Shortly we're going to have a BIG water fight to help keep cool in this 90 degree heat...we shall see who wins this battle soon... :) 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Angel's Litter Update

Tomorrow Angel's 6 babies will be exactly 5 weeks old!  My brother helped me take some pictures of them...although I must apologize as the pictures were taken inside and didn't turn out the best.  However, here are the babies as of today!

 

These little white albino's are both females.  My mom really likes the smaller girl, so she named her Pocahontas and we're going to keep her.  We had a hard time getting photo's as they are all very active and curious!

 

 

 

Then there are 2 spotted ones.  The black and white is a female and the grey and white is a male.

 

 

 

 

Then last but not least are the other 2.  The black one is a female and the greyish/brownish one is a male.

 

 

 

 

 

And there you have it! They're growing quickly every day.  Their father was Rhett and as you can tell, the little black female definitely looks like him.  The one grey and white just leapt out of his cage while I was writing this post! They are definitely becoming more and more curious with each passing day! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Infant Rabbit Care

Now, we've all heard the saying "They multiple like rabbits!" or "They breed like rabbits!".   And anyone who raises rabbits will know only how true that saying really is.  However, while lots of females have their babies and take care of them; there are quite a few different situations which might cause something to happen to your baby rabbits.

 

First off, infant rabbits are actually called 'Kits'.  As I've mentioned before, the kits are born blind, deaf, and bald.  This means they are extremely vulnerable and helpless. 

Quite a few times if your pregnant female isn't in a hutch when giving birth, there are bound to be a few babies who were born on the wire and not in the nesting-box.  At this point, the kits lose heat rapidly and can also get stuck in the wire. 

Kits need to be kept around 90 degrees at this stage in life.  On the wire, they will freeze extremely quickly. 

You will need to know a formula that you can give to the kits while they're away from their mother.

Always remember though, you are NOT taking over the position of the mother with feeding the babies, therefore never give the kits a lot of formula.

You still want the mother to be the main provider of milk for the young kits. 

If the kits eyes are still closed (meaning they are younger then 10 days)  then you should only give them a few drops of formula at a time.  Kits stomachs are very small and therefore are easily and quickly filled.  Over-feeding the kit could cause the kits stomach to explode and the kit would die.

A good formula that has worked for us every time we needed it was the following recipe:

   1 C. Evaporated Milk

   1 Table spoon Corn Syrup

   1 Egg Yolk

Mix that up and you've got the perfect formula to feed your kits. 

As shown in this picture, the mother should have built a nest for her kits out of her fur and/or whatever else you've given her to help add to her nest. 

Once your kits hit 10 days old (or when their eyes open) they are then no longer considered infants, but 'toddlers'.  And well, once you hit that stage, you no longer have infant rabbits to care for. 

So to recap; only help the mother feed with a syringe/straw and only a few drops for each kit.  Make sure they stay warm and when feeding them, it's always helpful to hold them in a towel of sorts so that you can keep them from wiggling out!