She's Mine!

I defy any of you to look at these pictures and not say “aaaaaahhhhhh”. Here you can see my bunnies, Rocco and Ashley (the blue/grey female in the background), who are currently living it up large with their professional bunny-sitter Liesbeth in Eindhoven, Holland. They are in the pen on the right – on the left is one of Liesbeth’s own bunny kids saying hi. Or more likely: “I’d bite your face off and take your woman if this stupid fence wasn’t in the way”.

All bunnies tend to think they have the build of a rottweiller, the speed of a cheetah, and the jaws of a lion when it comes to defending their territory. In reality, when challenged by another bunny they stomp around uttering piggish grunts, flicking their big floppy ears and generally looking like a very angry piece of shagpile carpet.

As you can see these are outdoor bunnies. I know there is some debate about whether rabbits should be kept outdoors but it comes down to common sense. If you are going to leave your rabbit locked up in a hutch in the back garden to swelter in the sun and freeze in the cold and lead an isolated life, that’s a cruel and stupid thing to do. Bring it inside and enjoy a fascinating friendship with these active and highly sociable little guys. However if you’re going to construct a large, safe enclosure with shelter and room to run and leap and dig and socialise with their mate, let your bunnies live outside! (Obviously this is climate dependent: here in Singapore the heat and humidity make it unsuitable to keep rabbits outside. There are no naturally wild rabbits here, only dumped ex-pets who soon die from dehydration, starvation, or being eaten by snakes if they aren’t rescued in time. Again, common sense should prevail.)

Rocco and Ashley love to get their paws dirty by digging holes, moving them around the pen day by day just for the fun of it. They jump on haybales, leap in and out of their sleeping quarters, or just lounge in the sun or shade as the mood takes them. What a life. Just when you think it can’t get any better… Liesbeth comes along and gives them a piece of toast for breakfast. Bunny bliss.

If you live in Holland or Belgium and would like to consider adopting one or a pair of rabbits who need a good home, check out the website for Liesbeths rabbit rescue centre at this link: http://www.opvangfranky.nl/, or just check it out for lots of really useful bunny info.