bunny

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A friend emailed me, saying she'd left a possible seat for my scooter out in my yard. So, I went to check.

I found Chaco, sitting on a log of fire wood, staring intensely at something in the weeds.

It was Ivan, doing something. I slowly walked around front of him and saw he was hugging something in his paws.

Much to my surprise, it was a baby cottontail rabbit!

He'd pulled way too much fur out of its rump and thigh. The area was red and sore.

I took the bunny in.

I swabbed the area with warm water and hydrogen peroxide.

I wrapped the bunny in a slippery scarf, so the wound wouldn't stick. I slid the scarf into the pocket of a waist-length apron. I tied the apron around my chest, over my breasts.

I kept the bunny in the apron until its body temperature had elevated.

Shock is a very common form of death to rabbits.

I emailed my friend to bring me emergency supplies: pine shavings, kitten milk formula, spinach, alfalfa pellets, a vitamin/mineral fortified salt lick, Neosporin.

The supplies arrived within two hours.

I lined a cat carrier with newspaper. I sprinkled pine shavings. I pourd a dish of pellets, hung the salt block and a water bottle and put the bunny inside.

Aside from one, more swab with peroxide solution, I've left it undisturbed for most of the day, to give the shock a chance to wear off.

Bunny's moving around. No legs are broken. No blood from nose or rear.

Bunny's strong and clear eyed.

Now that night's coming, I've swabbed the injury liberally with Neosporin.

I've placed an old soda can box inside, so bunny can sleep in it.

I've brought the cat carrier in out of drafts.

I don't know, for sure, if bunny has eaten anything. Bunny took a bit of water from me earlier, though.

I'm letting Nature do Her work tonight.

If bunny's still alive in the morning, I'll nurse her some more.

But the best thing for bunny is rest, food, inactivity, fresh water and vitamins.

Healing will be slow and a bit painful.

I want bunny to have as little stress or activity as possible, until that tender skin heals.

If bunny looks healthy in a few weeks and capable of self care, I'll ask my friend to take me and bunny up where the other rabbits are, in the wild, where bunny belongs, to be free.

Wild cottontails and jackrabbits are not domesticated rabbits. This bunny won't ever be safe in this city.

Bunny needs to live in Bunny Land, with the other rabbits.

I wish I could keep bunny. I dearly love rabbits.

But I'd have to segregate bunny from my other animals.

And a confined bunny would never really be a happy bunny.

But what a gift!

A dear bunny!