Birthday Bunnies

So. 22^nd of July.

My Birthday.

I have done a lot of things on my birthday, from spending it in a doctor’s office to try and determine how badly my hand is broken, to cycling through the woods outside Aberdeen in Scotland. I’ve had good birthdays and bad birthdays but never, ever have I been peed on by a baby bunny. I had wanted to write a post, telling you about what I have gotten for my birthday, but instead I thought I’d put that one on hold till the end of the week and rather tell you about Joey and Matthew.

They are not bunnies actually, but little tiny rabbits – by my guess about 2 weeks old, maybe as old as three but no more. They were rescued by my Other Half after their mother had been killed. Other Half shared the duty of feeding them with a friend, but unfortunately the friend is ill, and the duty fell on Other Half alone. Now, my Other Half is SuperPerson, but unfortunately, doesn’t have a lot of experience in baby animal rearing. So, when I saw them in the back of the car today, I figured that I might as well act as substitute aunt until things settled a bit in Other Half’s life. My nurturing instincts were flying through the roof, (I JUST WANT TO HOLD THEM!) and the only way to get them back in hand was to get it out of my system. So, when Other Half left, I leapt onto the internet, righted all the wrongs, and set about babysitting the bunnies.

What Have I Learned?

Baby rabbits can be fed on Kitten Milk Replacer, a very common milk powder that you can buy at any vet. They only need to be fed twice a day (though in the beginning, it’s easier to feed them a little more) with the following feeding guidelines:

Newborn to 1 week of age: 2.5cc/ml per day.
1 to 2 week of age: 5-7cc/ml per day.
2-3 weeks of age: 7-13cc/ml per day.
3-6 weeks of age: 13-15cc/ml per day.

At 3 to 6 weeks, its important to start introducing your baby rabbit to oat pellets and hay (roughage) so that you can wean them at about 6 weeks of age.

What Have I Experienced?

Pure, female hormone overload. I am way to broody for my own good. But, in general, I have to say, that of all the animals I’ve had reared (lion, chimpanzee and sheep alike…) these are (so far) the easiest to feed. Although small, it’s easy to master the technique of putting the tiny spout of the 1cc injection that I use into their mouths. If you have two, all the better, they keep each other warm!

The Best Part?

Both of them peed on me tonight. Now, some of you might find this weird but to me, it’s a great sign that they are no longer dehydrated! 😀 I like baby rabbits, even if they make me smell, lol.

And my Birthday?

Super.
Some days just flow so well, like a set of traffic lights that only give you green on your journey. I have learned today that I am very fortunate and very very lucky with my friends. I love them all dearly, because they have gone to great lengths to make this day absolutely wonderful for me.
So, thank you to all my friends. To my Other Half and, to the bunnies, for showing me that pleasure can be found in simple, smelly things. 😉

Alyssa

Jenn’s Birthday Gift

Among my NaSty Nine Plus One friends, we have a tradition of giving each other stories for our birthday. You might have noticed the two entries for Witch Appreciation Week and Demon Appreciation Week. Well, for my birthday it was Vampire Appreciation Week (because I do like my Ivy…) and my friend Jenn gave me this story. Not having a blog of her own, I told her I’d host it here. J Needless to say, I love it! Thank you very much Jenn, it’s the best birthday party ever!!

A Party for Alyss.

With the envelope in her hand, Jenn stepped into the NaSty transporter and beamed herself to South Africa to surprise Alyss.

*ding dong*

After giving the doorbell a quick ring, Jenn hid her hands behind her back and waited.
 
“I’ll get it! It’s my birthday!” Jenn could hear Alyssa yell through the door. The running footsteps faded into silence and the door swung wide open. On the other side of the thresh hold, Alyss stood with her mouth haning open. “Jenn?”
 
Grinning like a Cheshire cat, Jenn held both arms out with the envelope in one and said in a sing song voice “Happy Birthday!” And with a resounding “Omph!” she found herself landing on her ass when Alyss tackled her.
 
“Oh my god, oh my god, OH MY GOD!” Sitting up on top of her friend, Alyss squeals, “What are you doing here?!”

Gasping for breath, Jenn held out the envelop.

Sliding off to one side, Alyss took the envelop & ripped it open. As she scanned the contents of the card inside, her eyes went wide. “We’re having a party in the R/I club for my birthday? Really?” Scrambling to her feet, she quickly held out her hands to Jenn to help her fellow NaSty to her feet. “Awesome! Let’s go!”

“Um, Alyss, you might want to tell your mum you’re going out and close the door.”

“Right.” With a big grin on her face, Alyss turned back to the house and did just that. After pulling the door close, she turned back to Jenn and queried, “Ready?”

And with no further ado, the two NaSties, headed back to the transporter.

* * *
Meanwhile in the R/I Club house, the rest of the NaSties; along with a few special guests; were getting the place decorated. There was a rainbow of balloons arching over the doors to the patio, streamers hung from the ceiling and confetti on the table tops.

Each of the NaSties brought something yummy to eat and it was spread out on the table. Tony brought some vegetarian lasagna, Ryan a Caesar salad, Tiffany nachos, Suzi, humus, Mud a veggie, cheese & crackers tray, Marsha brownies, Aheila a fancy French torte, Jenn a chocolate fountain and Kylie everything to drip in the fountain!

Around another table stood Minias, Beej and Al. They were in charge of the drinks but wouldn’t let anyone else see. Coffee could be smelled, but that was about it.

“Please tell me there is something on that table besides coffee,” called Kylie. The only response was a wave of a hand and one thumbs up.

Up in the streamers hung from the ceiling, all of Jenks kids were playing tag. Jenks himself was on lookout duty at the front door for Jenn & Alyss. Back in the corner by the fridge, was Ivy and Rachel getting the last of the candles put into the birthday cake.

As they turned to face the room, Rachel reached up and brushed some flour off Ivy’s cheek.

With a muttered thanks, Ivy scanned the room to make sure everything was in place. As she watched, the patio doors opened to admit Other Half who had gone to get Kim. “Sorry we’re running so late, I had to get get an email off to my editor before the end of the day.” Kim explained.

“Hey, hey! The gangs all here.” Kylie sang. “Ohmigosh! The music! We forgot to turn on the music!” With a quick leap, she was over to the CD player and Takata’s voice came blaring out.

“Woops!” Kylie quickly turned the volume down, just in time to hear Jenks rub his wings together.

“They’re here!” Jenks called and quickly shot up to herd his kids to the middle of the room.

As all the NaSties and special guests gathered in the middle of the room, Rachel used her magic to light the candles as Ivy picked up the cake. Then they too turned to face the door.

* * *

As they popped into the DS page and made their way towards the R/I Clubhouse, Alyss whispered, “I can’t believe that you guys went to all this trouble for my birthday.”

Pushing Alyss ahead of her, Jenn rolled her eyes. “Oh please, we’re NaSties. What better excuse to get together than another NaSties birthday!”

Once they got to the front door, Jenn reached around Alyss and pushed it open.

“Happy Birthday, Alyssa!” everyone chorused from inside.

With a quick move, Jenn was infront of Alyss, pulling her in. “Come on, hun, let’s go party!”