An Update

[Bianca]

I thought I would post an update on Terry, since losing Ogg on Thursday. Terry has been fairly quiet, particularly yesterday when he didn’t eat or poo much. He mostly just sat on top of “his” drawers and occasionally chewed the chew toys I put up there for him. He also ate a few celery leaves because they are his favourite. But he perked up every time I was in the room. He would start to groom himself.

Then I pretended to eat some food with him, and he immediately stared eating. He got through a stick of celery, and a bok choy leaf. Then he threw the rest away and for the first time ever headbutted my hand for pats. He started to doze off with me patting him.

Later I picked him up and sat him on my lap for a cuddle. I never hold him there, but he seems to like to stay provided I am patting him. He demanded more pats when I stopped, and then stomped at me angrily when I had to get up to check tea.

By bed time he was eating and pooping more again, which was a relief. This morning he has eaten and pooped a lot, although is still more active and relaxed when I’m in the room.

And my other piece of news – I may have found a new friend for Terry. I wasn’t planning to go out and just get another rabbit. But I knew I might soon have to for Terry’s sake. I had a look at RSPCA site the other day to see what they had. Normally they have a few up. Usually medium sized mix breed males. To my shock, the only rabbit they had up was a 2yo female Netherland Dwarf! I thought that was such a coincidence so soon after losing Ogg. So of course I had to at least go meet her.

Good thing I did too. They were just removing her from sale because her eye had swollen that morning. They had just contacted their vet, but let me meet her because they remembered me from adopting Terry and knew I could take care of a rabbit who turns out has been there a while and is quite scared of being handled. I have her on hold, pending a specialist seeing her eye this week. If she and Terry don’t get along I can keep them separated so that’s fine.

As for her eye. Apparently when they got her they thought she just had a cut on it. But the morning I came it had swelled up – the eye looked much larger than it should. And I noticed more of a white blotch on her eye rather than a cut. So she is withdrawn from sale and awaiting a specialist. The RSPCA have promised to call me when they know more. Fingers crossed her eye is treatable and when all is well I can offer her a safe home!

And if all goes really well I’m hoping she can bond with Terry. I’m sure I won’t be lucky and have another​ instant bonding like with Ogg and Terry. But at this stage it’s just a matter of wait and see. And spend lots of time with Terry. It’s sad to see him grieving, but good to see his confidence blossoming around people.

I’ll update here when I know more.

[jerseygirl]

Thanks for the update, Bianca. He sounds like such a sweet rabbit. It’s so good he’s responded well to your attention. I think that can help us with dealing with loss too, especially when they are allowing cuddles.

Im really happy to hear you are looking into a friend for him. Got my fingers crossed that you can adopt her and the eye issue is sorted out. Some things do come to mind (especially with her being a Nethie) so hopefully they can find the source of the problem. If she has to have the eye removed, her having a bond mate like Terry would be wonderful for her, imo.

I actually do think you might get another swift bond!!

[Bianca]

What eye issues come to mind? I love the breed but am no expert on them. It’s a long weekend here so I probably wont hear back for a couple of days. I really hope I don’t have to wait too long for news though! It’s great that she will get whatever vet care she needs before coming to me though.

I do hope they bond. The RSPCA seemed a bit doubtful that Cherub (the nethie) will want to bond with another rabbit but I told them I can keep them separate if need be. I would prefer a bond though, and Terry is super friendly, which helps. Fingers crossed anyway!

I spent some more time with Terry this morning. We got out the old skateboard that we had to confiscate from him not long after getting him because he kept riding it into the wall quite hard. That cheered him up, he spent a good 10 minutes jumping on and off it and making it move. We also gave him the cat scratch post now that the cats aren’t using it. So he is slowly checking that out. He loves climbing and jumping and this one is perfectly designed for that.

[jerseygirl]

LOL @ the skateboard. Too funny! What a bun!

With Nethies, their eyes do protrude a little more (as you know) so they can be prone to knocking or scratching them against things and that may result in a corneal ulcer.  But this could have been a case of the one eye protruding more for an underlying reason and then being knocked as a result.So the suface injury might be a secondary issue. 

 Nethies with their little faces can be prone to some dental issues. With overgrowth of molar roots, you can get abscesses at the root and behind the eye, so it will push the eye outwards.(retrobulbar abscess). So xray would be a good idea to look at tooth roots. The white in the eye could be caused by various things. Abscess, ulcer, tumour or EC.

The retrobulbar abscess is the main thing that came to mind though.

[Bianca]

Thanks for sharing all that! I don’t know much about Cherub’s history, but I do know:

-She is scared of being handled
-She has been at the RSPCA for quite a while. 
-The RSPCA were very strict about her home, even in her add
-She has been getting as much handling as possible at the RSPCA due to her fear of being handled, but was still very nervous when I met her

So I wouldn’t be surprised if she hasn’t had the best care in the past. She may have had issues when the RSPCA got her that weren’t obvious straight away. I’m glad they have caught it and are doing the right thing by her though. But I’m also glad I got to meet her, and have her on hold so if all goes well she will have a loving, spoiled home to go to.

Here are a few photos of Terry on “his” skateboard. He makes sure it moves every time he jumps on it. I might just have to put some padding on the wall if he starts crashing it again.

[jerseygirl]

Lol! He’s awesome.

What’s the latest on Cherub?

[Bianca]

Hi sorry I only just saw your question, but until yesterday I didn’t really have much to update anyway.

I called the RSPCA last week after hearing nothing. They said she is still listed as under vet care but I am welcome to come meet their other rabbits.

I decided I wanted a more specific answer, so I went in yesterday. The rabbit lady was at a meeting, but a volunteer was there and he took me through to see Cherub. He doesn’t know what is wrong with her though so he wrote down my number with a note asking the rabbit lady to call me after her meeting. But I did get to see Cherub. All the volunteer knew was that she was going to be cleared then her eye got worse again. To me, her eye was just as protruding as last time, but a lot more of it was milky white. She was bright, alert, and grumpy though! The volunteer said she was getting grumpier and he has no idea why, but personally I’m not surprised she is a bit moody if she is scared of people and having eye problems!

I did get to see all the other rabbits they have in too. I still want Cherub, but they have had a massive influx of rabbits so I figured while I was there I would say hello. They do have some very lovely ones, but many I would deem unsuitable for Terry due to age – I want something over the age of 1, preferably a bit older. Most were under that age. Then a couple were already bonded so obviously out of the question. But it was lovely to meet them.

I got a call later than day from the rabbit lady. She hasn’t told me what is wrong with Cherub. She just said she will be going to a specialist soon – I thought that’s what they were going to do when I first met her – they did say they were going to then. If I don’t hear in a few days I’ll call again.

In the meantime, Terry is getting a lot cuddlier with us. He likes to be picked up and held/sit on our laps. I don’t think he has ever been taught he is allowed to say no – or just hop off our lap if he doesn’t want to be held though. So we are making sure we put him straight down if he shows any sign of it, and I never hold him on my lap in a way that prevents him from hopping off. I’m not trying to teach him he can always just run off – obviously we need to hold him for claw trims and stuff. But he has started to relax with us a lot more knowing he won’t be forced into cuddles.

He does seem to like them though. I often put him on my lap and start patting his massive nose and cheeks and he won’t move at all. He often gets upset with me when I actually need to get back up and have to ask him to get off! He also loves very rough nose pats – will lean in for more if I stop, and whenever someone walks into the room he shoves his nose in their direction. He has also decided he loves rough shoulder rubs, and just pretty much rough pats all over the front half of his body. He has also discovered a love of banana. He wasn’t sure when I first offered so I pretended to eat it with him and now it’s his favourite food. Pity it can’t make up a large portion of his diet – he would be the happiest rabbit in the world!

He isn’t flopping on his side like he used to when Ogg was around though. Which is why I still really want to find him a friend. I know I could go adopt a rabbit today, but I do think Cherub deserves a chance. And being a nethie with an eye issue who doesn’t like people, she won’t find it easy to get a home.

[Luna]

That’s so cool! He looks happy . I hope Cherub’s eye gets better soon so she can go home with you and Terry.

[jerseygirl]

To me, her eye was just as protruding as last time, but a lot more of it was milky white. She was bright, alert, and grumpy though! The volunteer said she was getting grumpier and he has no idea why, but personally I’m not surprised she is a bit moody if she is scared of people and having eye problems!

I hope not due to pain.

[Bianca]

Update:

I called the RSPCA today to ask how she was going. She finally managed to get her specialist appointment last week. The specialist wants to remove her eye – the lady I spoke to didn’t know why. But she said Cherub is booked in early next week when they have multiple vets available to perform the operation. They said I can call back later next week for an update. Fingers crossed for her!

I am still more than happy to adopt her missing an eye. But I won’t introduce her to Terry and Maggie for a long time. I will let her adjust in her own area first, and then start pre-bonding when I feel she is ready. And just take it from there. If I don’t feel like they are going to bond or it isn’t safe for Cherub to be part of a trio then I won’t go ahead with it and Cherub will still have a caring home with me – away from the other two. I will just have to see how things go. She needs a lot of love and care and attention and just time to adjust to everything before I make a decision. Maggie and Terry are both fairly passive rabbits and Terry apparently wants to make friends with everyone – so keeping him away from Cherub until she is ready will probably be my biggest challenge!

I will update when I know more later next week. And probably start a journal when she comes home.

[Q8bunny]

Oh wow! Just reading this. Chewie and I are rooting for Cherub.
And may I just say… Terry the skateboarding rabbit? AWEsome!

[Bianca]

Thank you Q8 and Chewie!

I am very anxious to hear how it goes but I know it won’t be until next week so I just have to wait! I have put my name down to volunteer at the RSPCA, so I hope to hear back about that this week.

Haha yes he is pretty funny with that board some days! At least he has stopped trying to crash it into the wall..

[Q8bunny]

Ever thought about getting him a mini half pipe?

[Bianca]

Haha he would love it! Anything he can throw around. I bought a few baby toys from a garage sale the other day for him. His favourite is the little tractor I keep in the lounge room which he pushes and throws around. I’ll put a photo up later.

[Bianca]

Update:

I got a call from the RSPCA. Cherub did really well with her operation yesterday, but sadly passed away overnight.

Binky free Cherub.

[Q8bunny]

(((Binky free, Cherub bun.)))

[Bam]

I’m so sorry. Poor little Cherub. So sad she never got live with you. At least she was given a very fair chance.

***Binky free, Cherub***

[jerseygirl]

Oh Poor baby.

I was hoping to meet her through you. You must be feeling saddened and disappointed. It wasn’t meant to be, i suppose. 

Im glad you have Terry and Maggie and that they get along so well.

***Binky Free Little Cherub***

[Bianca]

Thanks everyone. I must admit I am quite sad from the loss, I had met her a few times and quite liked her. There is also that part of me that thought it was such a perfect coincidence to find a female Netherland Dwarf just after losing Ogg. She made me love the breed, and I can’t deny I would love another. But I know Terry and Maggie are happy as they are too, I don’t desperately need or want another rabbit. I know I can take care of another though, so I’ll just keep my eye on rescue pages, just in case. Maybe Cherub and Ogg will send someone else my way when they need it.

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