Wednesday, January 30, 2008

Baby Bunnies - Day Twenty

'See my pretty fur & little ears?'


Not much new today. I got them a little 'busy bunny' willow stick ball to play with and chew on. They like it a lot and one even took it into the ball into their box where they sleep. They are busy getting into everything and we have to watch them carefully when they are out of the cage because they want to go in every possible niche they can fit into. They like to sneak in and out of papa's cage (he has bigger slots on his cage then mama's cage so they like to visit him). I know it will take a little while, but I hope they figure out how the litter box works - it would be very nice if they were litter box trained when we try to find them homes.  : ) 



Here they are munching on mom's food...



'What's out there?'



This little one with the 'busy ball' in his box




The escape... watch the upper left corner!



' I spy something green..'

Baby Bunnies - Day Eighteen & Nineteen

Ahhh! Bright light!


Well,  yesterday the babies figured out where mom's food is and how to nibble on it. Today some of them learned how to use the water bottle.  A few of them still need to find it - but they all learn quickly.  Mom gets super stressed out by them now that they hop all over the cage. The only safe place she can sit is on the little corner ledge that sits off of the floor. We are thinking of ways to give them more room... maybe we'll add some of those click-together wire storage cubes on a tarp so that they have a play area. We'll let you know how it goes.  If anyone else has some suggestions, let me know.

Oh, also two of them have figured out how to get over the little play fence we use to try and keep track of them... I'll post a video of them escaping the fence tomorrow.



Hmmm... what's this!



Here you can see them eating some hay... I love
how the one in the back has a single piece 
hanging out of his mouth. This is a very cute clip.




You can see them first trying out the water
bottle in this clip. I like how he kind of bites
at it instead of licking. He got the hang of it 
quickly though.


'Hey guys.. look at this!'



'Whitey' playing king of the (plastic) castle..

Baby Bunnies - Day Seventeen


The babies love to play in their little 'crinkle'
tube we bought them.


Today when I came by to see the babies this afternoon, I noticed mom's food bowl was very empty. Normally there's a little something in it, especially since I feed mom like 3 times a day, so it was odd that the bowl was bare. So I put some food in the bowl, and much to my surprise - the babies stuck their faces in it! They could only eat a few little pieces, but they seemed pretty pleased to be eating like mom.

We make sure that everyone has lots of play time now - so mom can get away from the little buns, and so that the little buns can stretch their little bouncy legs. They are quite proficient at running now. We have that small hamster fence to keep them safe... but I'm sure they will figure out how to get out of it soon.


Babies are very interested in mom's food now
and are starting to eat it.


My dear husband found our camping chairs
to be useful in the winter months as well....



These little guys run around so fast now it
gets harder and harder to get a good picture of them

This one knows he can get over our little fence...


playtime...

Friday, January 25, 2008

Baby Bunnies - Day Sixteen




Not much new for today. Just lots of sleeping, a little running and a little nibbling.

You can see his little ears & tail...


Mason (mom) eating the carrot I had set on
top of her cage to give to her later. Apparently 
I didn't put it on a high enough spot...


Little bun checking out mom's food. He decided
not to eat it, but had more fun playing in it.


Look at the little 'socks' on her front paws...


Baby Bunnies - Day Fourteen & Fifteen


This little one is helping me study ... she seems
rather interested in graphic design like me!


These little buns are VERY fluffy and now are very good at getting around. They can climb up little edges - like the edge of the dog bed, as well as their nesting box. They are getting so good at walking that they are starting to run a little now. To contain everyone, we've started to use our little hamster fences so we don't lose anyone. They will out grow those fences soon, but in the mean time they'll do. 

Today I gave them some tiny dried papaya pieces - they nibbled on them but they are still not able to eat the whole little piece yet- just tiny tiny bites. All of the babies are just blossoming and we are starting to see their 'personalities'. Each one is very healthy and each are okay with being held and petted. It's hard to not become attached to the little guys - they are soo cute and sweet! I often call them my "mini muses" because I am just fascinated by them and love to learn about them. I also bring them down stairs in their doggie bed and they keep me company while I write these blogs or when I study. 

I sincerely pray that we are able to find good homes for them all. I don't want them to end up at the humane society or at a pet shop, or even worse - given as 'Easter bunnies' and then neglected or "let go".  People actually let their domestic bunnies "go" outside once the person is board with them. Domestic bunnies are bred to be pets- they are nothing like wild bunnies and will not survive. That scares me a lot, and I REALLY really hope to find these bunnies a great home. Well, I guess I can worry about that a little later.......  *sigh* 


Mmm.... hay


Micro bunny


Look at how fluffy they are! They are soo soft!


Trying to eat hay


My mini muses by my computer, keeping me company...

Baby Bunnies - Day Thirteen

Everyone likes a good hug...


Now that they all can see, the babies are a little more willing to explore things.  They can keep their eyes open as long as they like, but they are babies, and they  get tired quickly. So far they have stayed in their nesting box in mom's cage - they haven't really wondered around there. 

Well, today I found them checking out their cage on their own. They were very excited to nibble on pieces of timothy hay. They can't really eat the hay yet, but they really enjoy chewing on it. They will be nursing for a while still, but it's good that they are interested in solid food.


You can see the babies behind mom, not in
their usual box


Sitting in mom's food...


They get sleepy very fast


Here's a little clip of "Whitey" wondering 
around. He goes up to papa (Arthur) and 
Whitey is literally a mini Arthur!

Monday, January 21, 2008

Baby Bunnies - Day Twelve



Today we bought the baby bunnies a little dog bed at Menards. Mason kept eating their cardboard nesting box and the babies often slept on the bottom of the box instead of on their towel. We'll see how it works.  When we put them in it today they crawled around a little bit, but within a minute or two all of them fell sound asleep. They all seemed very comfy. 

Today all of them are getting a little better at holding their eyes open a little longer. They seem intrigued with the world, but aren't in any rush to explore it all.

They sleep in funny positions all the time


Their new 'nest'. They seem to be quite cozy!



'Pinky' (now Whitey - I know, I know, it's a 
terrible name) is here taking a gander at this
new world ... and me with my camera.


Baby Bunnies - Day Ten & Elven

Day ten brought a little more progress. We saw two more babies peeking their eyes open. Again, they don't keep them open very long, but they are working on it.  They all are itching their eyes recently - I suppose it would be itchy having your eyelids part.0


On day eleven we found that everyone's eyes can open now! They are also getting better at holding them open for a longer time. Since they are still babies, they sleep a lot. They are all very healthy. The buns have also become rather expressive with their ears. One of them sniffed an apple slice that I had given to their mom, and that little baby's ears when flying straight up when he smelled the apple. It was very exciting to him. They also seem interested & are expressive when they get picked up or patted on the head.  I'd have to say that watching those tiny ears pop up is one of my favorite things! 


'You make a great pillow'




Trying to see where he's going.

Baby Bunnies - Day Nine



Well, today the little buns started to try out their back feet. Previously, they got around by pulling themselves with their front paws, now they are tip-toeing on their back feet. This, however, makes them a little more shaky, so they tip over a lot.  

We also have two of the babies who have started to peek their eyes open! They can't open them all the way, but they will open them for a few seconds then quickly shut them. It will take them a few days until they keep their eyes open longer.  They are growing very fast!


You can see this little guy's eye peeking open  
as he scoots past my hubby.


Another shot of their little eye action.


A little clip of them tip-toeing around.

Baby Bunnies - Day Eight

Not much news today. Just cuter and fuzzier!


See how big I'm getting!


This is the only one with that white stripe on
it's face like their mom.

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Baby Bunnies - Day Seven

Happy one week old babies! I peeked back at my day one post and I am surprised at how much these little buns have grown! They are getting fuzzier and cuter by the day. Today I really noticed how white "pinky" is turning. He's finally to look much less pink. Also, they are getting a little better at not rolling over so much, and if they have they chance they will scoot to any place that is warm - mom, nest, your hand, up my sweater sleeves... I'm just excited for next week, because they say at about day 11 their eyes start to open, and by day 14/15, they are able to hop around a little. Should be a ton of fun!


 
You can start to see little dark patterns on this
one's face. Mom's face it kinda like that too, with
some darker spots.



Pinky is looking whiter.  Even at the end of today
he looked different from what he looked like 
this morning when this picture was taken.


Relaxin' on a cozy blanket... They are really 
starting to look more like bunnies instead of 
weird little fuzzy things.  : ) 

Baby Bunnies - Day Six

"Pssssst..... I have a secret"


Not a lot of new developments today, just more fur, and they really like to scoot around. They are getting quite fuzzy and look more like bunnies now. Also, when you pick them up out of the nest, if you set them on the floor for a minute, they will be half-way across the room! 



This is a video I took on day five. This little one
looks like he's dreaming of his own American Idol
audition!  Well, at least I thought it was amusing.  :)




See the ear action? If you touch them on their
head or 'beep' their nose, their little ears 
wiggle. Their ears don't stand up yet though.
I read that doesn't happen until the end of week two.



Umm, mom's a little hungrier these days...



Pinky's white fur is more visible now. You can 
also see his 'eye liner' which is a characteristic 
of hoto bunnies like his dad.

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Baby Bunnies - Day Five

"Wanna see me feet?"


Well, a little bit of news for today...

1. More fur...

2. A little more vocal today when woken up

3. Babies are starting to move their ears! If you touch their nose their ears go up a little.  They can't keep their ears up for long, but they are definitely moving them. 

4. Their eyelids are getting more defined as well as their ears. 


Poor Pinky, kinda the odd bun out. I think it's
rather clear that Mason's (mom) genes are 
the dominant ones!


Apparently it was warmer up my sleeve....



I like this little one a lot. He's my buddy & gives
me little kisses. He's got a little white streak on 
his face, just like his mommy. None of the others
have that streak, but one does have a little white
diamond on it's forehead.

Baby Bunnies - Day Four

Not much to report for today... just more fur and more wiggly!


Little bun hiding in hubby's giant hand......
  "You can't see me!"

We don't have names for them yet, but this one
we call Pinky. It's fur is white, so it looks a little 
funny when with the other babies. : )


More fur to keep me warm!