Pet bun for my son .....

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Kadish Tolesa

Kadish Tolesa

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 18, 2005
Messages
293
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2
Location
Lagomorph County, Wisconsin, USA
We were at a Petco where he saw a black rabbit he really liked. But the store clerk said it could'nt go to a home with kids as the bunny was too stressed , & not friendly with children. She let me handle him a bit; and immediately he hopped up to my neck and licked my face, then proceeded to chew a hole in the collar of my sweatshirt. I didn't buy him, but I said to the clerk that he was probably going to beo.k. in a home with a child and a responsible adult. Ah well.

My son will be 7 in a week and has handled buns before , but never without my supervision. He had a small lionhead/dwarf cross that was the friendliest rabbit in the world. One of those rare buns that willstay in your yard w/o you having to catch it. We've had to move a few times for my hubby's job and the first move was to a no-pet place, so the two rabbits had to go; one to a pet home and one to a breeder as it was papered.

In the past, I had a delightful doe from a rescue that was the prettiest JW I've ever seen , also very gentle. I was able to visit her at her new mom's house a while back, and she's doing well....also potty-trained better than when she lived with me. Go figure. I am a little discouraged when calling rescue places and inquiring about their buns ; I seem to get brushed off when I tell them I have a little boy.

On one hand, I know they don't want to see the rabbit surrendered yet again, but I tell themI kept even a biter 3 yrs. ago and didn't give up. - - She quit biting me and would come up and look for a treat. ( bribery works !) I also let them knowI would be the primary caretaker , and my son gets to play with the bun only when I'm with him.

I think most kids to a certain age have to be supervised with animals . Most parents know when their kids are old (and responsible) enough, though. :)
 
I work with a rescue and we carefully screen adopters as much as we can. Generally if the household has a child is under 8, we stress the importance of the parents being the primary caretakers of the bun, and we gauge the child's receptiveness to the rabbit care info that is standard to all of our potential adoptions.

It's probably true that rescues grill people with small children more so than others because we want what's best for the bun. Second time surrenders and returns are very hurtful for the bun and for the volunteers who work really hard to care for our bunnies. But all we want is for our rabbits to get a good forever home. It certainly sounds like you would do a good job giving somebunny a home. I think if you found a rescue bun that you were attached to, any good rescue would be willing to listen and see that the bunny would be going to a good place.

We have politely turned away well meaning families where the parents were fine adopters, but the children were less than ideal owners for a rabbit (children were too young, or too nonreceptive, too hyperactive or aggressive with the bun, etc.). Or, the adopters were attached to a rabbit who we knew would not do well in a family situation or a multi-pet home, etc.

I hope that you do find the perfect bunny for your home, and hope that you understand the rescues' point of view as well :)
 
Thanks for the input, kirbyultra. My son is pretty patient with rabbits , for a boy, that is. When we went to visit the lady who owns his first bunny, he was upset that we were'nt taking it to our new home. I had to explain that the new home was'nt large enough for a bunny cage ; plus a no-pet rule, etc. Then a year later we moved again when my hubby was transferred.
Now we can have buns again. I think at almost-seven yrs. , my son is still needing supervision with a rabbit, so it will really be MY bun, but I'll let him name it and help him feed and care for it.
As of now, we have a few Betta fish and that's all. I've tried to live without a bunny .... they keep sneaking back into my life !
 
Hmm, I bet they would!! As mentioned maybe go to a rescue with your son and SHOW the volunteers how good he is with any of the bunnies. Once they approve he can pick one out that he likes. Good luck :) I discourage a pet store bunny though, I mean I know they deserve a home just like a rescue but supporting the store would be bad :/ Its a predicament
 
I think it is great you are looking at getting a bunny for your son. It seems like you already know you will be the primary caregiver and he will get to help and do the fun stuff!

I would try not to get discouraged when speaking with the rescues. I would try to go in with your son so they can see how well he behaves around the rabbit and that you are really interested and know you will be the primary care giver. I think a lot of rescues see parents adopt rabbits and expect a small child to be the primary caregiver. I think they are cautious. From what you have posted, I think if you went in and they got to meet you and your son, they might feel more comfortable. I also think it would be fun for your son to see all the rabbits up for adoption and pick the one he wants.

You could also check out our rescue me section here on the forum and see if there are any rabbits in your area.

Keep us updated and good luck on finding the bun for your family.
 
Rescue Me!

Check out this thread: http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=55336&forum_id=7 :)
If you PM TreasuredFriend, she may be able to hook you up with a bun that is right for your family.

I echo the sentiment that it is important to stress that you are the primary caretaker (not your son), and that it is you who truly wants the bunny. That should set most minds at ease.

Glad you're getting back into the world of rabbits! I look forward to photos of your bunny when he/she comes!

 
:biggrin2::p:D:biggrin2: Finally purchased some buns ! My son has one of his VERY OWN - - -"Piglet" !!!!! They are sitting on the couch right now watching 'SpongeBob Squarepants', she is licking his arms and he's laughing..... I took several pic's& will post as soon as my hubby finds the connector cord for the camera and PC. "Piglet" ( he named her, not me :) ) is a black 2 month-old mini-rex.

I also bought a JW doe - - from a different breeder ; she's white with ermine points. I'm thinking of getting maybe one more doe and buck ( JW ) sometime as I'd like for my son to join 4-H and possibly exhibit at some shows.

They are both papered, but at this point mostly just for fun to see what's in their backgrounds , since I think you have to be 9 for 4-H and my son just turned 7. It's been so many years since I was in 4-H ; I'm not sure about their age rules and guidelines.

I'd borrowed my ARBA guidebook to a friend a while back ; and between bothher and myself moving ,and other changes ; I've kind of lost contact with her and I guess she's welcome to keep it. I can always look it up online. Soooooo..... I'm going to have to look up what ermine can be crossed with, before buying a JW buck and doe. This is really a tiny "herd", but I just don't have the space I'd like to have at this time.
 
Congrats on the new bunnies! Are you going to post pictures? Your son and Piglet sound adorable. I'm glad you were able to get some bunnies :) The only thing I'm concerned about is you possibly having to rehome them if you move frequently and end up moving again to a place that doesn't allow pets. It's not fair to the bunnies to spend a year or 3 in one home and then have to go somewhere else. I'm assuming you took that into consideration before you bought your bunnies though :) Again, congrats! What breed are they?
 
Hi SnowyShiloh, the place we're renting now is pet-friendly, which is why we're here. My hubby is pretty understanding about my pets and he's decided we'll only rent places that allow pets. It's nice of him when he's not into pets ... much. The last rabbit he got fond of was a little cinnamon-colored mutt named Gimli. If we had to move ( which doesn't look likely ) ; the buns will hop along with us. I mean, look at people with dogs and cats ; despite the recession and everything that went with it ; at least people still kept their pets . :)

Piglet is a black mini-rex doe , and Niobe is a white Jersy Wooly with ermine points on her nose and ears. I bought them from breeders ; one is about 2 hrs.from me and the other is 3 1/2 hrs. away. They have been breeders for 8 yrs. and 10 yrs, respectively. On a side note; I'm probably too picky about cleanliness of rabbitries ; and those were 2 of the neatest rabbitries I've seen....wish I had facilities like that ! :p

I'll try to post pic's soon ...


 
One more question. Instead of posting a link to Photobucket or Tinypic for people to see pic's of my bunnies .... how do I upload them directly to my (this) thread ? Thanks.

I have a few pic's resized and saved on my desktop...
 
Well I picked an Avatar then decided to change it and cannot... hmmmm any suggestions appreciated.. I made sure the pic's were sized correctly. (?)

BTW purchased 1 more bun and renamed Niobe to Bella Goth from the Sims 2. It fit her personality better. :)

Goopy GilsCarbo is a broken chestnut JW and a supreme cutie pie !!!!


Fixed the avatar......Blehhhhh....:rollseyes:rollseyes:rollseyes


 
Kadish Tolesa wrote:
One more question. Instead of posting a link to Photobucket or Tinypic for people to see pic's of my bunnies .... how do I upload them directly to my (this) thread ? Thanks.

I have a few pic's resized and saved on my desktop...
Click to expand...

Umm I'm not sure how to post them directly from your HD. But you can upload them to the RO photo gallery which is a lot more user friendly than Photobucket and TInypic.

If you choose to use the RO Photo Gallery click on Menu at the top of the screen and Pick Upload Photo's. That easy :)
 
Finally uploaded some photos..... Will post some ofGoopysoon. :D

We're getting to know their personalities. Bella Goth ( 8 months) likes to bite. (Yikes) But only when she's being held -- or brushed---too long. Just a firm,quick nip/bite that leaves a little bruise. I'm learning when she's thinking about it(biting) so I can plan ahead. :)

Goopy is cute, fluffy "baby" who likes to chew your shirt and/or hair. Actually , he's about 7 months old.

Piglet is 2 1/2 mo. and she lives up to her name with great devotion. She loves to scatter everything in sight and would eat herself into a coma if I let her. She's working on potty training ... not too hard, though ! :rollseyes
 
Update on Piglet...she's completely potty-trained !!!!! She gets into her triangular litter tray and actually appears to be squatting to do her business. That sounds kind of silly ----- but it was fun to see her using it.

Trying to get a new camera as our old one is about tocroak, then I'll post some more pic's in the uploader page here.
 
great you got him some bunnies. 4h is a wonderful club for children. They teach them proper animal husbandry, and how to care for them.You might want to try getting him involved in rabbit shows. The competition is a little more intense. If he likes them, he will learn a lot about rabbits. then pretty soon you would be breeding and showing them. its also a good idea to join the ARBA www.arba.net. They have all the information you will need about keeping show rabbits.

There are plenty of children out there his age that are wonderful with their rabbits. Most that i have run into breed and ahow their own. The earliest he can show at arba shows is five years old. He doesn't have to be a member of any club. Just show up, know the rabbits breed, class, and age, and enter it in the show.

As far as 4h goes, many have clubs that allow 5-8 year olds to show.
 
Just a short update : Piglet did the gender change and is a boy. I thought I'd checked "her" thoroughly and so had the breeder.....as he was maybe too young to be sure, he was about 6 weeks at purchase. Sooo...he'll be going to the vet later on to be fixed, as we want him to be a (sprayless) pet !

I deleted all the pic's from the uploader here and am going to replace them with better ones , now that we have a new camera.

Update to the update....:? I called Piglet's rabbitry and told them about my doe's transformation to a buck. They said if we want, they'd exchange him for a doe, from the litters due soon. Either way, they said they would take him back if we want; minus the refund ( the price was pet quality ).

What do you all think ? This rabbitry is a fairly new one; the mini-rexes are not the best I've seen, to be truthful. Not that I'd say so to them. We just wanted a pet for our son....I actually prefer the mini-rex personalities over JW's; just a little more interactive.

My son's ok with an exchange as long as he can get another bunny that is HIS OWN ; even though it lives in mom's room ! He has asked for a dog and we've had to say "no" as we aren't allowed dogs or cats by the landlords due to allergies. They are super landlords and I love it that we can have some bunnies.

This has not been the best day as I called the vet closest to me to discuss neutering; and the receptionist said they didn't do rabbits, and that it was not recommended to fix them as there are risks with the operation. I checked the list here of rabbit-savvy vets and they're rather far to go; but any pet is worth a little trouble.:)

Thanks for letting me talk about this to all of you , hope it didn't sound like a rant!



On a more cheerfull note; Goopy and Bella will be entered in the fair this year and hopefully at least one rabbit show this year...I wanted to know what their good/bad points are ! I'll try to post some pic's and possible movies.
 
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