Thursday, August 18, 2011

Summer Star

We find at least one bunny den every summer. The kids peek at the bunnies and have even held them, but we've never tried to keep them. The mother always comes back and the bunnies have all grown and left their nests. This year, however, Kona found a bunny den. Baby bunnies carry no scent to protect them from predators, but Kona must have seen movement or something. The kids were playing in Rollin's "workshop" beneath the trees and all of the sudden there was all sorts of commotion. The kids were screaming, Kona was scrambling, and Rollin came running across the yard cupping something in his hand. Kona ended up eating one of the babies, one escaped, and Rollin caught the third. Their nest was gone. The kids took great care of  "Summer Star" for 6 days. We did lots and lots of research on how to get this bunny strong enough to release into the wild. Sela woke at 4am to her alarm to feed. We talked to the pet store and they sent us home with some puppy milk to supplement. The bunny continued to grow, drink milk, eat alfalfa, and once we felt confident that he was at least 31/2 weeks old (the age we learned that cottontails are completely weaned and ready to head out on their own), the girls took him to an empty field with lots of brush and released him. They were a little sad, but more happy  because the the only place for a wild bunny is back in the wild, and they know this.

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Sela and her friend, Lauren, feeding the bunny. They both love bunnies. Lauren came over several days in a row and they pretended they were college students working as animal rescue people. This was part of their job.

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This is the field where the girls let Summer Star go.

Our other bunnies, Spotty and Oreo, are getting lots of playtime too. We even took them to a concert in the park a few weeks ago...on leashes. Oreo is a little temperamental, but Spotty is just the best, most docile bunny ever.


2 comments:

Dee Ann said...

Priceless experiences. What a lifestyle!! Wish I was there to see the girls play tennis and squish Rollin and Evie!! Love to all - Mom

Colleen said...

That is just so wonderful! What a great experience for the kids...minus seeing Kona eat a baby bunny that is! Yikes! :)