And Now, The Bunnies

Andrew requested that I write something about our rabbits. And since I do find them an interesting topic of conversation, I'm obliging.

For about a year and a half, we've shared our home with two bunnies. Their names are...

Larry


and

Blitz


Much like cats, rabbits tend to be happiest living in pairs (or sometimes larger groups). They're very social creatures and enjoy having a friend to interact with when their people are away or busy. Larry and Blitz were already a bonded pair when we adopted them from the House Rabbit Network, which saved us the trouble of having to introduce two bunnies. They're very sweet to each other (most of the time) and a lot of fun to watch.




Larry and Blitz live in a large dog crate in our kitchen. The kitchen was the easiest room in the house to clean and to shut off from the rest of the house. The big dog crate gives them a home base with plenty of room to lounge around, as they're demonstrating in this photo. It also makes sure that they stay safe and out of trouble while we're out of the house or sleeping. They are litterbox trained and are pretty good about remembering to use it. We give them lots of cardboard and other fun toys to keep them busy in and out of the cage.




Both of our bunnies were named before we got them. Larry has two brothers who were at one time known as Curly and Moe. Larry is a dwarf rabbit, which is why he's significantly smaller than Blitz. This also makes him much easier to pick up, a fact that he sometimes resents. Once you're actually holding him though, he's generally well behaved. Sometimes he even enjoys sitting with people and shows his appreciation with bunny kisses. Larry is definitely the more adventurous of the two. If we leave the kitchen door open, he's almost always the first to hop out. If he's in the right mood, he'll perform a dance in the front hallway.




Blitz is a pretty grey rabbit with a bit of an attitude. She absolutely hates being picked up and tends to struggle and nip if you try to hold her. But she's also more receptive to pats than Larry, especially when she's in the cage. Blitz usually prefers to stay close to the back of the kitchen, but she'll sometimes venture out into the living room with Larry. She's very good at getting on top of the cage. She loves getting treats and Andrew was able to teach her to go "up" and "down" with voice commands for a raisin reward.

Check out the House Rabbit Network website for more about rabbits and rabbit care.