New and Old

As the weather grows colder and the days shorter, it is the end of my summer garden. I pulled the last of the tomato plants and hung them in the kitchen to ripen. They look festive, like tomato garland. I continue to chop wood everyday and it will feel strange when there is no more wood to chop. The real excitement right now is all about the rabbits.

Chopping Wood

Tomato Garland

Our rabbit had kits! I haven't actually seen them yet but I felt one. Having read many "how to" books about gardening, home improvement and  raising animals I am struck with how usual it is for my own experience to fall short of what the books say. However, with getting this Doe, mating her to the buck and having her babies it has all been exact and matches the book perfectly.

When she grew restless and and started rubbing her face on everything like a cat, we put her in the Buck's cage. As per our book's description, he chased her, she ran a  little, then presented rearly and he mounted her and then when he was finished rolled off to the side with a "sigh". It is amazing how fascinating but quick this all is. One has to watch because if the female rejects the male, she can attack him and possibly injure or kill him! We put her back in her tractor and waited for 31 days.

 At about day 29, I built the little nesting box for her to have her babies in and as I lifted the lid to her tractor to put it in, I noticed a nest in the corner covered in bunny fur. "Great" thought I, I am too late. I lifted her nest into the box I had built and she seemed disinterested but the next day I noticed more fur in the little box.

Mama Bunny after giving birth

The Nest Box with baby bunnies hiding 

 We still hadn't gotten around to building the daughter's new pen so were at a bit of a loss as to where to put her. Looking around the yard we decided to put her in with our skinny, weird chicken named "baldy" in the recently vacated meat chicken tractor.Baldy was there because the other chickens were attacking her a little beyond what is normal in the pecking order. The tractors are all open to the ground so simply by moving the tractor, fresh, clean ground is presented to whatever animal is placed in the tractor. The bunny and "baldy" sniffed each other out, seemed very curious but it was clear they were not too distressed. Our rooster on the other hand. upon discovering this atrocity, grew offended and jumped on top of the tractor growling and stomping.  After a while he lost interest and simply glared from a distance. For now Flopsy was safe but we knew she could really only stay in there until nightfall which gave us the rest of the day to locate wood and  to build her a tractor.

It was free exchange day in Halifax, an event organized by the city to encourage recycling. You put out what you no longer need but that still works in some fashion and you take what you can use. Whatever is left, is picked up in garbage removal the following week. It was also big garbage day where I live in the country, so I hoped to find some wood and recycle it. Through word of mouth a kind soul donated a full sheet of plywood to my cause along with some other boards and pallets that were not needed by their owner. It was treasure.

On the way home we also found a shop's antique storage unit, a solid wood stripped steno chair on wheels, wheels for the chicken tractor and for a garden cart, hinges, a little wooden wagon, and some chicken wire and fencing in great condition. Did we feel weird taking it from someones discards? Not really. It is becoming the custom to do so more and more in Nova Scotia and I am proud of that! Why send it to the dump? It is clean, in good condition and presented at the end of someone's driveway the day before garbage pickup. It is not bagged up but clearly put there for others to re-use.

We reached home just before dark and our bunny was still in the tractor with the chicken. We hurriedly built a box and knew we wouldn't get the whole tractor built, but at least the bunny was safe and warm for the night after we added hay, water and food. I am still carrying her in the daytime to the old meat chicken tractor and have scratched arms to show for it. Flopsy is not friendly to humans and is not afraid to show it. She has earned a few new choice nicknames.

Flopsy's mother who has given birth to four new bunnies is eating constantly and so far seems to be carrying for her babies, covering them up in her fur blanket plucked by her from her own soft tummy. One thing the books didn't prepare me for was the blood which I should have known as rabbits are after all mammals and give birth like we do. The babies wriggle around looking like pink, naked rats but she keeps covering them up. At first we couldn't see any sign of the babies and I thought for sure she had eaten them or something. But then I felt around in the nest and poked a little warm, fleshy belly.

The books tell us to "check your Doe's nipple area for signs of infection". Ya right, this mama doesn't let you get near her, never mind pick her up to examine her nipple area. My son has named her "Jill" to go with our Buck "Jack" but with her personality I am renaming her. I think it is because she wasn't handled by the previous owners. I look forward to handing the new bunnies when they are old enough in order to test this hypothesis and find out if this breed of bunny is just wild and unfriendly or they just need to be handled. I would be fine with not handling them ever except that medical emergencies, nail clipping etc. make it necessary to handle them from time to time. Luckily rabbits don't bite.