Zara
Mama Doe
This is long and a bit rambley, please bear with it 
when I first brought two little black bundles of fluff home with me in a wicker basket in mid 2007, my Grandmother, who was not an animal lover, was horrified. she didn't understand why I had rabbits, or why I treat them so well, she had that all-too-common mentality of "They're only rabbits!" :roll:
At first she insisted they live in a hutch in our back yard, but they had the entire run of the yard. Grandma didn't have anything to do with them, which was fair enough as they were my pets, but that didn't stop Batbunny and Firefly from sneaking into the house and getting her to chase them out :lol:
Eventually when we moved to another rented house they spent more and more time inside running around the kitchen and sitting next to me on the sofa (Gran wasn't happy about that) and when I was recovering from an operation Gran had to feed them for me in the mornings, and I could hear her laughing and talking to the bunnies as they ran around her feet playing tricks on her :lol:
It wasn't long before the rabbits were only in their hutch for sleep, and spent their entire days in the garden and inside snuggling up with me. Gran kept sneakily giving them bits of apple. She was getting really attached to them even though she'd never admit it.
I'd arrive home from college and immediately be bombarded with stories from Grandma about what the "cheeky little B*****s" had been up to that day, she'd be laughing and smiling as she recounted their well-known tricks for more food, games, and cheekiness. She was almost seeing the bunnies the way I saw them.
Eventually I moved in with my BF, taking the rabbits with me. Gran didn't say it but I knew she was really missing the rabbits, I felt so guilty for moving out but it had to be done, and the rabbits needed to be with me and Gran admitted she wasn't up for owning any herself (She kept getting up to look in the garden, then realising they wern't there anymore) so I told her I'd bring her up to our house soon to see them. Sadly then we lost Firefly, he was happy and playing just a few hours earlier, then he went quiet and limp and died as we arrived at the emergency vets. I was heartbroken, and so was Grandma. She said she'd never of believed she'd cry so much over a rabbit.
When I got Rascal she was very interested to know what he was like and how Batbunny was, infact she now has the photo of me with baby Rascal sat on my shoulder framed in her front room. I was impressed with how she'd changed from an animal-hating woman to loving my rabbits in just three years, she tried to close the rabbits out, but they (literally) forced their way inside and into her heart, she was so surprised to learn what rabbits could be like away from that hutch in the garden.
And yesterday I got another surprise when after a day out Grandma handed me two giftwrapped packages. Wrapped presents, from her to the bunnies! I NEVER thought she'd ever do something as sentimental as this, from what she used to be like it's a big deal.
Sorry if this topic seemed pointless, but at this time of year it felt good to share how rabbits and animals (As we all know) can really change people and bring so much love which is what we need at Christmas. They've permanently changed us all in so many ways, and it's all for the better. We help save them, but sometimes I wonder if they save us more. Corny, maybe, but true?
Have a great Christmas RU :wave:
when I first brought two little black bundles of fluff home with me in a wicker basket in mid 2007, my Grandmother, who was not an animal lover, was horrified. she didn't understand why I had rabbits, or why I treat them so well, she had that all-too-common mentality of "They're only rabbits!" :roll:
At first she insisted they live in a hutch in our back yard, but they had the entire run of the yard. Grandma didn't have anything to do with them, which was fair enough as they were my pets, but that didn't stop Batbunny and Firefly from sneaking into the house and getting her to chase them out :lol:
Eventually when we moved to another rented house they spent more and more time inside running around the kitchen and sitting next to me on the sofa (Gran wasn't happy about that) and when I was recovering from an operation Gran had to feed them for me in the mornings, and I could hear her laughing and talking to the bunnies as they ran around her feet playing tricks on her :lol:
It wasn't long before the rabbits were only in their hutch for sleep, and spent their entire days in the garden and inside snuggling up with me. Gran kept sneakily giving them bits of apple. She was getting really attached to them even though she'd never admit it.
I'd arrive home from college and immediately be bombarded with stories from Grandma about what the "cheeky little B*****s" had been up to that day, she'd be laughing and smiling as she recounted their well-known tricks for more food, games, and cheekiness. She was almost seeing the bunnies the way I saw them.
Eventually I moved in with my BF, taking the rabbits with me. Gran didn't say it but I knew she was really missing the rabbits, I felt so guilty for moving out but it had to be done, and the rabbits needed to be with me and Gran admitted she wasn't up for owning any herself (She kept getting up to look in the garden, then realising they wern't there anymore
) so I told her I'd bring her up to our house soon to see them. Sadly then we lost Firefly, he was happy and playing just a few hours earlier, then he went quiet and limp and died as we arrived at the emergency vets. I was heartbroken, and so was Grandma. She said she'd never of believed she'd cry so much over a rabbit. When I got Rascal she was very interested to know what he was like and how Batbunny was, infact she now has the photo of me with baby Rascal sat on my shoulder framed in her front room. I was impressed with how she'd changed from an animal-hating woman to loving my rabbits in just three years, she tried to close the rabbits out, but they (literally) forced their way inside and into her heart, she was so surprised to learn what rabbits could be like away from that hutch in the garden.
And yesterday I got another surprise when after a day out Grandma handed me two giftwrapped packages. Wrapped presents, from her to the bunnies!
I NEVER thought she'd ever do something as sentimental as this, from what she used to be like it's a big deal.Sorry if this topic seemed pointless, but at this time of year it felt good to share how rabbits and animals (As we all know) can really change people and bring so much love
which is what we need at Christmas. They've permanently changed us all in so many ways, and it's all for the better. We help save them, but sometimes I wonder if they save us more. Corny, maybe, but true?Have a great Christmas RU :wave:
