Kim and Cocoa

Cocoa is sick

2009-11-25T13:44:00.002-05:00

Last night was a scary night. It started off pretty normally with Jeff and I coming home from work, making dinner, and heading off to a couple of stores. Later, both of us were in the office where Cocoa’s cage is when we heard a weird sound from Cocoa’s castle. I couldn’t tell what Cocoa was doing in there because his castle wasn’t facing us. When he came out of his castle, he ran over by his water bottle and fell down! It happened so fast I didn’t know what caused it! After falling down Cocoa was clearly upset and ran back into his castle. I didn’t know what was going on with him. I thought maybe he slipped because his nails were getting long. I had been planning to cut his nails so I decided that would be the night to do it. I got him out and cut his nails which of course he was unhappy about. I put him back down in his playpen, rather than his cage, so he could have some play time. His playpen is on the carpet. While in his playpen, Cocoa fell down several times again! It was so scary, I have never seen a bunny do that. He would be hopping around and then fall down out of nowhere and struggle to get up for what seemed like forever. He was rolling all around and I didn’t think there was anything I could do!

Jeff and I planned to take him to the vet in the morning, but I was so scared I decided he needed to go that night! It was nearing midnight but luckily we found a 24 hour emergency animal hospital. We got Cocoa into his carrier and headed off for about a 15 minute drive. The vet at the animal hospital was very nice. He said that Cocoa possibly had an ear infection or some other problem that was causing him to lose his balance. Luckily we took Cocoa in right when we noticed this problem. The vet said he had to put many bunnies to sleep who had this condition so bad that they couldn’t even stand up! We were given some antibiotics (baytril) for Cocoa to give him for the next 10 days. The vet demonstrated how to give it to Cocoa, which I’m sure will be a lot harder when I have to do it. Today Cocoa has been acting pretty normal, eating his hay and drinking water. He hasn’t been moving around as much as normal and mostly just sitting in his litterbox. I hope he is ok, it was very scary to see Cocoa in this condition!

Leaking water bottles

2007-12-31T17:07:00.000-05:00

So last week all of a sudden, Cocoa’s water bottle started leaking. He has had this one for over a year and it always drips a little after I fill it up, but now it was constantly leaking! Cocoa’s newspaper kept getting all wet and I had to keep changing it. Poor guy probably felt like he was in a flood! I have an old backup water bottle, which is quite a bit bigger, so I filled that up and put it on his cage. Of course this one leaks too! I had already been planning to buy Cocoa a Water Buddy bottle so I went ahead and ordered it. I wish I already had it so I could avoid using these leaking ones. If you haven't heard of the Water Buddies, they are supposed to be leak proof - we'll see. I ordered a 2008 bunny calendar as well and I can't wait to get it!

And on another note, we recently celebrated Cocoa's birthday! He is now two years old!

Cocoa in his bed!!!!

2007-10-04T00:05:00.001-04:00

Wow, I haven't posted in a while! Cocoa finally laid down in his bed tonight and it was so cute I had to get a pic. I bought him the bed a month or so ago from Petco. The bed is in his playpen area. Cocoa always jumps in there, but never stayed too long. Tonight I caught him sleeping in his bed. It was the cutest thing ever!!!!! What a sweetie!

It's hip hop time!

2007-08-21T22:07:00.001-04:00

I came across this really funny bunny song today and I thought I would share it.

You can see it here.

Craigs List

2007-08-02T23:05:00.000-04:00

Many days I read the pet postings on Craigs List. I usually end up getting upset though, because people are always looking to get rid of their pet for some reason. Reasons like "my kids aren't interested anymore", or "I'm moving and can't take the pet with me." Someone posted a really meaningful, sad but true story. I hope somebody thinking of giving up a pet will read the post!

It starts....

A Shelter Manager's Thankless Job

"I am posting this (and it is long) because I think our society needs a huge "Wake-up" call. As a shelter manager, I am going to share a little insight with you all...a view from the inside if you will. First off, this is a forum to for adoption and/or rehoming as clearly stated in the rules. All of you breeders/sellers on craigslist should not only be flagged (and I hope the good people on craigslist will continue to do so with blind fury), but you should be made to work in the "back" of an animal shelter for just one day. Maybe if you saw the life drain from a few sad, lost, confused eyes, you would change your mind about breeding and selling to people you don't even know that puppy you just sold will most likely end up in my shelter when it's not a cute little puppy anymore. So how would you feel if you knew that there's about a 90% chance that dog will never walk out of the shelter it is going to be dumped at?

Purebred or not! About 50% of all of the dogs that are "owner surrenders" or "strays", that come into my shelter are purebred dogs. The most common excuses I hear are; "We are moving and we can't take our dog (or cat)." Really?
Where are you moving too that doesn't allow pets? Or they say "The dog got bigger than we thought it would". How big did you think a German Shepherd would get? "We don't have time for her". Really? I work a 10-12 hour day and still have time for my 6 dogs! "She's tearing up our yard". How about making her a part of your family? They always tell me "We just don't want to have to stress about finding a place for her we know she'll get adopted, she's a good dog". Odds are your pet won't get adopted & how stressful do you think being in a shelter is?"

You can see the rest here. Some parts were hard to read, but I think this person made plenty of good points.

Nails cut

2007-07-21T22:38:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I cut Cocoa's nails! It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. Since I had never done it before, I just cut off a little. Cocoa was patient, although he seemed pretty nervous while I was doing it.

Also, I recently got a playpen to put around Cocoa's cage so he can come out and play more. The only bad thing is that he hasn't come out yet! He comes over by the door and looks out, but I think he is scared of the playpen. Also, I moved a few weeks ago so he isn't quite used to the new place. I hope he comes out soon!

First vet appointment

2007-05-22T17:26:00.000-04:00

Today was Cocoa's first vet appointment! He was very scared during the 15 minute car ride. (this was his second car ride since I've had him) We got to the Animal and Avian Center at 2:30 and they took us right away. I found out that Cocoa's official weight is 2.4 lbs! They checked his eyes, ears, teeth, and everything else. The vet said that Cocoa is in great health and at a perfect weight! They also gave me an estimate for neutering at $132. That doesn't seem too bad. I'm going to plan on getting Cocoa neutered over the summer.

I know Cocoa didn't like being at the vet with all the unfamiliar smells and sounds. But I'm very glad I took him in and I feel great knowing he is a healthy bun!

Big News!

2007-05-18T23:03:00.000-04:00

I wanted to share the news with everyone that I got engaged on April 29th! My boyfriend and I were spending some time in Canada, and he proposed while we were in Niagara Falls! I'm so happy and I'm so excited for us to start planning the wedding.

As for Cocoa, he is doing good. I gave him a grape the other day and he loved it! I made him a vet appointment for this coming Tuesday, just for a checkup. I have a feeling that Cocoa might not like going to the vet! It's for his own good though. I have been meaning to make him an appointment, but I wanted to wait for warmer weather. I didn't want to take him outside when it was so cold. I don't know what to expect, since I have never taken a bunny to the vet before. It will be interesting!

I am still here!!

2007-04-15T22:05:00.000-04:00

Hello to all and sorry it has been so long since my last post! Things have been very busy with work lately.

Cocoa is doing well. I recently got his first "mini bale" of hay from Bunny Bales. It's 6lbs, so it should last a while.

And, I also got Cocoa a castle, which he loves! Every night he sits on top of the castle and sleeps. It's very cute!!

I still cannot wait to build Cocoa an NIC cage. That won't be before July though, since I'm moving to a new place at the end of June. I think his current cage is big enough, but I know he would enjoy having two levels.

And to anyone who was wondering about the grooming tool I picked, I did not pick any! I ended up finding a comb at a local store for only $1, but I still think that it doesn't do much. The quest continues! =)

Grooming Tool

2007-03-06T17:33:00.000-05:00

I've decided that I need something new to groom Cocoa. The current brush I have is just not cutting it. I have narrowed it down to 3 combs/brushes and was hoping all my bunny friends could help me pick one! I need the tool that is best for Cocoa. He has short hair, with a little longer hair around his head, since he is part lionhead. Please pick which you think would be the best! Thanks!!

Help me choose

Please click the link to make your pick! (I could not post it in here because it was messing up my template) Thanks for your help!!

A bigger litterbox

2007-02-19T23:31:00.000-05:00

Cocoa now has a new litterbox! I decided his corner one was too small, and went to Walmart and bought a small cat litterbox for just $2! It's the perfect size too. Now all of the hay from his hay rack falls into the box rather than all over the cage. And all of Cocoa's...um...droppings....stay in one place too! He seems to enjoy it better and it seems more comfortable for him.

Cocoa's checking it out before I put it in his cage!

continuous thumping

2007-02-02T16:37:00.000-05:00

This morning, around 4 a.m., I was woken up by Cocoa thumping! His cage is in my bedroom, in case you didn't know. He was just sitting in his cage looking very scared, and thumping a few times a minute. I have no idea what was wrong. I turned on my light and looked around, but I did not see or hear anything strange. I tried to calm Cocoa down by talking to him and giving him hay but it didn't work. I felt bad for him! I know he was thumping for at least an hour, because I was up for that long.

When I finally got up later, Cocoa seemed back to normal. He was playing in his cage and eating hay. I wonder what scared him! Did anyone else's bunny ever do that??

I got a carrier

2007-01-23T19:02:00.000-05:00

I have needed a carrier for Cocoa so I can take him to the vet. After looking around and comparing prices, I decided to order one online from Petsmart. I ordered it last Monday and got it two days later! Everything was packaged nicely and the service was so quick. I would definitely order from them again.

Without further ado, here's the new carrier!

I let Cocoa check it out and he is happy with it!

He fits in it very nicely too!

Cocoa probably thinks this carrier is his new toy! He loves going in it, and then running out. How cute! I guess the next step is to make his vet appointment. Oh boy!

Big Bag of Hay

2007-01-15T19:16:00.000-05:00

This weekend Jeff and I went to a Petland store that actually carries Oxbow Hay! I've heard that Oxbow is the best, but I didn't want to buy it online because of the shipping charges. I bought a 40 ounce bag, which is about double what I normally get!

Cocoa seems to like his new hay!

Cocoa's birthday

2007-01-04T22:04:00.000-05:00

Cocoa's first birthday was December 27th. I let him out of his cage to play for a while and give him a present. First Cocoa tried opening his present.

I decided to help Cocoa and bust open his gift which was a Flip N Toss carrot. (from Super Pet) I think he likes it!

Cocoa also received a bunny blankey a few days after his birthday.

I have a new video up of Cocoa. He was playing with the newspaper in his cage and made a little tunnel out of it. It was the cutest thing ever!!!

New Hay

2006-12-19T19:50:00.000-05:00

This past weekend Jeff and I went up to Michigan to visit my sister. While we were there, we went to a pet store called Super Petz. They had an awesome supply of bunny products!! Most pet stores around here don't really have very much (especially compared to the amount of cat and dog items!) I saw some orchard grass hay so I decided to buy some for Cocoa. I have just been feeding him timothy hay, but I figured he would like some variety in his diet! He definitely loves the orchard grass hay. He always gets really excited when I open the bag up!

On another note, I came home from work yesterday and Cocoa's cage was trashed! I really wonder how he managed to knock his whole box over. Here is a picture of how his cage looked.

Hehe! Cocoa will be one year old on December 27th! That's all for now. Until next time...

Molting

2006-11-30T23:05:00.000-05:00

Just about a week ago I noticed Cocoa missing a spot of fur above his nose. I was kind of worried about him.

I soon found out, Cocoa was just molting! From all I have read online about bunny care, I haven't really seen much on molting. But I did notice he was losing a lot of fur lately. Especially when I cleaned his cage, there was fur everywhere! I was just surprised when a little patch was gone! Needless to say I've been trying to brush him a lot this week, even though he doesn't enjoy it!

I wanted to tell all you bunny fans out there about Bunny Bales. I got a sample of their hay and Cocoa loved it! The prices seem reasonable and shipping was quick. Check them out - Bunny Bales

Videos

2006-11-14T21:05:00.000-05:00

Today I posted my first video of Cocoa up on YouTube! First I had to brighten up the videos and add some music. Unfortunately my digital camera does not record sound, I wish it did! But the songs are just as good! (hopefully)

I will have more videos to come. You can add me on YouTube if you have an account, that way you won't miss anything! My name is KimandCocoa.

Here is my video of "Crazy Cocoa" ENJOY!!!

Update

2006-10-29T21:20:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone!

I have not posted in a while, sorry about that. I have lots to share about Cocoa! About two weeks ago I moved his cage from the living room to my bedroom. I have a pretty small bedroom as it is, so it seems even smaller now. At first I was always waking up at night to hear Cocoa playing or shredding newspaper. Now I usually just sleep through all that noise! It is a lot easier to keep his cage in my room for many reasons. First, it is quieter in there. Second, when I want to let him out, I don't have to try to pick him up. (he doesn't like that) I can just open his cage door and let him come out when he wants. And the third reason it's better for him to be in my room is because Phoebe - my roommate's cat, doesn't come in there and bother him much.

Also, last weekend Jeff bought 2 new things for Cocoa. A hay rack and an activity log. The hay rack attaches to the outside of the cage and keeps the hay neat so it doesn't get scattered everywhere.

And the activity log is from Ecotrition. It is 100% edible made from alfalfa and honey. Cocoa loves it!

Thanks for the new things Jeff! =)

shy guy

2006-10-09T22:33:00.000-04:00

Ever since I've had Cocoa, he has seemed somewhat shy. He has definitely warmed up to me some, but he still seems shy and scared around me. He will stay in his box if I'm near his cage. He will really try to avoid being picked up. I always hoped I wasn't doing anything wrong and that it was just the way Cocoa is. He is my first bunny so there is a lot to learn I guess!

Today while reading some info on a great forum for rabbit owners- Rabbit Forum, I found some really helpful information:

One of the most common misconceptions people have about rabbits is that they like to be held and cuddled. This is probably because they look like plush toys. Unfortunately, many people buy rabbits without realizing the true nature of rabbits, and that's one of the main reason these lovely, intelligent creatures are "dumped" shortly after they reach sexual maturity and begin to assert their strong personalities.

You are distressed that the bunny does not like to be held. Consider for a moment, however, the natural history of the rabbit. This is a ground-dwelling animal that is a prey item for many predators. It is completely against the nature of the rabbit to be held far above the ground where it cannot control its own motions and activities. When you force her to be held against her will, you reinforce her instinctive notion that you are a predator who is trying to restrain her. Holding her while she struggles and kicks is not only dangerous for you and the children (You may have noticed her sharp claws by now!), but also for the rabbit.

You can read more on the forum in the resource section! It's a great place for people who own bunnies!

Facts

2006-09-29T15:43:00.000-04:00

For all of you that are curious about Cocoa, here are some facts on him!

Birth date - December 27, 2005
Weight - 2.5 lbs
Breed - Dwarf mix
Color - Brown with white on his tummy
Sex - Male
Favorite activities - Chewing and tearing up boxes and toilet paper tubes
Favorite snack - Cheerios

Does he bite? Nope, never has

Likes to be held? Not really, but he'll deal with it if you hold him properly

Binky!

2006-09-25T16:12:00.000-04:00

Last night Cocoa was having a blast doing binkies in his cage! It is such a fun thing to see. What is a binky?

"The happiest rabbit expression is commonly called a "binky." It's impossible to mistake for anything else, and the first time you see one you will probably wonder if the poor thing is having a convulsion. When a rabbit binkies, it jumps into the air and twists its head and body in opposite directions (sometimes twice) before falling back to the ground. This can be done while standing in one place, or while running, which is really weird looking, and is sometimes called the "happy bunny dance." A rabbit can even turn 180 degrees in midair. All this is a rabbit's way of telling you straight out that it is happy and overall pleased with you and its life."

(Read more at: The Language of Lagomorphs)

I will have to try to get a video of Cocoa doing a binky. It's hard to do because it happens so quickly! I'm glad that he is doing them though, since that shows he is happy.

Tired Cocoa

2006-09-19T17:10:00.000-04:00

Lately Cocoa has been sleeping inside of his box. I guess he feels safer in there. He is so cute!!!

I just had him out of his cage for a bit. I love holding and petting him! I can tell he doesn't really like to be held though. I guess a lot of bunnies don't like it. So much for me showering him with love! I suppose I have to settle with staring at him all day. lol

Nicknames

2006-09-14T23:25:00.000-04:00

Today I was thinking, I have quite a few nicknames for Cocoa. My favs are:

- Cocoa man
- Bun bun
- Sweetie (or my little sweetie)

I actually almost named him Bun bun, but that sounded kinda lame. I cleaned his cage today and I thought I would do a little rearranging. I moved his box to face a different way, but as soon as he got into his cage, he moved the box back! Right now he is chewing on a cardboard tube. How cute! I love Cocoa.

Yes they do

2006-09-12T21:10:00.000-04:00

After doing some research online, I found out that bunnies sleep with their eyes open! How neat. I never knew that.

Rabbits mostly sleep during the day. They often sleep with their eyes open so its hard to tell when they are sleeping. However a giveaway is that when they are sleeping rabbits often twitch, and their noses stop wiggling. (from http://www.fuzzy-rabbit.com/behaviourfaq.htm)

do bunnies sleep?

2006-09-11T21:00:00.000-04:00

I'm seriously wondering if bunnies sleep or not. I have never yet seen Cocoa sleep. He lays down a lot, but his eyes are always open!! Very weird. Maybe he only goes to sleep when I do, but that's not usually until about 1 a.m. I don't understand. This is the way Cocoa always looks:

He is resting but his eyes are definitely open! I think I am going to research this online.

Least favorite chore

2006-09-08T16:49:00.000-04:00

Today I had to do my least favorite chore when it comes to Cocoa. Change the litter box. I especially don't like doing it since I got the corn cob litter. It does not absorb very well. That bag is almost empty though, and soon I'll be back to using Yesterday's News. If you haven't tried that litter for your bunny, I highly recommend it. Flushable and made from recycled paper! So once I empty out the litter box, I have to clean it with vinegar. I have never liked the smell of vinegar. It's just horrible. The one plus is that Cocoa has a small litter box.

During the time I'm cleaning it out, I let Cocoa run around in my room. He enjoys the freedom to explore and hop and play.

The problem is, it's really hard to catch Cocoa and get him back into the cage. He has too much fun being out. Finally I gave up on trying to catch him, and just brought his cage over to let him jump back in when he was ready. It worked...eventually.

First post

2006-09-07T22:52:00.000-04:00

Hello and welcome to my blog. My name is Kim. I decided to start this up to write about my wonderful dwarf bunny, Cocoa. He is eight months old. I had been wanting a bunny for a while and I knew I wanted a dwarf since they do not get very big. I had been looking for one online on Petfinder and other sites. I came across Hoobly where I saw the posting for a:

Free 7 mo. old Netherland Dwarf mix buck

I had emailed the owner and arranged a time I could pick him up. And the rest is history! I've had him for a month, and already I feel like I've learned a lot about bunnies. This is my first, but I have been reading online and in magazines to learn as much as I can. Hopefully others can learn from my experiences - both good and bad.

Say hello to Cocoa!