Cocoa is sick

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

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!!!!

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!

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

You can see it here.

Craigs List

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

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

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!

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!!

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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...