Introducing the Terrible Two!  These two lovies are a huge pile of cuteness, but young and mischievous!  They’re being fostered in New Jersey, and foster mom Astrid has been giving me regular updates since she took them under her wing a few months ago.  Since she’s had them, she’s had Samantha spayed (Chris was already neutered), and the pair are back together and ready for a new home.  Astrid has been working hard with these two, getting to know them and their habits, learning how to work around their naughtiness, and spoiling them rotten!  She’s been an awesome foster mom and has learned a lot about their individual personalities, and knows exactly what kind of home will be best for them… here is what Astrid has to say about the pair:

“Our names are Samantha (gray) and Chris (white). We are a very cute bonded brother-sister pair and will need to be adopted together. We are about 2 years old, which means we still have a long life ahead of us. We were born in foster care and think it’s about time we found our own furever home. Believe it or not, our dad was a lop-eared rabbit, and we have the prettiest Siamese markings you’ll ever find on a rabbit.

We are both very playful and just love to run around and do “binkies”, i.e. what most people would call crazy bunny dances. We would love to find a home where we can live in an indoor pen rather than cage, so we can stretch our legs even while you are at work. We are a little on the shy side and get easily spooked by sudden movements or noises. Therefore a home without small children, or dogs would be the ideal place. We absolutely love people, especially the ones who sit on the floor and let us come to them, which we will frequently do. Promise! Like most bunnies, we get really scared when you try to pick us up. Once we get used to our new environment we can be pretty feisty and will let those big humans know, when they are in our way.

Our favorite pastime, besides running and binkies, is chewing, chewing and more chewing. We absolutely love to shred and chew cardboard boxes, grass balls and grass mats, sticks etc. So we will need lots of toys to keep our teeth busy and an extra amount of supervision and bunny-proofing when we are out of our pen exploring, because we also like to check out all those exciting new human “toys.”

If you’re interested in giving Samantha and Chris a forever home, please fill out the bunny adoption questionnaire, and we’ll talk!

Chris & Sam Chillin’

Bunnies make the best pillows

Represent!

And now, some multimedia that will delight and amaze …

* music by “Roy” (found on opsound.com, the most awesome source for open source music!)

UPDATE FROM ASTRID -  1/30/09

Chris, the bun who didn’t want to be touched when I first met him, has turned into quite a cuddle-bun. He just loves attention and being petted (if he’s not in hyper-mode). As he runs around the room he constantly stops by to say hello or jumps through my lap. So every time he passes by I give him a little pat, and for a while now he’ll often stop and actually sit there to get more. Sam is still somewhat aloof, she still doesn’t like being touched all that much. Whenever I have managed to make her sit down for a minute and endure my pets, Chris usually comes running over and squeezes his head under my hand to get his share of attention. Last night I was herding them back into their pen by gently pushing their behinds in the right direction. Sam went straight back to the pen. Chris who happened to be sitting on my bed, just snuggled into my comforter and there he sat waiting for the “petting” to continue. So I gave in and petted him, sort of lying next to him, since he made no motion to move any time soon. Occasionally I’d stop to see whether he was still liking it or had had enough. Every time I did this, he’d turn his head around, poke me and then shove his head under my hand. One time I ignored his nudging twice, so he pushed his little head with even more force against my hand. It’s pretty cute.

Another cute thing, Chris knows now when he’s supposed to get a treat. Chris has been reliably treat-trained for a while, i.e. I rattle the magic box and he comes running. I used it a lot, becomes they had their own opinions when it came to going back to their pen. Sam only recently decided to respond to the call of food. At the same time as I rattling the box, I usually call their names and make a little clicking sound with my tongue. Well, yesterday I called Chris and made the clickick sound in order for him to go back to his pen. He came running right away (without box-rattling), went to the entrance of the pen and then started looking at me as if to say “so where is it, I came didn’t I?”. He did the same thing today. Now that I have been teaching him to come by rattling food, he expects a treat and won’t move any further unless he gets it. Very cute!

Lisa is our first foster mom.  Her energy and ambition have been crucial in helping to shape the Harmony House foster program.  She is currently caring for Pepper, who we’re learning has a really cute personality!

Lisa gives regular updates with Pepper’s progress and cute stories about his adventures with her family.  Watch some of the videos, and if you love Pepper, and are thinking about adopting him, come back to check on how he’s doing!

meet pepper:

pepper’s pen:

pepper binkies:  

paper squares:

hide & seek:

Yes, it can be done, and it’s SO IMPORTANT! The cost of spaying or neutering rabbits often varies widely with different veterinarians, so call as many as you can to find out who is the most affordable for you, but remember, rabbit care should be done only by a veterinarian who is experienced with rabbits so make sure you ask.

Spaying your female can help reduce the risk of cervical cancer, which is a high risk in female bunnies. Female rabbits may also spray, and might become aggressive if they are not spayed.

Male rabbits should be neutered because they will spray, and they may also become aggressive. They should be neutered at about 3-4 months of age. When they reach puberty they become very aggressive, especially toward other bunnies. If they’re neutered while they’re young, their testosterone levels will taper off over the course of about 6 months, and they’ll eventually mellow out. If they aren’t neutered when they’re young, this aggressive behavior could continue indefinitely.

Always spend lots of time with your bunnies when they’re young. Be gentle, pet them often, and hold them when they’ll let you. Don’t ignore them through their aggressive period. This will only distance them from you and getting them to come around to being your friend later will most likely be more difficult.

Of course another important reason to have your bunnies spayed or neutered is to help keep the unwanted bunny population down. It only takes a split second for a female to get pregnant when she is only a few months old, and she can have up to 12 babies! It’s very difficult to find loving permanent homes for rabbits, so please be responsible and help keep unwanted bunnies from living sad neglected lives by having your little one fixed right away!

These are some pictures of Orville and Sophia in their home. I love that slate sidewalk!

Pinwheel went by herself to become the new companion for another bunny.� She was one of a litter of babies that was born here at the shelter (we thought the mommy was spayed) and she is so frikkin’ cute…we will miss her!!!