We’ve expanded upon our experiment from last year to grow some of Coco and Cosette’s food.  This season, we have four raised beds of fruits and veggies – both for the bunnies and ourselves.

For the bunnies, we have growing: Lettuce (pictured above), carrots, basil, broccoli leaves, dandelions, and apples (our trees have fruit this year!).

I might try growing cilantro next spring because it’s Cos’s favorite, but I’ve heard it can be difficult to grow.

***

UPDATE: Bought some cilantro seeds.  I read that I still had time to plant them. So we’ll see how that goes.  Also bought a mint plant that we’ll keep in a separate pot because apparently they spread quickly.

We’ve had a very scary last few days here. Cosette had to go to the emergency vet over the weekend because she had stopped eating and pooping and looked quite hunched. After an x-ray, the vet found that her stomach was extremely distended and she had two large gas bubbles. The diagnosis was GI stasis, and her prognosis was guarded.

A dental exam showed that her molars were unevenly worn, which most likely led to her digestive issues. They filed her teeth that night, and during her stay at the vet’s, she received motility medication, pain medication, IV fluids, and force feeding of Critical Care.

Sunday morning, her condition had worsened, and the vet was not optimistic about her chances of survival. With dull, droopy eyes, a hunched, tense posture, and a visibly bloated stomach, Cosette looked like she was experiencing a lot of pain.

Sunday evening, she started perking up a little, and she managed to eat a little on her own and finally excreted some soft stool. We brought in more greens and she ate some cilantro with encouragement by us. This morning, she excreted formed stools and had more of an appetite, so she was allowed to come home this evening. Coco was very excited his friend was finally back.

We will continue her motility medication for the next few days, and if necessary, we may need to continue syringe feeding Critical Care to supplement her diet as well. She is not quite back to her old self at this point. She doesn’t have quite the appetite, and her stools are quite small. But I was pleasantly surprised that her litterbox habits appeared to remain in tact, despite having quite a stressful weekend. (And of course, that she was actually going to the bathroom again, and her digestive system was active again.)

I wanted to share this story so that other people could learn from our scary experience. For example, it’s so important for your bunny to get regular checkups, including a dental examination. Even rabbits with a hay-based diet, who show no signs of pain, can have molar spurs. And this condition can lead to potentially deadly conditions like GI stasis. For more information about GI stasis, see Dana Krempel’s article, GI Stasis: The Silent Killer.

Sometimes Coco and Cosette like to snuggle. I thought their first formation was a little bizarre, but it seemed to work for both of them…

until Coco decided he needed to groom… maybe he got fur in his eyes somehow?

He decided on a different formation when he finished grooming.

I guess Cosette found chewing envelopes to be quite exhausting.

It’s funny what rabbits find to be comfortable resting places. I used to try to make/buy nice soft beds for my rabbits, but eventually determined from their reactions that these beds were apparently too wrinkly and weren’t saturated enough with rabbit urine (quickly remedied by them). Instead, I discovered that rabbits (at least my own) prefer hard areas- like plastic food mats, hearths, vents, and as pictured below, entertainment stands.

Coco and Cosette relax in line.

Cosette and Coco show off some tail.

(In honor of Hans from Furrybutts, who recently passed away.)

We plucked our first head of lettuce from our garden and, after a thorough washing, gave it to Coco and Cosette. A few investigative sniffs led to a full on eating contest between the two. I’d have to say our homegrown lettuce was a hit.

Audrey Rabbit is a house rabbit living in North London. Her mom, Carol Muskoron, is an Associate Editor at AllAboutYou.com.

When Carol began blogging about Audrey, the cashmere lop quickly became a cyber celebrity.

You can read all about Audrey’s adventures on All About You or follow her on Twitter.

Audrey wanted to learn about other parts of the world, so she sent her clone out to New London, CT in the US to visit her friends at My House Rabbit.

Come see what they got up to!

Audrey meets Cosette and Coco.

Coco, Audrey, and Cosette get close.

Audrey checks out our bunny garden.

Audrey makes a stop at the statue of John Winthrop the Younger. Winthrop founded New London in 1646 and later went on to become the governor of Connecticut.

Another view of Audrey with Governor Winthrop’s statue. John Winthrop the Younger continued the tradition of his father, who was the founding governor of the Massachusetts Bay colony.

New London’s City Hall on State Street.

A full view of City Hall.

Audrey examines Wyland’s whale mural, The Great Sperm Whales, on Eugene O’Neill Drive. Wyland has created a hundred whale murals all over the world.

Audrey poses with the statue of Eugene O’Neill as a boy. O’Neill, who spent his summers growing up in New London, used to sit by the Thames River and sketch the ships. O’Neill is the only American playwright to win a Nobel prize for literature.

Audrey takes in the view at the State Pier.

Audrey at the Customs House Maritime Museum on Bank Street. The museum focuses on New London’s rich history as a whaling and shipping port.

Audrey at the gate of the Hygienic Art Park.

Audrey takes a seat on Bank Street.

Audrey visits the New London Superior Court.

Audrey’s last stop was the Nathan Hale statue in Williams Park. After Nathan Hale graduated from Yale, he was a school teacher in New London. He was way ahead of his time by teaching girls in 1773.

Hope you enjoyed Audrey’s tour of New London, CT!

Next stop: Bow, Washington to visit our friends at the House of Rabbits!