The Rabbit... Part II

Let's break down the pet situation.

The Cons:

1. We have had the rabbit for 6 days now and we still don't have a proper cage. I was going to buy a cage at PetSmart, and in the 11th hour decided that the one I found on-line looked more hospitable. So in spite of the fact that I knew we were going to get a rabbit on Saturday I decided to order a cage (that I knew would take at least a week for delivery) the day before. Well, the cage was delivered yesterday and when I went to assemble it this morning I discovered the tray where all the poop goes is broken. That is clearly a huge problem! The company is going to send us a new one, but it'll take another week. In the interim we have the rabbit behind a movable pet fence on the screened porch. It is mostly fine, but the rabbit is messy, messy, MESSY! She kicks her little heels up when she is scampering about and flings her little pooplets everywhere. This pet yard was meant to be used to take her out in the yard for exercise -- not as a permanent home!

2. Bunnies bite! And, apparently, they bite pretty hard. Hard enough to break the skin. Just ask Hannah. So far, we have had one ferocious chomp (in the bunny's defense we had just brought her home, and we were going to great lengths to give her a warm, human welcome. Probably it was not her idea of a good time, and she was telling us to back off!), and one nibble. The kids aren't overly concerned about the rabbit's occasional foray into carnivorous behavior, but the rabbit freaks me out now when she comes over to sniff my hand.

3. Bunnies also scratch to the point of drawing blood if their nails aren't properly trimmed. When we went to pick out the rabbit we were invited to hold a variety of bunnies to find a good personality match. Unfortunately, no rabbit really likes people until it has been tamed. The rabbits were pretty much in a state of hysteria.

If you don't know how to hold a rabbit solidly they can do cause serious damage to your skin. Case in point. I was holding a rabbit that we were considering purchasing against my chest and petting her. Suddenly, she starts going crazy (apparently they are afraid of heights -- and I stood up. Who knew?!). She wiggled down inside my v-neck shirt - still scratching like a champ - and I was completely at her mercy. The breeder had to remove the animal from the inside of my shirt.

At this point I am wondering why we are getting a rabbit. I have had a bunny down my shirt, I've been groped by a stranger, and I have claw marks all over my boobs. Fun stuff. Anyway, the breeder proceeded to explain that the nails are only sharp like that when they need clipping. She, of course, doesn't clip them so that she can demonstrate the proper trim procedure once you have chosen a bunny. Cripes. A warning would have been nice.

4. I really want this rascally wabbit (type-o, but I'm keeping it!) to be a good pet since we are likely to be saddled with it for quite some time. I feel the need to help tame the bunny while the kids are at school. Mostly I enjoy this. The other day I held her and pet her for the better part of two hours. I had the the bunny in a state of limp relaxation, but I guess she was too relaxed. She peed all over me, the towel that I had out on my lap (you know, because I was afraid she might scratch me or bite me), and another towel that was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Obviously, getting bunny pee all over yourself is just gross. Having to do an extra load of laundry, well, that is just intolerable.

The Pros:

1. She is really cute. Nothing else to add.

2. We have a leash and we are going to try to train her to walk on the leash. That should add to the cuteness factor. Unfortunately, getting the leash on her is going to require an act of God. As a result, this point may need to be moved under the "Cons" heading, but we'll leave it here for the time being.

In Summary

We have a super-cute, furry ball of chaos. I want to love her, but, right now, I'm just the tiniest bit afraid of her.