As many of you know, Petra has long been obsessed with bunnies. When we go to the Lavender Farm, she wants to spend most of her time in the Rabbitat. Her first favorite book was The Runaway Bunny. We had been discussing possibly getting her a bunny in the spring. But then fate intervened.
Over the summer, my stage manager for The Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon asked me if the kids would like to have a rabbit. He and his lady were having a hard time finding a new apartment, due at least in part to their animals. I told him that we would be up for talking about it. So he did talk about it–with JC. And this is how I came home from ballet class to find a giant rabbit in my living room.
I sometimes call him Fluffernut Hoppy McBunBun, but his official name is al-Miraj, which is apparently some kind of mythological unicorn bunny?
Petra was over the moon. She adores him. He’s in with the chickens (whom he totally bosses around), and she loves to go out there to feed everyone and pet his fluff. At first he’d run when we came, but now he hops up to us and pops up on his hind legs, little nose twitching with excitement.
We built him an insulated hutch-type-thing out of an old truck topper and several bales of straw. He dug a deep burrow under it, which surprised me–he’s been a mostly indoor bunny, from a long line of indoor pet bunnies, but the instinct is strong. He seems comfortable and happy–I sometimes see him hopping around on very cold mornings, apparently not bothered by the icy ground.
The cat is indifferent to him, or vaguely curious. He’s much too big for her to mess with.
Ender, on the other hand, is obsessed with him. If we go inside the gate to feed Miraj without letting Ender come along, he’ll stand outside and whine. When we let Miraj out to explore the yard, Ender follows him, very slowly–not chasing, just intently following.
He seemed a little sad since Sarah and Piggie left. I guess he needed a friend.
Be First to Comment