Pernes-les-fontaines (France)

 July 2018 : 2 tiny rabbits near our home

In july 2018,  my next door neighbours asked me to keep their two tiny rabbits. Thomas and Marie-Odile were going on holiday with their kids, hiking, and could not take their furry pets with them. 

I was not familiar at all with this kind of pets, and wondered how Tahoe, our border collie and Zig,  our cat would react : would they chase them ?I did not want to take any risk.

  Rasta & Rockette were brother and sister . The two have been brought to our house in a very small hutch. I could not stand the idea they would stay 3 weeks in such a small space where they could hardly move !

I decided to build a kind of big cage, fenced all around, in order to let them free on the lawn a few hours during the day. They were put back  to their hutch only at night.

I was reading all day next to them : my own cat and dog were  kept inside but 6 cats lived around. I wanted the rabbits kept safe and sound.

 

One day I found Rasta, the male one, with his teeth stuck in the meshes of the fence. I managed to free him but realized he had very long teeth for a rabbit.  Much too long to my point of view  : He could barely eat ! Teeth were doing harm to his mouth. After a quick visit to my own pets clinic, his teeth were shortened in emergency by our vet ! 

 Rasta's teeth never stop growing and need to be often cut !! Marie-Odile became very skilled since 2018, now she does the job herself. 

Rockette was a lovely one, she loved to be cuddled. My dog was very curious when in the evening I put them back to their night shelter.I felt obliged to keep him at some distance.

          

 Sometimes, I let them inside our home at night, in our guest room. They seemed quite surprised...

I stopped when i noticed the began to chew the fourniture...