Rabbit Report

Oscar and Lily move in, Sept 2002

Maria asked me to build a new rabbit hutch for her buns, so I went to work and built it in my backyard. Well, one thing led to another, and instead of taking the rabbit hutch to Maria's house, the rabbits came to my backyard! The two rabbits in question are Lily and Oscar, two brothers that were had-raised by Maria and other members of Gainesville Rabbit Rescue, which Maria helped found.

Here is the hutch under construction. This is my first hutch, but I have tried to add some new features. The roof opens for cleaning, there is an enclosed burrow for the rabbits to hide in, and a trap-door style staircase which allows to rabbits to go out and play.

Maria gave both bunnies a bath in my sink the day of arrival. Not sure why, she said the bunnys were dirty and needed a wash.

Lily and Oscar are both 3 years old now. Lily is pictured above, getting her bath. They are mini-rexes, although Maria said they are mixed with other breeds.

A couple views of the bunny staircase in use. The boys are tearing up and down this thing at full speed, hard to get a clear picture of the staircase in use. I carpeted the staircase to make it easy for them, originally it was bare wood with small wooden cleets stapled on. But this was still slippery, they did not seem to like it.

Here is Oscar hiding in the litter box. Oscar is a little more shy than Lily, but still a very nice rabbit. He is also not quite so smart as Lily. Lily was using the rabbit staircase by the second day, but Oscar still had not figured it out on day 3.

Maria and Lily. These two rabbits are Maria's pride and joy, she is a little nervous about them staying with me. But things are setup pretty nice for the rabbits, they should be happy and very safe in Bay View.

This is turning out to be one of Lily's favorite spots to hang out. She is pictured here in the "Superman" pose that rabbits go into when they are very relaxed.

Yesterday she was laying out in this exact pose when a neighborhood cat came into the yard to say hi. Actually, the cat started to stalk Lily, going into a crouch and getting closer and closer. I was worried that the cat was seeing lunch and walked over to shoo it away. But they Lily bounded up and ran straight at the cat with bared teeth. Lily chased the cat all over the yard and the cat ran away quickly. I think the rabbits will be just fine out there, they can take care of themselves.

Oscar brushing himself after his bath. The bunnies looked a little funny until they dried off.

The staircase gives the buns choice and freedom over where they want to spend their time. The buns like being outside in the morning and late afternoon, but will stay in the hutch during the day. I will continue to study their behavior and report my findings in this and other respected scientific forums.