Liung
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Picca was an unspayed female Netherland Dwarf. We bought her from a pet store
along with her brother, Lahi, as babies on January 6, 2006.
We'd initially intended to get two girls, thinking (wrongly) that that way they would get along and no fixing would be required. That didn't happen when it turned out that Lahia was actually a Lahi, and good thing too as we've since learned better. I named her Picca, from the Italian word "piccina", which means "little girl".
On August 8, 2013, we noticed her breathing was off. She kept her chin way up high, as if trying to open her airway, and was breathing very hard and laboriously. We put her in a cage next to a
humidifier overnight and that seemed to help somewhat with her breathing. The next morning however,
she still seemed pretty bad so we booked
her a vet appointment later that day. The vet agreed that she had breathing problems,
and also found a hard mass in her abdomen. We were given medication for
her and we took her home and made her comfortable.
She was found lying in her cage at 9:00 that night, August 9th. She was 7 years old. It's extremely likely that she had cancer.
Picca was never what you could have called a friendly rabbit. Inquisitive, curious, mischievous, but not friendly. Like Lahi, she was in no way open to humans touching her, though she had no compunctions about touching us herself. I guess they got enough physical affection from each other.
She was also grumpy, extremely bossy, fussy, and a complete trouble maker. She put much stock in proper manners and wasn't afraid to inform you with a sharp stomp of her foot if she was offended or upset. There were Rules, and they were There To Be Followed, and no she did not care that you were not informed of those rules and would not understand her even if she did tell you, you broke the rules ********* and you had better be prepared for a sharp reprimand of an angryfoot or flicking paws.
She was also very easily stressed, and I'm ashamed to say that we probably didn't do everything we could to help her with that. The first few years we were woefully ignorant rabbit owners, and handled them both a lot with unskilled hands. That probably contributed quite a bit to their reluctance for touch. In later years, I know I made an effort to not bother her, and encourage her to go places on her own rather than pick her up. In the last few years of her life, she gained an uncomfortable tendency to bug her eyes out when stressed. If you've ever seen the movie Bedtime Stories... imagine your rabbit looking like Bugsy. For real, not as CGI. It was simultaneously hilarious and horrifying. Several times I reached over and covered her eyes with my hand to force her to close them, afraid they'd pop right out if I didn't.
But perhaps the most stressful was the arrival of Delilah. A young, equally hormonal, socially inept, overeager, hyperactive rabbit who completely ignored all Picca's Rules and couldn't understand even basic body language like pinned ears. It took almost a year before the two girls could be in the same room together without fighting. One thing I tried was having Picca in a wire dog cage outside, with Delilah able to approach her at will. I literally watched as they sat there and bit each other's faces through the bars. All either had to do to avoid being bitten was move back about two inches, but neither would. I finally had to separate them (more than they already were) after a few minutes.
That was stereotypical of most of their interactions, actually. Both refusing to back down, too prideful to give in. Once, there was a shallow hole under the slide they both liked. Delilah lay down in it. Picca came over, and tried to chase her out. She nudged, then nipped, then outright bit her. Delilah still refused to even get up. So instead, down Picca flopped right next to her. I managed to get pictures. To the uninformed, it looks like they're the best of friends. In reality, it was the biggest hate-cuddle that ever existed.
But eventually, they managed to reconcile their differences. At one point the both of them started picking on Lahi, tearing out the fur on his shoulders. When I separated him into a large cage in their enclosure, Delilah and Picca proceeded to live perfectly happily just the two of them for the next month or two until Lahi's shoulders healed up. Lahi, on the other hand, welcomed the break from their harrassment.
I don't regret getting Delilah. Before she arrived, Picca and Lahi had started to slow down. Instead of running and playing when I let them out, they would go to their favourite corner and doze together. They weren't unhappy, but they weren't showing any enthusiasm either. After Delilah was accepted and allowed to run together with them, the two older buns seemed to regain their passion for life, busy with exploring their territory all over again and teaching her how to be a proper rabbit, rather than a dog. Picca's last year of life may have been stressful, but it was also full of excitement and fun.
I wish I could go back and do some things better, but in the end she had a long and full life, and I will always miss my grumpy little girl :'(
along with her brother, Lahi, as babies on January 6, 2006.
We'd initially intended to get two girls, thinking (wrongly) that that way they would get along and no fixing would be required. That didn't happen when it turned out that Lahia was actually a Lahi, and good thing too as we've since learned better. I named her Picca, from the Italian word "piccina", which means "little girl".
On August 8, 2013, we noticed her breathing was off. She kept her chin way up high, as if trying to open her airway, and was breathing very hard and laboriously. We put her in a cage next to a
humidifier overnight and that seemed to help somewhat with her breathing. The next morning however,
she still seemed pretty bad so we booked
her a vet appointment later that day. The vet agreed that she had breathing problems,
and also found a hard mass in her abdomen. We were given medication for
her and we took her home and made her comfortable.
She was found lying in her cage at 9:00 that night, August 9th. She was 7 years old. It's extremely likely that she had cancer.
Picca was never what you could have called a friendly rabbit. Inquisitive, curious, mischievous, but not friendly. Like Lahi, she was in no way open to humans touching her, though she had no compunctions about touching us herself. I guess they got enough physical affection from each other.
She was also grumpy, extremely bossy, fussy, and a complete trouble maker. She put much stock in proper manners and wasn't afraid to inform you with a sharp stomp of her foot if she was offended or upset. There were Rules, and they were There To Be Followed, and no she did not care that you were not informed of those rules and would not understand her even if she did tell you, you broke the rules ********* and you had better be prepared for a sharp reprimand of an angryfoot or flicking paws.
She was also very easily stressed, and I'm ashamed to say that we probably didn't do everything we could to help her with that. The first few years we were woefully ignorant rabbit owners, and handled them both a lot with unskilled hands. That probably contributed quite a bit to their reluctance for touch. In later years, I know I made an effort to not bother her, and encourage her to go places on her own rather than pick her up. In the last few years of her life, she gained an uncomfortable tendency to bug her eyes out when stressed. If you've ever seen the movie Bedtime Stories... imagine your rabbit looking like Bugsy. For real, not as CGI. It was simultaneously hilarious and horrifying. Several times I reached over and covered her eyes with my hand to force her to close them, afraid they'd pop right out if I didn't.
But perhaps the most stressful was the arrival of Delilah. A young, equally hormonal, socially inept, overeager, hyperactive rabbit who completely ignored all Picca's Rules and couldn't understand even basic body language like pinned ears. It took almost a year before the two girls could be in the same room together without fighting. One thing I tried was having Picca in a wire dog cage outside, with Delilah able to approach her at will. I literally watched as they sat there and bit each other's faces through the bars. All either had to do to avoid being bitten was move back about two inches, but neither would. I finally had to separate them (more than they already were) after a few minutes.
That was stereotypical of most of their interactions, actually. Both refusing to back down, too prideful to give in. Once, there was a shallow hole under the slide they both liked. Delilah lay down in it. Picca came over, and tried to chase her out. She nudged, then nipped, then outright bit her. Delilah still refused to even get up. So instead, down Picca flopped right next to her. I managed to get pictures. To the uninformed, it looks like they're the best of friends. In reality, it was the biggest hate-cuddle that ever existed.
But eventually, they managed to reconcile their differences. At one point the both of them started picking on Lahi, tearing out the fur on his shoulders. When I separated him into a large cage in their enclosure, Delilah and Picca proceeded to live perfectly happily just the two of them for the next month or two until Lahi's shoulders healed up. Lahi, on the other hand, welcomed the break from their harrassment.
I don't regret getting Delilah. Before she arrived, Picca and Lahi had started to slow down. Instead of running and playing when I let them out, they would go to their favourite corner and doze together. They weren't unhappy, but they weren't showing any enthusiasm either. After Delilah was accepted and allowed to run together with them, the two older buns seemed to regain their passion for life, busy with exploring their territory all over again and teaching her how to be a proper rabbit, rather than a dog. Picca's last year of life may have been stressful, but it was also full of excitement and fun.
I wish I could go back and do some things better, but in the end she had a long and full life, and I will always miss my grumpy little girl :'(
