Silver, the spunky Netherland Dwarf

[BunnySilver]

Happy Easter to everyone at RO today from Silver and me! He's back at "his" house today. Took him outside on his harness and lead today for like 2 hours since it was like 77 degrees. He usually hates the harness, but today was a huge success in that book. I took him around the whole yard and he got to explore the garden, which is covered in small pebbles.

The best thing was in the garden. I have two large heavy pots by one of the wood garden beds. He crawled in between the shady pots and when I looked down, he had done a huge bun flop! This surprises me so much since in the area he runs round in down stairs, he hardly ever flops. But then today, when we came back inside, he flopped right down on the rug under the table! Sorry, no pictures were taken today though.

 

[BunnySilver]

I trimmed Silver's nails today since his clipper arrived in the mail yesterday. I was so terrified of cutting them too short and getting the quick so I really didn't cut much off at first although they could have used more. I snipped along and finished fairly quickly (hehe more like 10 minutes) without clipping too short! The only problem was that even though I gave him a raisin, he wouldn't let me pick him up or pet him for a little while afterwards and he nipped me a few times when I picked him up. But I guess I don't blame him too much.

On a more interesting note, I want to build him an NIC cage sometime in the near future. I feel like he needs an upgrade from the fairly small cage he has now even with the time out each day. I already have the grids, zip ties, binder clips (for the door hinges ), and all I would need would be the mats to go on the shelves and bottom.

I don't know when I would do this as it may be a few months from now, but I will definitely post pictures when I do.

 

[FlutterShy]

So cute! He looks a bit like my little baby Dash, except Dash's ears are a bit longer =0)..

In reference to the nails, try this technique. I haven't tried it yet, but it saw the video a few weeks ago, and it seems pretty easy. You might have to copy and paste the link (and it takes a few seconds to load).

http://www.howcast.com/videos/514678-How-to-Trim-Your-Rabbits-Nails-Pet-Rabbits#

 

[BunnySilver]

Oooo thank you so much for that video!! I will definitely clip his nails that way next time. It looks a lot less stressful. I love the Howcast videos about bunnies, they can be quite helpful.

 

[BunnySilver]

Ouch! Silver decided to be quite aggressive yesterday. He has his up and down days I guess. I was simply sitting and petting him yesterday morning before I had you leave and I turned away to sneeze and he bit my finger, HARD! He left a little mark, but has bit drawn blood yet.

But then if that wasn't enough, somebody else was holding him in their arms and I came over and kissed him and put my cheek to him and when I did that, he bit my cheek and held on! Grrrr he can be quite the naughty bun, but after he gives you a few "I'm sorry" kisses, and shows you his cute little face, it's nearly impossible to stay mad.

On the topic of the NIC cage, I'm going to pick up the plastic/rubber mats from IKEA tonight. I couldn't find them on the website right now but they are really awesome, easy to clean, and are only $6.

 

[BunnySilver]

Took Silv outside today, but for only like half an hour. I've been calling him Silv lately because I feel like he deserves a better nickname than just "Bunny" lol. He wasn't as happy to be outside today though. I placed him down in the garden because I want him to get used to a being in there so that he can eat outside in the summer. He sniffed around a bit and started running around the place. I picked him up and put him in the first garden bed. He sniffed things, and then hopped to the next one! He then jumped down and I decided to get him to run around. He started running and I jogged a little with him.

He kept running and running with an occasional break. I know for sure he got some exercise today! But then I'm guessing he got tired because for the rest of the time he just sat down in the shade and focused on trying to bite his harness off. So I grabbed a handful of grass and mixed it with some of his hay (nope we haven't used pesticides) because he seems to like grass, and then took him back inside. I didn't get any pictures of him running around this time, but I actually have a picture from last time outside.



"Gosh mom! After that stupid harness comes off I have to groom everywhere all over again!"

 

[BunnySilver]

Oh! I was also able to find the desk mat that I will use for NIC cage flooring if anyone was wondering.

http://m.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/art/66703500/

Grsh! It's so darn hard to find things on the website since so many items are in Swedish! Lol

 

[BunnySilver]

Hi again! Did a bit of a new cage set up for Silv yesterday night. I simply just took the little bit of bedding that was left in his cage and lined the bottom with a large piece of gray fabric I had lying around and a soft piece of flannel. I like doing a big clean of his cage where I vacuum and wipe things down. It always makes things seem cleaner and more organized. He has so far not chewed on it and just bunched it up a bit last night and was quite comfortably flopped down this morning.

He has tried many fruits as of now. It seems that we always have more of a fruit variety in our house over vegetable variety. He tried a tiny piece of cantaloupe last night and I think he liked it. I also gave him a little bit of organic applesauce that has no added sugars and he licked it off my finger very gently making sure not to bite.

I was thinking about how much I really talk to him. There are times at night where I just pull my pillow over to the side of my bed and talk to him. I know that he is always listening and will never be critical about anything I say. I hope I don't sound crazy. It's just nice to know that he will be there, waiting in my room, ready to listen to whatever I have to say.

 

[BunnySilver]

Sorry I have not posted for a little bit. Between schoolwork and life, my hands can get somewhat full at times. Went to Home Depot to get some of the wood/dowels for the NIC cage I'm going to build Silv. But turns out my dad and I over estimated the size of the grid holes and got the wood too big and they had already cut it for us. Luckily, the four pieces I needed were only $2 and they cut for free.

So after that I was a bit upset, as I wanted to test out how I would put together a shelve. But today while running errands we were right by Home Depot. I was able to get in quickly and get some dowels that were pre-cut and only a few inches too long. Although those were quite a bit more expensive, I am still inside my cage building budget.

Silv is doing well today too except the fact that it seems he is just getting more cage-aggressive by the day. I opened up the top of his cage and he was asking for pets. I was petting his nose like I usually do and then he sort of hopped off like he was all done for the minute. So I went to pick up a small cardboard toy I had just made for him when he turned, lunged, growled and bit me! It didn't hurt, but it left a little mark. But the funny thing is that after he did that, he just stuck his head back under my hand asking for more pets. Oh Silver.

 

[BunnySilver]

Not much going on today. I'm just tired and Silv is being fairly nice although not all that cuddly. I feel a bit bad because we have run out of lettuce today so he is purely getting scraps from outsides and his usual little spinach piece. He's getting a tiny bit of mint, oregano, parsley, dandelion greens, and a small handful of non-fertilized grass. But he seems happy eating it and I gave him a small pier of carrot too. Lol, I'm glad he decided not to be picky today, otherwise he wouldn't have gotten salad tonight. 😌

 

[pani]

Still a lovely big salad!! I'm sure he loved it.

 

[BunnySilver]

Yes I guess if you think about it, I was giving him a lot of nummy greens. I divided the salad up into two parts. I gave him the first part while he was playing downstairs, and the second up in his cage. He only ate the first part from downstairs and never touched what was in his cage. Oh well.

Tonight I picked up some more lettuce for him. But I decided that since he will be having a HUGE variety of different lettuces in the garden this summer, I might as well start introducing new things. I got him a large container of organic spring mix that includes 5 kinds of lettuce, spinach, arugula, and some other nummy greens. I feel that he will be quite pleased with his salad for tonight.

 

[BunnySilver]

I was a bit worried that Silv had some gas earlier today. His stomach was feeling a bit harder than usual. I actually would not have been surprised if it was gas since I sort of have him a large veggie variety last night. :whoops: But he was still eating a lot of his hay and after I gave him some belly rubs, his stomach felt pretty normal again.

Yay! I almost have very thing I need to build his new cage. I just need you get him a new litter box, a few more mats, some new toys, and possibly some nice new bowls. I think I will start using a small kitty box for him because a part if his hay rack comes out if the box so sometimes he will eat and poop outside the box. My local supermarket has the for only $2. The only problem is that I'm a bit low on money right now. That's alright though. I don't plan to possibly build the cage until Memorial weekend anyway since I have that Monday off. Oh and I finally got some new pics of my spunky little bun.



Oh yes and he has also learned that when I am sitting in my chair and I pat the seat it means he can come up.

 

[BunnySilver]

Hello all again! I'm having quite the fun time playing around with Silv this morning before I leave and go to my dad's. He has been running around downstairs since 8:30 (yeah I woke up early for my baby bun ) and he will get to run around until about 1:30 today.

I decided to give him a few little veggies and pellets from my hands because he always seems to enjoy when I do that. I wrapped some pellets into two different kinds of lettuce and gave it to him. He just loved he he was jumping up on me and and wouldn't leave me alone until I have him more. These moments with my little bun are what make my heart warm.

I personally, love to paint and I have decided I will paint Silver a portrait once and for all. I will need to decide how I want to pose him because I'm not sure what angle I want to use yet. I want to do something that shows all his personality yet mixed in with his handsome looks. Lol. I will definitely post pictures when I do.

 

[BunnySilver]

Silv was happy to have me home tonight. He only gets about 2 hours, and although not a lot, he seems to be quite happy and non-aggressive tonight. I made him a nice big salad of variety tonight and gave him some more of the good applesauce. I swear he loves that stuff as much as he loves banana and will climb up on top of me until I give him as much as he can have.

All I have left to get for Silv's new cage is some wood for the shelves. I'm very excited to build this new cage, as I know he will be IN LOVE with it. I'm not sure about anyone else, but when I know that Silv is happy and non-aggressive, I always feel giddy and nice inside knowing that I made him happy.

Oh on news of the painting I will be starting, I posed Silv for the angle I will probably paint him from. I know I'm sure I didn't pose him professionally, but I just want him to look cute, yet to show his personality through the canvas.

 

[BunnySilver]

 

[whiskylollipop]

He's adorable! Be sure to let us see your painting when you've done it :bunnyheart

 

[Chrisdoc]

What a lovely little face, can't wait to see your painting.

 

[BunnySilver]

Thank you both very much! Lol, yes I can't wait to see if my plaiting will come out looking like a bunny! I have started working on the painting today and I have his body outlined and his ears filled in with solid color. I still have a very long way to go, but the whole thing shouldn't take any more than 5 hours at most. Silver gave me a good growl today, but I pushed his head down and didn't get any bites in return.

He is getting his awesome spring mix salad tonight but the mix is starting to go a bit nasty so he will probably be back to just his usual lettuce, spinach, and occasional carrot or other veggie. He is starting to learn something even though it has taken him a VERY long time: Patience pays off in the end.

He has started to sit and wait patiently while I change into my pj's instead of rattling the bars to try and get my attention every single second. And when I am all finished I will go over, pet his nose, tell him he's adorable, then leave to go get his veggies. He has realized that when he bites onto his cage bars for all of eternity nobody (nobunny, hehe) wants to be kind to him.

Good thing he is learning, that took a while.

 

[BunnySilver]

Blah. I've been too busy today on top of the fact that I am super tired. Silv's been fine but almost got into a HEAP of trouble today, but he's just loved to much by everyone around me.It's kind of funny.

So he is usually really good about not pooping on the floor downstairs, which is ideal because my mom (I'm still a teenager) thinks bunny poop is nasty even though I have told her so many times that it's clean. On with the story, every once in awhile he will leave the usual few poops around under the dining room table that I find and pick up before she sees.

So today she gets down to look at him and give him a few pets and tells me that she sees a poop. Then she looks closer, and sees two whole piles. Well, she doesn't like that. I explain to her (again) that it's clean and that I'll pick it up. It always worries me a bit when she gets mad about things like that because she tells me that's the whole reason she didn't want me getting a bun in the first place.

Onto other things, Silv got about 5 hours of run time today which he always is quite happy about while I baked a homemade coffee and chocolate cake for my dads B-Day. It's a bit of a tradition and I think this is the fifth year I have been doing it for. A different cake each year, some a bit weird, but always delicious.

A bit of a long update today, but I hope you enjoyed. Oh and Silver turned 9 months old yesterday. He's getting so big (in numbers, he's still tiny in size) and it feels like I've had him for 9 years. Lol.