The Stormhaven Blog

[Wabbitdad12]

If you have to be crazy in this world, why not about rabbits?, sounds to me like a badge of honor.

 

[Runestonez]

As promised here are some pics of the toys I make for our kids!

All these toys are made from a mix of hard and soft wood for bunny chewing fun.
The dyes used are from Vita Critter and are pet safe...we use 70% alcohol for applying our dyes since it drastically reduces the drying time. And some people feel it disinfects the wooden blocks...I have no opinion on this...but advise anyone using alcohol with their dyes to open several windows and DON'T use alcohol anywhere near your rabbits!:twitch:

Tony took pics of me being industrious and dying the different parts for assembly!
Yes...that is me in my PJ's...he never takes any nice pictures! lol
Like me being dressed nicely for instance!:shock:

Please excuse the disaster my diningroom is...when I bring my rabbit toy parts and bits upstairs...I tend to take over the room I am in and several around it too! :biggrin2:

Tony trying to get "artistic" with the camera!:rofl:

Here are the toys I have pics for:

Small Sisal Toss and Chews-I also make larger ones...just not right at this moment!

Sisal Ball Toss and Chews-about 5-6" long strung with hard wood blocks.

Sisal Carrots-made with soft pine and dyed sisal tops.

Mini Barbells-about 2" long.

Medium Barbells-about 4" long, made from hard and soft wood.

Large Barbells-perfect for larger bunns...these are 6-7" long, made with thicker wood.

Small Bunny Bumbles-Square or Round.

Large Bunny Bumbles-with or without clacker rings.

Hanging Applestick Toys-a HUGE fav! We also add Bunny Biscuits(we drill a hole in a 3" cookie)and dried apple rings for an extra added treat!

Applestick Toss and Chews-a fav even without the coloured blocks!

Applestick Bundles-tied with edible rafia, these can be tossed in bunns cage as is or ziptied to the cage bars!

Hanging Bunny Bagel Toy-I drill a hole ina bunny bagel and add chewy wooden bits...I usually add a bell to the bottom to finish it off!

Toys/snacks I don't have pics for:

Bunny Bombs- these are paper lunch bags with holes(usually shaped like butterflys or hearts at our house!)punched in the sides...then it is stuffed with lots of hay and a selection of the following: dried basil, dried lovage, dried apple bits, dried banana bits, apple pommace chunks(available for horses), dried currants, craisins, raisins, dried raspberry leaves, oat groats, rolled oats, hay cubes, apple sticks, apple buds, dried sage and homemade bunny biscuits!
We call them "bunny bombs" because Tony likes to stand in the doorway and lob them into the bunny playrooms like hand grenades!

Homemade Bunny Biscuits-these are awesome treats because they are less likely to upset bunn tummies because the base for these biscuits is the pellets the bunn already eats!!
We use either the fines from the bottom of the bag of pellets or grind some pellets up into a fine flour. Then we add rolled oats and dried basil and grind it again. To this we add pumpkin pureed with craisins, pureed apple(not sauce), and currants. We mix these together into a sticky paste that can be rolled out with a rolling pin, and we use small cookie cutters to cut out fun shapes. Then they are baked up in the oven till they are hard and crunchy! They are a HUGE hit with our kids!

I havea few more toys I am working on right now...hanging rabbit ladders and wooden teething rings. Ialways have a few ideas rolling around! :biggrin:
So I'll post them when I haveworked out how to assemble them andkeep the cost at a decent level!

Oh...BTW...if your blocks don't stick together properly...instead of using glue...NOT good for bunnies...try using cornstarch and water mixture instead!

Danielle

 

[Runestonez]

This Sunday just past was the Milton Mutt Strutt for the Oakvile/Milton Humane Society.
Tony and I took the smaller OREO setup to the event!

We were going to take Portia and Darwin(who is in his teens and driving me berzerk)but the Weather Network was forcasting possible thunderstorms...so the kids had to stay home!

It was pretty rainy when we got there..but we got the tent up in record time...it amazing what you can do when you don't want to get wet! lol

I was doing face painting yesterday as well...when we go to smaller venues for OREO...I do face painting for the kids and donate our proceeds to the event coordinators. At $3-$5a kid it isn't much money...but the event coordinators seemed happy!

I was offered a job going to Hamilton to do face painting at a day care...I'll have to think about THAT for awhile:shock:...Tony and I don't have kids...don't plan to have kids...so far I haven't poked any with my paint brushes on purpose...yet...:whistling
Well, that and it is an unwritten rule...not to do face paintson children under the age of 3. No horrible reason...just no real need and painting a moving target gets harder for each year you go down in age! LOL

Each time I do face painting there is always one kid...usually older...who tries to stump me...or make me cry...I can't decide which!:scared: Since I only face paint one or maybe twice a year...I don't have a thick hide yet, so to speak.Every face painter worries/fears that they will paint a kids face for them and the kid will take one look at it and burst into tears...yup...
Honestly...hasn'thappened to me...YET.:cry2

So, bless her dear heart<sarcasm>, this girlasked mewhat I couldpaint...I told her she could have whatever she wanted<dumb answer-Mistake #1>
So she looked at me with this unholy smile and said..."So there isn'tANYTHING you can't paint?"
Now at this point...I KNOW I am in trouble...but kids are like wild animals...if you show fear you're done...so I just smiled and told her I could paint anything. <I have issues with beinga littlecompetative> HA! Bring it kid!:coolness:

She stood for 20 minutes and thought...then sat down when it was her turn...looked at me smiled and asked for a Platypus with a blue top hat.:twitch:

Unfortunately for her...I know what Platypusses look like...I am rather fond of them...

Not my best work...buther look of disappointment was awesome!:biggrin2:
She really thought she had me!:shame
We have another event for the same group in October...and she is coming back...:cry2
So she has 5 months to find an animal I don't know how to draw...or have never heard of...
I am joining a face painting club this week.:grumpy

Danielle

 

[Wabbitdad12]

Where do you find the materials you use to make your bunny toys? I've always wanted to do that for my herd, but I don't know where to get them.

 

[Runestonez]

Hmmm...
I get the bits and pieces a few places...
You can order them online from the craft supplies stores...such as BearWoods or from places that sell bits for parrot toys...the parrot people usually use soft woods for their toys...whereas the craft supply stores have hard woods. If you buy from the parrot places the wood willsometimes come already dyed...so it saves a bit of time and money!

The sisal carrots I buya 6 foot peice of white pine from Home depot and then cut it down to the size and shape I want, sand it, drill a hole and dye it!

Sometimes you can't find the wooden blocks with the right size hole already drilled...so you have to re-drill them! Hubby got me a 10" drill press and drill press vice for Christmas!

It is a lot of work...but fun! Our kids get new toys at Easter (which we use for everyones birthday) and Christmas...we used to give them new toys all the time but they got jaded! Spoiled little beggars!

Danielle

 

[cheryl]

Oh wow..what awesome toys!

 

[Tofu]

awesome work!
i'm soo inspired
running to home depot now to see what i can get!!

 

[Runestonez]

I finally downloadedour cottontail photos!
These little guys were brought to me by my sister at the end of May. She works at a long-term care facility. One of their patients was out walking with her parents and they let her destroy a cottontail nest...they thought it was cute.:grumpy
So she managed to snag 2...one for each hand...

They brought them inside the facility...where a well meaning nurse thought it would be a good idea to put them in the cage with the 7 pound male domestic rabbit so he could raise them.:twitch:

My sister happened to come through around this time and confiscated the babies...she and another nurse walked the grounds but couldn't find the nest or even the general area...so I ended up with them. She is not a rabbit person! lol
She was quite panicked by the time she tracked me down!

We were working on the assumption that they were under 12 days old...their eyes were open but their ears were still down. They were a little less than 3 inches long and the one (we were calling her the female because it seemed right) was pretty much catatonic when I got her. I was pretty sure she would die just from the stress she had been through! I picked her up in my hand and though her eyes were open she would just roll like a little log...I was afraid the girl might have squeezed her while carrying her.

So we put them in one of our rabbit carrriers, put it in the garage and covered them with a blanket and left them alone.

We didn't take any pics until their ears had popped and they weren't stressed out anymore!

Here is a pic of Popcorn at about 14 days old.

And poor Pottsi(14 days old)..she was stressed for a while...but in the end she adjusted well and regained her health! She just needed peace and quiet!

This is where things start to get fun.:rollseyes
It is illegal to raise, keep or release cottontails unless you are a registered wildlife rehabber! Okey Dokey...gottcha! I understand totally.

My sister dropped the bunns off Sunday afternoon.
I spent 4 hours on the phone on the Monday trying to find a wildlife rehabber.
One wouldn't answer her phone and lived 2 hours away, one was on sabbatical until September, our Humane Society euthanizes because they are too hard to look after when they are this young...the lady at the Ministry of Natural Resources was very nice and helpful...but didn't have alot of options for me.

So I started to call cottontail rescues for help or guidance. Perhaps they knew of a rescue closer to us...nope the best advise I got was to not feed them. I finally broke down and made up rabbit formula...I was plenty aggravated and frustrated at this point...I have an easy out...I can just take them to the HS to be euthanized...which after evaluating them would have been a shame since they were both healthy and capapble of being released. And having accepted them...they were now our responsibility.

I couldn't release them, euthanize them or give the darned things away!:grumpy:
I was so FRUSTRATED! I wasn't panicked...I just wanted to do what I have been preaching to people about for years!
***DO NOT RESCUE COTTONTAILS...THEY ARE WILD...IF YOU HAVESOME,PUT THEM BACK WHERE YOU FOUND THEM,GET THEM TO A REHBBER! ON AVERAGE 90% WILL DIE WITHOUT PROPER CARE...SELF MUTILATION, FAILURE TO THRIVE, MALNUTRITION...AND THAT IS IF YOU MANGE TO GET THEM TO EAT AT ALL!!!***
I promise with all my heart to listen and be a better rabbit educator in the future...no more brow beating or berating people for not turning them in to a rehab ASAP! Sheesh!:grumpy:

So now, according to the MNR guidelines, I am a criminal!

On the Monday night, I mixed up formula, ran out to buy a kitten bottle...andI began feeding twice a day...in between feeding they were in the carrier with hay, covered and left alone. We didn't want them to get used to us.

Pottsi with milk face!

Hubby named them ( I refused to name them because they weren't staying and I didn't want to get attached) the "female" with issues was called Pottsi because she came in a flower pot and the "male" was called Popcorn because he was so small he couldn't hop properly and kept "popping" and falling over. He was a little tuffy!

I found plenty of info on why you shouldn't keep cottontails but nothing on how to wean and prepare them for release! So THAT was a whole other adventure.

At approximately three weeks I began weaning.No problem, right?
Nope, I couldn't get the wee buggers to wean:grumpy...so I removed the heavy cream from the formula...no dice...they still attacked it at feeding time. So I removed the goats milk...still no change! I started to water down the KMR until it was almost 8 parts water!:shock: They were still all over it! By this time we had introduced them to greens and there was really no reason for them to still be on the bottle...so next feeding was straight water! LMAO :biggrin: Yup that did it! :biggrin: They looked so disgusted with me!

Here they are eating their greens and pretty much ready to move to their outdoor habitat!

We were trying to keep them to a "wild" diet...so each day we would walk the fields picking all the different bunny safe greens we could find...and a selection of wild grasses...at this point hubby became less enthusiastic about wild bunnies...finally:rollseyes. Especially when we were picking greens twice a day and it was raining the whole week everyday!:biggrin2:

We built a big NIC cage outside for them...once they weren't being bottle fed they needed to build muscle so they could be released...so I put up a 5 foot X 10 foot exercise area. They had areas to shelter under and room to run.

The first day we put them in the pen...Popcorn hopped out of the carrier and walked right through the NICs. No pause, no wiggling...like a greased pig he just oozed right through.:rollseyes:grumpy:
Thank goodness they were still small enough we rounded him up in a few minutes and had to re-think the whole pen idea...so another 24 hours, 50 feet of chicken wireand 500 zipties later we were able to put them outside.
I decided that the Saturday morning would be best...since it was supposed to be a decent day and it would give them a chance to explore and find a sheltered area...nope...they farted around and ate grass all day.
So that night there was an unscheduled thunderstorm of epic proportions!
And even though I swore I wouldn't do it...<sigh>...I was outside, with a golfumbrella in hand, beside the metal pen, under a 30 foot birch tree in a whomping great storm...with two soaking wet rabbits. (Hubby had at this point completely lost his love of wild rabbits and was in the bedroomlaughing at me from the window).:grumpy:
I finally gave up after 20 minutes or so and went inside soaked to the gills.

The next night was a bit better...the neighbourhood raccoons decided to come out to play, which brought me complete with bedhead andtripping on mypj bottoms running across the deck swinging a broom overhead howling (hubby had decided to follow me this time since it wasn't raining anymore).
After that I was fine. Really i was. Honest!
Sanity prevailed!
When I build a hutch it stays together...and it can thwart even the most determined raccoons! I used 1/2" chicken wire so they couldn't reach in to grab/tear the bunns...so finally I could sleep at night knowing they were safe!

We scouted during the week for a place that was close to where they were found but far enough away from any housing that they wouldn't cause a problem. We finally found a biking path that went way off to h*ll and gone, and one of the switchbacks led to an area that was perfect!

So at the age of approximately 38 days and being 5 inches long...they were released.
It was kind of sad...Popcorn hopped out of his carrier and into the brush and started to nibble and eat his way further and further from us...Pottsi ran off about 10 feet away and then came back and sat at Tonys feet and just sat there looking at him! He hadn't had anything to do with them other than picking greens, since we figured exposure to one human was bad enough! She finally hopped after Popcorn and started to nibble her way further and further and further into the brush...and then we turned and walked away.

I haven't gone back since. I desperately wanted to...just to see.
Somethings are better imagined...I know the stats on rabbits in the wild, I know the lifespan, basically I just know better! In my head though they live forever, hopping and happy...and that is enough!

 

[SOOOSKA]

Dani, they are so cute:inlove:. You did a great job raising the two little ones.

I don't know how you gave them up, you are alot stronger then I am. I have a Mommie rabbit and one Baby bunny in my back yard (actually they go between my yard and my 2 neighbours yards). I give them carrots and apples, they eat my weeds (YEAH) my pansies and my parsley that I am growing. I keep an eye out for them daily.

That's a great pen you made for them. I think i will hire/borrow you when I move. Still not sure where that will be though.

Susan:lookaround:weee::clapping::wave:

 

[SOOOSKA]

Hey Dani,

How's all you crew doing? Any more bonded pairs or trios.....?

I need some Bunny pictures SOOOOOOOOOOOOON.........

Susan:biggrin:

 

[Runestonez]

Hey Soooska!
How about squirrel pics instead?:biggrin2:
We had a nice size super cell thunderstorm today and my neighbour just showed up with four soaking wet ice cold baby squirrels about 1 and a half to 2 weeks old. 3 males and a female.

They fell about 40 feet out of a tree top in her front yard...the nest the mother made was beautifully made and the males made it to the ground just fine...the female was on the gound a few feet away. She has a few bumps but seems OK otherwise.

They were soaked and icy cold...so we put them on a hot water bottle and put them back out by the downed nest for 4 hours...we buggered off about 2 front yards away to keep watch...but the mother didn't put in an appearance...so we brought them inside for tonight and will be moving them back out to the nest site in the morning again.
I am hoping she will be back once she has a new nest put together. SHe looks young though...it might be her first batch of young. I guess time will tell...we have about three days before it is official and the mom has abandoned them. I hope she comes back because they are going to be a handful when their eyes open! :shock:

Here is the female...you can see the wee bump on her head.

Here is one male he has a webbed foot one one of his back paws.

Here is the second male.

I don't have a pic of the fourth yet...my neighbour wanted to help feed them...apparently picking fleas off of them isn't quite as much fun...because she left THAT part for me!:rollseyes

Here's fingers crossed the mom comes back looking for them tomorrow!ray:

Danielle

 

[SOOOSKA]

OMG Dani, these things only happen to you. The Gods must be telling all the animals out there where exactly to go to be well taken care of.

I sure hope the Mommie comes back for them.

Susan:biggrin:

 

[Runestonez]

<snort>:rollseyes

My neighbours have started calling me Marlon Perkins (Mutual of Omaha?)
Anyway...if anything is found they drag it to my door...I really think it is time to look into that wildlife rehab course.
I had zero luck tracking one down for the cottontails...so I seriously doubt I will find one to take squirrels!:grumpy

Oh this should be fun.:rollseyes
They are a handful now! They are a little stressed so they were squeaking like the dickens...I have every cat and rabbit in the house treating me like I am a horrible criminal! They must think I am torturing the little guys!

Hopefully, the mom will be back for them tomorrow!
They are so very small...tip of nose to base of tail they are barely 3 inches.
I have to run out in the morning to stock up on Esibilac--again.
And more nipples--again! Just in case!

Who am I kidding...I love taking care of anything small and fuzzy...I just really hate that I have no support or backup! It would be nice to be able to consult with someone!

Well...I guess if they are still here tomorrow night I will have more pics!

Danielle

I get Karma points for this right?

 

[Runestonez]

So obviously...the mother squirrel didn't come back for her young!

So here is the update on our furry house guests...also known as squirrels or tree bunnies!

I have the utmost respect for rehabbers...when do they find the time to sleep!?:bed:

It seems I no sooner feed the little boogers than I have to get up and feed them again!

They actually have fur now...they looked a little alien before...they have black peach fuzz all over and both Gordy and Webster have finally broken their bottom teeth!
So since Gordy was the first to get his teeth and is the most developed out of the four...that puts them at about 20 days oldtoday!

They are all doing well...Gordy tips the scales at about 70grams and Clive is the smallest at 62grams.
Clive is a sucky, Webster is a mama's boy, Malli is the diva and Gordy is the biggest and thinks he owns everybody and everything! He is also the most vocal and when he gets mad he knuck-nucks at me and gives me 'tude! LOL:biggrin2:

Here is the baby of the group...Clive was getting his bath and nodded off to sleep in my hand!

Here is one of the babies getting fed their dinner...I can't tell them apaprt anymore so I had to colour their toenails on one foot to distiguish between them. Even now though I go to feed one of them...check the colour of the toes...and by the time I reach in to grab them...I pick up a different one and don't know until I double check after feeding when I go to weight them! They have wicked nails now and are getting strong enough to hold on like velcro!!!

Here is a pic of all the babies after their dinner already getting ready to sleep it off!
Most times they are wrapped up together in knots...it doesn't look comfortable but seems to make them happy!

A close up of a sleepy baby squirrel!

I didn't notice how big they were getting...Tony has been taking pics off and on every few days for me...I see the babies 6-8 times a day...so other than the fact that they were getting darker and their ears were becoming better defined I didn't really notice!

In another two weeks they will have their top teeth and their eyes will be open or opening...sheesh...how I will catch them to feed them I have no idea. Thats when this whole thing becomes a sport!:rollseyes

I can hardly wait...I'll only be feeding 4 times a day by then!
I get all dewy eyed when I manage to get 6 hours of continuous sleep as it is!

Tony wants to train them to steal precious stones and gold...something about Conan the Barbarian and some ferrets??:?

Yeah...he won't be looking after the squirrels anytime soon! lol
He is pretty grossed out by them right now...he likes furries...and they really aren't yet...in another week or two when they finish getting their fur in he might feel differently about them! Right now if he has to touch them he looks vaguely nauseous! LMAO:biggrin:

Well I'll try to update again when I get a bit more time!
Sleep first...then blog updates! <yes Soooska this means you!>

Danielle

 

[cheryl]

Oh wow..i have never seen baby squirrel pictures before...i know not getting your proper sleep must be hard but in the end it must be such a rewarding feeling..

 

[Myia09]

What adorable babies! Are you planning on releasing them or keeping them?

 

[Runestonez]

It's illegal to keep wild animals as pets in Canada...
And they really don't do well in captivity.
Even now they are twitchy and zippy and they can barely move...yet!

So once they have matured, grown fur, cheek teeth and are able to survive on their own...I have to double check...but that would put us around mid-October:shock:, we'll be releasing them!

It is really rewarding. They tend to bond to whomever raises them...so they have begun to recognize me! lol I forget their tiny little claws...I was smooching on Malli tonight and she reached up and grabbed ahold of my face and started to climb me...which wasn't too bad until she stuck her fingers up my nose and dug in! I had tears in my eyes for quite a few minutes! :biggrin2:

I have to admit I always wanted a squirrel...but they really are better suited to outdoors! I will miss the heck out of them! But if I see them once in a while it would be OK!

 

[SOOOSKA]

Oh Dani, they are so cute. :inlove:

I can hardly wait to see them on Saturday. BTW where are you keeping them?

Geez I helped my friend feed a baby kitten who's mother abanded it. I was like you with the syringe feeding this kitten. I think it was about 3 weeks old.

Get some sleep before Saturday.:biggrin:

Susan

 

[Runestonez]

SLEEP
What is this sleep thing you speak of??!!:?

I have the little boogers in a basket in our china cabinet!
Weird yes, but effective.
Their eyes are still closed, they can't walk, though they crawl like mad!
So they are in their wee basket, with arctic fleece blankies and mosquito netting over the top to keep out any buggies and if they do get to the point they try to make an escape the netting keeps them in and safe!

When they get a bit bigger they will have to go into the rabbit carrier...and then from there to a wire habitat with a nesting box in the garage and then out to the backyard and finally in mid-October...freedom!

They are all sick right now though...I am waititng for the rehabber to call me in the morning. They all have soft poops or diarreha. I have done everything I know how...so we have to decide if it is because they are etething or if they have a parasite or perhaps a bacterial imbalance.

They are still eating and they are active as all heck get out...so I am hoping it is nothing serious.

 

[Runestonez]

Well...it finally happened!:biggrin2:
Webster and Gordy have finally opened their eyes...we are still waititng for Malli and Clive...but their eyes should open in the next day or two...I have noticed them blinking more lately!

I haven't taken open eye pics yet...seems kind of mean to blind them right away! I will wait for a few days and see if I can sneak a pic or two!

Here is the latest pic of the Knuck-Nuks! They were just fed and are happily sleeping it off in their make shift nest! All except Websster, on the left yawning, who woke up to see if there were seconds! lol

Their upper incisors have just barely broken through and they are getting better and better at getting around! Gordy has even tried to jump once or twice! He can't but it looks adorable!

We had the Summer Bunny Party Saturday...and since then they have gotten so big they have now out grown their original nest and I had to find a bigger basket for them!

Wow are they going to be a hanful when their eyes are open AND they can get around!

Dani