West Wind's Rabbitry

[wendymac]

VERY busy weekend so far. I had contacted a breeder that was getting out of Flops (says she prefers her Elops...the nerve! LOL). Anyway, I purchased a buck from her (Sonny, an opal). She had a doe that she thought may be pregnant. She said she'd sell us the doe and her kits for just the price of the doe. Well, Cher (broken Opal, sister to Sonny) ended up not being pregnant. So she bred her for us, for no charge, to her other buck. I thought that was super nice of her! She contacted me on Friday, and said they were ready to go whenever I wanted to come get them. YAY!!!

Today, I had 2 banquets for the kids. The first one was at 4, for Kitty's awards for her speed event show. She won Grand Champion in all 5 of her events she showed in all year, and also won her division High Point. So she got a really nice embroidered jacket and an awesome belt buckle.

We stayed there for a few hours (until they were done with door prizes), then headed to Jonathan's banquet. His was for Team Penning, and he won a buckle for highest money earned in youth. We stayed there until door prizes were done, then headed home.

I'm tired, I'm stuffed, and probably won't have to eat for a week. LOL

Tomorrow I have to take the kids to the mall for some clothes (dread this worse than just about anything else), then to my mother's for them to do some yard work for her, then we'll have a big roast beef dinner.

Monday, I'm not getting out of bed! LOL

 

[ZRabbits]

Definitely sounds like a busy weekend.


Congratulations to your Son and Daughter for their successful achievements.

And more buns? I can't wait to see!


K

 

[wendymac]

Thanks, K! The kids did really well. They work hard, and aren't on top dollar horses. Proving that hard work trumps $ almost every time.

Yep, 2 more. It's the two I posted about a few weeks ago. Sonny, for whatever reason, had gone off his feed a bit. And she wanted to make sure that Cher took before I brought her home. They're really nice animals, and I'm really excited to add them to the herd. And then it's NO MORE Flops, except those we breed. I have to keep saying that, so I stop browsing the classifieds. haha

Here's Sonny:

And Cher:

And she's bred to:

 

[wendymac]

And here's Kitty (middle, white sweatshirt) with her jacket and buckle.

 

[ZRabbits]

Glad to see Sonny and Cher are home now. And love the coloring of the buck Cher was breeded to.

Be firm with that "no more lops". I still look at the classifieds for Lion heads, but am bound and determined to stick to my plans.

Love the big smile on Kitty's face. You are definitely a good Mom. Life lesson of hard work over $$$ is definitely the way to go and does pay off. Nice buckle but what an excellent experience for your daughter as well as your son.

Now I get to wait patiently until you say "Cher had her kits". Can't wait to see what this combination brings you.

K

 

[wendymac]

Oh, they're not home yet. LOL They just got the green light that they can be picked up. I hope to get them sometime this week.

I'm trying to be firm. What's helping is I keep saying, "If you keep buying, you can't keep any babies." It's working...a little. LOL

I know all parents say they have the best kids, so this sounds like a regular old line. But I can say I raised some pretty good ones. I get nothing but compliments from teachers, faculty, staff, people at shows, events, etc. They have manners, very intelligent (all three are still straight A students), no attitude, etc. If one of my kids ever talked to me like some of the kids I've been around, they'd not have teeth. All I heard about, from the time I gave birth to Kitty, was, "Just wait until she's a teenager, then the mouth starts." Well, because I have NEVER tolerated disrespect to anyone, there is no teen 'tude. And that smile on her face? It's almost always there. She got that "life is great, go with the flow" attitude from her mama. I may get royally PO'd about something, but 2 minutes later I've forgotten about it and moved on.

Too many parents think they're main job is to be their kid's friend...mine is parenting, love me or hate me, you know the boundaries.

Now to wait until they graduate college, get established in their chosen careers, and then they can keep me in the style in which I'd like to become accustomed to. LOL

 

[ZRabbits]

I definitely have to start waiting till I actually read "My bunnies are NOW home" before I start commenting. Well, glad you got the "green" light. Have a safe trip when you go and collect your new ones.

K

 

[wendymac]

Phew! Been super busy here on the farm. I've mainly been brushing the horses like crazy, trying to get them shed out. Horse shows start in a few weeks, and they have a ways to go.

Got Sonny and Cher home. Still working on getting their bottoms completely cleaned up (they were in pretty bad shape...talk about stinky!), but mostly it's just on their tails and bottoms of their back feet.

Bred Rosa to Sonny, so hopefully she took. We had tried breeding her to our Cal buck, but she didn't take. If she didn't take this time, I think we're in trouble (she'll be a year old next month).

Cher is so nice. I wish her ears weren't all messed up, because she would do really well on the table. She did get one leg, but would have loved to be able to show her now.

Sonny is an absolutely love bug! He doesn't even move a muscle when you pick him up, and you could hold him forever and he wouldn't care. He is like holding a stuffed animal, albeit a very heavy one. LOL

Adeline and her kids are doing well. I think I'm going to have to take Adeline out this week, though. She is NOT enjoying being a mother any more. And I swear it looked like she was trying to mount a couple. I had wanted to wait until they were 8 weeks, but I think we'll be lucky to hit 7. But all the babies are eating like pigs, and drinking, so I don't think it'll matter much.

Tila's babies are doing well, even though they were weaned from her at 5 weeks. I don't think they mind her not being there, because they don't have to push past her big head to get to the oatmeal in the crocks every morning. LOL Kitty named them Agent Gibbs, Zhiva, and Abby. I think she watches too much NCIS with her dad!

We'll be breeding all 3 Cals at the end of the month, so the babies will be ready for the big 4-H fair in August. I'll be breeding Adeline to Sonny in the beginning of May, so she won't be fair bound this year. But the litter she has now will all be there (if I don't sell any, of course).

Things aren't looking good for Spaz. I've tried re-selling him, I've tried offering him for free...nothing. He's shown NO improvement at all since he's been here. I'm done listening to that glass-shattering scream every time you so much as touch him. He runs like his life is on the line if you put him in the Xpen with a doe...and he tries to kill the doe if you try putting her in the cage with him. He has NO desire to breed. Or to be petted. Or anything. It's such a shame, because he's a well-built fellow. But I don't even want to use him to breed, because I don't want any of that psycho stuff passed on to any babies.

I'm not having any luck finding a Polish for me and a pair of Mini Siamese Satins for Kitty. Hopefully there will be something at the next show on the 22nd.

 

[wendymac]

Here are a few pictures. These were the only ones I could get that were decent enough to bother uploading. The second I removed my hand, they were darting away. I wasn't trying for a pose, either...just trying to get them to hold still while I snapped a picture. Most of the shots had missing heads or butts (depending on which way they darted. LOL).

Here's Blueberry. The ONLY one that paused for a second before moving. LOL

Here's Frostie. Sorry my hand is in the way on the remaining shots.

Heifer. As you can see, because my hand was in front of her face, she was backing up. She was the worse one of the lot. lol

LeRew, who was making a break for it but still caught on film. LOL

While I'm posting pics, here's a shot of my daughter's buckle she won. This was for High Point Pony Division (on her brother's pony).

Her jacket, for winning Grand Champion in all the pony classes.

The back:

And her with one of the barn cats.

 

[ZRabbits]

They look so good. Such fuzzy bundles of energy! Did a really good job getting pics. Babies are tough to take pics. But I can say the adults too are just as uncooperative. lol

Congratulations sent again for your daughter. Both of you must be really proud. What an accomplishment.

Love the last pic of your daughter and the barn cat!

K

 

[Elliot]

I really enjoyed reading through this thread. So nice to see an active and well rounded family. Your sons and daughter are beautiful, as are the bunnies,horses, and the kitty too.:hearts Congrats to the kids for their accomplishments.:blueribbon:

 

[Elliot]

Oh the dog is wonderful too!!{not enough coffee yet...lol}:caffeine

 

[wendymac]

Yeah, adults can be troublesome, too. LOL Frostie was a real pain in the hiney. She kept running straight for the camera, so I got a lot of closeups of nostrils, eyes, etc. LOL

I love my son's pony. Arnie (my show gelding) has always been one that will be here until he dies. He hasn't done much of anything for the last few years, but he's awesome. Digger, the pony belonging to Phillip, has made the keeper list, too. He's only 14.1h (a little over 56"), but can run against horses and still win. He's got a heart ten times bigger than his body, and a real sweetheart around the barn. The other ones are all out of here the second the kids loose interest. They're all nice, in their own way, but not ones that will make the keeper list.

Want the cat? And her kittens? She was dropped off 2 years ago (along with her two siblings). She had 2 kittens last year, and 2 this year. If we didn't live right along the highway, I'd get her spayed. When we first moved here, we'd spay/neuter the cats...then they'd get killed on the highway. Why people think we want their unwanted cats, just because we have a barn, is beyond me.

 

[wendymac]

Babies are doing well. The Flops have been spending days in the Xpen and nights/mornings with Adeline. It seems to be working well for them all. Babies get out to play and Adeline gets a much needed break.

Blaster:

Blueberry, LaRew, and Blaster:

Drinking is always tastier when you do it with a friend.

Flip, Heifer, and Frostie:

Opie:

LaRew:

 

[wendymac]

Thanks so much, Carole! Do you have a bunny blog started yet? I'd love to see more pictures of Elliot. He looks really cute.

 

[fribble2110]

I feel like a stalker but your little animal is family is adorable!!! I to have horses!!

 

[wendymac]

Awesome! What breed of horses to you have? Do you show or compete with them?

 

[fribble2110]

I have an arab I jump and trail ride with her!

 

[wendymac]

Well, after spending hours and hours with the babies, I think I've made my selections on who to keep.

Blueberry and LaRew appear to have the best overall features. Really nice crowns/heads/body/bone. They both appear to have the most width in the shoulders (which is where Adeline lacks).

Frostie and Heifer have ear issues, but Frostie's seem to be laying down more. Heifer's aren't even close, so she'll probably go to a pet home. I have someone that wants a pet quality, so if that's her fate, she'll be living the good life anyway.

By the time I have to make my final call, I'll have a litter from Adeline and Sonny. And a litter from Rosa/Sonny, and Cher and the buck the breeder had. At that point, it may be time to think about re-selling Adeline and Rosa both, since neither are ideal show animals and I want to improve my herd, not keep it where it is now. I also don't want 50 French Lops.

Opie I'm on the fence about. He's built really nice, but lacks overall size. I think it's because he's a buck, and they're usually smaller than the does, but not sure. I'll keep my eye on him, because I really need a second buck. But I'm not going to keep him just because he's a buck. If he can't bring something to the breeding shed/show table, then he'll be sold, too.

I'm still going to hang on to everyone, until they're around 4 months old, to make sure there aren't any late bloomers.

Currently I have Rosa (who got DQ'd because I had her in the darn senior class and she was actually a 6/8), who lacks bone and width in the shoulder. Then there's Max, who shows great promise on the table and is an overall nice rabbit. Adeline lacks width in the shoulder, and I think she's a bit long (although hasn't been shown yet, so this isn't "official").

Sonny is currently my only breeding buck, and he's an overall really nice rabbit. He's very thin, so I won't be taking him to the show. I might have to take him to the vet to find out why he's not gaining. He went off his feed before I got him, and still hasn't really started eating. He'll eat his hay, but just picks at pellets. I'm going to worm him and see if that helps. I think he might be lacking a bit in the shoulder department, too, but hard to say with him being so underweight.

Then there's Spaz. He'd make a SUPER brood buck, except he won't breed anything. Really depressing every time I go to the barn, let me tell you. I might try putting him in the Xpen with Adeline and see if he'll breed her. Give him one last chance before he becomes supper for someone.

 

[MarisaAndToby]

:O Couldn't you send Spaz to a pet home instead of meat????