Volume 4, Issue 2 - May 2004

The Bunny Who Roared
by Heidi Harrell

Angel was an amazing bunny who left her paw marks on our hearts. She arrived at our house as a sad bunny that wanted nothing to do with us, but later Angel came to love and trust us. We just adored her wonderful personality and amazing spirit.

An Unexpected Angel Enters Our Hearts
Angel had lost her mate Dustin, and was so sad that I asked if I could give her a vacation at my home. She arrived on November 19, 2001. At first, Angel huddled in her litter box where she seemed to feel safe. She would growl at me when she ventured out to eat her mush. The mush was a special formula created just for her because she had no teeth at all---neither incisors, nor molars! It became known at the Colorado HRS as "Angel’s Mush." I watched her eat and talked to her. I wanted her to know how welcome she was and that I was sorry for the loss she felt with Dustin’s passing.

For three weeks, Angel would not let me touch her. Finally, she let me pet her while she was eating. I knew that Angel’s vacation time was ending soon, but since we had made some progress with her socialization, I decided to keep her through the holidays. On New Year’s Eve, Angel caught a cold and we felt that it would be best for her to stay with us until she felt better. By then, our family had a deep affection for her and she seemed happy to be with us. Angel considered herself at home.

I began to trust Angel when she was out for her run. Consequently, I allowed her to stay out for longer periods of time and left her cage door open so she could return when necessary. She enjoyed her freedom and the run of the three upstairs bedrooms. She would come out to eat, be loved on and then to find a spot to sleep, preferably in a sunny room. I would find Angel stretched out asleep under the bed or by a dresser with a smile on her face. Since she was toothless, I never worried about her chewing destructively.

Eventually, Angel had the run of the entire upstairs. We no longer caged her. She had an area in my daughter’s room that she called home. At first, I gated her at night to keep her safe, but she charmed me into letting her sleep anywhere she wanted. This made Angel’s world perfect. Every time I brought her food, I would call her name and she would come running to me. She would run circles around me and with every step I took she’d make another circle and so on until we reached her dining area. This was our routine for every meal.

Sometimes I would find Angel at the top of the stairs waiting for me with her beautiful dark eyes that seemed to be saying, “Hey, mom is my meal ready?” I couldn’t go upstairs without her food. For breakfast, Angel would eat pureed fruit and the mush that the Colorado HRS named after her. Angel’s favorite pureed fruit was pears & pineapple. For dinner it was “Angel’s Mush” with pureed vegetable (carrots, squash, pumpkin and spinach). Angel loved mealtime!

A Rascal with an Attitude and a Roar
Even though Angel would let us pet her now, she continued to growl anytime we had to pick her up or give her medicine. This was not just a little growl, but a roar. This was just a part of Angel’s personality. At one of her first visits with Dr. LaBonde, she was still in her carrier waiting to be checked. I told him that she didn’t have any teeth, but that she did growl. He said not to worry and proceeded to stick his hands into her carrier. Angel growled loudly and he quickly jumped back. He said to me, “maybe YOU should get her out,” but I told him she wouldn’t come out for me either. Angel was such a rascal with attitude! I’m sure Dr. LaBonde will never forget her.

Angel had a special relationship with my husband, Lee. He is studying for his MBA, so at night and on most weekends while he was working, Angel would lie beside his desk. She loved being close to Lee. She knew no one would disturb her when she was with him. When he needed quiet, he would close the door with Angel inside. When Angel wanted to leave the room she would scratch the door and he’d let her out. When Angel wanted to return to his office, she would scratch the door, he would open it, and she would hop back in. Whenever Angel saw a door closed, she remembered what her daddy taught her and scratched to be let in. Angel loved being his study partner.

Angel’s favorite rooms were my daughter Justine’s room, my room, and the hall. Magic and Klaus, two other special needs bunnies, had their three-story condo in the hall. She would stop by to check on them and then run off to find a place to nap or to see what I was doing. After Magic died, I would find Angel near Klaus’s condo keeping an eye on him. I think Angel knew how Klaus felt since both had lost a mate. She also hinted to me that she would like her litter box next to Klaus’s condo so she could be close. We soon decided that Angel and Klaus should become a couple.

Missing Our Very Special Bunny
But that was never meant to be. Angel got an abscess below her left eye and battled this abscess for 5 ½ months. We fought along with Angel to get her well. Near the end, the abscess crossed over from the left side of her face to behind her right eye. She went blind in that eye. The eye and the abscess were removed. Angel was never the same after this last surgery.

On November 19, 2003, our Angel left this world early in the morning on her 5th birthday. What a very sad day it was for our family. Angel fought a valiant battle, but her little body just gave out. We miss her dearly! Our family had two wonderful years with her, and we will cherish the memories. I feel that her spirit is still with us. We remember all of her favorite resting areas. When I go upstairs at night, I feel that she is beside my dresser stretched out asleep and waiting for me to go to bed. Angel was a special bunny that will never be forgotten.

My thanks to Nancy and Bea for the advice that helped me provide a better home for Angel. Our thanks too, to Dr. LaBonde and his staff at Homestead Animal Hospital for all their hard work and dedication in caring for Angel.

Editor’s Note: Heidi Harrell has taken in several special needs bunnies as permanent fosters. Please see the Special Needs Rabbits article in this newsletter and consider whether you might enjoy the wonderful experience of giving these little ones a happy rest-of-their-lives. Your life, like Heidi’s will be forever blessed by these special rabbits.