Needles!

The bunnies had a bit of a shock today. It was time for the first visit to the vet for their vaccinations.

When we started keeping bunnies, we chose our original vet very carefully based on a set of questions from the British House-Rabbit Association (now called the Rabbit Welfare Association). For thirteen years we stayed with the practice, but last year the owner sold up, and the new vets just weren't as well versed as the old one. When our last rabbit was in the last few months of her life, the advice we received was imprecise and unsatisfactory. A chance encounter with another vet at a Bank Holiday Charity Fair helped us decide to seek a second opinion, and happily we ended up with a much more rabbit-savvy (and enthusiast) vet just around the corner from us. So that is the vet with whom Dijon and Mabel are registered

Getting the bunnies into the pet carrier was child's play. We simply moved it in front of their cage, and as soon as the door was opened, out they shot, right into it! The carrier is always in their play area, and they are free to enter and leave as they please, so of course, as soon as it was moved out of its normal place, it became an object of fascination, hence the readiness with which the bunnies jumped in.

On this visit to the vet, Dijon and Mabel were given the myxomatosis jab. There was no wait for the appointment; it was straight into the consulting room. The vet decided Dijon should go first, but he was a feisty little chap, and scrabbled her wrist, drawing blood! So, off came the lid to the carrier, and Dijon was lifted out. Mabel was cradled by her female owner.

Having received his jab, the two bunnies were swapped over. It was touching to see that Mabel understands that we care for her, and she tried to escape from the vet to the safety of her female owner's arms...

Once they had returned home, the bunnies were allowed some time out of their cage to play. Dijon was fine about it, but Mabel was still shaken and she just sat in a corner. She was so shocked, she allowed herself to to stroked, which is most unlike her. Usually her ears are out of bounds.!