Psychology

As pet owners we often go through different feelings about our pet(s). Based on my own experience and observation, I was able to derive the following categories of owners and the state of mind that they go through. I am not saying that they are either right or wrong but I just thought it would be an interesting topic to write for today.

The Impulsive

Often times, the impulsive pet owner is one that falls in love at first sight. At the spur of the moment, something just tickles their senses and they tend to want the cute little bunny immediately. The impulsive will come to realization (out of a sudden) that they have spent a bomb purchasing a pet while still feeling a void and sense of uncertainty. They start to doubt their action thereafter. The relationship between the Impulsive and the bunny can be quite an uncertain one. Often times, the slightest mistake on the bunny’s part (spraying, biting and molting) will sent it out the door.

The Slow Coach

Some start off with a little spark of interest and over a period of time, their passion keeps on growing and soon the little spark becomes a bonfire. The slow coach take his/her time researching and learning before diving into the hobby. They often get what they are looking for, are contented and happy.

The Disposable

A bunny is nothing but another “disposable material”. Those who often look for a pet bunny during Valentine’s Day, Birthdays, Easter or any other auspicious occasions normally falls under this category. A guy buying a rabbit for his girlfriend who knows nothing about rabbit except that it is cute as a baby bunny could be taken as a symptom of The Disposable. The special occasion passes and so does the interest for the bunny. Another example of The Disposable type is someone that purchase a pet and request for an exchange the day after.

The Sympathetic

The Sympathetic is the driving force of the pet industry. They always find themselves sobbing looking at a sickly bunny in the pet store and normally make the purchase feeling sorry for it. They are convinced that the bunny will be better off in their hands. Not every bunny is really saved in this situation and although the kindhearted should be applauded, the saying “you have to be cruel to be kind” holds true sometimes.

The Hoarder

The Hoarder wants every rabbit that is alive under the sun. Those that have suffered the loss of a beloved pet can easily become a hoarder. They want many rabbits so just in case any one of them decides to die, The Hoarder will still have a couple more to replace so to speak.

The Phobic

The Phobic is a total opposite of The Hoarder. After losing a beloved pet, The Phobic usually are very careful in giving him/herself wholeheartedly to the pet in fear that they will be hurt again. Some may not even want to have a pet anymore. The Phonic makes a very good pet owner but it is good for them to come to terms that all living creature will face inevitable death.

The Indecisive

Buck or Doe, Tort, Broken Tort or Blue? The Indecisive can sit and look at just one bunny but still cannot make up his or her mind. It is best for The Indecisive not to waste their own precious time and most importantly the precious time of the breeders who have put in much effort in their rabbits.

The Ever Faithful Monogamist

I feel that The Ever Faithful Monogamist makes the best pet owner. They only want just one bunny as pet and often shower their pets with so much love. The only set back is that he/she may become too attached and if not careful, he/she may turn into either The Hoarder or The Phobic when his/her pet passes on.

After all that has been written, I wonder which category do I fall under. The answer is, I am not going to judge nor praise myself. Let’s just put it this way – I am a Slow Coach slowly becoming a Hoarder!

How can you not want to HOARD over such cute faces?

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Filed under Random Topics, Thoughts

Hope & Luv

Hope

Luv

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It Can’t Be Perfect

I am sure you would agree that nothing is perfect in this world. Though I have shown through my blog posts how much I adore my rabbits and make them seemed as though they are perfect, I do have a couple of pet peeves raising them. These dislikes are those that made it hard for me to answer the question – “What you like most about Holland Lops?”. It is funny how I think about my dislike for them whenever I am asked that question. How ironic!

Here are a couple of my all time favorite pet peeves:

Pet Peeve #1: The Sprayers

I totally dislike bucks that sprays. I know it is a sign of their love for me but I really hate being shot at and the feeling of that warm stinky pee. Sometimes it is inevitable because some bucks just love to bring down the “Golden Shower”.

Pet Peeve #2: The Hormonals

There are some does that goes totally berserk at times and they like to scratch and bite. I find it strange that 80% of the time they are the sweetest thing but the other 20% of the time they turn into were-rabbits!

Pet Peeve #3: The Bowl Diggers

Rabbits that dig their food bowl and scatters food all over is annoying to me. I don’t like the fact that they are wasting all the food that I give them but they are smart animals and there is a reason why they do that. I am happy that they no longer do that after I switched feed!

Pet Peeve #4: Death

I totally dislike the fact that my rabbits would eventually die. The worst part is, most of the time favorites are first to go. Now I know better to have an equal space in my heart for each one of them so that all are my favorite!

Pet Peeve #5: Frequent feed change

I hate rabbit feed brands that come and go in the market. There are also those that goes out of stock temporarily while awaiting shipments. I normally avoid this sort of brands. Glad my rabbits are now on a decent and consistent brand!

At the end of the day, we must realize that we are living in an imperfect world only to be made perfect by this……

Sheer Happiness!

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Rabbit insurance and why it’s so important

Unless you have plenty of cash in reserve in case of emergencies, a policy of rabbit insurance to keep your furry friend healthy is nigh-on essential, so you may want to compare rabbit insurance as soon as possible. After all, you don’t want your dear pet falling ill or getting an accidental injury; still, it’s a fact that illnesses and accidents are something that both people and animals deal with on a daily basis.

 While we have the NHS, rabbits do not. Nowadays, veterinary visits can be extremely expensive, often resulting in outgoings of hundreds of pounds. Vets may order diagnostic tests or prescribe medication and you could end up paying for a hospital stay and even surgery. These services are very expensive, though having rabbit pet insurance will certainly take the edge off the cost.

 You already make sure your rabbit is well-fed, groomed and kept in healthy conditions. Preparing for unforeseen vet needs is another way to make sure that your rabbit will live a long and healthy life.

 You have to look to the future, too, When a rabbit gets older, it is much more likely to develop major health problems. In many ways, rabbits can be a lot like humans in that they are likely to get certain ailments like arthritis, digestive disorders, urinary tract disorders and even cancer.

 On top of health, pet insurance for rabbits can also come in handy for other specific issues. If your pet suddenly goes missing, certain insurance plans will reimburse you for advertising and the amount of reward that goes to a person who finds the rabbit. If you have to go to hospital, you may also need someone to look after your pet; plans can also cover the cost of boarding your rabbit.

 Whatever you choose, rabbit insurance will put your mind at ease and will give you confidence in them being as safe as possible at all times.

Disclaimer: PetsAtHome is a UK based company. Please check if the insurance is applicable in your country before purchasing.

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Happy New Year Everybun!

The thought of a new year dawning brings a question to mind – Do rabbits know the passing of time?

I believe this question is somehow related to a discussion I had with a fellow bunny owner. We were discussing if rabbits have emotion. Most of us wonder if they miss their owners, get bored, feel lonely or have the capacity to love.

They do have the capacity to love in my opinion through my observation of how does nurture and care for their young. Their natural instinct of leaving the nest and only return to feed their young for short period of time before leaving them again tells us that they are concern for the safety of their young ones.

How does all these emotions relate to time? I always wonder if time can be calculated for rabbits. Do they go by seconds, minutes and hours? How long is a minute for a rabbit? I once heard that 1 human year is equivalent to 7 years for a dog. How does that apply to rabbits?

I was just imagining a rabbit sitting in its cage for an entire day. Would it feel like a lifetime for them?

Not sure if I will be able to answer the question but sometimes we should draw a line how much we should “humanize” our pets. As much as how we like them to be us, it will not happen and we should always remember that like us humans, each animal have a purpose in their lifetime. And no matter what the purpose is, it completes what we call the CIRCLE OF LIFE.

And as our human time passes and falls over to the next second, minute, hour, day, week, month and year, we look forward to betterment and improvements. We want a better tomorrow and a better new year.

Here wishing everyone and everybun a wonderful New Year 2012.

May it be a good year for all humans and rabbits alike! May we fulfill our purpose to the fullest!

Happy New Year!

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Meltz…

Day 13 cutie pies…

Sleepy heads...

Somebuns stole my pillow!

SnoreeeEEeEEeeeee

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Filed under In The Nestbox

Who Would Have Thought?

This is Tru-Luv's Balian

And here he is again...

Such a cutie isn't he?

For those who have worked with Holland Lops long enough, they will concur that the older the bucks are, the more handsome they become. So it is with the case of Balian. I absolutely love this little “massive” buck. He has the “don’t mess with me” look. Don’t be fooled, underneath that “meanie” look, he is actually a very sweet little buck always looking for some head rubs.

I am glad that I started this weblog 4 years ago because I am able to recollect the past. It was an “IN” thing back then but the real reason I started this blog was because I like to keep a journal of my journey. I tend to forget things easily and keeping a journal helps me recall important things in life. To demonstrate how wonderful this weblog is, I would like to take you back 2 years ago when Tru-Luv Balian was born (17th October 2009)…

He was born on Deepavali Day and took on the name Thosai.

Balian @ 3 days old

Day 7

Day 8

Day 9

Day 16

Day 32

Day 35

Day 39

Day 47

8 weeks old

Week 8

The day when I bid Balian goodbye...

Who would have thought that little Balian will grow into such a beautiful little buck by just looking at these photo? The moral of the story is, never be too quick to judge a little bunny especially a buck because they look better as they age!

And how wonderful it is for me to grow as well in my photography skills and looking back at all these pictures, I must admit that I take the worst photographs – ROFL!

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Filed under Bucks, Living Elsewhere

The reason for the season

It would not do the wonderful year 2011 justice leaving this site with a slight negative note in yesterday’s post. Besides, it is the Christmas weekend and we should all be jolly and happy. Perhaps I might have generalized a little too much and that might have placed my own countrymen under an undesirable light. I believe the problems that I have highlighted in yesterday’s post are not isolated and exclusive to where I am only but it happens everywhere and in everything (not just in the bunny hobby).

Symphony has grown so much and this is her 2nd Christmas with us. May all bunnies be healthy during this festive season!

As much as there are undesirable situations, there are also much hope and good in this world. In year 2011, I have found a couple of good breeders to work with and I am happy that most of them have grown in both experience and knowledge. I thank them for placing their trust in me and allowing me to share with them the real reason behind this wonderful hobby. I am happy to see them doing well now on their own and we are on the journey to producing very nice Holland Lops!

Hope & Luv the theme for the season!

Year 2011 have been a blast and the reason for the season remains as (plainly) LUV!

Here wishing all my beloved readers The Merriest & Jolliest of Christmas filled with LOVE and PEACE in the presence of friends and family!

Dimsdale wishes everyone a wonderful holiday season!

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Filed under Bucks, Does, Greetings, In The Nestbox, Random Topics

One Hit Wonders

As the year 2011 draws to a close, I would like to just take a step back and share my observation of the “bunny situation” here in Malaysia. We all know that 2011 is the year of the rabbit. Due to that reason, there has been an influx of rabbit experts that has mushroomed right before the Chinese New Year. Seeing how disposable pet rabbits are, many has taken it as an opportunity to make some quick bucks (money not rabbit gender). We can even read in one of the local dailies that Malaysia has more than 50 breeds of rabbits but at the end of the day, I could only see one – mixed breed. I mean we do have pure breeds that comes with pedigrees but many do not even know what a pedigree is.

I am sure most of you have heard of the term “One Hit Wonder” before. One Hit Wonders often cause euphoria when they appear in the market out of a sudden with something catchy but as fast as they appeared, they usually disappear leaving behind a trail of havoc and huge mess! There are a few like that in the rabbit market and I believe many has fallen victim. Examples are those who issue fake pedigrees just to increase the prices of rabbits, using a different stud rabbit from the initial agreement, selling average rabbits for top dollar stocks and much, much more! It is a huge mess I tell ya!

These One Hit Wonders also became expert overnight claiming to know much just because they are good at using the bunny lingo (they actually do not even understand themselves). Suddenly we have experts started using terms like DQ and slip crown and the best part is, every rabbit has a slip crown according to them! Lucky for me, I can sniff a wannabe from miles away!

Not only they leave a huge mess in terms of rabbits, they also have a cult following of misinformed bunny owners. These blind leaders not only lead the blinds but, they poke out the eyes of those with perfect eye sight. I guess those with perfect eye sight deserve to be blind anyway for easily fooled by all the sweet “rubbish” talk.

Then out of a sudden, everyone started looking for “Show Quality” rabbits. I just feel like as if, this whole bunny world is filled with parrots instead of real human who love rabbits. When asked about the definition of Show Quality, the answers came in all sorts. Show Quality according to them are “imports”, “they look fat and chubby”, “pedigree rabbit”, “they look like bulldog” (super parrot) and “they are very cute”.

Honestly, I have no patience to deal with One Hit Wonders and their cult followers because I found that many will not be in the hobby long enough to have an objective with all the “Show Quality” rabbits that they have acquired. Why would I want to waste my time and rabbit on someone who will not be in it for long term? I do not like to deal with potential abandonment cases.

So as the Year of the Rabbit comes to a close and now that we are awaiting for the Year of the Dragon, what happens to all these One Hit Wonders?

As I was having dinner with my family, an image came to my mind and since my father is a good artist, I told him of the image I had in mind. After dinner, we spent 2 hours in his little art studio and we came out with the following painting.

Enter The Dragon

Ouch!

As a conclusion, I hope all these One Hit Wonders will now start playing with the Dragon and get flamed on the BUTT!

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On The 5th Day Before Christmas

Christmas at Tru-Luv Rabbitry will not be complete without some “Christmasy” photos. So I rounded up some of the buck in the rabbitry for some photographs. Hope you like them.

Peace On Earth...

And Goodwill to all SHORT and STUMPY!

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Filed under Bucks, Greetings