And now, may I introduce you to 'Smudge', my daughter's rabbit?
Smudge is a plump little bunny who looks very much like a wild cotton-tail. He has beautiful eyes and lovely sandy coloured eyelashes. He even has a little waistcoat, just like Peter Rabbit (but Smudge's waistcoat is red and is attached to a leash). We don't take him for walks, however, it's just one of those things we bought and used maybe twice.
Smudge adores Cody, but Cody only tolerates Smudge. They both love carrots.
My daughter adopted Smudge from our neighbourhood pet store ... a rescue rabbit! ... he was free, but his cage etc. was not. I have now adopted Smudge from my daughter while she is away getting a head full of education! I always wanted a rabbit as a kid, but my dad would never allow it. So when my daughter and I saw Smudge in the pet store, it was love at first sight and I wanted him as much as she did. We've had him for three years now ... did you know rabbits live for about 15 years?! We discovered that interesting fact when we bought a book on rabbits ... after Smudge was already home with us. I received the same sort of enlightening information when we bought our first hamster, and as we were leaving the store with pet and cage in hand, the cashier said "oh, and hamsters are nocturnal". Good to know. Nothing like listening to a hamster running on his squeaky wheel all night long :) And now we have a rabbit that may well outlive the dog.
And this is for my fellow bloggers who love little kittens. I don't have any cats (probably never will ... heck, I've got a rabbit with a longer life span than a cat!), but this little painted glass picture has been with me for many years. The glass is slightly curved, which you can't tell from the photo, and the background is actually satiny fabric (which you can't tell here either). I think this belonged to my grandmother once upon a time.
And here's where we're sitting at 9:30 Tuesday night ... -19'C!! Cody and I are snuggled together on the couch under a big wool throw ... we were both outside in the freezing night air, and are warming up nicely now. I read once that Russian parents tell their children not to breathe through their mouth when it gets too cold outside, they must breathe through their nose (this may not make sense to anyone in a warm climate, but it hurts to breathe through your mouth when the air is so cold) ... it's that cold tonight. Nose breathing only please!!
Thanks for stopping by!
Wendy
Hello Wendy, thank you very much for following me and for introducing yourself! Smudge is absolutely beautiful, and I'm going to grab myself a cup of tea and have a look through your lovely blog.
ReplyDeleteI'm really looking forward to getting to know you!
Love from Claire xxx
Hello Claire, and welcome to the Great White North! Not so white at the moment in my area however. Enjoy your read! I've already been through a few of your posts, and thoroughly enjoyed them :) Wendy
DeleteHello Wendy...I think I love Smudge...:-) love bunnies, we had seven when I was little! including Josie who hopped into our garden one day and wanted to stay, she looked like a wild rabbit too. now I just have indie. thank you for all your comments you leave for me, really cheer my day. and I will be breathing through my nose too! xx
ReplyDeleteI loved rabbits so much as a kid that I used to collect their little cotton tails. There were woods on our property with a resident great horned owl and he would gobble up the rabbits, and I would find their tails ... after writing this out it sounds so gruesome, but oddly enough I only ever found the tails, no carcasses ... oh gosh, sounding even worse!! Wendy
DeleteSmudge is adorable! We have a rescue guinea pig, we had too but sadly one died, we have a rescue cat too! I fell for the same hamster trick, however ours was lively in the evening, she used to roll around the house in a plastic ball, if you called her name she would come and find you! :) x
ReplyDeleteWe had a lot of fun (and many years) with hamsters. They were fun, but twice they escaped and we were only ever able to catch them with sticky mouse traps where the little beggar walks onto the gluey stuff and gets stuck! Vegetable oil cleaned them up again. It was that or lose them in the walls where they would most certainly die. We had three at one time ... all in balls ... all crashing around the poor dog! Wendy
Delete~ Hello there, Wendy....
ReplyDeleteI LOVE, Smudge too. If I had my way, I would have a home full of animals...Ooh I think I do! hehe.
~ She deserved her lovely home, with you and yours! A lucky bunny, indeed!
We also had a bunny, when the children were small, named....take a guess... THUMPER!~ She used to run around with my moggies and in fact was the boss of the gang....She had a long wonderful life!
The little kittie picture is beautiful and even more special because it belonged to your Grandmother...
~ Have a lovely Wednesday, Wendy and keep warm!
Love Maria x
It's good to have pets for your kids. I like having them around me, but two is enough. It becomes a headache trying to find a babysitter for the rabbit when we go on holidays ... the dog comes with us of course. The kitten hangs over my sewing table :) Happy Wednesday!! Wendy
DeleteHope you're staying warm! Smudge is ADORABLE!
ReplyDeletexx
Difficult staying warm today ... -12C, but feeling like -20C with the wind chill ... bitterly cold! At least the sun is bright, not a cloud in the sky :)
DeleteOh Wendy, Smudge is just gorgeous. I'm glad that you emphasized the life span of rabbits, because I think people just see that they're cute sometimes and forget they are a big commitment. Some of them also don't really bond with humans that well. People really need to research what type of pet they want. And rescue one! Like you did. :)
ReplyDeleteYou did see the part in my post where I said we bought a book on rabbits AFTER Smudge was home? Of course we wouldn't give him up now for anything ... but seriously, I thought they might be a five-year pet, and was shocked at 15 years! Our dog breed is known to live long too (again, 15 years ... he's 8 this spring). Wendy
DeleteHi Wendy
ReplyDeleteI thought I was feeling cold when we went to -7, I can't imagine how you must be feeling. Brrr. Smudge is a very handsome rabbit indeed, no wonder it was immediate love.
Shirley our wee hamster is not only nocturnal, but she wakes up whenever we're near her cage and leaps about until she's pulled out for a cuddle. She's the funniest hamster we've ever had. Our Pug's a bit afraid of her.
X
Smudge 'thumps' in his cage and spins around when he wants out (usually in the evenings for a romp around the living room). Our dog Cody is apprehensive of Smudge too. It's funny to watch the reversal of normal animal behaviour ... rabbit chasing dog - dog cowering from rabbit! It was -22'C a few nights ago ... you DON'T feel when it's that cold ... you're just numb ;) Wendy
DeleteHey Wendy, Smudge looks lovely and cuddly, I would have him on the couch too, for extra warmth... -19 that's a heat wave isn't it, considering the temps that you have been having over there?!!
ReplyDeleteOur first cat was called Smudge.
Love, love, love the glass painted picture....it's just so sweet. At first I thought it was a paper cut picture which seem to be very popular at the moment.
It certainly is special.
Yes, Smudge is cuddly, but HE doesn't like to cuddle so much (and his claws are so sharp!), but he does get out of the cage for a bit of crazy time hopping and absolutely RACING around the living room! He loves it so much that he's quite difficult to catch (although I've watched videos of 'trained' rabbits that will actually come when called). Wendy
Deletebunnies are so sweet! I think I'd like one too...but worry about potty training them!
ReplyDeleteRabbits actually are fairly clean animals, and will use a litter pan in their cage ... no training necessary on your part.
Delete