peter, bugs, or roger - house rabbit...

Spring & Summer 2000 Issue VII

PETER, BUGS, or ROGER?Can You Tell a Cottontail from a Hare from a House Rabbit?

W alk through a parkor look out intoyour own backyard

during the morning or eveningin our area and you might belucky enough to see a cottontailrabbit or two grazing on thegrass. Many people are underthe impression that theserabbits are the same species asour domestic companions andare just living wild. And so, manyrabbits get dumped outsideevery year because people thinkthey can survive and may evenjoin a wild “warren.”

Our domestic rabbits are, infact, descended from Europeanwild rabbits—not our nativecottontails. Centuries ago,European wild rabbits weredomesticated and the manyvarieties we are all now familiarwith were developed. Today’sdomestic rabbit bears littleresemblance to its wild cousin.

But let’s start at the begin-ning. The “family” of rabbits iscalled Leporidae. This familyincludes rabbits and hares.Within this family arecurrently 11 “genera,”including hares (alsocalled jackrabbits):genus Lepus; cotton-tails: genusSylvilagus; “truerabbits”: genusOryctolagus; and avariety of rarebeasts such as thevolcano rabbit (genusRomerolagus) and the “Africanharsh-furred” hares (genus:Poelagus).

Let’s concentrate on the

ones we know: Hares (alsocalled jackrabbits), cottontails,and European rabbits. Hareslive in North America andvirtually all of Africa andEurasia. There are 30 currentlyrecognized species. Cottontailslive only in North and SouthAmerica—nowhere else—andthere are 13 currently recog-nized species, including oureastern cottontail and themarsh rabbit commonly foundin the South. European rabbitsnaturally habitate only inwestern and southern Europe—from the Mediterranean toMorocco and northern Algeria.

They have, however, beenintroduced to someother areas like Aus-tralia with devastating

results for thelocal fauna.European rabbitsare comprised ofonly one species:

Oryctolaguscuniculus.

Warren’t You Like to Know?So what the heck is the

difference between hares, cotton-continued on next page

by Kate McGinley

IN THIS ISSUE

Cottontailsby Kate McGinley .................. 1

Making a Differenceby Kay Bannon ..................... 4

Rabbit Dental Diseaseby David Handel, DVM ......... 4

Games Rabbits Playby Susan Easton ................... 5

Shermanby Neva Davis ........................ 8

Breaking News:Rabbit VHD Alert

by Kathleen Wilsbach ............ 11

DepartmentsRabbits for Adoption ......... 3Chapter Update ................. 6Happy Adoption Letters .... 9Member Tips..................... 10

“Cottontails

domestic rabbits...cannot interbreed.”

and

Baby cottontails

2 HRS Maryland, Washington DC, Northern Virginia Chapter

Cottontails from page 1

HELP! I rescued

some baby rabbits

from my yard! After domesticcat attacks(keep your cats

indoors!), one of the mainhazards for baby cotton

tails, and our rabbits? Hare babies are born fully furred,eyes open. Adult hares do not dig burrows and live amore or less solitary life. Cottontails are born naked,eyes closed. However, they develop much faster thantheir domestic cousins. They are weaned at 2 weeks andare ready to live on their own at 4 weeks. Like hares,adult cottontails do not dig burrows but build a ratherloose nest out of grass and rabbit fur for their babies,and otherwise just take cover in bushes and such. Theyare solitary creatures—sometimes you might seeseveral grazing near each other—but they do not livetogether. European rabbits dig elaborate burrows andform complex societies called warrens. A warren caninclude hundreds of individuals and have a complexsocial structure—one of the reasons it’s so difficult andtouchy to match up our domestic rabbits. While they arehappiest in the company of another rabbit, they need togo through social posturings for it to “feel right.”

How do you tell if a rabbit is wild or domestic? Thenatural, or “wild” coloring of hares, cottontails, andEuropean rabbits is the same: known as “agouti” coloring.We still see this color often in our domestic rabbits (seeFigure B). Sometimes people think this means theirdomestic rabbit is, in fact, a cross between a cottontailand a domestic rabbit—this is not the case. Cottontailsand domestic (or European) rabbits are geneticallyisolated; they cannot interbreed. If a cottontail meets adomestic rabbit, they would probably not even recognizehim as a rabbit. He just wouldn’t be “acting” right.

If the rabbit is not particularly afraid of you, he isdomestic. Cottontails, even if raised in captivity, have anatural fear of humans when mature. If there are anypatches of color (including white), he is domestic. Babycottontails sometimes have a small spot of white on theirforeheads, but that is it (see Figure A). Adult cottontailsrange from 2-4 lbs., averaging 3 lbs. tops. If the bunny isbigger than that, he could be a domestic rabbit. Cotton-tails have very long slender legs and a real “wedge”shaped head. Their ears are very thin at the tips—you canoften see light right through—and narrow at the base.Domestic rabbits have a more dome-shaped “forehead”and more prominent cheekbones. No matter how much adomestic rabbit might resemble a cottontail from theside, if you look him straight in the face you will know he’snot a cottontail by his chubbier cheeks.

Nicole Roberts ... in honor of Sunshine’s 2nd birthday.

Yael Schloss ... in memory of Caffeen.

Mary Sue McLaughlin ... in honor of Mr. and Mrs. Ken Dors.

Melodye Traupel ... in memory of her dear Rum Bun.

Elizabeth Howard ... in memory of Mousse.

Kathy Brooks and Robert Denny ... in memory of Strawberry Mousse.

Lois Weinstein ... in honor of Bonnee and Frank Korel.

Gifts in Remembrance...

tails in our area is well-meaning humans whothink a nest of babies has been abandonedwhen most of the time it hasn’t been.

Mother cottontails only nurse their babiesonce or twice a day, and the rest of the time theystay away so as not to attract predators. If youwant to test if the mother is around, carefullyarrange some sticks in a pattern on top of thenest. Check back later. If the mother has come tonurse, the sticks will be disturbed. The babiesand nest will be gone in just a few weeks.

Sometimes the babies, looking tiny and deli-cate, hop around the nest exploring their sur-roundings. They are very small—only “tennis ball”size when they actually leave the nest to start lifeon their own. They are independent at a much ear-lier age than domestic rabbits. If you see one notin immediate danger, just leave well enough alone.

If you do rescue cottontails truly in need, don’ttry to care for them yourself. Keep them warm andquiet, and contact your nearest wildlife rehabilita-tor. Orphan baby rabbits are very difficult to raise,and cottontails do not do well in captivity. There isa list of wildlife rehabilitators at our web sitewww.houserabbit.org/BaltWashDC/wildlife.html

“Agouti”domestic rabbit

cottontail

HRS Maryland, Washington DC, Northern Virginia Chapter 3

ANDRE was found stray ona tennis court by a shelteremployee! She knew rightaway that he is a specialrabbit. He is a handsomedark brown, weighs about6 lbs., and is SO sweet—helikes to give kisses! Hewould be a great choicefor a family with children.(703) 241-0867

BARLEY is a stunning minilop boy who is the richest, darkest brown—almost black color. He loves a quiet cuddle. (410) 889-4104

CHERRY is a classic big New Zealand White girl. Some people don’t likered-eyed rabbits, but they are missing out! These rabbits are wellknown among experienced rabbit lovers as the BEST. Cherry is smart,friendly and loving, and would be a wonderful choice for a familywith children. She gets along well with nice cats and dogs too!(410) 889-4104

COLLETTE—charming, pretty, blue-eyed Collette has a personality tomatch her good looks. She loves to bepetted and just sticks out her nosefor a rub. She weighs about 6 lbs andis spayed. (301) 251-4428

DYLAN and MANDY are a pair ofsmaller bunnies. Dylan is a gorgeouswild-looking boy with a great,friendly, outgoing personality. Thelove of his life, Mandy, is a pretty littlefeisty dwarf. They are a great pair!(410) 889-4104

EVELYN and SAMANTHA are an adorable daughter/mother pair ofminilops. Mother Samantha is the more outgoing and confident of thepair. They were in the shelter for a while and some of their familyhad to be euthanized. These two will really blossom in a home oftheir own with lots of quiet love. (301) 570-9152

FARLEY is a handsome, bigblack rabbit. He weighsabout 8 lbs. Farley likesnice dogs and cats, and heis very outgoing andfriendly. He does like tohave things HIS waythough, and will let youknow it if you aren’t coop-erating! (703) 241-0867

FELICITY is a lovely black andwhite dutch bunny with a smart,outgoing personality.(410) 889-4104

GEENA—this gorgeous red-head is9 lbs. of personality! She is about2 yrs old and very sweet. Geenagets along fine with nice cats anddogs, and would be a greatchoice for an active family.(301) 251-4428

JACKSON is a young orange and black harlequin boy, whowas turned into the shelter as a stray. He loves to exploreand play with his toys but is never too busy for some petsand attention. Despite his previous neglect, he loves people.(410) 889-4104

JACOB is a 2 year old dutch mix. The “J” shaped mark on hisshoulder is what earned him his name. He was a favoritewith the shelter staff at the Anne Arundle SPCA and theyurged us to rescue him. He is a bit of a curmudgeon butdoes like to be petted; he just doesn’t want to admit it. He isvery tidy in his litterbox habits and likes to take his after-noon snooze under the diningroom table. (410) 889-4104

JAVA has a lovely deep browncolored coat that is so verysoft. She is an outgoing bunnywho isn’t afraid of much. She isa young adult spayedfemale about 5 lbs.(410) 889-4104

JOEY is white with ethereal blue eyes, VERY STUNNING. He ismedium sized, probably 4-5 pounds. He’s cuddly and loves tobe petted but doesn’t like being picked up. He is enrapturedwith dogs and tries to snuggle with them. We don’t knowhis age but he acts like a young guy; he’s very peppy andlikes to explore and dig in his litterbox. (301) 251-4428

TYRA is a sweet, small black dwarf bunny. She is a bit shy atfirst, but is rapidly learning to dance in her foster home.(301) 251-4428

STEVEN—What is it aboutlittle himilayan dwarf bun-nies? They are always suchcharmers! Steven is no ex-ception. This smart little guyloves attention and prob-lem-solving. He can leap tallbuildings with a singlebound, and likes nothingmore than to figure out howto open doors. He is just sohandsome and yummy withhis cherry colored eyes, va-nilla colored fur with fudgeypoints on his nose, ears andfeet. Steven was found by police when they were investi-gating the murder of his owner. The police turned him overto animal control and the HRS took him in. We don’t knowhow old he is but we guess he is about a year old at themost. He was obviously well loved and cared for.(703) 241-0867

WINSTON is a dapper,siamese colored minilop.He was caught in themiddle of a domestic dis-pute in his first home andthrown down some stairs.He was uninjured, andluckily was confiscated byanimal control where thisgentle, sweet boy madehis way to HRS fostercare. He would love a nice,quite, loving home to call his own. (703) 241-0867

All rabbits are to be adopted as HOUSE RABBITS only—no exceptions! $50 donation per rabbit, plus $18 membership for our non-members. Your other rabbits must be spayed or neutered. Pictures of all our foster rabbits can be viewed at our web site,www.houserabbit.org/BaltWashDC/

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I know there are many HRSmembers who shy awayfrom their local shelter. It’s

sad to see the homeless rabbitsand know not all will be adoptedto loving homes.

I began stopping by my localshelter about two years ago. Theyhad very few rabbits at that time.Sometimes I would stop in andfind no rabbits, other times there

would be one or two. Often those wouldbe located in one of the back rooms keptoff limits to the general public. Peopleinterested in rabbits, guinea pigs, andother small animals were supposed toknow that they should ask at the frontdesk. If rabbits were out in the viewingarea, they were placed in whatever smallcage the shelter had available, pushedoff in a corner somewhere and cedar wasoften lining the floor of the cage. Noprofiles were ever filled out by the

surrendering family and theadopters signed no contract. Ihad often mentioned my con-cerns to a passing staff memberbut either I wasn’t being takenseriously or someone else wastaking care of the rabbits andmy concerns didn’t reach theirears. Finally, I asked someonewhat I needed to do to affectsome changes in the lives ofthese rabbits and was told to

write a letter to the board ofdirectors.

With my letter typed andsubmitted, I anxiously awaited ananswer from the board. I wassurprised a few weeks later to beasked to present my letter per-sonally at the next board meet-ing. I expected to meet withsome resistance but was sur-prised to find the members of the

continued on page 7

Rabbits often sufferfrom dental disease.While regular dental

cleaning is an important part ofmaintaining oral health inpeople, cats, and dogs, it is notas necessary in the rabbit. In-stead, the teeth should bechecked for malocclusion—animproper alignment of theteeth—which can cause serious,even life-threatening, problems.

Malocclusion is especially se-rious due to the dental anatomyof the rabbit. Their teeth havelong roots and grow about fourto five inches per year. Whenthe teeth of a rabbit are aligned

properly they are worn down by foodconsumption. However, when teeth arenot aligned they will continue to growand may inhibit the rabbit’sability to eat. The inability to eat canresult in life-threatening anorexia.

Malocclusion of the incisors (frontteeth) is most common. This can begenetic. A routine exam by a veterinar-

ian will oftenreveal thisproblem.Treatment isusuallyaccom-plished bytrimming

Making a Difference

The author presents a rabbit careworkshop at the Frederick Countyshelter.

by Kay Bannon

Rabbit Dental Diseaseby Dr. David Handel, Kentlands Veterinary Hospital

continued on page 12

the teeth. This should be donewith a special dental drill or burr.Nail trimmers should’t be usedfor this as they may fracture theteeth. Trimming should be doneevery 6 to 8 weeks in an afflictedrabbit. In some cases, tooth re-moval is an appropriate. Generalanesthesia, as well as post-opera-tive pain medication and antibiot-ics, will be necessary.

Malocclusion of the cheek teethis less common but still life-threatening. Cheek teeth that donot wear evenly can developsharp spike-like edges. Thesespikes can cut into the tongue or

New rabbit housing at the Frederick shelter.

Severely Maloccluded Incisors.

Kay conducts aneducational

seminar


A nyone lucky enough tolive with a house rabbitknows they do much more

than just sit in a cage. Their inter-action with their humans runs thegamut from snuggling to manipu-lating, from kissing to nipping, andfrom posing like a model calendarbunny to foiling our best laid plans.They play games with their hu-mans, devising rules and strategies,and not surprisingly, usually comeout the winners. Such games arecommon, based on the number ofHRS members who responded tomy email inquiry; unfortunately,there were too many to mentionthem all, but here are a few.

Human/rabbit games fall intoseveral categories and themes, oneof the more popular being thereenactment of ahouse rabbit’s arche-typal battle to van-quish their evilarchenemy, thebroom. Chris-tine notes herJigglypuff plays“Swept Away,”where she pre-tends to sweepand Jigglypuffboldly attacks thebroom with all her might, “barkingand quacking for all she’s worth.” Liz’rabbits play “Help With Sweeping,”involving getting in the way of thebroom or sitting in the dust pan.

Games that involve undoing thework of humans appear to bring spe-cial joy to our long-eared friends.Pam places Cammie and Phillip’stoys neatly on the top level of theircondo at bedtime and throughoutthe night, they play “Roll the ToysDown the Ramp.” The “Unroll theTowel” game was reported byMelodye, who rolls up a towel for herRum Bun to happily take apart. Anna

makes her Lucky a tunnel ofboxes to run through, and thenLucky rips apart the boxes.

In general, flinging ob-jects around is just good fun,according to our house rab-bits. Lisa notes her Harveyand Remy play “Toss the Ma-son Jar Lid,” and “Jerk theSlinky into Submission.”Lara’s Panda-Pal and Beatrixplay with her son’s toy cars, throw-ing them around the room. The“Tackle the TP Tube” game is appre-ciated by Joanne and her rabbitBaby, in which Joanne holds a card-board TP tube above Baby’s head,Baby knocks it down, and then hikesit between her legs.

Games involving treats alwaysgarner an enthusiastic response.

Winnie notes her SirGalahad plays “Get ThePapaya Tablet,” and

Timothy enjoys “HideThe Baytril In TheBanana” with hisfurred friend.Natalie likes to play“Find The Apple”

with her Diego,where she and her

husband hide a treatand he finds it by doing a passableimpersonation of a bloodhound, noseto ground, sniffing.

Games that we humans playedas children are popular among thefurry set as well. Linda says her rab-bit Christopher enjoys a good gameof “Horsie” by riding around on herback, and he plays “Hide And Seek”with one of her cats, nicely takingturns. Shari tells of her bunny Sand-box’ game, “Hide in the Hay.” Sev-eral people reported playing “Catch”with their rabbits. Jane says her Ber-nard, like any human child, appreci-ates a good bedtime story. Whenshe reads in bed, he hops up and

sits on her stomach facing thebook, the only problem being thatshe then can’t see the book!

Not surprisingly, only one HRSmember reported bunny games witha sci-fi theme. Marion notes her Am-ity often goes “Spacehopping,” whereshe disappears at feeding time, onlyto suddenly reappear when her hu-man calls out, “Where’s our Great In-visible Houserabbit? Beam herdown, Scotty.”

Finally, my favorite games arethose that would get the humanscommitted if an outsider were tosee. Toni describes “The BunnyGame” with Noodle, where Toniand her husband crawl along thehallway as fast as they can shout-ing “Bunny game! Bunny game!”and Noodle gives chase, “honkingand bellowing noisily like a littlemoose.” Once she catches her hu-mans, she “chomps triumphantlyon our sweatpants and butts at uswith her little head,” Toni notes.Katherine says: “My bunny has arubber rabbit head that has ‘hair’sticking up. He likes to fling therabbit head and I go fetch. Heloves to keep me busy.” Grettanotes she and Mr. Bun would play“Football,” where Mr. Bun wouldcharge at her and she’d hold her footout and fling him into the air! He’dfly back a few feet, land and thencome charging at her again, “lookinglike I was punting him,” Gretta says,adding quickly, “But not.”

Games Rabbits Play by Susan Easton

The “Help With Sweeping” game

“In general,flingingobjects

around is justgood fun.”


Chapter

Spring sprang and it was a verybusy time for all the HRS vol-unteers. Extra binkies all around.

Our Easter Campaign (headed by ourDirector of Special Projects, SusanWong), was a huge success, as was ourEaster candy sale. Our adoption countfor 1999 ended at 94, and we’ve hada great start to this year already - 68adoptions from January to June, withan amazing 15 in February and aspectacular 19 in June!

EASTER CAMPAIGNSusan Wong, Christine Nevius, and

several other volunteers outdid them-selves this year. HRS got great presscoverage –our most prominent spotswere in the front page of the BaltimoreSun Today section the Thursday beforeEaster and several spots starring ourown Susan Wong and DC AnimalControl’s Jim Monsma, on Fox Morn-ing News! The real stars however, werethe rabbits. Samantha and Evelyn didwonderfully in their first TV appearancebut they haven’t let the fame go to theirheads. We were very pleased with theresponse, and there were several adop-tion inquiries from all of our great press!We have also gotten many calls in re-sponse to our “Thinking About A Rabbit?”flyer that HRS members have posted onmany bulletin boards. Thanks for yourhelp in getting the word out.

CANDY SALEOur annual Easter candy sale brought

in around $1,800 in profit for our chap-ter this year! Many thanks to all thevolunteers who helped with this effort:Judi Robertson and Michelle Thomasstuffed envelopes; Jean Hillstrom andDiane Neumeyer tallied forms; JeanHillstrom, Connie Tjoumas, Phyllis andTed Buff and Laurie Kuhn were candydrop-off/pick-up sites; and Diane Ray,Jamie Johnston, Liz DiNorma, Ted andPhyllis Buff, Barbara Storch, JudiLainer, Deb McLaughlin, ChristianeWeiss, Nicole Roberts, Katrina Remer,Toni Gallo, Connie Tjoumas, KimberlyLengerhuis, Wendy Martino, LesliePaugh, Robin Cronkite, JodiRobertson, Michelle Thomas, JeanHillstrom, Kathy Forthman, KimMcGuire, Pat Helfrich, KathleenWilsbach, Liz Bertha, Paul and SherryYutzy, Diane and Bill Neumeyer,Shirley Rowley, Stacey Waynick,

Darlene Saudarg, Tricia Benner andMary Boblis sold candy. (Whew! Whata list!) And of course, kudos to LaurieKuhn for organizing this big and verysuccessful fund raising project.

HRS Spring Fling 2000 was heldApril 30th at the home of SusanWong in Olney, MD. We had a greatturnout, and everyone enjoyed thepotluck vegetarian fare and showingoff their rabbit pictures to otherbunny lovers. We earned almost $600

from the sale of rabbit suppliesand rabbit knick-knacks. Specialthanks to Neva Davis for the dona-tion of some beautiful, miniaturehandmade, clay sculptures. We willhave more available at future events.

EDUCATIONOur educational efforts have been

very exciting – the response thatwe’ve gotten from local area sheltersis very encouraging! Educator KayBannon volunteers at the FrederickCounty Humane Society and hasseen a radical change in the way thatrabbits are viewed by the shelter staff.Spay/neuter procedures are now con-sidered for rabbits that exhibit spray-ing or other hormonal behavior, andKay’s educational rabbit talks havegained in popularity. On March 29,Kay did a rabbit talk at the shelterthat drew 52 people (standing roomonly!), and was assisted by ChrisBrannon to help answer questions.There was even a photographerpresent from a local newspaper! Kayhas also been featured on theHumane Society’s cable TV show givingtips on rabbits as companion animals.

Educator Laurie Kuhn has beenworking with the Humane Society ofHarford County. She gave a basic rab-bit and guinea pig talk to the employ-ees in December, and did one for thegeneral public in the beginning of April.

We’ve been busy this spring – we’veparticipated in an adoption fair atCrosspointe Animal Hospital in Fairfax,VA, and have had education tables at dog-walk fundraising events for the AnimalWelfare League of Arlington and the

Anne Arundel County SPCA. There aremore scheduled for this summer, too.

Our volunteers have also been work-ing with the various shelters at events –many of our local area shelters inviteHRS to attend events that they sponsoror participate in. We are very gratefulfor the wonderful response we’ve gottenfrom our local area shelters in our ef-forts to get rabbit care information outto the public. We’ve also recently be-gun working with the Fredericksburg, VAshelter thanks to the help of HRS mem-

berMelodyeTraupel,and haveour first

HRS foster rabbit from there.

SUPER PET EXPOHRS had a booth at the Super Pet

Expo held in Chantilly, VA in February.What an incredible time! We had sucha positive response from people, andseveral adoptions came out of this two-day event. Our booth was packed bothdays. Educator Liz DiNorma did ahalf-hour rabbit care presentation onSunday to a small group. Financially,we came out just about even betweenthe cost of the booth and the amount ofthings that we sold, but from an educa-tional standpoint this event was price-less! Many thanks to all of the volun-teers who helped with set-up, tear-downand manning the booth through thetwo-day event. It was grueling, but veryworth it! Thanks to Barbara Miller,Jennifer Benjamin, Kathy Brooks-Denny, Liz DiNorma, Susan Easton,

Nancy Boyd of National Geographicat a Passport Friday Education Table


Update

Shari Feldman, Liz Howard, MoiraHoward-Jeweler, Nicole Idzi, JamieJohnston, Carol-Ann Koplik, LeesaKuo, Judi Lainer, Natalie Medina,Nicky Roberts, Winnie Roberts, TracyShapiro, Michelle Thomas, andKathleen Wilsbach for making thisevent possible by volunteering.

Our second Super Pet Expo was May20-21 in Timonium, MD. This wasanother big success for us. Although

attendance seemed lower—perhapsbecause the organizers made themistake of scheduling it for Preaknessweekend—we earned twice as muchmoney as in Chantilly, and that doesn’tinclude an extremely generous $200anonymous donation—almost com-pletely offsetting the cost of our booth.We talked to many people about bringingtheir rabbits indoors and spaying/neuter-ing. And there were some inquiries aboutour adorable foster rabbits. For thisevent, many thanks go to Irma Arispe,Carolyn Bublitz, Liz DiNorma, DebbieHollern, Anne Imboden, Jamie Johnston(who also brought her fiance), LaurieKuhn, Faye Levine, Diane Neumeyer(who also brought her mom and aunt),Bill Neumeyer, Nicky Roberts (who alsobrought her mom), Jodi Robertson,Michelle Thomas, Bobbie Vach, andKathleen Wilsbach. These events areexhausting (but rewarding!), and we trulycould not do them without your help.

If you’re looking for another opportu-nity to join us at one of these events,there’s just one left this year—Septem-ber 9-10 at the Montgomery CountyFairgrounds in Gaithersburg, MD. As

you can guess, we really count on thehelp of our volunteers at these events,so if you’re interested in participatingin September, please contact ourVolunteer Coordinator, Laurie Kuhn byemail at laurie_kuhn@ yahoo.com, or byphone at 410-893-6506.

BOOK GRANTWe’ve been approved and received

the second half of the grant from theSnyder Foundation for Animals to sendcopies of the House Rabbit Handbook tothe rest of the libraries in Maryland. Weare still looking into possible grants thatwould allow us to do the same for librar-ies in Northern Virginia and DC.

HRS ONLINEAs you may know, many of our adop-

tions come from folks who have foundout about the HRS while looking forinformation on the internet. Educatorand Fosterer Kate McGinley is thewebmaster for our local Web site, and

has added some great features includ-ing; access to back issues of The CloverLeaf, a new online volunteering form,and a membership information page.

In other cyber news, our chapter nowhas an email list for updates, and achat list for local HRS members to ex-change information and share bunnystories. You can sign up for either listat the chapter Web site (www.houserabbit.org/baltwashdc), or contact Edu-cator Liz DiNorma, who is the ownerof the lists, at [email protected].

The national HRS Web site(www.rabbit.org) has some new fea-tures, too… including updated veteri-nary and health resource sections. Ifyou haven’t visited lately, check outwhat’s new. Also new—you can nowuse PayPal to make a donation to thenational House Rabbit Society online.Set up an account with PayPal (a free,secure service) and charge a donationfrom a credit card or bank account.There’s a link from the national homepage to sign up for an account—if youfollow the link, national HRS will receivea $10 referral bonus. You can also signup at the national site to receive emailupdates on what’s new at their Web site.

FOSTERING UPDATEOur rank of fosterers had been grow-

ing by leaps and bounds! We now have7 foster homes in Virginia, 8 in Marylandand 2 in Washington DC! We are happyto report adding the FredericksburgSPCA and Glen Burnie Animal Con-trol to the list of shelters that we havebeen able to help with rabbits this year.We also send many of our adoption ap-plicants straight to the shelters to meetthe bunnies that we have no room for.The list of shelters that we are currentlyworking with by fostering rabbits cur-rently includes Washington HumaneSociety, DC Animal Control, the FairfaxCounty shelter, the FredericksburgSPCA, the Montgomery County Hu-mane Society, the SPCA of AnneArundel County, the Humane Societyof Baltimore County, the Humane So-ciety of Harford County, the FrederickCounty Humane Society, Glen BurnieAnimal Control, and Howard CountyAnimal Control.

LOOKING AHEAD…We’ve got a full schedule of events

coming up over the next few months.HRS will be setting up booths (ordoing talks) at all of these events. Fora complete list, visit www.houserabbit.org/BaltWashDC. Please stop by andsay hello, or, if you’re interested inhelping out, please contact ourVolunteer Coordinator, Laurie Kuhnby email at laurie_kuhn @yahoo. com,or by phone at 410-893-6506.

gums causing pain and theinability to eat. Due to the narroworal cavity of the rabbit, this diag-nosis is more challenging. A se-dated oral exam is necessary fordiagnosis. Treatment involves fil-ing or trimming the teeth.

Dental abscesses are also acommon problem. Trauma and/orfood impaction can be the culprit.Treatment involves antibiotictherapy and possibly surgery.

Regular veterinary care andcan help assure a rabbit’s good health.Dental health is an important part ofoverall health. Signs of dental diseaseto watch for include difficulty eating ornot eating at all.

Dental from page 4

Liz DiNorma and Dickens McGinley hostess the booth at theArlington shelter Wag’n Walk


O ne cold night in NewYork City, standing outside with some friends,

I noticed a shabby looking manpushing a grocery cart toward usfrom across the street. Almostimmediately, I saw the head ofan albino rabbit protruding froma jacket in the grocery cart. Therabbit was so still I thought hemust be a stuffed toy. But whenthe man got closer, I could seethis was a real rabbit—althoughtired and weak.

“Is that a live rabbit?” myfriend asked. But I already knewthe answer. The bunny lifted hishead slightly as I rubbed hisears. “Is he your rabbit?” I askedthe man, “where did he comefrom?” The man explained he’dfound the bunny in a park earlythat morning and put him in thecart to keep him safe. Becausethe bunny was cold, he’d takenoff his own jacket and wrappedthe bunny up in it. “Now, some ofthem,” he said, pointing to thehomeless people watching usfrom across the road, “they’resaying they’re going to kill himand eat him...I saw the stickers”— he gestured to the back of myfriend’s car, plastered with ani-mal rights messages — “and Iwas hoping one of you wouldhelp him out.”

I picked up the bunny andfelt his stomach, very thin, butno lumps or tender spots. Hismouth and eyes looked healthy. Idon’t think any of us doubted fora second that we would save thisrabbit. Luckily, I had rabbit sup-plies at home because my be-

loved, elderly rabbit, Ivan, was still livingat that time.

I decided to get this rescued bunnyhome to Brooklyn. When I tucked himinside my coat, the homeless mangrabbed my shoulder, “Just promise thatno harm will come to him, that he willbe OK.” I promised him and set off onthe subway, smuggling the rabbit, whowas content at that moment just to restagainst me, inside my coat.

At the end of our long ride, it oc-curred to me the bunny might need torelieve himself so I started to gently sethim down in the dirt around one tree.He scrambled and struggled to stay in-side my coat. His heart was pounding sohard that I could feel it against mychest! He’s scared of being left behind, Isuddenly realized. I rushed him home tomy tiny apartment.

Because Ivan had the run of theapartment, I set this bunny up in thebathroom, with a litter box, food, water,hay, and fresh veggies and herbs. Thenext morning, everything I had givenhim to eat was gone! He was skittish,but seemed grateful for the food. When Iwanted him to have a chance to runaround, I had to confine Ivan, as thesetwo were hostile from the first secondthey smelled each other.

We went on with this routine forabout a month while the rescued rabbit,now named Sherman, put on weight andgot stronger. I didn’t get him neuteredright away, fearing he was too weak tosurvive the surgery.

I knew I was going to have him for therest of his life when nobody else could ap-preciate what a sweet bunny he was de-spite all his problems. I was ready to re-turn to Brooklyn with him and try to makeit work, even though I was concernedabout trying to introduce him to Ivan.

by Neva Davis

However, then my boyfriend Sean,who lived in DC, offered to take him.

He set up a large, fenced en-closure for Sherman and gavehim all the amenities and lots oflove. Sherman still compulsivelyshook the bars of his enclosureand had such a love for chewingthat he couldn’t be let out with-out supervision. He would alsobecome disoriented when left inopen places. If we left the doorto his enclosure open he wouldwander out and then be unableto find his way back. If we didn’thelp him right away he’d panic.We started to think he’d prob-ably spent most of his life shutinside a tiny cage.

I finished my masters and re-turned to DC. Sean and I movedinto a larger apartment whereSean built Sherman a woodenbunny palace. Now Shermanseems content. He has no bars toshake but has a very nice windowseat, several hiding places, andfour levels to run on, sit on, andflop over on when he’s tired. Healso has baskets to chew on andtoss—the only toy he’s ever reallyseemed to enjoy.

Over the past few years,Sherman has really come out ofhis shell and is recovering fromthe abuse he suffered as a baby.He is very affectionate, and willeven occasionally sit on my lapalthough he prefers to sit on thefloor next to me while I rub him.If I clean his area and fail to givehim all the attention he de-serves, he’ll nudge me to remindme. He loves fresh vegetablesand apples and if I am cutting up


a carrot for myself, he’ll comeover and beg for little pieces andtake them directly from my hand.This is a rabbit who used to bescared of human hands and feet!

Because Sherman was a full-grown rabbit when the homelessman found him, I suspect as ababy he was given as an Eastergift. He then probably spent sixmonths locked inside a crampedcage, only to be abandoned in apark when he reached his adultsize. It breaks my heart to thinkthat this sort of thing happens tocountless rabbits every year, andmost abandoned rabbits are not

as lucky as Sherman. Ialso sometimes won-der about the home-less man who cared somuch about the rabbithe found that he tookoff his own coat in coldweather to warm thebunny up. I hope thathe has also found thehelp that he needs.

Editor’s note: Nevarecently adopted Juni-per and she andSherman are a hot item! We would like tohave a regular feature spotlighting the sto-ries of how our members came to be living

Hop! Hop! Hooray!Thank you so much to everyone who

made this possible! These are the friendliest, happiest rab-bits I’ve ever seen! I’m elated! Kudos to alltheir fosterers - they obviously providedVERY loving homes!

They were really pretty quiet the firstnight, I was surprised. But when the alarmwent off this morning at 4:30, someonedidn’t like it and thumped for awhile. Therewas a commotion later so I ran upstairsand 3 innocent faces peered up at me, in-terrupted in their playing, as if to say, “Didyou hear that? I wonder what THAT was?”

We’re one big happy family!Debbie O’Day

I-sa Luv-sa You-sa!!! Yes-sa!Many thanks to the HRS for making it

possible for Jar Jar Binks to find his dreamgirl, Jenni Binks. Jar Jar and Jenni had anunforgettable first meeting at the bunnymatchup. I’d noticed how Jenni had beenaggressive to the other males she met,pushing them around and oinking at them,but when she came out of the carrier andsaw Jar Jar, he took over.

I’ll never forget the way she went up tohim to bully him and he (I swear he wasgrinning) just sat on her head! Jar Jar fol-lowed her into the carrier right away andthey’ve been two peas in a pod ever since.

Patti Henningsen

Cocoa and DahliaThanks so much for the pictures of me

and the bunnies. They are doing great. We

Happy Adoption Letters

with a rabbit. Please send your stories byemail to [email protected], fax to 301-528-0284, or mail to HRS, PO Box 50311,Baltimore, MD 21211.

have moved into a two bedroom and havethem set up in the spare bedroom. Theyhave a brand new Bunny Abode cage fromLeith Petwerks which they love. Cocoa isvery possessive of Dahlia. Whenever some-one starts petting her he rushes over andcuddles up next to her just to make surethey know whose rabbit she really is. Mostof the time they sit in their favorite positioncuddled alongside each other with theirheads at opposite ends. My boyfriend calls itthe “yin yang” position.

Julie Kizer

Olivia and Fu FuFu Fu and Olivia are doing very well.

They really enjoy grooming each other andcuddling. Olivia has a great personality. Sheis interested in everything including assistingin cleaning the cage. Olivia enjoys hoppingon me and is great with “people” contact(in this area, Fu Fu can be shy). I guess op-posites DO attract. Above is a cute pictureof the two together.

I want to thank you for helping me find afriend for Fu Fu. He doesn’t look so lonelyanymore. Thanks for all the great advice. It

is nice to know that there are other “bunnypeople” out there.

Tracy Hill

Elvis and KatieI spent an hour before work watching

Elvis and Katie dancing nonstop throughoutthe family room. After a while, they wouldboth go back to the cage for a break, catchtheir breath, and then begin again. It waswonderful! He still spends most of the time(when he is in the cage) in the litter box, buthe is spending more and more time outside itand near her. So far, things seem very good.

Becky Bafford

Loeffel and WatsonI just wanted to let you know, that Loeffel

and Watson are doing great. After they’dkept us up for a night, we decided to givethem a head start on their new territory:the kitchen. I watched them very closely inthe beginning and it was just too cute!Loeffel was showing Watson the wayaround. She would go into her cage andthen turn around and see, where he was!Today I saw them licking each other andseemed to be very happy together! I am sothankful, that this bunny has been rescued atthe 11th hour!

Heike Blum

Olivia and Fu Fu

We get many lovely letters andemails from our adopters. Unfortunately,we don’t have the space to print them all,but keep them coming! We LOVE to readthem; it’s what keeps us going.


Thank you to the following SpecialFriends who donated $25 or moreto help the rabbits:

ANONYMOUSARISTOTLE

(through Wendy MARTINO and Martin HOBBS)Shelley BARBERBASILE Family

Liz and Kevin BERTHAJohn BISHOPLaura BLAIR

Laura Brooks SMITHKathy BROOKS

BUNNYHEAVENVictoria CLEMENTSColleen COUGHLIN

Vicky CRAMRick and Robin CRONKITE

Marion DAVISBrad and Julia EDWARDS

FDC REPORTS, INC.Teresa HANYOK

Jean HILLSTROMDavid S. HUBBARDRandie JOHNSON

Lisa JURISTR.B. LASCO

Dorothy LEVINSONJohnson LUI

Carol MCCALLBrian MCNEILL

Brenda Moore-EDWARDSLaura MORT

Cheryl Bowen PALACIOSPETSMART

Nicole ROBERTSEric ROELL

Kristen STEVENSONConnie TJOUMAS

Melodye TRAUPELPatricia TRENNERLois WEINSTEINMarie WHITNEY

Mark and Michele WILSONCatherine YANG

Special thanks to the following vetswho provided discount services,making it possible for us to

rescue many needy rabbits:

BLUERIDGE VETERINARY ASSOCIATES

BROOKEVILLE ANIMAL HOSPITAL

FALLS ROAD ANIMAL HOSPITAL—24 HR EMERGENCY

KENTLANDS VETERINARY HOSPITAL

KINGSBROOKE ANIMAL HOSPITAL

MUDDY BRANCH VETERINARY CENTER

RIDGE LAKE ANIMAL HOSPITAL

To keep a rabbit confined to aparticular room in an appealingway, try this.

Pur-chasecafedoorsfromHomeDepot.Cutthebot-

tom scrollwork off leaving astraight edge. Mount the doorslow in the doorjamb so the bot-tom is almost flush with thefloor. Notch the outside bottomedges of the door to accommo-date the baseboard trim. Ipainted a farm scene on mine.To prevent rabbits from chew-ing on them, cut thin pieces ofwood and nail them on thedoors, making a fence in frontof the painted scene. Occasion-ally, my Bruno will bite into thefence.

The doors stay closed withthe help of a hook/eye latch.The doors swing open andclose for easy “human-use”.

Barbara Miller

I found that my rabbits, Diegoand Rose, love to eat the cor-ners of walls. So at Home De-pot, I found Corner Protectorsfor wallpaper for $1.48. Theyhave attach with adhesive.They’re great! You don’t haveput any nails in the walls! MyDiego has tried chewing onthem but failed. They are easyto remove. You can even putthem on furniture corners!

Natalie Medina

TIPSWe’ve found Plexiglas can be

cut, glued, drilled, and magne-tized for a variety of bunny-proofing uses. It comes in vari-ous thicknesses. Stores such asLowe’s and Home Depot will cutit once for you at no charge butthere is a minimal charge for ad-ditional cuts.

To protect our hutch, we cut a4' x 8' sheet of Plexiglas in half.Since our bunnies are dwarves,we determined a 24" heightwould provide protection fromnibbling teeth. We cut threepieces; one about as wide as thefront of the hutch then twopieces the depth of the hutchand attached them together withhinges. This created three sidesof a square that we placed infront of the hutch. The beauty ofthis method is that the barrier isrelatively light, easily moved forcleaning, and can be folded upfor storage when non-bunniesvisit.

Skip Rogers and Mariellen Whalen

The litter I buy through HRScomes in a large double-thickpaper bag. When empty, I rolldown the edge 8-10 inches fromthe bottom. Because the bag isso deep, the edge becomes fairlyrigid. I then put the bag on itsside for the bunnies to use as acave. They love hiding in it andripping it apart from inside! Thelitter bag works better than aregular grocery bag because it’sthicker and firmer to betterstand up to an enthusiasticbunny.

Shelley Barber

SEND IN YOUR TIPS! We love hearing great ideas from our members. We can’tpublish them all, but we will be featuring a few in every issue of The Clover Leaf.

from our members


On April 10, 2000, an out-break of Rabbit Viral Hem-orrhagic Disease (VHD)was reported by the USDA.The affected rabbits livedon a farm in CrawfordCounty, Iowa. Of the 27rabbits in the rabbitry, 25died. The remaining twowere purchased andeuthanized by the state.Don’t panic, though. TheIowa cases are the onlyVHD cases that have beenconfirmed in the U.S.

VHD is, in essence, rabbitEbola disease. Highly conta-gious, the disease kills within

24-48 hours and has fewclinical symptoms, whichmay include loss of appetite,lethargy, high fever, spasmsand sudden death. It affectsonly rabbits of theOryctolagus cuniculus spe-cies, including wild and do-mesticated European rabbitsand our own domesticatedhouse rabbits. It has notbeen known to affect nativeNorth American wild rabbitsor hares.

There is no known cure forVHD. Vaccinations, pro-duced in laboratory rabbits,are available in countrieswhere the disease in en-demic, such as England andAustralia, but there is novaccine approved by theFDA for use in the U.S. Pre-venting infection is the only

RABBIT VIRAL HEMORRHAGIC DISEASE ALERTBREAKINGNEWS...

means of protecting yourrabbits.

To prevent rabbits from get-ting VHD, the key is disin-fection and protection.House your rabbits indoors.Rabbits who live or exer-cise outdoors are more atrisk for contracting this dis-ease. Wash your handsthoroughly before handlingyour rabbits, particularlywhen you come home fromplaces where other rabbitsmay have been, or wherepeople who have been incontact with rabbits mayhave been. This would in-clude places such as feedstores, pet stores, fairgrounds, humane societies,etc. Quarantine any newrabbit for 5 days. Alwayshandle quarantined rabbitslast, and keep all supplies

for them separate from yourother rabbit’s supplies.

Educating yourself and oth-ers about VHD is one of thebest ways to help protectyour rabbits. Don’t panic,but get involved on spread-ing the word to others in therabbit community. Keepyourself informed as towhere any new outbreaksoccur. To keep informed ofany new outbreaks, you cansubscribe to the VHD in theUS Coalition’s e-mail notifi-cation system atwww.kindplanet.org/vhd/vhdsubscribe.html.

For information on VHD,check the Websites:www.kindplanet. org/vhd/vhd.html (or call 800-906-2445);www.aphis.usda. gov; andwww.vhdinfo.com.

Name ___________________________________

Street ___________________________________

City _____________________________________

State ___________________ Zip ____________

Phone ___________________________________

e-mail ________________________________

A Call to ACTION!

I WOULD LIKE TO VOLUNTEER:

❏ Public events (staffing education tables)❏ Rabbit bondings❏ Classes❏ Seminars❏ Working with shelters❏ Fund raising events❏ Distributing literature❏ Driving rabbits from Maryland to

Northern Virginia❏ Hosting rabbit matches

HOUSE RABBIT SOCIETY P.O. Box 50311, Baltimore, MD 21211

❏ Hosting and organizing social events❏ Counseling❏ Mailing❏ Design projects❏ Newsletter❏ Fostering❏ Bunnysitting

I WOULD LIKE TO DONATE MONEY:

❏ To pay for vet care of rabbits withspecial needs

❏ To pay for routine vet care of foster rabbits❏ To pay for litter, food, and other supplies❏ To help pay for advertising in the

PawPrint Post❏ To help with the cost of copying and mailing

rabbit care info❏ Please use my donation wherever it is needed

mostMEMBERSHIP ENROLLMENT

❏ Local and National HRS membership $26❏ National HRS membership $18. Members receive

quarterly issues of the House Rabbit Journal❏ Local HRS membership is $8. Support our local

rabbit rescue efforts and receive localnewsletter 2 times per year. Must also be anational member.

Please clip or copythis volunteer/donation couponand mail to:

HOUSE RABBITSOCIETY

P.O. Box 50311,Baltimore, MD

21211or apply online athttp:www.rabbit.org/BaltWashDC/


HOUSE RABBIT SOCIETY

P.O. Box 50311

Baltimore, MD 21211

Non-Pr ofit Org.U.S. Postage

PAIDMerrifield, VA

Permit No . 2338

board simply didn’t realize theseanimals were not being given propercare. I was asked to provide writtenstandards for the care of rabbits inshelters, which I did after muchresearch. When one of our chaptereducators, Liz DiNorma, begangiving lectures on rabbits as com-panion animals, I asked her to comeand address the staff and volunteersof our shelter. Although few peoplecame to the initial talk, they wereinfluential in helping to motivatefurther changes.

Over the past two years, thelives of our shelter rabbits havechanged dramatically. A profilesheet was created to be filled out oneach rabbit, guinea pig, hamster,mouse, etc. surrendered at theshelter, an adoption applicationmust be filled out by each adopterand a contract signed that is kept onfile. All rabbits are adopted toindoor homes only. The rabbits BUY A BUNNY A LITTLE TIME

were moved out into the viewingarea, in a bank of six wildlife cages.Those cages recently have beenreplaced with six larger, light-filled,polyethylene cages that provideroom for even the larger buns and alitter box. There is now an adoptionfee for small animals. The fee forthe rabbits includes a free initial vetexam and a copy of the House RabbitHandbook. Prior to the implementa-tion of the fee, a packet of HRSliterature was given to each rabbitadopter. The idea for this packetcame from another HRS member,Robin Cronkite. The shelter haseven started spaying or neutering atleast one rabbit a month. They are

Difference from page 4 finding that these spayed/neuteredrabbits are appealing to the publicand get adopted very quickly aftertheir surgery. The staff is alsocoming to appreciate the unique-ness of these animals and can sharemore information with the peopleinterested in rabbits. In addition,the manager of the HRS chapterWeb site, Kate McGinley, has cre-ated a site featuring pictures of ourshelter buns. Although I have beenthe primary point of contact for theshelter, the successes here at ourshelter represent a major achieve-ment by the entire HRS chapter andnot just that of one person.

Change is continuous andongoing but someone needs to startthe process. It takes a great deal ofdiplomacy, patience, and diligenceto bring about major changes in thelives of shelter rabbits, but it’sdefinitely worth it.

peter, bugs, or roger - house rabbit...

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