and--yeah.

So I went to the pet store to get more crickets and a larger cage for the rabbits.

Yeah. Plural.

Well. It's a long, tragic, boring story that we won't repeat, but it has a lot to do with the new diet I have Reggie on, and perhaps a little too much obsessive reading on rabbit health. It might also have to do with a ball python being carried around by my officially least favorite parent and son, and possibly the fact I came in on Pet And Carry All The Reptiles Day, and Yes I Mean All The Reptiles. It might have somethign to do with the massive overabundance of rabbits in the store--oh my God, they totally had two Cadbury bunnies, big as very large cats, staring at me and promising if I bought them, they would happily chew out my throat. It was love, of course.

But no, I didn't get those. Mostly because I just don't have space.

But okay. I'd like everyone to meet Bryant and Mopsy (my sister named that one), Reggie's official two best friends. Pictures will be forthcoming, since I'm finally giving up and ordering a camera, which should be here soon. Until then--Holland lops, six weeks old, grey and brown with bright white tails and little folded down ears. Both are--

I don't know how to say this, but they make Reggie look like a well-adjusted, socially adept, life of the party, hail-fellow-well-met kind of rabbit. They're freaking *snobs*. They look down their nose at me even more than Reggie does, and I mean, the day I can say Reggie commparatively speaking is warm and fuzzy is the day you know you have some seriously aloof rabbits.

Okay, first off, for those worried, I've been forbidden entrance into Herpeteon for three months unless I go in with cash only and less than five dollars, and not to leave the cash register for any reason.

The thing is, Reggie is lonely.

I was reading at the house rabbit sites, and they made this huge deal about using pellets instead of hay and vegetables, so I switched Reggie to a hay and alfalfa diet with fresh greens and carrots and my personal ultimate weapon of choice, fresh banana. And I have no idea if he's any happier on that, but it will apparently keep his teeth properly worn down, so all is well.

So then I was studying rabbit emotions and behavior, and worried about emotional stunting of young rabbits when they have limited society, and I kept worrying that Reggie was lonely and bored. He has a ton of rabbit toys to play with, but he never seemed more animated than when he could snub me in person, and I felt this wasn't healthy. And well--I think my true pet may be rabbits. I just--like them. I like sitting on teh floor and watching them. So they had these beautiful Holland lops, and at first, I wanted one, but they only had two that were curled up together, and it felt wrong to separate them so--I kinda got a new split level cage and walked out with them, then introduced them to Reggie. It was serious love at first sight. Well, first lots of weird whose on top games, which were fun to watch, but they all settled down together and sleep all together in the same rabbit bed and chase each other around the den where I can watch. The lops don't have Reggie's grace or speed, but they're freaking *funny* to watch run around, because their back legs are huge, compared to their smaller, Reggie-size bodies. They do weird things like stand perfectly still then take off like a tiny Ferrari and do these long jumps and 180s in the air and just--it's so freaking *cool*.

So, yeah. Three rabbits.

On a more intersting note, we've been looking at building our own terrarium for Junior the Bearded Lizard. Currently, this desert-dwelling animal lives on astroturf (because sand is bad--for a *desert animal*), filled with various rocks, a piece of driftwood, and a long piece of bark for him to crawl and hide under, and a small cave. But we saw a really interesting model terrarium usign live plants and a waterfall, and yes, that won't work for Junior, but Child was promised a second reptile this summer if he shows he can take care fo this one and so far, he's been great about feedign and holding and caring for, and it might be interesting to choose a lizard or turtle that likes wet climates. We did run across a really cool lizard that starts with a u and has a weirdly terraced tail that is said to be friendly and good wiht people.

Basically, I am getting to like lizards. However, this did not stop me from sitting nearly in the rabbit bin when the ball python came out. The salespeople know me on sight and have started blocking particularly disturbing cages with their bodies when I arrive. This is progress. And today, I was able to go in, buy crickets, and get out without a single mammalian purchase.

Also saw the new group of baby ferrets. Oh my God, how cute. Seriously. And when I was finding zen at their cage, they all gathered close to the glass to nose it in my general direction. Considering the rabbits pretend I do'nt exist? Good for my ego.

Aww, Bryante just came over to look at me in scorn, sniff my hand, nip my finger, and turn it's back on me in disgust. It has to say something about me that I am just charmed by this level of progress.

Comments

[fairestcat]

*giggles madly*

I've been following your pet adventures with great glee and I have to say, I laughed so hard at this entry, I had to start reading it aloud to my roommate.

But, LOPS!! I always so wanted a Lop. I blame to many readings of the Leo the Lop books as a child...

[seperis.livejournal.com]

THey're gorgeous. Complete and utter *brats*, but so pretty, with their ears and their beautifully furry back legs and their soft fur.

I mean, they do let me look at them.

[fox1013.livejournal.com]

Wow. Your life's not like other people's, is it?


*cracking up*

[seperis.livejournal.com]

I can no longer see normal from where I am standing, no.

*sad, almost*

[fox1013.livejournal.com]

...Well. You know. I? Am totally judging you right now.

From my moral high ground.

Which is way high.

And moral.

And stuff.

[thepouncer.livejournal.com]

Have you ever read Watership Down? I suspect the answer is yes. You're building your own Owsla!

[seperis.livejournal.com]

*snickers* It's--like. Rabbits. I had no idea I could bond with something that so instinctively disliked me. But God. So *adorable*.

[researchgrrrl.livejournal.com]

You cannot know how delightful I find it that the salespeople make such an effort on your behalf. But then, considering they can probably afford a new breakroom jacuzzi because of the mad jack you're dropping there, maybe that courtesy is the least they can offer. Perhaps they can have soothing chocolate and fresh coffee for you before long?

Also saw the new group of baby ferrets. Oh my God, how cute. Seriously. And when I was finding zen at their cage, they all gathered close to the glass to nose it in my general direction. Considering the rabbits pretend I do'nt exist? Good for my ego.

I've been holding off on getting a new buddy for Mason for awhile but I think you may have finally pushed me over the edge. There are few things in this world more exquisitely insane than a baby ferret. Just absolutely mental and, as such, impossibly precious to me.

[seperis.livejournal.com]

Oooh! The babies were so adorable it hurt me, and they nosed at the glass where I was and looked all like, get me, get me, I will heal your rabbit pain! Which I actualy think they'd take the rabbits' side, but it was nice to feel that way for a few minutes. Plus, seriously, they have the coolest sleeping hammocks.

[researchgrrrl.livejournal.com]

And the ferrets look so totally, bonelessly relaxed as they sleep in those little hammocks, occasionally stirring just enough to make tiny little numfy noises.

The rest of the time? They can give the Arkham Asylum inmates a run for their money.

But that's okay, because there's stuff such as this (http://www.ferretstore.com/ferret-clothing.html) in the world.

Just to watch a ferret's spaztastic outrage over being dressed up? Worth. Every. Penny.

[cpt-untouchable.livejournal.com]

Quick PSA: ferrets, AKA Slinky Rats of Woe, bite. Hard.

*returns to regularly scheduled snickering*

[seperis.livejournal.com]

*twitch* See, that's waht scares me. Rabbit nips aren't painful but aren't exactly welcome, either, so...

Yeah. But oh God cute.

[akacat]

But they're so easy to train out of biting! Well, the boys are. In my experience, the girls are only interested in one thing: biting people's ankles. Hard.

[emrinalexander.livejournal.com]

Iguanas are really neat, except you have to mist them every day and they get to be six feet long so er, maybe not so much...

You know, there is a John/Rodney story in this whole thing.

[seperis.livejournal.com]

*twitches*

It's--so sad that I can *see that*. Oh man.

I'd like an iguana, actually. When Child's a little older and if he's still interested, I'll get him one, but yeah, they get *huge*.

[akacat]

sucker.

[flaming-muse.livejournal.com]

We had three bunnies (a Holland Lop who thought he was a miniature woolly mammoth, a Dutch/dwarf mix who moonlighted as a high jumper, and a mini lop who thought he was a dog) for about six years, and they loved the stuffing out of each other. They'd all pile on top of each other and click happily; even the Holland Lop (the smallest of the bunnies and yet the dominant one) was never happier than when the much bigger mini lop sat on him and squashed him to the floor so that only his little nose was peeking out. It definitely took time for all of them to come to trust us, especially once we moved from one to three and they had each other to socialize with, but after a little while they started to seek us out, too. One time the mini lop even leapt up to the top of mr. muse's desk from the floor because he wanted his ears to be stritched and felt he was being ignored.

As much as I absolutely adore our cat and don't miss cleaning the bunny cages, I do miss having bunnies. They had the cutest little faces and the softest fur. They also were great garbage disposals; they'd go mad for strawberry tops and bits of carrots, and now I always feel bad when I just throw them out.

[dossier.livejournal.com]

I had two rabbits for years, they lived on a table top pen with a rabbit hutch in the living room, and they would run to the edge for petting, they were quite sociable. I think it took them a few months to get to that point, but I think they'll come around. As mammals they will naturally respond to petting and affection, esp if they are still young. I love rabbits, they are pretty cool. My cats adopted them as honorary kittens, but the dogs--they wanted to chase.

You're a very special mom for giving into the offspring's reptile-love. I don't mind them at all, but I never did give in.

[everagaby.livejournal.com]

We should not be allowed near pet stores. As it is today I determined that I am never, ever, having children. Why? Because Rodney the Cranky Turtle escaped from his tank. That's right. Escaped. As in he climbed up his filter, launched himself through the opening for the filter wires, landed on the towel outside his tank, before falling off the ledge and onto the ground to go hide in the closet. The amusing thing is, he's completely fine and I'm the wreck right now because of all this.
Why the hell did I have to buy a Ninja Turtle?



(Never. Having. Kids. I'll loose them and find them three days later in the closet, hiding underneath my laundry bin.)

[fyrdrakken]

So when my sister finally deigned to show up to collect her birthday (and Valentine's) loot, she told us about how she got a second bunny -- and how Boo-Boo was beating up on the wee new bunny, so that she had to get a second cage for it to keep them separate. Still, as pets go, bunnies are easier than, say, horses. (Ferrets might have been really cool pets, though. I know little about either ferrets or bunnies personally -- beyond that angora rabbit hair is suitable for spinning up and knitting -- but somehow I have this vague idea that ferrets are much cuddlier pets. Kind of like rats.)