Curtains Down 2008

And so, we have come to the end of year 2008. I just want to list down 10 things that I am grateful for before the year draws to a close.

1) Flying Noobie & BlueBerry across the globe to be with us (approximately 50 hours travel time)

2) Having the first lilac doe (Holly Hope) in Malaysia (surviving out of Noobie's incredible kindling story)

3) Experimented and built kick-ass shelves with waste management in an apartment environment

4) Having 2 successful litters of kits with BlueBerry & Noobie

5) Blessed with very nice rabbit friends both local and abroad namely - SB, D, Azian, Lindsey, Susie, Teri, Karen, Christine and many more

6) The success of TLR PeeGuard V3.0. LOL!

7) Being featured by 2 local dailies - New Straits Times (Tech & U: Blogger's Say) and Malay Mail (CyberSpot)

8) An official member of HLRSC

9) Having constant supply of Oxbow pellets for my rabbits

10) Outrageous visits/hits to this blog (thanks to you reading at this very moment!)

Yet Another One of TLR’s successes

I am always envious of people with house rabbits. That is because the rabbits have free range of the house. The other extreme of the spectrum are those caged up 24/7 and the only time they are taken out of their cages is when they are due for mating (for does and bucks do not get to come out as often). Maybe some do get time out from their cages when going for shows and they only get to taste freedom on the show table (not too large a space though). Please don't get me wrong. I am not trying to implement anything against breeders. There are some very good breeders that do make up for caging their rabbits up 24/7 with loads of goodies. I take my hat off for them.

As long as they are given cages big enough for the rabbits to pace around would be sufficient.

As for me, being a breeder and a hobbyist, I try to give my rabbits the best of both worlds. This is what every TLR rabbit gets whether young or old. They get individual time out to run everyday around the house for at least 30 minutes each. I currently have 6 rabbits and that will total up to be about 3 hours of time for them to spend going wild in the house.

Before hitting the bed, each rabbit gets 10 minutes of "talk time" and patting.

For those of you who owns a TLR rabbit, you can definitely relate that your rabbits has got a little headstart with their temperament.

You see, rabbits that are not handled since young are quite skittish and what good would it be to have a skittish pet?

For me, this is very obvious with Holly Hope. As most of you know, she was a singleton and I handled her every single day because she was so precious to me. And the whole world was watching her progress at one point. I believe they still are. She is the cutest bunny I have ever seen and that makes her more precious to me. She will greet me at the cage door every evening without fail. Although hormones are getting the best of her at the moment, she still begs for her regular pats on her head.

That is one of the reason why I must ensure I keep the number low enough for me to have individual attention for them.

Just thought that you should know...

Just want to say thank you!

I know Mr. Darma has been waiting for a post since 3 am. Here is a post just for you before the new one comes out after midnight. Thank you for reading.

This post is actually for Kak Azian. Peminat setia TLR. Thank you so much for helping me putting into perspective what I am working so hard for. Whenever I am a little lost, you kept bringing me back to my real path. I have learned in life that every little thing must be appreciated and I truly appreciate having a friend like you. I don't mean to "bodek" (suck up in English) to make use of Eclipse. You truly deserve him for being who you are.

Thank you very much for that email with similar subject as this post. I will keep that email for the rest of my life to be my beacon when I am lost in this dark world.

Thank you very very much. Thank you for reminding me that this world is superficial. For each nice rabbit we see, thousands are left to die...

Tru-Luv Rabbitry shows you everything and writes everything from the BOTTOM of MY HEART!

And you are one of those that not only allowed me to be who I am, but encourages me to do so. Let's get emotional and cry to this post...LOL

:P

One of TLR's successes

I believe most of you would agree with me that one of the successes of this blog has been the daily updates of baby rabbits. The posts are normally accompanied by some cute photos. From naked pinkies to big chubby Holland Lops that you love to see first thing in the morning, lunch breaks and before hitting the bed at night.

I will continue doing this because by blogging on the daily progresses of the kits, I am also able to keep a log on them. I am more of a typing person than one who writes so blogging has helped me express myself effectively.

This is something that sets TLR apart from your regular breeder (that may follow suit). You get to see how your rabbit progress if you happen to get one from me. Don't you just love getting to know the details till the day you hug one home?

That is the niche of TLR. It is definitely True Love from birth and I want that love to be extended to all the "extended families".

If you find anything that you like, please do not hesitate to contact me but before you do so, please go through this list and proceed only if you answer YES to all of them:

1) I am an HONEST person

2) I take my pets seriously, they are like sons/daughters to me

3) I know very well the outcome of uncontrolled breeding and I endorse spay/neuter as the best solution for overpopulation

4) I do not know much about rabbits but am willing to learn and research

5) I have all the time to spend with my single pet and know the consequences of keeping more (have thought of all possible solutions and will act on them)

Hope to hear from you soon!

Tru-Luv Eclipse: My First Regret

Remember this boy? He has grown to a very very handsome buck. And before you say anything D, you are right! We all expected Eclipse to turn out gorgeous. I am not too worried because Kak Azian was kind enough to agree that we use him as a stud in future. Maybe we should try him with BlueBerry. Shall give him some more time to grow into a super stud as he is still a junior now.

Here are some photos courtesy of Kak Azian. And you can read my mind, I regret the moment I saw these photos! LOL!!!!

Don't you just love his HEAD!?

These are the photos of him when he was younger:

And as Laurie has written so many times, patience is the name of the game. And I can totally relate to her now when she said how she hates having a kit looking like a champ at 3 weeks and why she prefers late bloomers. Eclipse is a late bloomer. I hope Luna follows his footstep. I think she is...

New Banner For New Year!

I know it has been a little dull to be looking at a cluttered banner of my rabbits. Just when I thought of improving the banner, someone on one of the Yahoo! Groups that I joined mention about Lauren Nicholas. Lauren's in art college and she does logo designs for rabbitries on the side line.

I went over to her website LILBun Designs and fell in love with her artwork. Since I have never earned anything from this blog, I could not afford getting a customized artwork so I decided to grab a couple of Lauren's free graphics. LOL. I know I am such a cheapskate!

But I would like to thank her and thank God for giving her such a great talent to be so good in her illustrations.

So for those of you who can afford getting customized artwork of your buhnies, feel free to get in touch with Lauren. She will be more than happy to produce one of her "bestest" just for you!

Tru-Luv Moesha: A Brood After All

Tru-Luv Moesha looked very promising right from the beginning. She had very nice huge head in just a few weeks old. Looking at her today, I realized that a lot of hard work is needed to achieve what I want in my rabbits. Although I am looking into the possibilities of importing more, it is wise to keep the gene pool small at the moment. I really want to see what wonders line breeding can do for me. Introducing totally unrelated lines and outcrossing my rabbits will only dilute the genes further and it will turn out to be a wild goose chase in the end.

I know what you get from the next generation is what you see in both the buck and doe that you breed but some genes up the lineage may manifest themselves unknowingly. That is the reason why, most breeders keep their gene pool small.

I was hoping that her head would mature. Some rabbits are known to have their head mature after 18 months (1.5 years for the head to pop!).

Enjoy the photos:

The 3 weeks old darling

4 months old Junior

P/S: No buhny were hurt in this photography session...

I interrupt the program for...

I just received a mail from Sheila (of the Sheila & Gabey tag team) from Malay Mail CyberSpot. If you remember, Tru-Luv Rabbitry was given a full colored page coverage on the 12th of September 2008 under the CyberSpot section. Sheila & Gabey was so nice to send me soft copy of the article too which I was very proud to include in one of the pages on the sidebar. Really nice people these two and I bet they are big time animal lovers too.

I have written about the 10 things I am most grateful for as a closing for year 2008 and it has been scheduled to be published on the eve of New Year's Day (look out for it). One of the items listed was how grateful I am (will ever be) for being featured on local medias. The day Sheila & Gabey approached me, I was totally ecstatic! I just couldn't believe Malay Mail is featuring a humble blog such as mine. The day it was published, the number of hits on this blog shot up high and it has been constantly at a level that I am very happy with. I must also mention that the feature was the greatest affirmation for me to continue blogging about rabbits when I almost gave it up. This goes to show that it is important for you to tell someone that you enjoy what they do so that it encourages them to move forward. I believe this applies to everyone and anyone. So let us not take people around us for granted and tell them that they do matter. A random act of kindness goes a long way.

I believe both Sheila & Gabey are now working on a superb closing article for 2008. The great achievements and I believe it would be quite a good reflection for all of us bloggers that has been featured in the past. Be sure to get a copy of Malay Mail on New Year's Day. I am sure I will be getting one first thing in the morning.

Last but not least, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to Sheila, Gabey and everyone at Malay Mail for featuring Tru-Luv Rabbitry and with that indirectly endorsed our mission statement of responsible pet ownership. I would also like to wish them all the best for their future undertakings. May we continue to enjoy all the goodness their articles may bring in future!

Happy New Year 2009 to Malay Mail!

Updates from Melbourne: Buhnies Platter

I love those seafood platters over at Manhattan Fish Market (fast food chain). But I have never tried Buhny Platter though.

J & J prepared the dish, took some photos and sent to me before diggin' into the plate. LOL...

Just kiddin'. I do not think anyone will eat these kits with all those fur attached.

Here's a couple of videos:

Updates from Melbourne: Kits Chips In Bowl

That bowl of chips look really YUMMY!!!

And what chips are those?

Aren't they the cutest things? Here, take another closer look

Be sure to be checking it twice before taking anything from the bowl and putting it in your mouth.

Updates from Melbourne: Day 14

Since I do not have kits in the nest box at the moment, I am going to flood the blog with some photos of kits. It shall lead to nest box filled with kits, I hope...

This litter is just so colorful. I wish I could have a litter like this. So many varieties to choose from.

This is the stage when they are the cutest!

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year 2009

Just like to wish everyone reading a great year ahead. May all buhnies be blessed with loads of HAY & LOVE!

It's been a great year 2008 for TLR. May we keep the old and find new friendship in buhnies!

And my little girl also wanted to wish everyone too!

Look out for the BCSH Clothing line hitting departmental stores worldwide. She's a self-made mogul in the making. LOL!

P/S: Advertisement endorsements for both bunnies & baby welcome. :P !!!

Noobie's Update 4: No kits for Christmas

Expectations has been too high I guess. I am a little disappointed on Christmas eve. Noobie has not kindled and I believe she do not have kits in her. Today's day 32 and her stomach has flattened out.

There are so many possibilities namely reabsorption, she was too heavy to conceive and false pregnancy.

My concern is not having a foster doe when I need one. She is suppose to be my foster doe when Holly Hope delivers. So now my risk is even greater.

Really need some graces here.

It will be a quiet Christmas in Meadow Haven after all...

There is a rabbit in everyone

There are many things that we can learn from rabbits. I personally learned that we are very much alike, rabbits and us humans. One very obvious lesson rabbit owners will come to appreciate is that, rabbits almost never show sign of weakness. The only sign shown would be death.

Why is it so? Being animal of prey, rabbits cannot afford to show their predators that they are weak because that will cost them their lives.

I believe one of the reason why I am so attracted to this hobby is because I am required to constantly look out for awkward signs and to react wisely so that I do not loose any of my rabbits. That is the challenge I find worth taking up. When Noobie was taken ill last week, my wife said to me, "You rabbits are like time bombs". That's because she felt that from time to time, hurdles never fail to crop up and she sometimes wonder why I bother putting myself into these sort of mental torture and going through all the troubles.

For a matter of fact, I have grown to deal with these problems. And to be honest, they help equip me for the cruel world. Handling a rabbit really helps me deal with people. In the rat race, people are very much like rabbits.

I will tell you why. In the corporate world, human are like a rabbit running free in the meadow. When they get injured, they will never show signs of weakness. Your colleagues will never show you their sign of weakness too! And being prideful beings, no one will ever admit that they are weak. It is survival of the fittest too.

It really scares me a lot to think of human acting like animals but inevitably, they do! The fun part is when you see through them and figure out their weakness. When you do, you get the problem solved!

So whenever you get worked up whether in a rabbit show or in your workplace. Just remember, when someone act nasty, that's just because they are WEAK and felt THREATENED.

And remember, WE ARE ANIMAL OF PREY, HUMANS!

Noobie's Update 3: I do not think it is happening...

I was out with the family the entire day and when I came home, the nest box was still empty.

I really do not think it is going to happen...

There is a reason for everything and maybe Noob's feeling the pinch of the economy crisis. She's saving up for rainy days too? LOL...

If there is any kit in there, I hope she stop "baking" them already because the nicest chocolate will turn black with so much "baking".

Quite positive it is not gonna happen. Let's look forward to 12th January 2009 for now.

Could she be pregnant there?

By the way, I would love to congratulate Lindsey of 4 Kings Rabbitry for having had a litter. Just got news from her. Very happy for her. Everyone seemed to be having kits except me....sob sob...LOL!

Noobie's Update 2

It is 9 a.m., 23rd December 2008

Noobie has yet to kindle. I am starting to believe in the possibilities of false pregnancy or reabsorption of kits.

The wait continues...

Tru-Luv Luna

Luna has grown quite a lot and is almost 6 months. I especially like her short ears and her cheeks are filling in too. I only wish that she have thicker bones and broader overall.

Noobie's Update 1

As most of you know, today 22nd December 2008 is Noobie's due date for kindling. As at 9.38pm there is not sign of kits and Noobie is still chilling on top of her nest box. There is no way I can tell if she is pregnant until she kindles. It is too late to palpate and I have yet to master the skill of palpation.

When she had Holly Hope's litter she was 2 days late (based on questionable date given). She was on time when Moesha and Charlyz was born. I sure hope that she is taking a little longer to bake those kits in there like how Lindsey had put it.

There is still a little hope in me that she is pregnant. LOL!

I just can't wait looking into the heavenly sight of white fur covering little wiggly pinkies in the nest box.

Updates from Melbourne (Day 12): AwwwWwww...

Since I am really in the mood and having the itch (like D) to hold kits, I am posting more photos of the kits in Melbourne courtesy of J & J.

Altogether in a line now.....

Updates from Melbourne - They have names

These kits are so CUTE!

Now they have names too! Let me introduce them one by one:



The "giant" is called Yeti and it's a charlie (I can't make up the color)



This is ChaChi, the smallest of them all (Broken Black)



This is Horlicks (Broken Orange/Fawn)



Last but not least, this is Kopiko (Broken Agouti)

I want chocolates for Christmas 2008!

I came across this website called Cross Country Chocolate Connection. It is a joint effort in between Christina Topf & Keith Becki to produce chocolate Holland Lops. I am so happy to have found this website and I believe my herd is part of this project.

I remember seeing some of the rabbits listed under the Who's in CA link in both Noobie and Holly Hope's line.

So by this discovery, I am spamming my brain with the excitement with the possibilities that I will be getting some chocolates come Christmas 2008 with Noobie's litter (fingers crossed for smooth delivery & healthy kits) or 12th January 2009 with Holly Hope's litter (fingers crossed for smooth delivery & healthy kits).

I mean, look at those STUNNING chocolate holland lops. I couldn't care less about the body type at this stage. I want the COLOR!!!

Come to think about it, I would like to specialize in Chocolates! Why? Not because life is like a box of chocolate as per Forrest Gump, but mainly because I love CHOCOLATES both for hugging and munching! Don't we all love CHOCOLATES?

Water Bottle or Bowl?

I used to swear by those funky water bottles but after that happened to Noobie 2 days ago, I now prefer water crocks. I especially love those ceramic water crocks. They are cheap and effective.

Just to quote SB's theory about using bottles. She asked me a very good question which is, "Would you drink from a bottle if you were a rabbit?". It is a valid question because she furthers supported her point by saying that since it is quite difficult for them to draw water out from the bottle, naturally rabbits on water bottle will just take the minimum to quench their thirst.

Such good points to put something so simple yet important into perspective.

I know water bottles are much easier to maintain and manage compared to the easy to spill bowls, but I now strongly recommend using water bowls because it will help your rabbits stay hydrated at all time. Somethings are good when they are given less but you should never discount your rabbit(s) off their rights to taking more water.

Updates from Melbourne - Spot The Giant!

2 lovely pics to share. Jack's really worried about that little giant taking all of Oreo's milk. I couldn't stop laughing firstly because they are so CUTE and that giant really look a little out of place. And they have mascara!!! LOL!!! J & J, you guys named them yet?

Tearing down & Raising in 3 hours

If all goes well, before 2008 is over, I would like to tear Meadow Haven down and raise it up again in just 3 hours. That is the challenge I am putting forth for myself if it is financially feasible. LOL!

The eye of the storm is closing in on us and I could feel the pinch of how worthless our money is these days. That is the reason why I am feeling such a miserable vibe flowing around.

Don't we all feel like salmons swimming upstream in this life and we get bruised so much in the process?

I rather throw my concerns on this blog than to bring it into the rabbitry.

Sorry for the ranting and we shall move on with the topic for today. The only major problem I have with my shelf setup at the moment is that I cannot get behind it to thoroughly clean it. And since the creation of the TLR PeeGuard V2, I felt that I could use some very simple shelfs with castors made especially for the cages I am using at the moment. This way I can reuse the cages and at the same time put to good use the PeeGuard that I have created. The shelfs with castors will enable me to clean up the rabbitry much more effectively

The current setup that I have will be suitable if there is ample of space to move about. Other than that, I strongly do not recommend it. I still love the fact that it has got a cool waste management system. Only if I have a larger space to work with.

Downsizing you may ask? Quite contrary I must say. With the new shelfs, I am able to hold at least 10 rabbits at a time and there will still be room for expansion up to 14 rabbits!

Noobie Will Be Just Fine!

I want to interrupt my daily posting to post this very important post.

Just about less than a week, Noobie will be due to kindle. I was in for a rude shock this morning when I found her litter tray squeky clean just like how I have left it the night before. It was very obvious she has not been pooping and peeing the entire night! The only thing that struck me was GI Stasis! Having lost Unix to GI Stasis, I do not think I could handle this happening to my Noobie!

It was only the night before that I was agreeing with D over MSN how we can't accept the death of our beloved buhnies.

The thing with GI Stasis is that, like AIDS it does not discriminate. This is proven by the fact that although your rabbit is put on a stringent diet of Hay and good pellets, sh*t still happens. When it strikes, you better prepare for the worst. But I am not about to prepare for that! It is just too much to take away from me!

After realizing that she has not been eating her pellets and hay, I quickly put in some alfalfa hay for her and she started munching away. Off I went to work and while at work, my wife helped me chop some green vegetables for her (she took half the bowl) and my wife informed me that Noobie has peed in her litter pan. I was relieved, at that moment.

I was surfing the net for more information. Most of the information has been read and forgotten so I needed to refresh my failing memory. I got to know about Pedialyte which sadly is not available in Malaysia. Pedialyte is a an electrolyte solution that is used to rehydrate children that has lost too much fluid due to vomiting and diarrhea. I also found out a good alternative for it is Gatorade but I try not to use it since the Gatorade that we have in the local market is either lemon or orange flavored. When a rabbit goes into GI Stasis, it is important to keep them hydrated while they get out of harms way.

Please bear in mind that I AM NOT A VET. And The reason I am writing all these is for the sake of our rabbits. We know it only takes a few hours for us to react and sometimes in hours when a vet is not available, these are the least that you can do to help your poor rabbit. And also, even during broad daylight, there is very limited expertise in the local vet market. By the time some vets take their guesses, your rabbit may well be 6 feet under. Sorry to say this but I am totally faithless in the local vet except a few reputable ones which I have highlighted on the REFERENCE page. The reason local vets could not careless about rabbits is because treating rabbit does not fall under the upscale group where the money is. Most of them only care about dogs and cats where more can be earned. I bet if you ask a regular vet what is the staple food for rabbits, he/she may say CARROT!

Another drug that I keep in handy is Simethicone. When GI Stasis strikes, the stomach stop working and no peristalsis is happening. There will be a build up of gas and rabbits unlike other animals cannot burp or fart. So in order to help them cope with the gas, they need the help of any drug with the active ingredient of Simethicone and the one that is available in the local pharmacies are names like Mallox or Zellox-II. I personally went for Zellox-II. The dosage to give for an adult rabbit would be 1ml an hour apart for 3 hours (3 doses in 3 hours 1 hour apart). Thereafter every 8 hours.

Most importantly keep those syringe in handy and pump clean drinking water regularly.

Back to Noobie. I checked on her the moment I stepped into the house and it did not look good at all. She only had one puddle of pee in her litter pan and the poops were those from morning. Not good at all. I started panic and text messaged, our dear friend over at FurryButts. How can you live without a fellow bunny enthusiast at times like these!?

I am truly grateful to have known SB because when I panic, I just go blank! Especially when it comes to the most feared situation for a rabbit.

SB reminded me all over again about rehydrate, administer Simethicone if there is gas and keeping Noobie warm. She also mentioned about giving pineapple juice which I have done earlier. I just needed all the information that I lost when my brain crashed after accessing the situation. I really really appreciate her help a lot! Most importantly she asked me to calm myself since my rabbits will be able to detect my emotion.

So here I was pumping all the drinking water into Noobie and also administering the first dose of Zellox-II. I place Noobie in the kitchen and she was acting quite normal. I gave her some alfafa and she started chewing on some straight away. After a few syringes of water I decided to put her back into her cage.

And there, right after stepping into her cage, she "released" a huge puddle of PEE and proceeded to hop onto the litter pan to deposit some small black cannon balls.

But I am not taking any chances. She is pregnant and needs a lot of fluid for her kits and herself so it will be a sleepless night for me being awake to ensure she is fully hydrated at all times.

All friends of Tru-Luv Rabbitry, please pray for me. Let us all pray that 2008 will not end with a bad note for TLR. That's the last thing I want happening in Meadow Haven.

Skor's 1st Year Anniversary

There are a lot of bunny photos on this laptop of mine that I have not posted on the blog. Somehow, tonight I felt an urge to go through these old photos and I realized that the day Skor mated with Holly Hope was his 1st year anniversary with Tru-Luv Rabbitry. He arrived at TLR exactly on 12th of December 2007.

I remembered very clearly and was relating this experience with D about how I felt the moment I was told that Skor was well on his way. Back then, we do not have Oxbow or any other reliable rabbit pellet brands and part of me was a little worried and doubtful on how well I could care for this beautiful buck. I got quite emotional at one point I must admit having the feeling of causing this little creature to fly halfway across the globe for an uncertain future. No one was sure if he could take the stress of the journey. It is always a risk when it comes to shipping live animals.

The moment I saw him, I just could not believe my eyes. He is finally here! I cannot believe after going through all the plannings and waiting. He is finally right there in front of my eyes!

And how fast time flies as it has been a year and more than a dozen of kits from different does, Skor is still a sharp shooter that every doe loves. So as a tribute to this wonderful buck, I would like to post some of the photos taken of him a few days after his arrival. I know it was a little stressful for him throughout the journey so I let him out for a run in the garden:

Your Rabbit Stinks!

You spend the entire day cleaning and scrubbing your rabbit's cage, litter tray and all the accessories in it. But somehow your nose still detects that funky musky smell. What is wrong with your rabbit you wonder.

Besides from the regular nail clipping and ear checks, you should remember the SCENT GLANDS. Rabbits have 3 scent glands. One under their chin and two in between their genitals and poop hole. When you see your rabbit rubbing its chin on something, it means he/she is using the scent gland under its chin. You do not normally need to clean this gland under the chin.

The funky odor normally comes from the pair of scent glands located at the vent area. Where exactly are these scent glands and what should I clean? Flip your rabbit over and follow the diagrams below. You will soon find the source of your odor problem.

You will soon find some secretion build ups which are brownish. I normally use cotton soaked in lukewarm water to clean up these 2 regions. When my nose detects the funky musky smell, I will repeat the process.

Updates from Melbourne

Jack & Jordan has been updating me with loads of photo and to appreciate their hardwork, I am posting some of the photos they sent me.

Kits at 4 days:

Please correct me if I am wrong. I believe one is broken black, one is a charlie, one is broken chestnut agouti (just like Bugsy) and the lighter broken colored may be a broken cream? LOL! Just guessing...

They got an even nicer hutch for their rabbits over the weekend. I bet they are having LOP FEVER at the moment. LOL. I am sure some of you may be drooling over this hutch: