Update on The Pickles Family.

You may remember a few weeks ago I posted about a foster rabbit of mine who came in as a stray. The man who found her, told us he had had her for 3 weeks. So after a week in our care, we bonded her with Mr Pickles a long term dental bun. She was booked in for her spay once she had put a little weight on and all was good. About 10 days into our care, I noticed Mrs P acting weird so I went out to investigate and in her nest area I found 5 pink wriggly newborn bunnies. Mr and Mrs P had someone coming to see them that day! Disaster! Luckily the prospective owner turned out to be incredible and was laughing about How Mr P now had step children. Let me make it clear he had been neutered over six months prior. Thank goodness Mrs P had not yet had her spay.

The babies grew and Mr P went off to his new home to get things ready for when Mrs P would join him.

Two weeks later I was sat in my office at work, it was in the midst of the snow flurry we had. I received a phone call from a lady desperately upset who had found a baby wildie in the snow when she had taken her dogs for a walk the previous morning. She came back from her walk an hour later and it was still there. She presumed mummy would come back for it. By tea time little bun was still there and had tried to make a little nest in the snow. She was shivering and weak looking so the lady scooped her up and took her home. The bun survived the night and she wanted my advice. I told her to bring it in to me. The little wildie was all of 10 days old. She was freezing. I popped her in my coat and she snuggled down and eventually fell asleep. As she warmed up she was tooth purring and sleeping so deeply she was dreaming and her whiskers were twitching. I told the lady I had a litter at home the same age and would see if the mummy would take the bun.

When I got home I rubbed the Pickles babies up against my new wild friend and popped her into the cage. Mrs P took to her straight away and cleaned her. But much as wee wildie tried to feed, it just wasn't happening. She was a lot smaller than her new domestic brothers and sisters so was easily pushed out of the way. I supplemented her diet with 2 goats milk feeds a day and waited to see if she would survive.

In the mean time Mrs P was loving life as a house bun. She had really bonded with my baby, Oscar. Where he was, she was. She also loved to sit up next to me on the sofa and watch Animal Planet. I must admit, as much as I knew she was reserved I became very bonded to Mrs P.



Mrs P and Cadbury




Wildie tucking in.



Life progressed and the babies all grew with wildie fully accepted.

One evening I noticed Mr P wasn't as lively as usual. She was just sat under the dining room table trying not to be harassed by her children. Or my baby. Very unusual. She wasn't her nosey self at all. I was instantly concerned. I offered her food and she refused. I syringe fed her some warm water and some critical care and went to bed.

NExt morning we were at vets first thing. They put her under and gave her an ultrasound as they were concerned there could be problems with her uterus. This proved inconclusive. She had metaclop and was syringe fed and assessed later that afternoon. They felt the only option was to open her up and examine her. Mrs P did have an enlarged and red uterus and this was removed. She was put on high dose pain killers and more metaclop. AFter 24 hours they released her home but the babies had to be separated. Now I had 6 babies to worry about and Mrs P.

WE kept her warm and pain free and the next morning when I came down Mrs P had slipped away and I was absolutely devastated. She was the first foster I had had in a while and I let myself get way to close but she was so incredible it was hard not to.

A PM revealed that she had unusually thick abdominal fluid and was very gassy. There was no real conclusion as to what had happened.


The babies continued to thrive and are now doing brilliantly. Three will be living with Mr Pickles, their step dad which has made me so happy. Lucky, the wildie is so domesticated she cannot be released and is going to live with the lady who found her. I just wish we still had Mrs P.


RIP Mrs Pickles

Oh Charlotte, what a story!

Mrs Pickles was a very special bun, and I know how you fell for her.

Sleep tight Mrs Pickles x x x x x x

What a journey we have been on with the Pickles Clan! Mr Pickles and his step children are all beautiful and doing well xxx

What a story indeed!

I'm so sorry that you lost Mrs P

But what a lovely legacy she has left behind, and how wonderful that three of her children will be going to live with their step-dad, and that the little wildie thrived.

I have been keeping up with the Pickles story on facebook, and I was so taken with the little Peanut Butter baby look a like, and I did have a little tear when Mrs Pickles passed away because she just deserved to get her happy life

I am glad life is working out for the remaining Pickles and little adoptee pickles!

What a sad story I'm sorry you lost Mrs. P

I'm blubbing here

I'm just so glad that she lived long enough to make her babies strong.

What an incredible mother

Binky free Mrs P.

So sorry you lost her

The babies are gorgeous, the little brown one

Where are the other 2 babies going Charlotte?

Thank you for writing this up Charlotte. It is a very sad story, binky free Mrs. P. Hopefully the babies will settle into their home with Mr. P and will have a happy and fulfilled life. Mrs. P was very lucky to have you and Oscar in her foster family

I am pleased to announce that now 4 pickles babies will be joining mr P. The Peanut Butter baby has gone to live with a lovely bunny and Mr P's new owner did the home visit. So it is a happy ending all round!

That's great news

It would be lovely to have a picture of the Mr Pickles and his children back together, if their new owners would be so kind, once the babies have joined daddy

Wonderful news. They are so deserving of happy ever afters x

I have the 2 girls here still until boys are neutered and safe. They will all be ruinted after that and i know Rachel will be more than happy to share with us x

Brilliant news. They had such a rotten start in life so they deserve a marvellous future. xx

Aww what a beautiful story but I ended up crying as I so didn't expect Mrs P to slip away how very sad
but I am so happy for the babies and the little wildie bun, how wonderful that the new owner of Mr P is having three
of the babies and the lady who found the wildie is having him that's so lovely

It is indeed a lovely story; it is so nice when things turn around for them and their lives become so very good.

Hugs

JO xx

Such a lovely, yet sad story. What a wonderful family, Mrs P can be proud of the gorgeous family she created x