We adopted our adorable little bunny two weeks ago. Her name was Carrie, but we changed her name to Skittles, since Carrie reminded us of a rather unfortunate literary character from a Stephen King novel.
My journey into the bunny world began last year, when I would bunnysit my son's rabbit Alfie (a Jersey Wooly mix), and I fell in love with her. Of course, she had to go back home, and I was surprised at how much I cried when she left. So I decided to adopt a bunny of my own. I had actually gone to the Brambley Hedge to see another bunny, but when I saw Skittles sitting there, something happened - I held her in my arms and I said to myself 'ok, she likes me' and decided to take her home with me.
 It has been two weeks, and she is slowly opening up, little by little. Every morning I open the drapes in her room and say good morning to her, and she comes out of her little hiding place, a litter box surrounded by the cardboard box her timothy hay came in, which is her favorite spot for 'alone time'. She watches me as I fill her food dish, give her fresh hay and water, and a little piece of dried apple. Then she settles into her other box with her hay and munches on it; the -crunch-crunch- sound is so cute. We hung a big beach towel on the side of her pen, and that is her favorite spot for stretching out. At night, I drape part of the towel over one corner, making it look like a beach cabana of sorts, and she settles in her hay box under her little awning, preparing for bed, or "ni ni". Each night I pet her good night, say "ni ni", then turn off the light, and she settles in with no problem whatsoever. I think she actually likes us talking to her and I swear she can understand words like "ni ni", "good bunny", etc.
In the morning, after freshening her hay and water, she knows it is time for "petties" because she will sit in the corner of her pen and wait to be picked up, so I pick her up and settle onto the sofa in the living room, the sunshine streaming in, and she immediately nuzzles into my neck. She is so affectionate and sweet, and makes that little sound with her teeth as I pet her, her eyes half-open and I just know she is the happiest bunny in the world at that moment. She will let me pet her for a long time, and loves being brushed and talked to. I tell her what a beautiful bunny she is and I think she actually understands me :)
Then it's time to explore, so I let her down onto the floor and she begins tenatively exploring the room, marking her way with her chin and looking out the windows, which span the length of the door, at the world outside. She loves to stretch out under the cocktail table in the sun's rays, watching TV.
Her favorite toy is a cardboard tunnel, and she loves to run into it and come out the other side. When I sit at the desk in her room, she comes to me and nuzzles my ankle, so I talk to her, although she still won't let me pet her when she is running free, but she does come up to my hand, looking for treats. Each day, she trusts a little more, and opens up a little more, and I know soon she will feel completely at ease in her new world. She has 'adopted' a little green plush froggy, nosing him and pushing him to her timothy hay box, where she plops herself down and just stares at him, or snuggles up with him. It's so cute!
Our little bunny is a small but sweet presence in our house, and she has already brought a lot of joy into it. Each day reveals a different facet of her personality - sometimes she is quiet and reclusive, other days she is running around, galloping all over, and last Saturday she was so happy she even jumped straight up! She has already melted our hearts, and we just love her. Thank you so much for letting us adopt our little bunny.
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