Linda Sick, Rags not well...

Well, Linda was sent home from the airport by her husband and crawled into bed for 3 days. She's still not 100% but will hopefully still be joining him in Florida by weeks end. Feel better oh great bunny lady! I'm currently bonding Kia and Marly back together, she had her eye removed and is doing great! Rags, one of my most favorite buns to ever come into the Hollow, is going down hill so fast. He has horrible Arthritis that just hit so hard that it looks like he has a splayed back leg now. We are certain he won't be with us much longer. We also have Oliver and Rosie too that are just off, so they are under careful watch.

It's amazing how all of the volunteers have once again pulled together to make sure the Hollow is covered again - I personally want to thank everyone! THANK YOU! I will be going away at the end of Feb. and have Ali and Kristine doing shots for me, so want to say thanks to them too! THANKS! Will try to get some pictures the next time I'm down. All bondings going pretty well so far! Brandee

P.S. Just wanted to say Thanks to one of my Awesome Friends Mindy Coman for her and fiance' Rob providing us with SO MANY PAPERS!!! And on a continuous basis, and Flyer Free! Thanks guys!!

Linda away??? 3 Bondings!

Believe it or not, Linda is going away! Ok, working vacation, but she's actually getting on a plane! I'm wondering if she will ever come back! Went to clean today - we are going to try to have Marley and Kia put back together. They have been separated in cages next to each other due to Kia's eye removal. I did 3 bondings last week, Dixie and Woodstock, 2 black female rabbits adopted at separate times from the Westport Humane Society, and Winter (who just lost bond-mate Licorice) with Lucky. Just exciting as all seems well so far and 3 bunnies got homes last week! Skylar, our severe head-tilt bunny, is more than likely being adopted - maybe even today - by a family that called actually looking to take in a special needs bunny! YAY! Hopefully that goes well! Brandee

Bondings and such... Goodbye Licorice...

Well, I have started back with bondings and cleaning 2 days at the Hollow. Right now I have Ali's infamous Dixie - the Flemish beauty (my favorite breed) as her bond mate Jellybean passed a couple of weeks ago. Not going so well, so going to swap for a new bunny today. A woman from Wspt. adopted from the Humane Society last year, and they fell in love with another bunny yesterday, both girls, and they will be getting dropped for a bond attempt later today. Don't have the best of luck with same sex bonds, but the younger is 4 months and spayed, so perhaps her hormones haven't kicked in yet. All is crazy here, lack of sleep, etc... Down at the Hollow, even crazier! Thank goodness for the come back of a couple of volunteers (thanks Greer!) and the adoptions and bondings we have going on. One thing strange is the amount of eye removals we are having - yes - eye removals! A woman brought her sick bunny in last month that's eye actually burst (ewwww!) and was removed. Feather had an eye issue upon coming in and had hers removed. Kya's just got removed last week because of an abscess in the eye ball (so wild looking) and now it looks as though Athena's may be coming out as well. When it rains, it pours. South Wilton is getting lots of rabbit experience from us! Linda got a call from South Wilton the other day that Licorice had passed away. Her bond mate Winter will be coming in soon for a new bond mate. Well, I'm actually packing up the kids to go down and clean, let my daughter Katie play with Linda's grandson Logan (who is going to be a big brother in July!!) so maybe some more news later! Don't forget to check our website at www.hopalonghollow.org for updates on adoptable bunnies and other small animals! Brandee :o)

Good Bye Jelly Bean and Mr. Magoo...

Ali - a Blog contributor, went home yesterday to find her bunny Jelly-Bean, bonded to Flemish Dixie, had crossed the Rainbow Bridge. So sorry to hear Ali. Mr. Magoo's owners also called to let us know he had passed away. Snow White, Magoo's bond-mate, is visiting the Hollow this week, so we got to say Hi. She is the sister to my rabbit Cinderella and Ali's bunny Flash. They all turned 4 years old yesterday. Their parents, Steve and Shayla, are still, after 4 years, looking for a home.

Linda is very sick, and having Asthma on top of it has been really hard. I cleaned today and Tuesday at the Hollow, kids in tow! Due to the weather and illness there has been quite a few volunteer cancellations that couldn't be at a worse time for Linda health wise. She will keep on chugging though, she always pulls through. The Christmas Eve volunteer party was very nice, according to Linda! I never made it down this year, I had family up from Georgia. I don't know what else to report right now other than a few sick rabbits, such as Licorice who is bonded to Winter and a few others that have been adopted out. Plenty of Bunnies for adoption - visit us on the web at www.hopalonghollow.org! Happy Holidays! Brandee

Good Bye Cadbury...

Well, we lost Cadbury, a beautiful NZW that had been staying at the Hollow for some time now. He came in from the Catskill Game farm a few years back. We have so much going on down at the Hollow right now, I will have to interview Linda to get a good update. We have a beautiful calendar on sale for the Holidays that was made by one of our volunteers who is no longer able to help with our group, nice guy, will be missed terribly! We have our Christmas letter that has gone out as a fundraiser. Linda is hosting a party for the volunteers this year, which is usually a party for all to attend, but it's been a very long year all around so we are keeping it short and sweet. Linda's daughter is expecting her second child, and my second just turned two months yesterday. Linda has been up to her ears in sick or injured rabbits and trying to help others with theirs. Feather had her eye removed, there is a new head-tilt bunny, a whole new slew of medicine rabbits... Well, just wanted to say hello and wish everyone a happy holiday season and to say Good bye to Cadbury. Such a feisty little guy! We will be getting settled and hopefully get going on our Easter fundraisers shortly after the beginning of the year. Anyone that is able to volunteer that lives in the area, we would love to have a comedic person to wear the bunny suit for photos this year! Have a very Merry Christmas! Brandee

An Adopted Bunny Update

We got this email update yesterday from a woman who adopted one of our bunnies a few years ago. It was such a nice email, and such a wonderful story, that we had to share it with our readers. This is why we keep doing what we do. Have a bunderful day!

Three-ish years ago, I adopted Porkchop - the grey bunny in the photo, I didn't rename him - from Hop-A-Long. Shortly after his adoption he bonded with the white angora in the photo (she was from Sweet Binks shelter, also in RI)- we named her Applesauce (of course!). Applesauce was much older than Choppie, and recently passed. Porkchop is currently bonding with a new bunny (ChouChou), another angora (he picked her; apparently he has specific tastes!) and is doing really well. On a side note, ChouChou is from the Canadian "Great Rabbit Rescue" - I read on your blog you have a couple of those bunnies as well. Porkchop and his mate are free range. He and ChouChou have their own room and when my husband and I are around they are allowed to roam the 1st floor, but they usually stick to their own space. Porkchop has been such a great addition to our family. He is full of personality and he's been a perfect "bunny diplomat" for friends and family who didn't know much about house rabbits. He is really laid back and deals well with my crazy dog (always supervised, of course) and my nieces and nephews all love hanging out on the floor with him. Our vet says he's one of the coolest and healthiest bunnies she's ever seen.

I've had rabbits for a number of years and when I adopted Porkchop, I was not in the market for a new pet. I had a lop-eared bunny named Pickles who had passed and my husband and I were just settling into our first house. I was actually looking for a place to donate Pickles' food and toys, figuring I'd take a break from pets in general. But then I saw Porkchop's picture on Petfinder and immediately felt a connection. My husband thought I was crazy, but I drove the 2 hours down to Hop-Along, knowing in my heart that I was going to fall in love with Porkchop. As I predicted, we connected immediately and I brought him home that day. I can't really describe the bond we share. He's not the most affectionate or snuggly bunny I've ever had, but every time I see him, I smile and I just know that he belongs with me. My husband and I joke that if we were ever to separate, we'd have to go to court over the dog and the cat, but there's never any question that Choppie is all mine. I've loved all my rabbits, but there's just something really special about Porkchop.

So, thank you for all the hard work you and your volunteers do. I know the work can be heartbreaking and it's sometimes hard to feel optimistic. But know that there are many of us out there who have found a fuzzy soul-mate because of what you do. And I am so very grateful to you and you shelter for helping me to find mine.

Mary

Up to our Ears in Rabbits!

Ahhhh, where to begin... I am now 8 1/2 months pregnant and feel I have almost deserted Linda as far as things go. I haven't, I still get down to the Hollow at least twice a week to do shots, do our food runs, am starting to work on getting a database in order with Jim's help, and actually signed up to clean every Wednesday this month (works great, my 2 year old plays with her grandson Logan!). It's getting harder to bend over and get into those bottom cages! A lot is going on at the Hollow, bunnies are everywhere! We have had a couple of visits with the House Rabbit Society this month, Linda has had quite a few bunnies boarding. Her cat Hilda, one of the diabetics that came in through the Humane Society, went into a diabetic shock this week and Linda spent a lot of time nursing her back.

So many bunnies are looking for homes right now. I'm going to post some pictures, and call it a day. I have so much to write that has happened the past couple of months, but my brains are scrambled right now and all I can think about is how many more rabbit folders need to be made to be filed...