ddhr.org - Bunnius Maximus

Bunnius Maximus (5)

Oct 22, 2009

We got a new bunny a few weeks ago.

He's a Holland Lop and his name is Maximus Decimus Meridius, named of course after the lead character from the movie Gladiator. We got him through Craigslist, from a family whose daughter (and rabbit caretaker) had recently gone off to college. The reason we added another bunny to our ~~zoo~~ household is that Dora is antisocial, and we felt that she could use some encouragement from one of her own kind. It turns out our plan is working pretty well. And try as he might (though he hasn't yet) an unneutered male rabbit can't impregnate a spayed female, so no baby bunnies for us.

One thing that became evident right away is that Max is the polar opposite of Dora. One telltale sign is his pose in the above picture. He's flopped down on the floor with his back feet out, which is how rabbits sit around when they're just chillin and they don't have a care in the world. Max does this often. Dora never does. For comparison sake, I made a helpful table:

	Dora	Max
Can I pet you?	No, I'll scratch you. Then I'll bite you.	Yes, please.
Want to come out of your cage and run around?	No, I prefer to hide in my box.	Yes, please.
Can I pick you up?	No, I'll run away from you and make little grunting noises to scare you off.	Ok.
Did you use your litter box today?	Of course.	What's a litter box?
What stinks?	Probably you, jerk.	Sorry, I just pooped everywhere.

And that pretty much sums it up. On the plus side, Dora is getting better with human interaction, and Max is getting better with the litter box. #nature

Comments:

Rus

2009-10-23 12:48:25

Dave,
Considering you now have a "zoo" I can't help but think that your Pet Progression blog entry where you confessed to also watching other people's children means that the ultimate "pet" should be coming soon. Is there a flaw in my logic? ;-)

Dave

2009-10-23 13:05:28

There is a flaw in your logic. Rabbits aren't technically rodents, but it can be argued that they fit somewhere in between the cat phase and the rodent phase, which would suggest we're actually going backwards up the pet progression list. Next up, fish.

Rus

2009-10-23 13:16:53

But you have multiple pets...surely that somehow brings another dimension into your progression. Otherwise, it's clear you are becoming more responsible. To the point of trying to give your first bunny a companion which is precisely the logic used by many parents when deciding to have a second child. :-)

Joann

2009-10-23 14:39:03

That's so funny! Love the Dora/Max comparison!

Mary Jane

2009-10-28 07:59:42

I loved your comparison chart for the bunnies! Great thinking, and I, too, think that animals actually have a thought process and response - whether negative or positive. As we speak, Katie is sitting next to the computer screen thinking, "Isn't she ever going to leave for work so I can go back to sleep." Naturally. Love you, MJ