It's not easy for Max
18 March 2020
Max has been feeling lost since he lost his big sister. He's been visiting Chloe's favourite spots since she's passed. To help him realise what has happened, I took him with me to the vet so he could spend time with Chloe after she passed. He cuddled up to her and had nearly an hour with her to say goodbye. I took some pictures, but decided not to post them, because it's too sad for me to look at them.
Bunnies grieve too. Giving them time with a passed bonded bunny helps them understand what's happened, but it doesn't stop them from grieving. Just like we are sad and feel the loss when a beloved passes.
On the day after Chloe's passing, Max was staying close to me and even endured all the cuddling and tears. Netherland Dwarfs are not known for being cuddly, so this was definitely unusual for him. I could tell he was feeling very unsure at not having Chloe around and me being a total mess. I cried so much that day, and tried distracting myself with cleaning and tidying up and cuddling Max.
The next day, Max went to all the places where Chloe used to like to be. He sat all afternoon in the hut, one of Chloe's favourite spots (see picture). He didn't lie down or anything, but just sit there like that. It was so sad to see. Late afternoon, Chloe used to roam around the garden, nibbling at whatever yummy weeds and grasses she would fancy and find, with Max toddling behind her. Sometimes they'd cuddle up for a little while, and sometimes she'd lie down for Max to groom her. That was their special afternoon time together. I used to love to watch the two before making dinner. That afternoon, Max just sat in the middle of the lawn, not really sure what to do. It broke my heart to see him so lost. I went out and patted him and talked to him. Grieving together that Chloe wasn't with us anymore.
Sunday things started looking up. That night I did blueberry time with Max. Blueberry time was a special time I did with Chloe and Max. I'd sit down with them and share a punnet of blueberries with them. Chloe used to get so excited, and she'd climb into my lap, all 5 kg of her, to put her cute snoot right into the punnet and try and gobble them all up. It was such a mission and so much fun to try and make sure Max and I got some too. Max, on the other hand, he'd sniff at them and then pick the best one out, and very gentleman like, he'd sit back down and eat it. Chloe was a piggy! So that Sunday, I took out a punnet and sat down with Max to have some blueberries. He was so happy afterwards, that he BINKIED THREE TIMES!
For those of you who don't know what binkying is, that's when a bunny jumps in the air with overload of happiness. Often they'll add a little twist in the air to it. Check out Chloe's rare but fantastic binky in the video at the top of the page.
Things are slowly looking upwards for Max. I think he's realised that Chloe is not coming back. He has good moments and sad moments. Sometimes he's feeling totally lost and lonely, especially at night I think. We really need to start looking at getting him some bunny dates soon.
Bunnies need a mate - be it a sisterly bond, friendship bond, or a love bond - bunnies on their own get depressed and can become destructive and aggressive. However, like us humans, bunnies have their likes and dislikes and forcing two bunnies together can be difficult and take a long time, if they don't like each other.
So instead, we do bunny dates. Bunny meets bunny and we look if there's potential. Worst case, they can't stand each other and they'll attack each other (which is why these dates are supervised). Best case scenario, love at first sight. I'll be taking Max to some bunny dates in the next weeks, hoping to find him a nice bunwife to keep him occupied and help with the loss of his big sister. I'll be contacting rescue organisations to see if they can set up some speed dating for him. Yep, just like the human speed dating events, except way cuter! And if all fails, we'll take him on a road trip all the way to Wellington to meet some non-local girls. I've heard there are some cute single bunnies in Wellington, hoping to meet him.
So here's to my lonely Max, may he find his match soon!
