Today we woke up at the Best Friends Roadhouse and drove to the Glen Canyon Dam. We recently heard a podcast about it because the water levels are so low that soon it might not be able to produce power and there is some controversy around if it should have ever been built and if it should be drained. It was fascinating to learn about how it stores water for the West and produces so much electricity (which funds a lot of environmental research).
Then we zipped back to Kanab where we were just in time for a quick vegan lunch at the sanctuary (one of our favorite lunches in the world!) before Lily dropped off Mary, Lydia and me for our volunteer stint with the bunnies.
We got to work with a really nice coordinator named Darrin. How showed us how to clean out the bunny cages (usually two bunnies to a cage) because they were completely filled with poop. There was so much poop in them that I figured they must go a week or two between cleanings. Darrin told us they cleaned every other day! It turns out bunnies can poop up to 300 pellets a day. It seems they have a bit of a reputation because I saw this sign on their bathroom wall.
And here are all the pellets we cleaned out of their cages.
Aside from pooping, bunnies also like to chew. Many of their blankets and towels looked like Swiss cheese.
Here are some videos of the girls cleaning the bunny cages.
After cleaning bunny cages, Lydia and Mary were able to feed parsley and lettuce to the rabbits. 90% of their diet is hay, but they also get fresh vegetables to make sure they get vitamins, like vitamin C.
After feeding the bunnies, Mary got to pick the bunny she wanted for a bunny sleepover. She became very endeared to their largest and chunkiest bunny named Kiuke, which they thought meant “cute” in Hawaiian.
One very cute thing about bunnies is that they generally bond with other bunnies. This isn’t just about mating, it’s about how they live their happiest lives. Bonded pairs can be male to male, female to female, male to female, sibling to sibling etc. Basically, bunnies just aren’t as happy alone, so they generally bond to another bunny and then live as companions for the rest of their lives. Bonds can go up 6 in number or even higher I imagine, but usually you will find bunnies bonded in twos. When a bunny first comes to the shelter, if it is alone, the workers will do some speed dating to see if the solo bunny will bond with any of the other bunnies. If the speed dating is unsuccessful, the bunny will live alone unless a bunny bonds with it later. Lone bunnies don’t live as long and aren’t as happy. It so cute! Shadow is Kiuke’s bonded pair, and Mary got to bring him home as well.
We took the bunnies back to the roadhouse, I set up their pen, and all the kids got a chance to be in the pen with them and pet them before we went to dinner. The kids were very very happy.
For dinner we went to the Rocking V cafe and it was delicious. The kids loved the stars that were hanging in the restaurant (as did the grown-ups).
As soon as we were done, Ammon threw up on the side of the side-walk. He also threw up yesterday. He has still been sick, which made us a bit concerned. Overall, he was functioning ok, but he still had a cough, was more tired than usual and and still has the occasional throwing-up (it’s been going on for almost two weeks now, and Lily already called the doctor’s office about him). Lily resolved to take him to the doctor first thing when we got home. I confirmed with the bunny workers that Ammon can’t transfer any sickness to the bunnies so he still got to spend time in their playpen like the other kids.
After dinner, everyone played with the bunnies, and it was so so fun for the kids.
After spending time with the bunnies, we all looked at pictures of the adoptable animals on the Best Friends tablet in our room.
Lily and I then put the little kids down while Lydia and Mary stayed up and played more with the bunnies. I did a mini-spa experience with Ammon and Clarissa when they were in their beds. Clarissa was way too ticklish to get a massage and it was hilarious. Here is the video. I love this video so much!
Later in the night my dad and Suzanne arrived. They say Lydia and Mary and the bunnies before they turned in for the night. It was a big day for them because they had an open house this morning for the home they are selling and my dad ran it since he is their agent. We were touched and grateful they still made it even though they are so busy right now.
After they left, Lydia and Mary stayed up until 11:00 spending time with the bunnies. I fell asleep waiting for them to be done, and when I woke back up, we all went to bed. I was so glad they were enjoying the experience so deeply. That’s what we came for!
