Basil's Bachelor Pad
A couple of months passed by at the House of Buns. Dad often spotted Basil, the wild bun, outside the kitchen window at Café Bun, dining on fresh willow leaves and Small Pet Select alfalfa hay. He recognized Basil by the fur clump on his right shoulder. Sometimes, Willow, his mom, also dined together with him at Café Bun. Dad could tell it was Willow by the notch in her left ear. Basil seemed to be the only kit to survive from her second litter.
Abigail looked through the window and spotted Basil. She wiggled her nose, and asked, “Are you going to stay here?” Basil wiggled back, “I don’t know. I’ll have to ask my mom.”
One day, Dad checked the under-house camera and spotted some tiny kits crawling out from under the plywood. Willow came running over and pushed them back under. She had had her third litter!
Basil, who was still living under the house, asked, “Momma, do I have to leave now? I really like it here.” Willow replied, “No Basil. I’ve decided to move to a new home so you can stay here. I want you to have a good life. I’ve taught you everything I know about survival, and I know it’s safe here, and there’s always food. I know you’ll be OK here.”
That night, she moved her kits to their new home. Dad and Abigail never saw Willow again, but they saw Basil under the house nibbling on willow leaves and napping. He was the only one who knew about this burrow, so it was his bachelor pad.
Outside, Basil continued to dine at Café Bun. Occasionally, his two bun friends, Jax and Jill, who lived across the street in the neighbor’s yard, wandered over to join him. Jax had a coarser coat than Basil, and Jill had white eye liner, which made it easier to tell them apart.
Willow had taught Basil well. His ears were always scanning for sounds, and at the first hint of danger, he’d run into the bolt-to burrow.
Dad did what he could to keep him protected and fed. “I hope he gets to live a long life,” said Dad to Abigail. Abigail thought, “So do I! It’s so hard to be a wild bunny.” She was thankful to live indoors where it was safe.
