CHAPTER 12 – RABBIT HOBBIES
The sun peaked in the window and gently woke Abigail. She yawned and stretched, and sat up. It was still early. The house was quiet, and Dad was still asleep. Abigail began her morning ritual and headed over to her bolt-to spot for her morning workout. Being a house rabbit, she didn’t need to go foraging for food like her wild cousins. She had her hay tunnel, pellets, and water available all the time, and fresh greens served to her twice a day. But rabbits are industrious by nature, so they like to have a project or a hobby to keep themselves entertained. Some like to dig. Others like to chew.
Abigail was a digger. She liked digging. It was good exercise. Her long term project was to widen the entrance to her bolt-to tunnel. Every morning, she would dig for hours on the carpet. It was slow going, but she was in no rush. To her, it was like humans going to the gym to work out.
Usually, when Dad got up, she’d take a break to eat her breakfast and get her daily massage. Then, she’d go back to digging for awhile before she took her half-nap.
One day, Dad brought in a grass mat and placed where she dug. Dad explained, “Here Abigail, try this. I read some rabbits like to dig and chew on grass mats.” Abigail looked at the grass mat and thought, “This is just in my way!” She grabbed it with her teeth and moved it aside, and continued to dig on the carpet. Dad just laughed. He didn’t mind that she was ripping up the carpet in that spot. It was hidden from sight anyway.
Whenever something new entered her territory, Abigail had to investigate. It didn’t matter whether it was a box, a piece of furniture, or a book lying on the floor. If it came into her space, she made it her business to know what it was.
Rabbits also like to chew. Their teeth are constantly growing, so they have to chew to whittle down their teeth. In the wild, there was plenty to chew on. But in a house, there wasn’t. When left with no alternatives, rabbits tend to chew on baseboards, furniture, or their favorite, Apple cords! Fortunately for Abigail, Dad always provided more desirable alternatives, like oat hay in the foraging tunnel, twig balls, mobiles, and towels.
Sometimes, Dad would just lay a towel down by her home base. Bunnies are very particular about such things, so no matter how he arranged it, it was never quite right. Abigail would spend hours rearranging it just so.
A bored rabbit is a naughty rabbit, so Dad always made sure there was something to keep her entertained. In turn, Abigail was a good bunny, and never destroyed his furniture.
Want to learn more about setting up your rabbit cage and tying toys to sides for resistance? Watch this!
