~ News ~
I was adopted from the Polk County Rescue and am adored in my new home! It just doesn't get any better!
Bunny Boarding - Don't leave bunny with just anyone.
MO HRS does limited boarding at the main foster home using spacious enclosures, high quality food, attention and experienced care. Our rates for members are $10 per day per enclosure. (Quite a deal if you have a bonded pair!) Non-member rates are $12 per day. Food (hay, pellets, greens, treat carrot and/or fruit, fresh water in BOWLS) is provided. If you use a pelleted food we do not have you will be asked to provide that. Evening drop offs and pick ups are usually available as well as Saturdays and Sundays. Please inquire about your specific dates. All proceeds go towards the care of the foster bunnies. You may also contact MO HRS for recommendations on visiting pet sitters in your area experienced in rabbit care. HRS 314-995-1457 or email mo_hrs@hotmail.com
You may contact Creve Coeur Animal Hospital for their boarding rates and other information at (314) 434-4300.
~ Another Easy Fundraiser ~
Use GoodSearch.com
as your search engine
On the initial search page, you will be asked who you GoodSearch for.
Enter House Rabbit Society - Missouri - STL
Each time you use this search engine Missouri HRS will profit!
~ Easy Fundraiser ~
Shop at I Give.com and help HRS
Click on link below, follow directions and you will be helping HRS bunnies!
New Items Available!
Our calendar photos are available on cards, t-shirts, mugs, and many more items at www.L2Photography.net and
all profit goes to HRS!
Shop for gifts and help homeless rabbits too!
Cage Shelves: If you want a shelf for your bunny, email wdaly@sbcglobal.net and we will have it tagged with your name and ready for pick-up at our meeting on Tuesday or the Boutique on Sunday, Nov. 7. The shelves are designed for the dog crates that many of us use to house our bunnies (see photos). We provide a piece of tile board and two wooden supports notched to fit onto the horizontal bars. Measure the inside width of your crate and order a shelf that is about ½ inch shorter so you can slip it into a standard-size pillow case. The four sizes of shelves are: 27 1/8; 28 1/4; 29 5/8; 29 7/8. Price is only $12.
This is a great price for an important addition to your bunny's home.
Save your baby food jars:
Thelma uses 4-ounce baby food jars to package her homemade bunny cookies. These wonderful bunny treats can be purchased at the main foster home and at special events.
Empty jars will be gladly accepted at our meetings or the main foster home.
Thanks!
ARE YOU MANAGEMENT MATERIAL?
We are looking for members to join select committees that plan our special events. The reward is seeing your good ideas implemented to help the bunnies. If interested email wdaly@sbcglobal.net
IZZY, THE GIFTED RABBIT!
Eight years ago, our member Casi Griggs was diagnosed with a seizure disorder due to a slow growing form of brain cancer. Casi explains, "Due to my disability, I'm with my three rabbits 24/7, and we've developed an especially close bond. Izzy came into my life seven years ago and it quickly became apparent that she had a gift. One day, Izzy was sitting on my lap when I had a seizure. She began thumping very loudly on my chest until my parents came to see what the matter was. From then on, when Izzy is in the room and I'm having a seizure, she thumps her warning to let my parents know something is not right and they need to check. Her thumps are very loud, with a steady rhythm, and she stares at me until someone checks things out. Her warnings are not meant for me because they happen during a seizure; they are meant to be a warning for someone to check on me and for that I'm very thankful."
Casi, 37, is the daughter of Fredi and Don Griggs and lives with them in St. James, Missouri. Photo shows Izzy, the black and white Dutch bunny and Ernie, her bonded partner and constant companion.
Ernie on the left and Izzy the black and white Dutch. Two little fur angels taking care of their mom and each other!
* * * A Special Message Update from Christmas * * *
It isn't often that we accept a bunny from an individual - there is an endless supply of homeless bunnies at the shelters and our foster home is always full - but this one we could not turn away. The woman may have been in her 40's, but it was hard to tell; her face was badly scarred from beatings by the man in her life. In her bruised arms was her companion
of four years - a bunny she called "Ruby Angel" because the white mark on the bunny's nose resembled an angel. She said the man had abused the bunny too, knocking out her front teeth with a punch. Together, she and Ruby Angel had survived periods of living on the streets, begging food from strangers. When food was scarce, the bunny ate first...
To read the UPDATE on Ruby click on "Ruby Angel" photo >
SUPPORT FOR BUNNY OWNERS: Whom will you call when your bunny has a problem? We can match you with an experienced bunny owner who will be your support person. Sometimes, it's just nice to "talk bunny" with someone who can relate. Be assured there are no questions too trivial to ask; no problems that we haven't faced. We've learned from our experiences and we want to help you.
This is not to replace the care of a qualified rabbit veterinarian, but simply to help guide you through the normal daily issues of being bunny parents. To get a Buddy Bunny, contact Elaine at demoser9603@sbcglobal.net
Also contact Elaine if you are an experienced bunny owner who can serve as a Bunny Buddy. Don't worry that you may not
have all the answers (none of us do). Our chapter educators will help you. We simply want to make sure that our new bunny adopters
and fosterers have a "live" person to call when they need help. You will have back up from our chapter educators.
FREE E-NEWSLETTER: National HRS has an e-newsletter that anyone can get by going to www.rabbit.org and scrolling to the bottom of the opening page. Click on the square that says, "Join the HRS E - Newsletter List." It's a great way to keep up with what HRS is doing around the country!
Newspaper articles on MO HRS St. Louis!
Don't miss these great articles about HRS MO, chapter manager Joy Gioia, HRS volunteers and bunnies!
Bunny Sitters: If you are interested in partnering for free bunny-sitting with other members who live near you, contact Elaine at demoser9603@sbcglobal.net and tell her where you live. She coordinates this program and will put you in touch with each other. This could be helpful to you, especially if you live far from our Fenton foster home. We have members in places such as Ft. Leonard Wood, west St. Charles county and O'Fallon, Illinois, so "far away" bunny parents may benefit from getting to know each other.
Save your hay bag closures: We reuse the white, plastic closure tabs from the 25-pound hay bags of American Pet Diner to bind the smaller bags of hay we package to sell. When you’ve saved up a bunch, you can place them on the desk at the foster home, turn them in at a meeting or event, or just mail to us. We’ll be happy to use them.
Send Us Photos Of Your Bunny's House and Exercise Pen: One of our members would like to put together a photo album of bunny houses, exercise pens and play areas to show new adopters. Please take a photo of your setup and send it to Bobbie: bsfs05@att.net
Send Us Your Bunny Videos: We are often asked to make presentations to people who do not know bunnies. Because pictures are better than words in explaining the loveable things bunnies do, we want to make a DVD collection of videos of rabbits doing "rabbity" things. This will be a long process so send us your video clips over the next several months. Send your clips to pat Daly: wdaly@sbcglobal.net Type "Bunny Video" in the subject line. Our First Video: We’ve received a video for the DVD we want to create of bunnies doing cute things. It’s from member Vicki Dickey of her bunny, Bummer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNQQ2O7etGk
Grids to build inexpensive floor pens: For years, we purchased wire grids at Target and tied them together with cable ties to built floor pens for our bunnies. But Target now carries grids with openings that are too large. We like grids with 1.5-inch openings and it appears K-Mart carries them. They are marketed to build storage cubes and a $20 box has 23 grids. A member told us she bought the grids at Bed, Bath & Beyond for $20 a box and used two boxes to make a roomy floor pen for her buns.
Litter sources: One of the blessings of living in a cold climate (yes, there is one) is the availability of wood stove pellets that we use in our litter boxes. You won’t find them in southern California, according to a bunny owner living in Ventura. The pellets are compressed sawdust from hardwoods and sold as fuel for wood stoves, but they serve as a cheap, absorbent and safe litter for our bunnies. There are several brands but they all come in 40-pound bags for $4 to $8, depending on special sales. When we raised this topic in January, a few of you told us where you buy pellets, so here is a longer list. Got more? Let us know. Always call the store first to make sure they have pellets in stock.
Fenton, MO: Fenton Feed, 412 Water Street, 636-343-7272
Bridgeton, MO: Branneky True Value Hardware, 11403 Saint Charles Rock Road (two blocks west of Lindbergh), 314-739-0960
Grover/Wildwood, MO: West County Feed, 17050 Manchester Road, 636-458-5474
Eureka, MO: Dickey Bub Farm & Home, 636-587-3900
Arnold, MO: Fireside Hearth & Home/Arnold Stove & Fireplace Center, 636-282-0300
Edwardsville, IL: All Seasons, 120 S. Main, 618-659-0717
Belleville, IL: Hearthside Grill & Fireplace, near the Fairgrounds, 618-257-0700
Also, Rural King, Tractor Supply and Buckheit stores.
Got Flannel?
Betty Switzer uses old flannel sheets, flat and fitted, to sew the cage pads we love.
Betty donates them to us and we sell them to you.
If your flannel sheets are ready to be retired, please drop them off at the Fenton foster home in a bag marked with Betty’s name or bring them to our meetings.
Email questions to:wdaly@sbcglobal.net
Remember poor Chief? < < < Look at him now!
Click on his photo for original story. > > >
When Chief and entourage arrived we had high hopes for the family, but not very good expectations for Chief. When the surgery on his broken leg failed due to the frailty of the bone and the leg needed to be amputated we felt that a 4 yr. old three legged giant bunny was unlikely to ever be wanted by anyone except those of us who saved him and loved his gentle and valiant spirit. We were wonderfully wrong. A couple came specifically to see the Flemish Giants in our care. They fell in love with Shawnee (who'd had multiple litters with Chief over the last year while they'd been left to fend on their own outside under a deck.) Knowing Shawnee's story they asked if Shawnee and Chief might be able to re-bond. Enough time had passed for Chief to completely heal and for both of them to have their hormones gone from their spay and neuter. It was certainly possible. Both bunnies were adopted and are now happily together in a wonderful new, indoor home where they are loved. Chief and his love are together again. Thanks to everyone who helped make this a happy ending!
We need volunteers desperately! Please take a moment and read our list of activities we need volunteers for.
There are so many things that need doing, you are sure to find just the right job for you!
THANK YOU! Your votes helped us win $1000 in the Animal Rescue Site Shelter Challenge for bunny care!
THANK YOU again! Remember Chief & Shawnee? We submitted their touching story to "Heartwarming Story Contest" sponsored by the Animal Rescue Site. Your votes helped us win $2000 for the bunnies!
Would you like to receive our monthly "Happenings" e-newsletter? If so, e-mail wdaly@sbcglobal.net and type "Add to "Happenings" mailing list." in subject line. (Be sure to add us to your regular inbox so we don't end up in the junk/spam folder.)
Shop and help bunnies at the same time! We now have a page listing businesses/organizations who will donate to HRSMO, St. Louis when you shop with them. Check it out! > > >
Whoo hoo! Because of you, we were able to meet the challenge of a matching donation for our Endowment Fund drive that ended December 31st. Thank You!
