Squirt made a bubble nest! : )
Male betta fish make nests by blowing bubbles when they are ready to mate. (the eggs go into the bubble nest).
It signifies that they are happy and healthy.
So here is a picture of Squirt's creation:
Isn't it huge?
(I only got the picture after I took water out of the tank for a cleaning, I didn't notice the bubble nest till I saw it sliding down the side of the tank.)
I know I sort of did a profile on the rats already, but I have to do this one on Jester.
Jester is a pit bull mix. I think he is probably somewhere between 2 and 5 years old, but I am not sure. He is super sweet and lovable! (He is kind of my favorite!). He is pretty active and loves to play fetch, but he loves to have plenty of cuddle time.
He doesn't get along super well with other dogs or cats, so he would probably be best as an only dog, but he might be fine with the right dog.
He loves his toys. He currently has a big pile of toys on his bed that he likes to lay on. His favorite toy is his kong. I gave him a kong stuffed with frozen peanut butter and dog treats this morning and he was very happy! He likes to hold his toys in his mouth and just walk around showing off. It is very funny.
He is a very lovable dog. He likes to sit in my lap a lot <3.
He isn't amazing at leash walking, but he isn't terrible. He pulls me a bit, but not so much that he is difficult to control. With some training he would be very good on a leash.
Jester is the pet of the week this week, so he has a reduced adoption fee.
Here is his petfinder page with some really adorable pictures of him:
http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/20699970
Okay, they aren't mine, although I think of them as being mine. These are two rats that came to the shelter a while ago as babies and I did a post about them then. They have grown up a bit but anyway, I'll cut to the chase. They have a petfinder page now with the cutest pictures ever!
Here is the link:http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/20874107
I don't think that they have official names so I named them myself. The one with more white I call "Sirius" and the one with more grey and the tiny white dot on his forehead I call "Padfoot". (Harry Potter themed)
Padfoot is an absolute cuddle bug <3. He spends a lot of time on my shoulder when I am there.
Sirius likes to give me kisses and play with my hair. Once he sat on top of my head : ).
They are super sweet and should definitely go home together since they have been together for there whole lives, and they are best buddies.
Their favorite treats are "Yogies!" which are yogurt drops for rats and other small pets. Their favorite flavor is the strawberry yogies.
Oh and they love fleece!!! They are my "new fleece creations testers". They would love to have fleece blankets and hammocks to sleep in when they are in their new home. And if anyone who is reading this ends up adopting them, don't bother with a wheel, they don't really use them, at least they never use the one that they have.
Note: You may notice that on their petfinder page it says "female". They are NOT female. I don't know why it says that. They are male, no doubt about it.
So I used to get Munchkin's hay at Petsmart. The brand I got was Oxbow hay, which is pretty good. However, Munchkin never really loved a lot of the hay that I would get at the pet store, and eventually he would only eat Oxbow orchard grass. And I was getting tired of the dusty, dry quality of the hay at the pet store, and the only fresher greener kind Munchkin refused to even try, so I did some researching.
I found a place called Sweet Meadow Farm. They are a family run farm located in Massachusetts. They have hay and pellets for rabbits and guinea pigs. It can be ordered online (I would not be driving to Massachusetts!) and for much much cheaper than what I was paying in the store. So I got some of their hay for Munchkin and he LOVES it!!! And so do I! It is fresh, green, and smells really good. It isn't super processed so there are some clovers and dandelions in it, but Munchkin loves that!
So I used to pay over six dollars for each pound of hay, but with Sweet Meadow Farms it only costs two dollars a pound including the shipping costs. So I am really happy! I had a big box of it shipped to me and it came in two days, so I was very pleased.
They also have pellets, so I am going to order some for Munchkin. The formula and ingredients is literally the same as the Oxbow pellets Munchkin is currently eating, so it is very high quality but it is half the price of the Oxbow pellets.
I also like that this farm is family run, environmentally friendly (uses biodegradable bags and everything) and all the hay and pellets are organic.
Basically by switching to Sweet Meadow Farms hay and pellets, I am getting just as good or better products, for much cheaper. I did some math and found that it will save us a few hundred dollars each year.
It is always good to do some research, instead of just automatically purchasing what is sold in the pet stores. And ordering online from Sweet Meadow saves a few shopping trips.
The only thing I would say is that if you lived on the west coast shipping would probably get expensive, it is one thing if you live in New England, but elsewhere it might get pricey.
For west coast people, I hear that a company called KleenMama's is really good. It is located in California, and very similar to Sweet Meadows. They have hay, and guinea pig food. They just don't have rabbit pellets. But I hear the hay is awesome. For me Sweet Meadows is cheaper because shipping from California is expensive for me.
Okay, I have some updates:
Yogi (or Yoshi) and Smokey the guinea pigs were adopted! And so were two other guinea pigs! So right now the shelter is down to three guinea pigs. Also two more baby bunnies were adopted. Last time I was at the shelter (which was yesterday) there were four babies left.
So you all probably saw my "Huge news" post, and read about me getting a second bunny, and since I am going to be doing some bunny bonding after the holidays, I am going to do some posts about bunny bonding on my Critter Care blog (the link is in the sidebar).
Also, I know I am behind on my quizzes, this week and last week were pretty busy again, but things are settling down so I will get the quizzes rolling again. (it is okay it gave me some time to think of some questions!) I am planning on uploading my Critter Crafts video tonight! I also have some other videos I am working on, so there will be more videos soon!
This is so exciting!
So...
Munchkin is going to be getting a friend!!!!!
Yes, another bunny!
I am not getting the new bunny until after the holidays though. I have to do some planning, and then I am taking Munchkin to the vet in October, and I am going to check and see if he is neutered or not. I am hoping he is neutered, he seems to be.
And then after the holidays I am planning on taking Munchkin to the humane society (not to stay!) to pick out his bunny friend. I want Munchkin to decide which bunny he likes best, because I don't want to pick a rabbit out myself bring him/her home and find out that they hate each other! So Munchkin will pick out his friend, and it will probably be a girl (rabbits get along best with rabbits of the opposite gender) so if she is not spayed already she will need to be.
So once I get the new bunny she (or he) will have to be spayed (or neutered) so after the holidays when things are pretty quiet for me will be the best time because I need to be able to keep an eye on the new bunny after the surgery, and after the new bunny has had some time to heal, I will begin bonding the new bunny with Munchkin, and eventually they will move into Munchkin's pen together.
It is all very exciting! I will be sure to keep you all posted on my planning, and Munchkin's vet visit, and the bonding process.
Of course, it may turn out that Munchkin doesn't like other rabbits, but that is pretty rare, so I am thinking he would love to have a friend.
Nice work! Have you taken Munchkin outside again?
Martha
No, I haven't taken Munchkin outside again yet, I have been pretty busy, but I plan on taking him out again a few times soon.
This comment was posted under "New
video!!":
I love your video tours! How long does it take to do
Munchkin's morning routine?
Sarah :)
If I don't spend a ton of time petting and playing with him, and depending on how big of a mess he made it usually takes me 15-20 minutes.
This comment was posted under "Videos!":
Cute videos! Does Munchkin ever chew anything he shouldn't like
furniture or woodwork? He seems to always be enjoying himself.
-Animal Gram
Yes, Munchkin likes to chew everything. I block off a lot of furniture in the room he gets free-range time in and I am planning on bunny proofing my bedroom, but he still chews things. He has chewed or bitten:
doors
new furniture
the corner of the wall
my mom's knitting magazines
my school workbooks
carpet
baseboards
And he has bitten a cord before, (he was fine and I am paranoid about cords with him now, so all cords in his bunny room are blocked and most of them are unplugged whenever he is up there)
(He also likes to peel paper off the wall, and just a couple of days ago he had some fun with paper towels when I turned my back. )
Overall he is pretty good, he doesn't really destroy things, he just takes a bite out of things here and there. And after a little touch up on whatever he sank his teeth into, and the bite marks aren't too noticeable. He likes to do it on purpose and then hear me tell him no. It makes him very happy and he binkys all over the place when he gets caught. I think he thinks it is funny.
This is why I supervise all his free-range time.
Once again, I am super excited! The shelter is putting up a bunch of pictures of all the pocket pets! So far there are only two but more are coming!
Anyway the two pages that are up right now are... Yogi and Smokey. (although Yogi's post says Yoshi so I may have gotten his name mixed up although I like the name Yogi better and the whole bear themed names!)
So here are their petfinder pages:
http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/20750757
http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/20750886
This seriously made me really excited!!! The shelter actually currently has pictures of all the bunnies (babies included!) up on petfinder. So I will do some profiles and put the link to each bunnies petfinder page below the profile.
Gabrielle
I think I amy have mentioned Gabrielle before, but I will do it again. She is a dwarf bunny and she is very sweet. She likes to be pet and she may not LOVE getting picked up, but she definitely tolerates it very well. She is overall a very calm bunny for being a dwarf rabbit (they generally are very active). She likes having a fleece blanket to sleep on. She doesn't seem to like carrots much, but she loves her hay! She also loves her litterbox. She generally does not use it for what it was meant for, instead she likes to sleep in it.
To see pictures of Gabrielle visit her petfinder page:
http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/20753558
Moopsiepie
I know, the name is a little goofy. Moopsiepie is a female black bunny. She is very pretty. She is long and graceful and has very long ears. She reminds me of a hare a little bit. She came in as a stray and she is the proud mom of the seven baby bunnies! She is very good-natured. She loves to get her ears stroked. She is very good about being handled. She is litter box trained, with the condition that her hay has to be in the litter box because she will only go where her hay is, and if the hay is not in the litter box or in a hay rack, it can be very messy! If the hay is in the litter box she is a very clean rabbit and likes to keep her cage pretty tidy. She likes to have comfy things to sleep in and she likes to have lots of room.
To see pictures of Moopsiepie visit her petfinder page:
http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/20750600
Baby bunnies:
I am doing the baby bunnies profiles in two groups because doing seven of them would be long and the petfinder pages are split up into two groups for them too.
Female baby bunnies:
(their names are Bonsai, Bentley, and Breezy)
The female baby bunnies are all very friendly and super cute! They are really well socialized. They are easy to handle and very eager for attention. They need lots of space to do what they do best: play! They are mostly white with a few grey patches. The one with the most spots is the most playful and outgoing one. The others are playful to but a little calmer. There were originally four females, but one was adopted! Oh, and one of the girls was originally the runt of the litter but she is now as healthy and big and playful as her sisters.
To see the super cute pictures of Bonsai, Bentley, and Breezy check out their shared petfinder page:
http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/20753410
Male baby bunnies:
(their names are Buckwheat, Bullwinkle, and Buster)
Just like their sisters the boys are super cute, and well socialized, although a couple of the boys don't like being picked up to much. They are pretty playful, but like to cuddle with each other a lot. Two of the boys are chubby little things and the boys eat a lot! (which is okay, because baby bunnies should be allowed to eat as much hay and pellets as they want) Two of the boys are all white, and one is white and gray.
To see the super cute pictures of Buckwheat, Bullwinkle, and Buster check out their petfinder page:
http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/20753432
(okay, technically only two of the boys are in the picture, but the one not in the picture looks exactly like the all white one that is in the picture)
Oh and just a note: The baby bunnies are in the process of litter training. They are doing really well so far considering they are just babies, but they aren't fully litter box trained yet.
So I was just at the shelter yesterday, and...
7 of the rats were adopted!
Leaving only two, my favorites. (it could be a sign that they are meant for me! :) )
And as usual many cats are getting adopted, and a bunch of dogs were going to their new homes when I left.
Two guinea pigs were also adopted, which is good because two more new pigs just came in. And they are SUPER CUTE!!!! So I am going to do a shelter profile on them right now:
Shelter Profile:
So they are a pair of male guinea pigs. One of them is named Yogi, and the other Smokey. (In case you don't know the theme is bears, like "yogi the bear" and "smokey the bear", except they are guinea pigs. )
Anyway Yogi is a really cute orange color with a white face, and a "rosette" on the top of his head. Smokey is a whole medley of dark grey, light grey, black, and white. Smokey has long fur. I have actually never seen a guinea pig with the coloring that Smokey has.
They are buddies though they do argue sometimes (just vocal, no biting or anything). Yogi is definitely the top pig. Yogi is very goofy, outgoing, and social. He is also very vocal and loves to state his opinions. Smokey is a fairly shy and quiet guinea pig, but he does warm up to people after a while.
They would probably like to stay together, and in their new home they would like:
A nice big cage
Some cozy hiding places
LOTS of hay!
Toys
Some veggies
And lots of attention! (especially Yogi, he prefers to be the center of attention at all times!)
Playtime out of their cage (this is a personal request from Yogi. He has made it quite clear with his bar chewing and door rattling that he likes to spend time out of his cage!)
Regular brushing (this is a request from Smokey, he likes to keep his long fur looking good!)
Soft places to relax (both boys love sprawling out on their fleece!)
All of these things along with the necessary time, water, pellets, and care of course!
Yogi and Smokey do not have petfinder pages. (the "pocket pet" petfinder pages don't get updated much)
And if anyone out there wants cute baby bunnies, the seven baby bunnies are still up for adoption! And they are super sweet and socialized. They LOVE attention and can easily be handled. And they are very entertaining to watch, they are very playful!
