Posse on Delridge

Yesterday morning, the girls and I were headed to the bus stop and we ran into our little friend. We have been trying to catch this guy for a while now without success. Evan stated that he now has street smarts and can dodge cars and people with the best of them. I just eyeballed that girl. Street smarts! Ha! 

A little elbow grease goes a long way!

I decided to bake two whole rabbits for dinner this evening, but my oven had other plans!  It didn't want to light. Instead, it sizzled, crackled, and popped!  Lights out. I contacted PSE and the gas man made an appearance. He advised there was no leak, but our oven ignitor went out and needed to be replaced. Wah wah! I LOVE my gas oven and I will fight until the end of time for it. (I'm looking at you Granmo!) 

Unfortunately, my baked rabbit plan went out the door. I didn't want it to go to waste, so I pulled out the meat grinder! It was work trying to get the raw meat off their tiny little bunny bones, but I did the best I could. I soaked the meat in a teriyaki marinade and proceeded to grind. The results were 3.5 pounds of ground rabbit to be used for jerky (we also have a jerky press waiting for some action too!). I was all set to dehydrate it in the oven, but......MY OVEN IS BROKEN! I'm a dunce. It'll just have to wait. 

In the meantime I've decided to boil up the carcasses of the rabbits to soften the bones. After they're softened, I'll finely grind their bones to make my bread! Ha! Only kidding. I'll grind their bones and feed them to the birds out back. It's good for them. 

Here at El Gallo Blanco Backyard Farm and Garden we appreciate and use the whole animal. ;) 

Kits born this afternoon!

Just this morning Andy placed the nesting box in with one of our does because he remembered it was getting close to her due date, and this afternoon she gave birth!  Evan and Matilde went out to play and noticed lots of fur and movement in the nesting box. We have bunnies!! We are not yet sure how many, but we will know soon enough. The others are getting big and should be ready to harvest soon. I am excited to fill our freezer once again.

(The pink in the photo will be a white bunny!) 

A new home for bunny.

Morgan decided to adopt one of our kits. Bun-Bun is loving her new home, and Morgan is loving her new friend. 

Although this one was saved from my stew pot, we were able to recoup some of the cost for feed. It's a nice trade. 

They're adorable!

These wee ones are chubby and cute!  They are all looking healthy. It's such a sweet sight to see the girls with them. They are very excited for these new bunnies. 

Martha Washington

aka Miss Piggy

Here she is. She was very curious when I opened up the hutch to photograph them. Lady Bird ran to the back of the cage and good ol' Mrs. Washington just about made a break for it!  They've been busy making and then immediately destroying their nests, so we aren't exactly sure if birth is approaching or not. The calendar says it should be anytime, but their actions tell a different story. 

A lone survivor.

Here is an email Andy sent earlier today while the girls and I were out:  "Just got back from the vet.  I checked on them (new kits) earlier and they were all freezing. Took them to the vet but only 1 made it.  We will have to hand feed." 

Today was another sad day. Eve had given birth to TEN kits, and a few others looked like they were going to be alright.  After getting some vigorous massaging to stimulate blood flow, warm water bottles, and milk those few slowly passed on. 

This lone bunny is all that survived. It is inside and keeping warm on a hot water bottle. We are doing what we can to keep it alive. 

Eve preps her nest.

We moved Eve inside to prepare for her coming kindle. Andy set an alarm for 28 days from when we put her in with Adam. It was PERFECT timing because a few hours after moving her, she gave birth! More healthy and LIVING babies! 

More bunnies!

Andy and I let all of them run around in the grass, but mama starts to panic without them. So it was a very short playtime. I think they're adorable! 

Soft bunnies

Rabbit hutch

This weekend was a busy one. Aside from setting in our boxes out front and processing the chickens, we were able to raise the rabbit hutch off the ground. It is pretty tall now. You may remember that it was sitting on the chicken tractor, then on the ground, now it is on stilts!  The picture isn't the finished product. It was taken in progress, but I assure you that it is finished and looks great!  We will not move it back until the watering system is finally installed. It's coming along. 

A new kindle.

Looks like our rabbit, Eve, gave birth over the weekend. She is tending to her kits more than the last time, but we did lose one. Evan was so fascinated by this baby. She said, "I just wish it would come back to life." So innocent and sweet. I hope the others make it. I'm not sure how many there are, but it would be nice to see the small ones with fur!