A Little Black Rabbit

Photos Copyright: Maggie May

My little black rabbit, Ash, spends much of his time in his run, which we have in a corner in our house as he is an indoor rabbit and never goes outside.

He changes from his hutch, where he spends the night and gets ready to go into his adventure playground in the morning. He knows the routine.

He has several favourite things. One of them is his toy carrot that you can see in the top photo. This was given to him by our lovely friends who looked after him while we were away.

It is made of hessian or raffia and rabbits love to chew these things and he tosses it about and listens to the rattle inside.

Have you ever heard of a rabbit who doesn't like real carrots? Well meet this one.

He loves to play ball and can lift this one in his mouth and toss it around. He plays footie with it and rolls about on it. However, if he is not in the mood, he won't play. The ball is always in his court. (Excuse the pun.) I always know if he is playing football though, as there is a little tinkly bell inside.

He plays toss the caber with a long cardboard tube from the inside of a kitchen roll.He keeps this up for ages before he gets tired of it.

Another of his favourite things is chewing/demolishing his little cardboard box house. He can sometimes keep it for a few weeks but then he goes into a kind of frenzy and tears it up. I am always making him new houses.

My friend, Squirrel, is an expert on rabbit and guinea pig care and she was a bit dismayed that Ash's claws were getting too long.

*He needs to be out on the patio to grind them down,* She said.

Well, I wasn't going to let Mr Fox have an easy dinner out of my little rabbit and I didn't have the nerve to cut the claws myself, even if he would have let me. The vet would charge an extortionate amount to do a job that would need regular visits. So....... I bought some tiny paving slabs from the Garden Centre and made little paths round his run. Now he can race round and round and wear down his toenails. I hope this will make a difference. Only time will tell.

I am really fortunate that I am not allergic to Ash but handling guinea pigs brings me out in an itchy rash and sore, swollen eyes.

When my brother and I were little, we used to be mad on Beatrix Potter books and a little verse of hers stands out in my mind. I know that my niece used to recite this one to me when she was little and my own children loved it too.

However the younger generation have never enjoyed her books. I think they are used to much more exciting things and a faster pace of life. Sigh.........

Now who is that knocking on Cottontail's door?

Tapp tap it! Tap tappit!

She's heard it before.

And when she peeps out there is nobody there,

But a present of carrots

Put down on the stair.

Hark, I hear it again,

Tap tappit! Tap tappit!

Why I really believe its a little black rabbit.

By Beatrix Potter.