Misto gone too soon
It’s common to talk about how similar rabbits and horses digestive systems are. We talk about this a lot at the farm because it can be real scary when something goes wrong with their digestion – food can go down but it can’t go back up – they can’t vomit. What doesn’t get talked about is how rabbits are just as sensitive as horses. This is what Misto has taught us…..
Misto came to us in April, 2015 with 7 other rabbits from Rabbitat Rescue. He was rescued from a rabbit meat breeder. When he and his friends first arrived, they were very skittish and afraid of people. It’s no wonder! He had been kept in a tiny bare dirty rusty cage and was in terrible condition with mites and other issues. Because of the kindness at Kindred, Misto would eventually eat out of our hands and come up for snuggles. He always enjoyed seeing the children who were allowed to give him one dried craisin (his absolute favourite treat). I always had a hard time telling him apart from his twin, Vanilla Bean. I had to look for their identifying tattoo in their ears. Misto was XY186.
For 8 years Misto and Vanilla Bean have been inseparable. I don’t know how many photos I have like this one of them lying side by side. They were rarely far apart from each other. When Vanilla Bean passed away in June, Misto began to show signs of stress. He was grieving the loss of his sister and all we could do was administer to his health needs and give him lots of extra comfort and love as his caregivers and 2-legged friends.
And Misto still had the companionship of Java.
We tried everything, hoping each day that he had turned a corner. The days went on. Nothing was working. Misto’s broken heart was taking a toll on his body and we made the decision to help him cross over.
We had recently met a very kind vet who does house calls for euthanasia. Misto was at his home, with familiar sights and sounds and with his 2-legged peeps. Java was able to say goodbye and to understand what had happened to her friend.
Java is now the last of our bunny colony that was rescued all those years ago. So far she is healthy. Bunnies need companionship. She has slowly (on her own) integrated with the guinea pigs. She seems content. But we are planning to introduce a new rescue senior rabbit to her soon. The hope is that this will make her happy for how ever much time she has left.
Misto was born at a very cruel meat breeder and it makes me so happy knowing he was rescued with his sister and got to live his best life at Kindred.