23 April 2011

Hapy Easter! Peter's story

Aschiuta got into the photo to complete the Easter-y feeling.
 
With just a day until Easter, everyone is talking about eggs, bunnies, spring and wishing one another happy Easter.

We haven't caught the rabbit craze too much here as we got the chocolate one. One spring though, about ten years ago...

Bunny for sale!

I was walking around the market place with my dad, buying vegetables and fruits for home, when my eye caught something different on one of the tables. A box with a little rabbit inside.
The rabbit was white with brown on its back and face and brown ears.

We stopped to look at the little fellow and admire it and dad asked me if I would like to have a rabbit. Thoughts of responsibility raced through my mind.
Even if I hadn't had a pet before, dad taught me to take care of grandmother's dogs and also, there was the story of my best friend's rabbit. She also got one, a cute little albino. It was however too small and had been taken away from the mother too soon. Even if she tried her best to take care of it, the poor thing died in a couple of days.

My dad assured me that he would help me out and, since the rabbit looked old enough, we decided to try our chances.

Of course, mom was surprised, to say the least. She doesn't like pets, except maybe for cats, but not even those in our own house. Deaf to her protests of "it will smell" "it will chew", we started making the little one at home. Needless to say, the first thing it did was wet the bed.

Accommodations

My dad came up with the perfect name, Petrică, which we often turned to Peter. He kind of got used to both.

Since we had a big flat with two hallways, we decided to keep the rabbit in one of the hallways, where there were few hazards for him. We got him a small sand box and he apparently taught himself how to use it instead of the floor or carpets, so we were very impressed.

He ate a lot of vegetables and we always asked the salespeople in the marketplace not to rip the leaves of carrots or radishes, since we had a chewer back at home. One of our favourite treats was sharing a pepper. The little thing was also licking my feet a lot and we heard that he needed salt, so we gave it a big chunk.

I spent a lot of time with Peter and we used to play chase on the hallway. The fridge was also conveniently in the same room and, whenever we would open the door, Peter would dash with the speed of light and try to steal some carrots or cabbage.

Of course, greens weren't the only thing he'd chew. He chewed my shoelaces until I couldn't use them anymore and also took a bite of the tv cable. From this point of view, he was a lot like Aschiuta.

We would go out to the forest for picnics and we also took Peter with us every time we went. Rabbit leashes were unheard of at that time, so we just let him run off around. He dashed through the grass like a bullet, but always came back when we called him.

No more time for bunny?

This all happened over the summer holiday and our rabbit grew up. We realised then that we had a female rabbit, but the name remained Peter.

Unfortunately for all summer holidays, it was soon coming to an end and my parents were starting to talk about what would happen to the rabbit when I started school again. They seem very strict about school and that nothing should stand in my way to knowledge.

All in all, they decided that Peter had to move out. My aunt used to have a lot of cats and dogs at her house and also a big yard with a lot of other farm animals. They decided we should leave Peter in her care and ask her not to make a stew out of her.

We went and visited after a while. Peter was in a cage and had grown very fat from the lack of exercise. I was very sad and made the decision to never ask about Peter again. I'm half sure she ended up as stew... I'm just sorry I wasn't able to keep her for longer.

My little story has a sad ending and I'm sorry about that. I know a lot of people out there might make the same mistake we did, taking a pet only for a summer. I hope they think about it seriously, because pets are not toys.

Hope everyone has a happy Easter!

7 comments:

  1. It was such a sweet story, but as you rightly point out, definitely not a good idea to take on a pet unless it's 'forever'

    Friends of our had a pet rabbit, too and when the family was transferred to the city, the rabbit was entrusted to the care of friends from the small village where they lived. When our friends returned to the village for a holiday, they were served rabbit stew and, yes! It was their pet rabbit! They were horrified and the children burst into inconsolable tears!

    Just goes to show how insensitive and thoughtless some people can be!

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  2. Oh dear! How cruel of their friends... Did they think it was some sort of joke or did they actually believe they had been entrusted the rabbit to fatten for dinner?

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  3. How sad, but the reality is, a lot of people end up in that situation this time of year. So many people buy chicks or bunnies for their children on Easter but don't take into consideration the commitment. One of my friends received three baby chicks for Easter, 10 years later her parents still had the chickens in their backyard. They loved them dearly, but truly never expected they'd have the chickens that long. Her parents became big advocates for people really considering the time, cost and commitment of animals after that experience.

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  4. Hi Lavi!

    Hope you're having a relaxing and thoroughly enjoyable Easter Sunday. It's chilly and blustery, here. Our rainy season is gearing itself up to make its entrance ;)

    No, I don't think the friends even considered that eating ones pet would be in any way hurtful. To them, it was just another meal option!

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  5. You so rightly point out the importance of careful consideration before taking on a pet! And bunnies are so adorable, but do need a certain kind of home environment, exercise and attention. Poor Peter. At least his life was good while he was with you! Happy Easter:)

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  6. Hey Lavi... This is my first comment on your blog, so I'll start off by telling you that I absolutely LOVE your blog (And Aschiuta).. :) :)
    A neighbour of mine had bunnies for pets as well, and they were really cute. Although I was about 8 back then, and kinda creeped out by their eyes.. :\ They moved out pretty soon though, so I don't know what happened to the bunnies.
    You're absolutely right though, about pets being responsibility, and that we really should put some thought before we decide to make them a part of our family. It hurts both us and them, if we take them in only to give them away..
    I've passed on a couple of awards to you, and I'd love for you to accept them.. Congratulations and Happy Easter! :) :)

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  7. Thank you everyone! I hope you all had a great time with your family and friends.

    I'm sure the mentality is changing and more and more people understand that pets are a serious responsibility, a bit like children.

    I will also get some photos of Peter, because she was a lovely little bunny. It might take a while though, because they are back at home on paper.

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