Saying Goodbye To An Old Friend…

"Sugar Pie"

I first met “Sugar Pie”, the rabbit, about six years ago–while I was doing some volunteer work at our local animal shelter. I came to work one day, and there she sat in one of the kennels–surrounded by scores of barking dogs!  I’m sure she thought she’d died and gone to rabbit hell!

I don’t know for certain, but I suspect that “Sugar Pie” was a discarded Easter pet. It was summertime when she showed up at the shelter, and by then her novelty would have worn off.  Whatever the reason, someone left her at the animal control shelter.

Whenever I saw the poor thing, surrounded by all of those barking dogs, I just had to bring her home with me–even though I already had one rabbit at home.

Fortunately for me, Ed had built an extra large rabbit hutch for “Honey Bun”, my Holland Lop, so he simply needed to add a divider to the middle of it.

For six years, “Sugar Pie”, a female rabbit, and “Honey Bun”, a male rabbit, lived next to each other–with only a thin piece of wire separating them.  Ed says “Honey Bun” probably thought he’d died and gone to rabbit hell, too.  So near, yet so far away…and “Sugar Pie” was such a flirt!

Although the rabbits were originally my pets, for the past couple of years Ed has been their primary care-taker.  He originally began feeding them for me at a time when I was sick, then eventually he came to like them–and they felt the same way about him.  They would actually come over to the cage door to be rubbed by him, just like a cat!

Over the years, Ed fed those rabbits hundreds of pieces of carrots, apples, and pears for treats–and they repaid him with thousands of tiny pieces of round rabbit poop!  Ed quietly became a “pooper scooper”.

Both rabbits were litter box trained in the beginning, but then “Honey Bun” decided he didn’t want to use his anymore, so he didn’t!  Instead, he picked out one certain spot in his cage–and designated it as his bathroom.  Fortunately, “Sugar Pie” continued to use her litter box.

Time passed, and eventually the inevitable happened.  Ed noticed a change in “Sugar Pie’s” appetite a few days ago, so we suspected that her days were getting numbered.  “Sugar Pie” left us on Monday afternoon, and we were relieved when it was finally over.  Her final days were difficult ones.

“Honey Bun” watched as “Sugar Pie” breathed those final labored breaths.  He cowered over in the far corner of his hutch, visibly upset.  After she was finally gone, he watched with curiosity as I removed his friend from the hutch, and prepared her for burial.  Later, I could see him watching, as we laid his friend to rest nearby…and they say animals have no feelings.  I know better!   Rest in peace, dear “Sugar Pie”.  You will be sorely missed.

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