The Final Chapter

In 2012, we moved from California to Utah. Bertie and Mercedes took being packed in the back of the van fine, even though as their 4 foot long and 2 foot wide cage was encircled by a myriad of other essentials that had to be transported simultaneously. Fargo, on the other hand, couldn't make up his mind if he wanted to sit on the front seat in a harness or wander the van, complaining as he went. After about 70 miles of this, it was decided that he would remain in his carrier, behind the front seat, and just come out for food and potty breaks.

Though it was only about a 12 hour trip, we split it up into 2 parts, so as to give everyone a rest and not have to travel in the dark. The KOA in Wendover, Nevada was our choice, since it had a non-smoking cabin that welcomed pets. (The other lodging we evaluated had put pets in smoking rooms, so that just wouldn't do.) The KOA cabin had plenty of room for the buns' exercise pen, and a refrigerator for their salad and a window air conditioner (this was the end of June). Once Fargo came out from under the bed, he went to sleep on the extra bunk bed. (Here is a shot of him asleep on another bed after he had a lion cut while he was boarding this year while we were in Yellowstone.)

In the end, the animals weathered the trip better than the humans, who had a lot of setting up and arranging to do. Though the area we moved to has hay growing all around, we found the best hay ever(!) online from Sierra Valley Hay in California. The ordering was fast, the turnaround time usually 2 day, and the shipping was included in the price. Bert and Mercedes were especially fond of the oat hay, which always had that "new hay" smell. Fargo was happy that a PetSmart was nearby, or other items were easily ordered from wag.com, again usually with a 2-day turnaround.

The rabbits and Fargo were pleased to welcome 2 new residents on the Saturday before Christmas, 2012:

Possum, in the tunnel, and Snickers were adopted from 4 Paws sanctuary at a Pet Smart adoption event. Though they look very similar, Possum is a short haired Siamese mix, and Snickers is a long haired Siamese mix. At 3 and 5 years of age, they keep Fargo, now about 13, on his toes, and most of the time he seems to not mind having them around and even plays with them on occasion, something he never did with our other cats. They got along well with Bertie and Mercedes: Possum got into their exercise pen on a couple of occasions and was promptly ignored, and Snickers was fascinated by their hay, and took every opportunity to snag a piece.

Bertie and Mercedes came to live with us  in 2004. Mercedes was born in January 2004, and adopted by us later in the year from the Sacramento House Rabbit Sanctuary. Bertie we got later that year as a companion for her, from the veterinary hospital on whose doorstep he had been left: we always thought that he had been someone's Easter bunny. We had good times with the buns and they seemed to enjoy life with each other and having human slaves and various cats to boss around. Bertie left us on February 13, 2013, and Mercedes held on until September 4, 2013. We miss them wholeheartedly and deeply.

R.I.P. Bertie and Mercedes Bun

As you may have guessed, this concludes this blog. Thank you all for your kind words over the years.