Champ

Champ is a rabbit that has lived with us for 10 years now. In bunny years that is very very old. Once upon a time before Lee & I had our boys, I worked in a veterinary clinic as a receptionist. One day someone came in with a bunny with an injured back leg that they found in a bush. The clinic I worked for did not treat exotic animals (only dogs & cats). So, I told the man that I would personally take the bunny if his leg was not broken. (Rabbit legs can not be set like other animals.) I took the bunny and had x-rays done on the leg. We found that the leg had a small fracture, but it was not completely broken. I took the bunny home, and for 6 weeks gave him a very small cage with a flat bottom so that he could not and would not move around very much. His leg healed very well, but he did not hop like a normal bunny, so I started some bunny physical therapy… I put him on our stairs on a middle step and left him. He either had to hop with his back leg to go up or use his back leg for support as he went down. This therapy worked so well, that the stairs became a game to him. If it was time to return to the cage, he would dart up or down stairs just to avoid going back to his cage. When Zander was born, I wondered what the rabbit would think of this little boy that crawled after him. It soon became apparent that Champ loved the attention. He even would hop to Zander’s room to hide when it was time to return to his cage. As time went on, Connor was born and Champ once again loved the attention of a little boy. However, Connor had loved Champ more than Zander. Connor insists that Champ is his pet. He loves Champ. Connor insists that he feeds Champ, gives him his snacks, and water. It took Champ most of his life, but he has truly found a best friend.