An English Spot

English Spots are a breed of rabbit. They happen to be my absolute favourite breed of rabbit, because they're fun and amazingly adorable, but mostly because my first rabbit was an English Spot (mix).
Nancy was my first rabbit, and we made a lot of mistakes. I think everyone who's into rescue or seriously into animals has a past pet where they'd like to go back and change something.
We got Nancy from a pet store, which was the first problem. They promised us she was a pure dwarf, which clearly turned out to be untrue (as it always does). She grew into a weird looking rabbit, a fairly large body, buggy eyes and disproportionally tiny ears.
We really didn't know what we were doing with Nancy. She mostly lived in a cage, she didn't get regular greens, and I was fairly small then and probably terrorized her.
We did do some things right though - she had regular hay, irregular vet checks, she was spayed.
Nancy and Loki (our cockatiel) quite enjoyed each other's company. They would play hide and seek, since Loki liked crawling in and out of her cage (the door was always open).
We did do one thing totally right with Nancy though - we loved her very much. We had her for 11 years and although she was a cranky little nutcase, we loved her and we tried to do our best. She introduced me to rabbits and I like to think she had at least a decent life.

What brought on this look back is that an English Spot (mix) showed up at East region of TAS this week. He was transferred to South and I am excited to see him when I get back!

A Cat Interlude #10

I'm out of the city this week and away from the shelter, so how about some lovely cats who need to get away themselves?
Sunny is still there. Sunny has been on this blog more than any other cat, because I adore him even though he's now got a reputation as a grumpy old man. He's cranky and depressed and he snarls sometimes. He really needs to get out of there, but there is a nice cat in there and I hope someone sees that.
Weezer is a darling boy who is equally playful and friendly. He's happy to be held and he's happy to explore. He has this adorable habit of scooping up his water with one of his paws. He's been there for about two months, and he may or may not be at Petsmart right now.
Hershey is such a handsome devil. I love his beautiful coat. He's such a lovely cat, and so much fun. He loves to play and will leap ridiculous heights to catch a toy.
I have no idea why he's been waiting for almost four months, because he's affectionate and active. He was surrendered, I believe, for spraying in the house...lo and behold, the shelter neutered him and now he's wonderfully litter-trained and spraying isn't a problem. Like magic!

I think Hershey and Weezer will both be at Petsmart for the adopt-a-thon this weekend (if they're not already there). They were both left unpicked in the Kennel Cafe adopt-a-thon - hopefully they have better luck this time!

Another Update on Chloe!

Chloe was a sweetheart who came to the shelter last November. She was one of the prettiest rabbits I've ever seen, and a big cuddler. My first post on her is here. She started to get grumpy in the shelter, but luckily she was adopted by a family that clearly loves her to pieces. They sent me an update in February. And now they've sent me another one!

Hi Laura, We thought we should send you another update on Chloe! Chloe is having so much fun! We took her out for the first time on Easter when it finally started to get warm. It looked like Chloe saw sunshine for the first time, she was squinting her eyes in first bit, but then she got used to it and enjoyed the rest of her day outside.She's a big sweetheart. She loves snuggling in your arms. Her favourite thing to do is probably hopping... she hops like crazy! We also put together a great video, we hope you enjoy it!

They also sent me a video they made, which is just about the sweetest thing ever. I love it!


I love updates. Imagine, that little girl was dumped on the streets in a cage, then had to deal with being in a shelter. And now she's a member of a family, clearly loved and cherished, living a spoiled life. It's the most amazing thing...and really, the whole point.

Roll Call

A surprisingly short roll call, hooray!
Ana: 1.5 yrs old, surrendered March 28, still not spayed, a little grumpy
Butterscotch: 3 mos, surrendered February 27 at a week old, a little skittish
Neville: Stray April 6, cutie-pie and super outgoing, issues with being picked up
Nutella: Surrendered February 27 with three babies; super friendly, great personality
Pinocchio: Surrendered April 16, friendly, tame - I cannot get a good photo of this little guy but trust me, he's cute

A Look Back

Pepper's adoption the other day marks the last of the apartment bunnies, so I thought it'd be fun to look back at the litter (and how long it took to get rid of them!). On a side note, I love that I said little Pepper looked like he'd have 'quite the personality'. If only I'd known!
If you don't know, Pepper's story started (we assume) with an accidental breeding. I guess his owners felt overwhelmed, because when they moved out, they left 7 young rabbits in the apartment. They called TAS and we ended up with all of them.
There were 5 males (seen above) and 2 females. Unfortunately the two females had to be put down. I assumed the five males would go super-fast (see the original blog post), as they were all cute and friendly.
Ha. This was on October 23rd.
Originally, the males were split. The two white boys, who would become Fred and George, got one cage. The Three Stooges, who were almost identical, got another (above). However, it turned out that Pepper beat the crap out of other rabbits so he got his own cage pretty fast.
Skipper was named after the butterfly marking on his nose. He was the most adventurous of the group, and the friendliest. He only lasted two months and got adopted in December.
Moe was the only one with no brown, just black and white. He was very shy but he was totally my favourite. He got sent to Rabbit Rescue, where - confusingly - he was renamed Skipper (there was a lot of confusion with these names). He was in RR for three months before being adopted by a great family in February, who sent me an update here.
Fred and George were with us for five and a half months, which is ridiculous because they were the cutest bunnies ever. They were finally adopted at the beginning of April.
And finally there was Pepper, who was my least favourite of the group and yet, since I was stuck with him for six months and he spent a few weeks in my house, I have to say I was pretty fond of him by the end. I am so glad he found a home at last on Thursday.
And with that, we can close the book on the apartment bunnies! Let's hope we never see any of them again except in happy update emails.

By the way, did I mention we have a rat at the shelter? His name is Pinocchio and he's a sweetie, so if you're looking for a rat, come on down!

The Menagerie

Here's Giles! He is no longer Beans. He went through about 50 names before we settled on Giles, and that was mostly because we got tired of trying new ones. Isn't he a handsome boy? Here's a weird fact - it turns out he doesn't have cataracts. Instead, he has a bi-coloured iris, so half of it is grey. I was quite surprised at that. He's also not as old as we thought he was.
He and Alice get along famously. His transition to our house has been so smooth, it's ridiculous. It's like he was always here. They're a pretty funny pair, as he is (literally) one third of her weight - she weighs 12 pounds and he weighs 4 pounds. Sometimes she squishes him by accident, but they're working on it.
He's very sweet and he's a good guard bunny too! He was sitting in front of the door the other day and suddenly started thumping. I looked outside and realized a HUGE raccoon was sitting on our porch.
I thought this was a fun excuse to introduce the rest of my household, since Giles has had to put up with them all.
Well, that's Alice again. That is not how you should hold your bunny. Look at that indignant look on her poor face. We humiliate Alice a lot...it's just so much fun!
We have four dwarf hamsters (for now?). The female, Molly, lives alone, and then we have the three boys above, who are her sons. Al, Ollie and Jamie have been with us since they were a few days old, when they looked like this, and they are the sweetest hammies ever. Molly is a vicious little bugger but we love her anyway.
Carmen is our canary - she was a foster and never left. She is the spunkiest canary in the world, and has survived a stint in the wild, having her leg almost severed, and running into a window. She's totally fearless, which is a little odd for a bird the size of a ping-pong ball. Yeah, I don't know why she has five million bands either, they came with her.
Loki is our oldest, our cockatiel, and the only non-rescue. She is not too bright, but she's the sweetest, cuddliest bird in the world (she's snuggled up under my chin as I write this). Loki is extremely easily intimidated, and is scared of everything from the hamsters to the rabbits. Giles was immediately added to her List of Things to Run Away From.
Baily is our lovebird and a total lunatic. He came from a string of abusive/neglectful/ignorant homes and by the time he got to us, delivered in a woman's purse, he was a bit...insane. He's calmed down a bit but he still doesn't put up with anything and has firmly established himself as Boss of the House (below me). He has already put Giles in his place with a firm nip on the nose.
Loki and Bailey have a tumultuous love affair that's been off and on for about 2 years. It's very disturbing and we wish they'd stop.

And there we have it! A full house, but at least we're never lacking for entertainment. Giles has fit right in!
In other news, TAS South is having another adopt-a-thon, this time at Petsmart at Laird & Eglinton. It'll be next Saturday and Sunday (April 30th and May 1st), so come check it out!

Out on the Green

We had such success with the rabbits on the harness at the adopt-a-thon, we decided to try it on regular shelter days. It's actually really beneficial - I'm sorry we didn't do it earlier! They love getting outside, they get a break from the shelter environment and really come out of their shell, we get to know them better, and now we can say that all our rabbits are leash-trained! Well, as much as a rabbit can be leash-trained.
Remember Ana? She's turned out to be quite the grumpy, grunty girl. She's not mean or anything, just a grouch. Pepper was like that too when he first came. Hopefully we can work it out of her! And I'm sure it'll help when she's eventually spayed (kitten season fills up the spay appointments pretty quick, I think). I'd be grumpy too if I had owners like that.
Ha, this photo cracks me up. Rexs have such box-shaped heads. She's a little wild on the leash, but we'll work on that. She is definitely a gorgeous girl.
Neville is the cutest thing ever. Too bad he kicks the bejeebus out of you when you pick him up. We can work on it! It's certainly not a deal-breaker when he's got a cute face like that, and an otherwise sweet personality. He's actually had a few people looking at him lately. Lops go fast, I'm sure we won't be able to hold on to him for long.

He's certainly a silly boy. He decided to dig a little area in the dirt and then lie in it. Comfy! His face is just the most adorable thing ever. I'm going away for a week, what do you want to bet he'll be gone when I get back?
Emma is one of the prettiest rabbits I've ever seen, and a perfect example of how you can't tell their personality in the shelter. She spends most of her time pressed in the back corner of her cage, ignoring people. We took her out and she was jumping in my lap, cuddling up to us, running around - a total charmer! I love putting bigger bunnies on a leash, it suits them well.
I'm very happy to say that Emma has found a home! Some perfectly lovely people came in today who had really done their research. They took their time and took each bunny out, spent time with them and got to know them. I wish every adopter did that! They were leaning towards Neville but ultimately decided on Emma because she totally turned on the charm when she was out with them (good job, Em!). She is going to be very loved and spoiled. Hopefully we get an update soon!
And here's the really, really AMAZING news - a few hours after I left, PEPPER GOT ADOPTED! After six months of waiting! A man came in and said, "I want Pepper". He used to foster rabbits and apparently he really knew what he was talking about. Pepper is going to be a free-range bunny with an experienced owner. It's pretty much perfect. I'm so ridiculously happy for him! He's such a sweet boy, just a little quirky. I'm so glad he finally got a home!

Do you know what that means? We have TWO rabbits left: Ana and Neville. Last week we had seven. That is the most amazing thing ever! I hope we get lots of updates over the next little while. Hooray for leashes and hooray for well-informed adopters!

Adopt-a-thon Update - Already!

That was fast!
A lovely family adopted Guthrie, one of the sweetest and most playful kittens at the shelter, during the adopt-a-thon. They've already sent me a fantastic update! Look at him up there - looks pretty content, doesn't he?
Hi there,

Just wanted to let you know that Guthrie is doing wonderful in his new loving home! He is quite the character!... And also great news, him and his bigger brother Leo (who is 5 years old) connected almost immediately. They like to chase each other around, and at the moment- Guthrie's biggest challenge is how to get up on the window ledge to sit with his big bro. No luck yet, but I am sure it will be very soon :)
Also, Guthrie loves to look at himself in the mirror. Other than chasing his brother, thats his next favorite thing to do- he's even scared himself a few times.

Guthrie is the perfect fit in our little family! Enjoy the pics....
Look at that! He already looks right at home. I think Guthrie is going to be loved for a long time :)

Thanks for the update!
It feels like so much is happening right now - first off, I'm out of school for the summer (woo!) so I have more time for the shelter. I already have another update (from an older adoption) waiting to be posted (plus I have an update on Beans!), and some adoptions lining up for rabbits. And another adopt-a-thon's coming up!
Lots to do, but happily it's all good things!

Day Two: Adopt-a-Thon

Yesterday was the last day of the adopt-a-thon! Overall, it was a fantastic weekend, despite the crazy weather on Saturday (Sunday was much warmer and nicer). Everyone had a good time including the animals, although by Sunday evening they were all tired out!
Best of all, we had a whole slew of adoptions.
Six more cats got adopted on Sunday! Thomson, the big brown tabby, was among those. He didn't go home with the family who visited him yesterday, but with some extremely nice people who have already let us know how much they love him. This sweet girl in the photo above is Petunia, and she also found a home!
We brought Billy and Daisy for the bunnies. We almost didn't bring Daisy but eventually she did join us. I immediately put her on a leash and took her out front - a big bunny like that was sure to catch people's eyes! Doesn't she just look like she belongs on a leash? Daisy was fantastic, and this is another example of how hard it is to judge bunny personalities in the shelter. They're stressed, they're in a cage all day, and it's hard to tell if they're genuinely crabby or just not good with dealing with the shelter environment. Daisy has never been mean, but she hasn't exactly been a social butterfly in the shelter.
Well, sheesh. Look at that. She was a complete doll at the adopt-a-thon. She wanted nothing more than to curl up in your arms and lie in the sun. What a suck!
Luckily, Daisy really turned on the charm and a young couple just fell in love with her. They weren't even looking for a rabbit, but look at that face - Daisy's irresistible! They went out and bought supplies (including a harness!) and came back for her a few hours later. Daisy is definitely going to be spoiled rotten! I hope we hear an update at some point! And to think, we almost didn't bring her.
We put Billy on the harness and just as I expected, he went totally nuts. This rabbit has ENERGY. I mean, I thought Pepper had energy, but Billy puts him to shame. As soon as I took him outside, Billy took off down the street, dragging me along with him. After a while, he calmed down and sat with me, but I'm sure we were an entertaining sight for a while there.
Billy also charmed someone over, a very nice lady who also owned a dog and a cat. She brought her lovely dog in to meet Billy, to make sure they got along. Billy was completely disinterested, but the dog seemed to like him! She decided to take him home - it may not work out if he doesn't get along with her cat, but she seemed like a very responsible pet owner and we haven't heard anything yet, so fingers crossed!
We took Pepper out as usual - he just loves being outside. He was great about being on the harness for ages. He's just so good outside the cage, it's a shame he turns into such a grouch in the shelter. Once again, he was the last one left and the only one not adopted - poor Pep! However, a lot of people were falling in love with him, so I'm hoping someone comes for him at the shelter. It sounds like a potential rabbit adopter is coming to the shelter on Thursday, so maybe they'll be interested in him!
So, totaling both days of the adopt-a-thon, we adopted out:
* 18 cats
* 2 dogs
* 3 rabbits
* 1 hamster

Not too shabby, especially considering this was the first adopt-a-thon where rabbits were adopted, and they went 3 for 4!
It sounds like we're doing a Petsmart adopt-a-thon in a few weeks, so the small animal room seems to be emptying out. Just in time for the post-Easter rabbit rush, I suppose!

Hey, check out our Facebook Page - we've almost got 200 fans, exciting!

Day One: Adopt-a-Thon

As we were setting up the animals this morning, it snowed.
And then it hailed.
And we thought, "Holy moly, no one is going to come."
Luckily, we were totally wrong!
While the day started off a little slow, it quickly picked up, especially when we took some animals out in the front of the store to lure people in off the street (the adopt-a-thon is held in the backyard). One volunteer took this adorable cat and just zipped her up - she was pretty content! It was absolutely freezing but soon we had tons of people and the adoptions began to pile up.
We took two dogs, a sweet little puppy named Daisy who went almost immediately, and this wise older boy named Scout. Scout was an angel through all the madness, and he too got adopted a few hours later. His new family were completely enamored with him. I don't think Scout has to worry about losing his home ever again.
A grand total of TWELVE cats got adopted! We thought the kittens would go fast, but happily a lot of the older cats also found homes. It was a great day for cats, and by the end of the day we only had four left over. Hershey, Sebastian (a long-haired black and white who looks a lot like Sunny) and Thompson (above), plus a tiny little kitten. I suspect Thompson will go to his new home tomorrow, because a very sweet little boy came in and held him near the end of the day, and it was pretty much love at first sight for both cat and boy. Thompson watched him leave until he was out of sight!
A bunny has never been adopted at one of these adopt-a-thons (people come for the cats and dogs). They only brought bunnies because I badgered them into it, and they were laughing that it was a little pointless. So I (brilliantly) declared that at least one bunny would be adopted if it killed me.
Well, thank goodness the best bunny adopters ever showed up! This incredibly lovely couple, who had researched bunnies in depth, came to look at Cat. I had her on a harness at the front of the store, and Cat was just lovely with them. It sounds like she's going to have a absolutely wonderful home! They put her on hold and will be picking her up in a few days. Hooray!
Once Cat was unavailable, I put Pepper on the harness to take him outside. Nothing catches people's interest more than a bunny on a leash - they look, do a double-take, then go "Oh my gosh, is that a bunny?" And then you can lure them into the adopt-a-thon! I was a little hesitant about Pepper though, since he can be a grouch sometimes.
Well, look at that photo up there! He was a perfect gentleman the whole time. Pepper loves being outside the cage. We basically had him outside the whole day, he was my buddy for the day and he did a great job! No one took him - but he charmed a lot of people and there's always tomorrow!
Another small animal got a home today - Rusta got chosen by a lovely woman who just fell in love with her. There she is, wrapped up in her new mom's scarf. That little hammy is definitely going to a good home. I was giving out the blog left and right, so hopefully we'll get some updates soon!
Overall, it was a fantastic day despite raining, snowing and hailing at random intervals. I hope it's a little warmer tomorrow! We'll be bringing more cats (and probably dogs), as well as two more bunnies (Daisy and Billy). I can't wait to get big girl Daisy on a leash, she'll really catch people's eyes!
Here's hoping tomorrow is even BETTER!