Sandra's Nest

                                             

Today, Sandra The Free Range Super Bunny who lives on my porch built a nest. She is going through a false pregnancy, something female unspayed rabbits do.  They pull out their fur, gather all the hay they can find and build a nest. They also have hormonal components to this experience.  They are so programmed to be constantly pregnant that they go through the motions whether they are or not! 

A false pregnancy can be triggered through being in contact with a human female who has recently given birth.  Last week, my neighbor Stephanie was here with her one-week old newborn.  Sandra must have absorbed all the Mommy spirit around us!

Today, 9 days later she has been furiously putting this nest together.  She has been so determined all day, to gather all the hay she can find, and put it in this spot. There are plentiful stashes of hay on her porch and she collected every last straw for her project. For hours she took mouthfuls and went into a big rectangular cardboard box I have for her that she never showed much interest in.

 

She went into the farthest corner of this box, protected from the outside light, and started stashing her most precious and soft things.  She brought all her fur in there. She tried to chew my sweatpants. Just kept chewing bits off of anything soft she could find. I got her a red blanket that she tried to bring in there.  I cut up a soft black sock and she did take me up on that.

Sandra’s fur pile – one of many

Hay supply before 

 

and after

This is my message to little Sandra.

Dear Sandra,

I am so impressed with the nest you built all by yourself today! I seldom see anyone work with such determination for so many hours.  You didn’t let anything distract you! Not food, not petting, not treats - nothing!  You just kept going with each hay load in your little mouth!

I never saw you approach hay like that– gathering it up in your mouth in bunches because when you eat it you only suck in one long piece like a noodle and you take your time.

Today you were building a secret nest! I am glad you could use the socks I cut up.  You even pulled pieces off the blue blanket.  That used to be my mother’s and I know if she can see you, she is just overjoyed that you are using her blue blanket for your  nest.

The only break you took was when you stopped so you could keep pulling more fur off yourself!

I know it’s going to be a wonderful cozy nest, full of all the most soft and precious things you could get.

I know you wish you had some babies coming to be in your nest that you could take care of. I would so happy to help you if you had any babies coming.  You would be a great Mama I know it.

Sandra, there are so many babies in the world – rabbit kind and people kind.   Some ladies just don’t have any and maybe that ‘s ok.

I just want to tell you – I knocked myself out just like you did .  I built my nest and put all the best things I could find in there.  I went shopping and brought home all the things. I made it as nice as I could.  My mother did the same thing, many many times. My sister did too. We worked really hard like you did today.

That is what we women do Sandra.  We knock ourselves out building a nest. 

Even if no one is showing up.