I have some very sad news. Very bad and sad.
The day after my last post, right before I went back home, suspicious because of her needy behavior, we decided to examine the rabbit to make sure she was alright. Sometimes when animals are feeling ooky, they become clingy and try to get your attention. Not only that, she hadn’t her usual appetite, merely nibbling hay and sipping water. Sure enough, one of her back toes was swollen, injured where the nail joined the foot. After I left, mom took her to the vet and sure enough, the verdict was confirmed: She had broken her toe. He removed the nail and gave her a staple, and prescribed a regimen of antibiotics and liquid food, so to make sure she got enough to eat since she was refusing just about everything else. Mom, wonderful bunny mom that she is, gave her the dose the required 5 times a day. She did everything to make it easier on poor Spooky, but Spooky Marie’s appetite continued to wane. The staple was removed (Spooky jumped into my mom’s arms when she saw the vet. She really didn’t like going there.) but her tummy was upset for lack of proper diet. On her return to the clinic, the nice vet and my parents decided to keep her overnight with an IV drip to get her system back in order. That night she died of a heart attack. No one expected it. She wasn’t a young rabbit (7 years is slightly elderly) but who would have thought the stress and pain of a broken toe could lead to this. My sister told me, and I talked to my sad parents, who buried her that night with a steel-cut oat in her mouth “for the journey.”
It is sad to lose pets, especially suddenly and strangely, but I am thankful for the memories that remain, and the people around me who give me comfort. Goodbye, little moon-bunny. May your wings carry you far.
Gone Home to the Moon
