Most of you who know me probably did not know that I was the
proud owner of a White English Lop. Vader was given to me by my good friend
Mary in Maryland. Vader has brought me great pleasure these past few months. He
was a great representative of his breed.
I was so excited to show him at convention this year. While
at convention on 10/19 Vader went off food, he did not drink any of his water overnight
nor eat any of his hay and treats (carrots, apples, and sweet potatoes). Vader
was the first rabbit of ours that we checked on early Saturday morning at 6:15
am.
I noticed something was not quite right with him, when I
tried to pet him he lunged at me and tried to bite me. I told my daughter to
bring him over to the angora grooming area so I could check him out. Vader’s
stomach was as hard as a rock. By the time I went to track down the Lop Breed
Chairman to have my rabbit scratched from the show, he was already on the show
table. There was 25+ Solid Intermediate Bucks being shown. I asked one of the runners
if I could have my rabbit pulled to take him up to the vet, and I was told NO!
Once my rabbit was put back in his coop, I immediately took
him to the attending veterinarian in sick bay. The vet told me my rabbit had a
bowl obstruction and immediately gave him baby gas drops, cat hair ball
medicine and I.V. Fluids as well as pain medicine. Dr. Wendy kept me posted throughout
the day on how Vader’s prognosis was. I also tried Critical Care, Oxygen Paste,
pineapple juice, and a formula my friend gave me (that she has had good success
with).
Needless to say by October 21, 2013 Vader had not gotten any
better. In fact, he was getting worse! He could not lift his head, he was barely
breathing, he was grinding his teeth, he was in BAD SHAPE! Dr. Wendy called me
during Youth Best In Show and said I should make a decision. I told her I was
on my way and two of my “sisters in the Bunny World” went with me to see Vader.
Both Bri and Kim who I cannot THANK enough went with me to see my boy. They
both reassured me that I was making the right decision to have him euthanized.
I asked DR. Wendy, if we could wait until Jessica was done with Best In Show
(since her Harlequin was in it).
Once Jessica said her good byes, I held Vader as he took his
last breaths in my arms. Vader you will be missed but I know it was the right
thing to do!
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