I'm Dreaming of a White Rabbit

At this time of year when people often think of a white Christmas, perhaps you'd consider also thinking of a white bunny...

White, pink-eyed bunnies wait the longest in shelters as many people overlook their plain white coats or are put off by their ruby eyes. But you know what? These "plain" white, "scary" pink-eyed bunnies aren't plain or scary at all! They truly make loving, wonderful companions! And they often have more personality than you can imagine. Here are some of the reasons to LOVE the white, pink-eyed buns!

Sweet, gentle and loving!

White, pink-eyed bunnies are often amiable and sweet-tempered. More consistently than any other type of rabbit, these bunnies are almost puppy-like in their desire to be around people. Most are very kid-friendly and will soak up all the attention they can get.

Personality Plus!

Even though many white, pink-eyed bunnies look alike in appearance, they are quite individual and unique when it comes to personality! Some are quiet and mellow; others are almost impish; almost all are really smart - especially if there is food involved! White bunnies are certainly anything but boring!

Beautiful!

Their snowy white fur does not conceal the true beauty of their bunny features: pear-shaped bodies, full back feet, fast-twitching noses, and the sweetest, fluffy cheeks! Who can resist watching those cheeks chewing hay or parsley?

Expressive!

Their gentle eyes are not red like many think, but remarkable shades of pink, rose and lavender. The absence of pigment in the eye is what causes the unique shade. Brown and blue eyes are lovely, but pink eyes are also very expressive! You can tell when bunnies are excited, scared or tired just by looking into their eyes.

When adopting a bunny, personality is far more important than appearance. The best bunny for your home and lifestyle could come in any kind of package - even an all-white one with pink eyes! Give one a chance and there's a good chance you'll fall in love with the many wonderful qualities of rabbits, regardless of their appearance.

Would you fulfill a homeless bunny's dream by giving them a home for Christmas?

Meet a few white rabbits in person at MCRS' next adoption event on Saturday, December 20 from noon - 3 pm at Brooklyn Park PETCO.

Some of the area's homeless white are rabbits highlighted below.

Stories of life with a white rabbit:

white bunny
Comet

Comet joined our family at the Dreaming of a White Rabbit event in December 2007. In case you didn't have the pleasure of meeting my dear Mister, he's a big, handsome white New Zealand with impeccable manners and a gentle disposition. We love him very much! I'll share a little of his story. . .

A few months before I adopted him, I saw Comet's photo and description on Petfinder.com. He had this long, smooth face, huge pointy ears, thick white fur, and these amazing albino eyes! (His eyes are rosy, dusky lavender, or soft blue, depending on the light!) I was surprised to see that, week after week, he was still up for adoption. How could such a cool bun be overlooked?

Finally, I decided to put in an application and meet Comet at the White Rabbit event. When I arrived, he had just finished getting his photo taken with Santa (you'll see this pic in MCRS newsletters from time to time!) and was quietly munching hay in his litterbox. Needless to say, he was a perfect gentlebun. His quiet manners won me over right away. : )

After spending a year together, I can definitely say that Comet has been the most easy-going bunny I've ever cared for. He is never demanding or rude - no diva-style thumps, honks, or dish-tossing from this boy! Plus, he uses his litterbox like a pro and almost never has accidents. If he has a big bowl of water and a litterbox full of fresh hay in his condo, he is one happy bun. Not that he doesn't like toys; his favorites are blankets (he noses his way into them, then digs and explores every fold and turn!) and wicker balls. Check out this video of him playing with his blanket.

In terms of interaction with people, Comet is a bit of a shy boy. He doesn't rattle the condo doors to get out when I have guests, and would never dream of nipping me to get my attention (or for any reason, for that matter!). He never demands petting, but sits calmly, eyes closed, if he feels like getting a little TLC. He likes to wait til I'm not watching him before he comes out to run around, and then explores every corner of the bunny room. He is an all-together wonderful, lovable bunny, and we certainly couldn't imagine life without him!

rabbit on harness
Potatoes - The Love of a White Bunny...

Many years ago, I was looking for a baby bunny at a local breeder and on my way to the cage there was a BIG white rabbit jumping up and down in the tiniest cage I'd ever seen. He was the biggest bun I had ever seen. And he was absolutely insistent I pay attention to HIM and ONLY HIM. If he could have spoken, he would have said, "Hey! You! Look at me! Look what I can do! Look what I can do!" All the while pushing his sweet lil face between the wires begging me to take him home. I looked through the babies, but the big white rabbit at the front of the row had captured my heart with his endearing insistence. The breeder told me I has going to send the bunny to a butcher since no one wanted an adult rabbit. I told my mom we had to take him home. At first she was not pleased by my decision. She kept insisting the babies were much cuter, and he was so white and HUGE.

We took him home in a cardboard box. When we got home my mother even made me sign a contract agreeing that when the time came, I would be the one to dig the hole when he died (because he was so much larger than any rabbit I had ever owned, she was thinking towards the difficulty of burying an animal much larger than we were used to). Since he was already an adult we weren't sure how old he was, but the vet estimated he was around 3-4 years old. That was in 2000. I named him Potatoes. I love potatoes, and I named Potatoes after his white fur. It made me think of fluffy mashed potatoes. Potatoes was with me through high school and college. He even lived in the dorm as my secret roommate for two years. He had a litter box in the bathroom next to the toilet, and he would lie under my desk as I studied long into the night. I had trained him to come when I called, and visitors would often mistake him for a stuffed animal at first glance. After I graduated from college I taught high school for a year, and my students always wanted to see pictures of my bunny (they knew I kept photos of him in my agenda). By then Potatoes was 11 years old and his age was starting to show. He had a weepy eye and was beginning to favor his right leg. I had been giving him medication for years at this point. With the amount of money I spent on this one rabbit I could have bought hundreds of rabbits, but he was my special guy. My boyfriend would always joke that Potatoes was an emperor with how regal he would seem next to other bunnies. Potatoes would wait in the morning for me to let him run around outside at 6am when the grass was still cool. I would leave it open a crack when I went back to bed so he could push it back open when he was ready to come back inside. And he always did.

Three months ago I was preparing to move to Minnesota for law school and Potatoes lost complete use of hind legs. The vet said it was time to say good bye. No steroid shot or other medication was going to help him bounce around after me. I had been bathing him everyday for a week because he could no longer move to get away from his own mess. I lost Potatoes at the end of August, and the pain still brings tears to my eyes. He'd been my constant companion for so long. His red eyes were gentle, and he would tolerate me to snuggle him tight, as if he knew I needed comfort. Now every time I see a large white New Zealand for adoption I want to take them home with me because I know the love they are capable of. In my opinion, they aren't nearly as pretentious as a lot of the smaller fancy breeds. I have adopted three other bunnies and they are all precious to me. But Potatoes remains unique - and the only one tolerant enough to allow me to dress him as Frankenstein's monster for Halloween.

rabbit on harness
Wendigo

When our bunny Chimaera lost her companion to cancer, we knew from the way she withdrew into herself that we'd need to find somebunny new for her soon. We were dreading it in a way, though; her bond with Beezl had taken over three months and the intervention of the experts at the Companion Rabbit Society. This time we decided to let Chimi pick for herself, so we took her to the shelter and introduced her to prospective boys. The expected grunting and lunging happened over and over, until we tried a little white dwarf bunny with pink eyes. I was hesitant even to introduce them, because like many people I had an aversion to albino rabbits. Maybe it's the association with lab animals, or the pink eyes that look so unnatural, but that white bunny would have been my very last choice. Fortunately, I wasn't the one making the decision ... Chimi was. And Chimi knew from the very start that he was the right one for her. You sometimes hear about "love at first sight" between rabbits in some rare cases, but it's amazing when you actually see it. Our Chimi, who had relentlessly harassed Beezl for months, actually came home with the new bunny in the same carrier. They were already grooming each other that first night at our house, Chimi laying with legs extended in total bliss. We never had to bond them, because they were bonded from the very first moment.

And over time, I started to see what Chimi had from at the beginning. We called him Wendigo, after the mythical monster of the snowy wastes, but he was anything but monstrous. He was a gentle soul, our "guileless bunny," who didn't have an ounce of meanness in him. When we adopted another rabbit to make a trio, he and Wendigo were fast friends but Chimi went back to her old aggressiveness. At first we tried to keep Wendigo out of it, since the hostility between the other two just seemed to confuse and upset him. So we did one-on-one sessions between Chimi and Poncho (short for El Chupacabra), but these always turned into "Bunny 500" races as Chimi chased Poncho around and around the pen. It wasn't until we added Wendigo to the mix that things calmed down. He gave the two a focus besides each other, and became the peacemaker between them.

I'll always remember how, when my little niece first met Wendigo, she let out a squeal of delight and cried, "Oooh! White bunnies with pink eyes are my FAVORITE!" It's funny how those pink eyes can grow on you. They might seem unnatural at first, but then one day the light hits them just right, and they turn the most beautiful lavender color you've ever seen. That's when you realize, those strange eyes really are the windows to a soul that's just as beautiful in its own way.

rabbit grooming
Sherlock

Sherlock was a white, pink-eyed bunny. Some people might have been afraid of his looks, but not me. I saw in him his loveable, playful personality. He was a puppy in a bunny suit, getting into all sorts of things. Prior to his adoption, he was romping in one part of the kitchen. We had open pantry shelves there, but had boring cans on the bottom few shelves to keep the bunnies from being tempted. Sherlock used to love laying on the bottom shelf. One day, he decided to investigate what was above him - and he turned out to be taller than we thought. He stretched up above the shelves with cans and started snuffling around. In the other room, we suddenly noticed Sherlock had gotten awfully quiet, so we went to check on him. We found him - with an array of food products scattered around him! He'd opened a bag of rice (not very tasty), tried to get into the noodles, chewed a corner off a pizza dough mix so there was flour mix everywhere, and then he'd found a prize - drink boxes! So, mixed in with the flour and the bunny was bright orange juice! It was one of those moments you know you should scold the bunny, but you just want to laugh at the silliness of it all. :)

Much like a puppy, Sherlock enjoyed chewing on his favorite bone - a banana-flavored, fully edible "bone", which was just perfect for a bunny. Sherlock also enjoyed tossing around plastic baby keys and other sorts of toys. He was very sneaky and even stole chocolate kisses off of the coffee table.

Sherlock loved attention. If he wanted to be petted, he would hop about my ankles and nudge me. It was one of his favorite things to do when I was getting ready in the bathroom in the morning or when I was washing dishes. And whenever I came into his room, he always hopped over to greet me. Usually, he was looking for a treat or a pat on the head. Sherlock was just one big marshmallow of a bunny. When he was being petted, he would mush down and flatten his head to the floor. If he was really enjoying it, you could hear his little purring sound. Sherlock knew his name, too. I could call his name, and he would hop out of his room and down the stairs. He was probably one of the smartest bunnies I've ever had the pleasure of meeting.

White rabbits currently seeking adoption (Dec 2008):

With MCRS:

Tilly & Boots - a bonded pair, Tilly is all black and Boots is a pink-eyed white bun with dark ears, nose and "boots" (paws)

Kimba, Raen & Delilah - this bonded trio has a bit of everything. Kimba is a pink-eyed white lionhead with dark ears, nose and paws. Raen is a dark brown dwarf with Siamese points. Delilah is a colorful minirex.

Vickie - a young spayed female, pink-eyed with all white fur

Rose - an adult spayed female, pink-eyed with all white fur

Polly - a rambunctious young gal, pink-eyed with all white fur (be sure to watch her video too!)

Willow - an adult spayed female, pink-eyed white bun with dark ears, nose and paws

McKenzie - a spayed female dwarf, pink-eyed with white fur

Alanna - a spayed female dwarf, pink-eyed with white fur - ADOPTED!

Gwen - a spayed female dwarf, pink-eyed with white fur

Glynda - a spayed female dwarf, pink-eyed with dark ears, nose & paws

Dixie - a spayed female, pink-eyed with all white fur

With Animal Humane Society - five locations around the metro:

Trix & Turbo - a bonded ying-yang pair. Trix is a female and the white half of the pair. Turbo is male and the black half of the pair. Currently at the Golden Valley location.

Ruby - an adult spayed female, pink-eyed bun with all white fur. Currently at the St Paul location.

With Minnesota Valley Humane Society in Burnsville:

Zoe & Coco - a bonded pair of female lionheads. Zoe is albino and Coco is agouti brown - ADOPTED!

There are about 200 rabbits of all shapes and sizes seeking homes in the Twin Cities area. To find out more:
©2009 Minnesota Companion Rabbit Society