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A Refreshing Approach to a Family New Year
With a new year, we say goodbye to the past and hello to the future. What can we do in the present moment to bring closure to last year and hope for what lies ahead? For families, it can be a time to celebrate and learn from the previous year. ...
"Divorce Advice: Getting Divorce Advice From the Right Source"
Getting the right type of divorce advice depends on what type of divorce advice you want and what you want to use it for. When looking for divorce advice, it is smart to clearly define what you are seeking the advice for so you can be sure to look...
Let Your Wedding Flowers Speak the Language of Love
Congratulations! You have found the man of your dreams and are getting married. What a wonderful time in your life – full of promise, hope, and happiness. Can you think of a better way to express these emotions than through flowers? A wedding...
STOP BRUTALITY AT FAMILY LEVEL
Family violence is still common, and rape within marriage has never been recognized as crime.
Almost a fortnight ago, a man Makungu Misalaba (26) a resident of Chandulu village in Magu District Mwanza butchered his wife Makani Ndolle (19) and...
The Fugitive
Where are the dogs of yesteryear? They all seem to be some breed or another these days. They never used to be. Back in the forties, we had dogs that LEANED in one direction or another. Or maybe two or three directions at once. But we never...
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Easter Bunny—New Member of Our Family!
My husband and I decided to give our children a real treat this Easter...A real live Easter Bunny!
We made a trip to our local Agway store and, as we suspected, they had several baby bunnies for sale, along with fresh-hatched chicks and ducks. Thank heaven that Darlene, the lady working during our visit, knew a good bit about bunnies. She was able to quickly gather the essentials we needed to take our new family member home, before our 2 year-old harmed any of the little chicks that she insisted on picking up by their necks! I was glad to get out of there!
So with supplies in hand, and our furry little friend in a box, we headed for home. We made a quick stop at the local Giant Eagle for cat litter, since our new friend will be a house pet.
Since this was my first experience with a bunny, I decided to consult my wise friend, the internet, for some advice. I learned a lot from the sites I visited and it made the whole process much easier for us. We especially wanted to learn about litter training, since that would be the key to keeping our new friend indoors! I'll share these helpful links with you later in the article.
If you're thinking of purchasing a bunny of your own, here is a list of essential items you will need to get started. Are you wondering about cost? The bunny was cheap, just $6.50. However, all the "stuff" we needed to go along with it added up to about $75.00. These amounts can vary depending on the type of bunny you want (pure bred, or mix) and the "accessories" you choose.
Essential Items:
1. Cage—There are lots of styles and sizes to choose from. We chose a 2' x 2' wire cage. Make sure there is ample room for all the items that must be in there plus room for bunny to play! 2. Water bowl—I recommend a heavy ceramic dish that will be heavy enough not to tip over when bunny decides to stand on the side! 3. Food bowl—Same recommendation as above. 4. Food—Special pellets just for bunnies. Ask your bunny salesman for recommendations. TIP: I always thought we could feed her scraps of cabbage, carrots, lettuce...you know, all the things that "Peter Rabbit" liked! I was quickly cautioned against this. It seems that too much of these good things will cause diarrhea! I've not personally witnessed this as yet, but I'm taking her word for it. These items should only be given in small amounts as "treats" every now and then. 5. Litter pan—Any plastic pan will do. I purchased a corner pan from Petco, which fits nicely in the corner of her cage and doesn't take up much space. The back sides are higher than the front so bunny can get in and out without much effort. 6. Salt/Mineral wheel—This little wheel hangs on the side of the cage for bunny to lick. You can get them in different flavors too! 7. Chew
toys—Hard wood or plastic items for bunny to chew on so that her teeth don't get too long. This will save your furniture! 8. Plastic Tray—If your cage doesn't come with a removable tray, you'll want to purchase one to put underneath the cage for catching droppings that fall outside the litter pan. We purchased a large plastic tray from Lowes that was actually made for under a washing machine. It works! It's probably worth spending a little extra to purchase a cage that comes with a tray already. Purchasing the items separately doesn't save much and the tray won't be the exact size. 9. Litter—Here's another bit of advice: Don't buy regular cat litter from the grocery store. If you must, make sure that it is NON-clumping! I didn't learn about this until AFTER we'd already purchased a BIG container of "fast-clumping" cat litter! The reason? Bunnies tend to "nibble" at the litter, and it may "clump" in their digestive system! Not good. CareFresh Pet Bedding is highly recommended. It's made from short fiber pulp that cannot be used in paper-making. It is 100% safe and can be used for both bedding and litter. Very absorbent with superb odor control. I use it now and it works great!
That about does it for the essentials. There are plenty of "extras" that you can get too!
You'll want to make sure bunny has plenty of challenging activities and toys for mental stimulation so that he/she doesn't get bored! Boredom can lead to depression and/or excessive destruction.
It's important to realize that your bunny's behavior is usually motivated by one of three things:
1. A natural need and inclination to chew and dig. 2. A need to communicate in non-verbal ways. 3. The social structure as seen by rabbits, which all members of the family relate to them by way of "pecking order."
These three basics of rabbit behavior are the motivation behind their actions. I highly recommend visiting the following web sites and reading the articles to learn more detailed information about your new friend. I found them all extremely helpful!
1. http://www.bunnyrabbits.org/bunnylove/bunnytraining.htm 2. http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/litter.html
So, if you've thought about adding a furry new member to your family, go for it! Your kids will love it and this will definitely be one Easter they won't forget!
About the Author
Gina M. Woods is an artist, graphic designer, wife, and mother of three children. Please visit her web site at www.spiritwithindesigns.com for a variety of Christian gifts created from her artwork. She is also involved in affiliate marketing. Join her marketing team FREE at http://mpamads.com?u=1506492&l=4510. Get FREE step-by-step lessons & earn a steady income online. Questions and/or are welcome at ginawoods@alltel.net.
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Family.org |
Offers practical help for marriage and child-rearing. Recent magazine articles, letters from Dr. James Dobson, news, and RealAudio broadcasts. |
www.family.org |
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FamilyFun: Fun stuff for Kids, Parents - and More Family Fun |
Family Fun is your online source for arts and crafts, recipes, and parties for every holiday, plus hundreds of ideas for kid crafts, birthday cakes, ... |
familyfun.go.com |
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Family.ca |
Take polls, rant and rave on Canada's family broadcaster site. Full of shockwave games, animation and information about the shows they carry. |
www.family.ca |
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Family.com - closed beta |
Features a to do list, calendar, and recommended sites for health, shopping, and recipes. |
family.go.com |
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FamilySearch.org - Family History and Genealogy Records |
Search for family ancestors. Billions of free family tree, family history, ancestry, genealogy and census records. |
www.familysearch.org |
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Family - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia |
A family consists of a domestic group of people (or a number of domestic groups), ... Members of the nuclear family use descriptive kinship terms: ... |
en.wikipedia.org |
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Family (biology) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia |
The concept of rank at that time was still in statu nascendi, and in the preface to the Prodromus Magnol spoke of uniting his families into larger genera, ... |
en.wikipedia.org |
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Family Guy |
The official Family Guy website with everything you ever wanted to know about the show and more. |
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Parenting advice, child development and family reference at ... |
FamilyEducation.com provides parents with educational printables, games, activities, parenting ideas, tips, family advice, and information on learning ... |
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Family Life Today |
FamilyLife, a division of Campus Crusade for Christ, provides practical, biblical tools to strengthen marriage and family relationships, including the ... |
www.familylife.com |
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WorldVillage - A Family Friendly Portal for Families, Kids, Adults ... |
WorldVillage is for families, kids, adults, parents and teachers. Features include coupon codes, online games, downloads, internet monitoring and internet ... |
www.worldvillage.com |
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Open Directory - Home: Family |
Family Check-up - Provides assessment activities and access to educational materials related to family health with respect to family life, finances, ... |
dmoz.org |
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Free Family Ecards, Family Greeting Cards, Family Greetings, Cards ... |
Express your appreciation to your family/ loved ones for all that they have ... Reach out to your friend/ family/ loved one and let them know how much you ... |
cards.123greetings.com |
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kids and family news articles - arizona education - arizona family ... |
Family News Articles - azcentral.com provides articles and reports on Arizona education and Arizona family events. |
www.azcentral.com |
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Google Directory - Home > Family |
Many articles dealing with a wide range of topics from single parenting, family life, child development and stress management. ... |
www.google.com |
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Family Research Council: Wednesday, December 6, 2006 |
Christian organization promoting the traditional family unit and the Judeo-Christian value system upon which it is built. Provides links, commentary, news, ... |
www.frc.org |
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Sesame Workshop - Home Page |
The non-profit educational organization behind the show and related educational outreach. |
www.sesameworkshop.org |
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National Sex Offender Registry |
Free national US search for registered sex offenders. Map registered sex offenders to see who lives in your area. |
www.familywatchdog.us |
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FHI Family Health International |
Provides the highest quality research, education and services in family planning, STDs/HIV and family health to improve the health and well-being of ... |
www.fhi.org |
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National Family Caregivers Association |
Caregiving advocacy organization with tips and statistics on caregiving in America. |
www.nfcacares.org |
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