Dong Dong's temporary home
Ever since April, I have been trying to find a place to house Dong Dong during the summer vacation when I come back to Singapore.
My original plan was to ask the help of my Shanghainese colleague to look after him. But my colleague has promised to look after another colleague's dog. Well, a dog and a rabbit staying in one place in peace and harmony? I don't think so...
Then, one of my Sinagporean colleague announced that she and her family shall stay back in Shnaghai for the whole summer vacation. In fear of H1N1, as she has a baby girl.I approached her about rabbit-sitting. She wanted to see Dong Dong and see how receptive her daughter is. So, one fine day, I brought Dong Dong over to her place and see if her baby girl will be frightened of Dong Dong. Come on,Dong Dong is such an adorable rabbit. Of course, the baby girl fell in love with Dong Dong. But my colleague herself was frightened of Dong Dong's size....So Plan B failed.
Then I started searching a pet hotel in Shanghai. To my horror, I found out that these pet hotels mostly cater to dogs and cats only. In fact most pet shops do not have any rabbit food supplies or any vet who knows how to handle the needs of rabbits. To the locals, rabbit is a dish in the menu in restaurants. Some of them rear rabbit as a source of food.
Last resort, I approached the pet shop that sells rabbit food. The shop that I frequent to buy Dong Dong's stuff. The lady was reluctant as her shop is very small and she doesn't want to start this sort of service. I pleaded my case. Finally she agreed on the condition that the rabbit can only stay not more than 3 weeks. The reason is that rabbits are very timid animals and can be stressed out easily. Rabbits also have very short memory. If I put Dong Dong there longer, he might be frightened of the patrons in the shop and suffer from stress. Then he will die. Also, he might not recognise his owner if he does not see the owner after some time. Sort of 'Out of sight, out of mind'. So, three weeks it is!
On the day before I fly back, I brought Dong Dong over to his temporary home. I put him in a carrier and took a cab to the pet shop. Although I prepared him mentally by telling him that he will only stay there for 3 weeks, he was still angry with me. He backfaced me when I go near his cage and refused to let me touch him. When others tried to touch him, he allowed it. So my conclusion is he is really angry with me...
This is his tempoarary home for 3 weeks. He is lucky that the pet shop is air-conditioned. If not, he will suffer badly as summer in Shanghai is just too hot!
The pet shop owners told me that if a rabbit is tramatized by changes around them, he will not drink or eat. He may even suffer from diarrhoea which is quite deadly. They told me if a rabbit is OK after the first week, he will survive the whole stay. Four days has passed since I left him there. I have not heard any news from the pet shop. Well, let's hope that no news is good news!
My original plan was to ask the help of my Shanghainese colleague to look after him. But my colleague has promised to look after another colleague's dog. Well, a dog and a rabbit staying in one place in peace and harmony? I don't think so...
Then, one of my Sinagporean colleague announced that she and her family shall stay back in Shnaghai for the whole summer vacation. In fear of H1N1, as she has a baby girl.I approached her about rabbit-sitting. She wanted to see Dong Dong and see how receptive her daughter is. So, one fine day, I brought Dong Dong over to her place and see if her baby girl will be frightened of Dong Dong. Come on,Dong Dong is such an adorable rabbit. Of course, the baby girl fell in love with Dong Dong. But my colleague herself was frightened of Dong Dong's size....So Plan B failed.
Then I started searching a pet hotel in Shanghai. To my horror, I found out that these pet hotels mostly cater to dogs and cats only. In fact most pet shops do not have any rabbit food supplies or any vet who knows how to handle the needs of rabbits. To the locals, rabbit is a dish in the menu in restaurants. Some of them rear rabbit as a source of food.
Last resort, I approached the pet shop that sells rabbit food. The shop that I frequent to buy Dong Dong's stuff. The lady was reluctant as her shop is very small and she doesn't want to start this sort of service. I pleaded my case. Finally she agreed on the condition that the rabbit can only stay not more than 3 weeks. The reason is that rabbits are very timid animals and can be stressed out easily. Rabbits also have very short memory. If I put Dong Dong there longer, he might be frightened of the patrons in the shop and suffer from stress. Then he will die. Also, he might not recognise his owner if he does not see the owner after some time. Sort of 'Out of sight, out of mind'. So, three weeks it is!
On the day before I fly back, I brought Dong Dong over to his temporary home. I put him in a carrier and took a cab to the pet shop. Although I prepared him mentally by telling him that he will only stay there for 3 weeks, he was still angry with me. He backfaced me when I go near his cage and refused to let me touch him. When others tried to touch him, he allowed it. So my conclusion is he is really angry with me...
This is his tempoarary home for 3 weeks. He is lucky that the pet shop is air-conditioned. If not, he will suffer badly as summer in Shanghai is just too hot!
The pet shop owners told me that if a rabbit is tramatized by changes around them, he will not drink or eat. He may even suffer from diarrhoea which is quite deadly. They told me if a rabbit is OK after the first week, he will survive the whole stay. Four days has passed since I left him there. I have not heard any news from the pet shop. Well, let's hope that no news is good news!
posted by miss-chui at
8:25 PM
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