Arabella + Arthritis + Myristol =

nearly a miracle ....

I had mentioned in an earlier post about the very bad arthritis that Arabella was suffering from. She had been in a bad way for just under 2 years and I'd been searching high and low for something to help her.

Not that long ago I bought her some magnetic pads. This little one is extra strong (and marketed towards women, it's called the Senza) but it was the perfect size for her very sore left leg. Not that I am able to get it underneath all the time - she prefers to toss is very, very far away!

Then shortly after that purchase I came across 'Myristol' which I managed to buy online from the Colorado House Rabbit Society (they invoiced me as I live in Scotland and it came from the US) but it arrived fast, and Arabella had 2 pellets that very same day ...

They are the same shape and size as her regular pellets from ALLEN & PAGE, Natural Rabbit Pellets (which I order from my local horse feeds store at £10 for 20kg), so I make up a mix for her

and I put in Deeside Scottish water which has curative properties, along with apricot kernals, Kyolic garlic drops, Traumeel homeopathic pain killers and a liberal doze of ground herbs on top for taste

then I make them into little rabbit-mouth-sized balls of goodness and

Voila! the princess gobbles them down in no time at all!

She gets the Myristol in her first 2 batches, then she gets 2 batches later on.

She has shown a great improvement on the Myristol, but it's not made her 100% better. I would say she is about 60% improved. And because she has been on them for about a month (if I can remember rightly), I'm happy that it's made a difference to her.

But she is still in pain, and her back is rather hunched and my little sweetheart has no sign of a tail any more - it's a bedraggled little shred underneath her, where I have had to cut off all her fur to keep her clean from soiling.

So we take every day as it comes and I'm so thankful she is healthy otherwise.

A little while ago (as well) I had a taste test for the rabbits, to encourage them to eat more hay! well ....

as you can see -

a FULL bowl of delicious, awfully expensive, top quality hay! (untouched and ignored) ...

and no matter what I do, - reduce the carrots, give less greens, limit the pellets - still the hay goes untouched!

I chose the Oxbow Timothy Western hay from The Hay Experts (they said even the fussiest of eaters would eat it - well, they've not met my two!!)

(these full bowl images are repeated in Wesley's room, I can guarantee that!)

...... Fi-hus-see!!

and that was after turning their furry adorable tiny noses up at these delicious looking sample bags - it was hard for me to even try and resist them, and my molars are way past grinding!!

still, the huge bag of hay is being used (in Wesley's kitty litter, he may even be munching behind my back...!)

Arabella and I had a visitor the other day! Juliet came by to see my exhibition and we had tea and cakes afterwards!

Arabella is being showered with loving attention by Juliet - a very accomplished poetess and fellow rabbit lover.

Juliet has a blog - The Crafty Green Poet and I visit there often to read about her poems and the walks she takes and the birds she sees.

And er, as you can see, Baby Hare Anoushka made a run for it, and went home happily with Juliet!

and in celebration of my hares exhibition and my story writing I will be having a GIVE AWAY very, very soon ....

with most probably a mama, and maybe even a baby hare as the prize!

Interested?

then make sure to stop by again shortly

... in the meantime - here is Mother Hare Oksana with her story -

Oksana is a very devoted and dreamy mother who loves to spend time amongst the blossoms with her babies. They

just adore this because they play games all day long in the fallen petals. Oksana watches for danger as the tiny

ones scamper amongst the trees treasures for hours on end. The other babies nearby soon join in too because

surely no-one could be having that much fun they think? but it’s true, yes they are! and in no time the glade is

filled with happy leverets dashing thru the spring flowers making the soft velvety flakes pounce up in surprise.

Oksana knows that being a baby is the only time they will get to truly enjoy their freedom with carefree thoughts,

because as soon as they start to attend the Forest and Field Baby Hare Awareness courses and learn about the

dangers, those little happy smiles all turn to stern pouts. She knows the most enchanting glades where there will

always be endless year round blossoms and tiny stars and wonderful galaxies in the air and takes her babies to

them all. One day infact there was a mass hatching of tiny gadflies and they floated around the meadow like

miniscule angel wing stars. There was to be no jumping from the youngsters that day incase a baby gadfly was

brought to earth by mistake.

Oksana is looking forward to sitting snugly on your armchair. She would appreciate an open door so that she can

visit one of the special glades every day with her babies, plus all the other baby hares. There is no need to worry

about when spring is over because in summer time it will be winged insects replacing the dancing blossoms, and in

autumn it will be the leaves and in winter it will be the snow! You are welcome to come along to the glades too, you

can be an extra set of watchful eyes looking out for danger. Ofcourse don’t get upset if you think the babies are

just having so much fun and it would take you back a few years to your childhood if you were to join in with them.

There are some games that only the babies should be playing! Besides you would look awfully strange, so huge,

racing around and not mention trying to avoid those scampering youngsters between your feet!