4 years ago, I drove across town to rescue two bunnies whom the owner was threatening to turn into dinner if no one took them. There were 6 in total. All the other rabbits, brown with big eyes, were snatched up quickly.
The two white ones with red eyes no one wanted. So I took them.
I brought the twins back home, swearing that I would find them a home. That home turned out to be mine.
What to name them? It was so hard to name one bunny, but two? I posed this question on a bunny Twitter account I had created for Rainbow and Pat.
“Twins?” someone remarked, “How about you name them after the Weasley twins on Harry Potter, George and Fred?”
George and Fred they were named.
Fred was a very shy, timid rabbit. He was big bunny, but he always seemed to squeeze himself into the tiniest spaces.
We took him everywhere with us. We got to go to cool events all over Houston. Fred went to glamorous events, parties and took photos with DJs, Olympic champions as well as hundreds of people who wanted to take selfies with him. We once almost got tossed out of a fancy hotel, because I took a photo of Fred in front a fancy spa! I loved pushing the envelope, though with Fred, I was always mindful of his very shy nature.
One day, I brought home a tired, skinny, filthy rabbit who had been left outside all winter. While I was getting him ready to go to a new home, Fred begged to see the new rabbit.
What harm could it be to let them see each other? So I watched closely as they sniffed each other, tentatively.
The loneliness of the new bunny took over and Fred’s very sweet nature made them hit it off quickly. Off these two waltzed into Fred’s cage and they were inseparable.
We named the new bunny Mocha, and Fred got to work parenting him. He taught him how to use the litter box, settled him into our household routine and constantly, constantly snuggled him. Fred washed Mocha’s fur, and let him eat most of the food.
Suddenly, Fred wasn’t so shy anymore. He advocated for Mocha, and watched us carefully when we took care of him. Did he feel we were we being a little too rough with his baby? THUMP! Did his little Mochaccino need a break from us petting him? He pushed our hands out of the way and blocked us from touching him. He loved Mocha with the same level that a parent loves a child. Mocha is terribly spoiled, but loves his adopted father just as much.
Soon, another heartbroken rabbit, Theodore, came to us. Fred knew what to do. He socialized Theodore and helped him feel like he was part of the family. During violent thunderstorms, Fred would sit nearest the window, eyeing the storm, daring it to even try and come hurt his babies.
When Fred got sick, Mocha and Theodore took turns keeping Fred warm, snuggled and loved. They groomed him. They gave him kisses. They ran to him after those awful force feedings and medicine sessions. They tolerated lights being flicked on at all hours of the night so I could check.
Today, we missed seeing Fred alive again by 5 minutes. He died before Fred could see us all together one last time, right as I was getting off the freeway to the hospital exit. I hope he knows how much we loved him and how much we wanted to be there when he died, but I didn’t want him to be forced to wait for us. When he was ready to go, I wanted him to let go.
He was a loving rabbit, who spent hours staring at me, as I imagined little hearts floating above his head. He loved his family. He loved going to the park and playing.
Life isn’t the same without him. RIP
Fred Shen
May 1, 2016 – July 12, 2020