Still no sign of the tortoises but while working with the large digger at the ecohouse the road builder noticed something wriggle in the freshly disturbed ground. Being a kindly and gentle man with all the respect for other creatures hunters display he got down from his cab and found a tiny hare trembling in its destroyed home.
Knowing that its chances of survival were now very low, separation from the mother almost always leads to death although they are born fully formed with fur and eyes open, he put the tiny creature in his pocket and took it home to his wife.
"Put your hand in my pocket!" he told her.
"Stop it. It's lunch time. Give over.'
"Go on. There's a surprise"
So she did. The whole family is now engaged in bringing up baby. Feeding bottle, rota, artificial form built in the kitchen (outside the dogs would have it in no time). Hares are not supposed to be domestic creatures, they are unlike rabbits often kept as pets (I have quite large holes bitten out of a kelim covered in flowers the rabbits thought to test for tastiness), but this one is settled in happily and growing fast, recognises everybody but loves the road builder's wife the best.
We're invited round to meet it when it's a bit bigger. I'll get some pix.
3 comments:
Very cute March hare, My girls keep asking for a puppy but dad says no. I wonder if a cute bunny would fill the void, just worried that Tashi, our cat may be filling herself if we did. Gates are grande!
And then they go to college and you are left with the dog. Either the grownups want a dog or no dog till those who want one are grown up and still want one.
We had cats but they were their own. Couldn't the girls just make friends with a parrot and chat to it while it sat about in the garden?
(Duhrer's hare, of course. The real ones aren't quite so hare-ish)
The idea of a parrot does sound good to the girls and I, but I fear dad will not survive another talking head. (outnumbered)Actually our Tashi is quite the cat. Anna has taught her to play hide and seek and our Japanese neighbour swears she is half human. Sitting upon the fence longingly eyeing the exotic fish in the neighbours pond, she slowly rises and then sits not knowing if the half drowning will be worth it.
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