Relay for Life

Yesterday was the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life in Queensbury. This is my 5th year in a row with Rachel and her mom. It's a 12 hour event(7pm Friday night to 7 am Saturday morning), though I've yet to stay the whole night. Something or another keeps pulling me out and away at night, last night it was because I was freezing and I've already got a cold.

The opening of the whole fun is the Survivor walk. They start out with bagpipers, I always have loved the bagpipers. I stayed down near the campsite until they had gone by and then I caught up with Debbie and the whole team took the lap with Debbie, Rachel and I took turns pushing Debbie around the track, Debbie preferred me since I didn't run anyone over. Rachel ran me over at least once, lord only knows who else she ran over.

This is the team. Across the back is Allen, Rachel Gonyea(Team captain), Kimmie Bean, Valerie Rode. them the bottom is Me, Debbie Heflin(Rachel's mom) and James Smith. The shirt color's do have reference. Purple shirts are Survivors of Cancer, white are people that are there showing support to find a cure. Our Team is centered around Debbie and Rachel, they started us all.

Someone helping to light the Luminaries around 9:30, I think. It was after dark, that I do know. I was going to help but forgot that the 'lighter' that I have was in the truck and we had changed our minds and taken Allen's car up instead. And you can also see behind the person, the CR Bard sign, they support the American Cancer Society.

This is the luminaries up in the bleachers to spell out HOPE, they used to have a second set on the opposite side that spelled CURE, but they haven't had those in a couple years now. The digetal camera doesn't do a terribly good job at night, but at least I got a decent one.

This is some of the Luminaries that were present for Karen Welcome. Karen Welcome was our Human Resource representative at C.R. Bard and she was very well loved, she knew every one of the 1,000+ employees and she was just the friendliest person. She had a total of 17 luminaries, I didn't get her one, I got the carnations that are in there. The picture below is for my friend Pam Cali, she's still in treatments for breast cancer, so I got her a luminary in honor of her fight, and also the carnations.

Well, it was still really fun, despite being sick and really tired.

Memorial Day babies

Well 3 of 4 dutch have now kindled. Neena's was the bunch I was very eagerly awaiting. I wanted to see how a Tort crossed to a Steel would turn out. I guess I got my answer. Though they don't have fur yet by the skin colors, I'm going to put a guess on three steels and 2 blacks, no torts like mommy.

Amita's Have enough fur to know 2 Steels, 1 Black and 2 Blue.

And Robyn's are growing like little weeds. I don't know what it is with my blue dutch, but they seem to keep their first litters, Neena didn't keep her first one that's why I was so anxious for this litter to come.

And Robyn's babies:

Kitty I fully expect to have torts, she's a tort and the buck was a tort.

I've got a person that is willing to take the others, I'm selling the mismarks for meat, if they don't sell as breeding stock. They will go a week or two before I leave for KY. He just asks that I kill them(Rather I told him, he'd have to pay my dad or brother to do it, I just simply can't bring myself to do it) and I've also got Rachel's mismarked babies that we can also use as meat.

Fresh Rabbit anyone? It does taste really good and there are no hidden things in their diets.

Bunny Show!!

Well the Vermont double show was yesterday, and I actually didn't do too badly. Naturally my Hollands were showing at the same time as my dutch, so I was running back and forth both times. Here's Sam waiting patiently on my lap between the shows.

First show, Wordy(Steel dutch buck) was DQ'ed off the table for long bottom teeth, but Sam(Blue Dutch Buck) took Best opposite sex variety, in the second show Sam was DQ'ed off the table for only having one testicle. I haven't the faintest idea what happened there, he had, had both not even five minutes before that, but he seems to still only have one now and Wordy took Best opposite sex variety. Mimzy was 2nd out of 3 both times. That's all the ducth I brought, I did bring Matt, but only to sell. He sold and is gone now, to a wonderful home with a new breeder.

My Holland Lops were even in both shows, three of the four placed the same in both shows, Montana didn't get a chance to show, she apparently had been hiding her cold and stress from first time showing made her bring it out, so She was there for the exposure of showing, but she stayed back and didn't show. Calleigh was second best broken senior Doe in both shows, Dylan was 6th and Speedle(Dylan's father) was 5th both times- first and second off the table in Broken Senior bucks. Gabriel was mid pack- 6th out of 13 first time but the second judge didn't like him, and he ended up 12th out of 13 out of solid senior bucks. hehehe, it was fun.

Gab, waiting for the judge to type him out. The second time around, first time around, We didn't get a chance to get pictures, all the Buck's were nuts, they had Does on that table last so all the group of 13 wanted to do was get out and breed(not realizing they were all boys!)

And Montana. I had a lot of breeders and a judge that wanted to buy her, since I had one Holland Doe for sale (Mom's, but she got saved thanks to a judge that told me what to do to get her on the show table and to get her to produce babies)

Montana got to ride up front with Rachel, Damien(Her Cockapoo that came with us) McGee(A 8 week old Holland Baby Rachel bought) and myself. Everyone else had to ride in the back, tarped and covered. Sorry dad, that Cap doesn't fit my truck, it's too wide or my truck is too narrow. It did come off a Ford so that might be part of the problem.

There's Amita's babies, I'm leaning towards 2 black, 1 steel, and 2 blue.

Robyn's have figured out how to get out of the box already, I had to put two back in the box that were on the wire and one fell out of the cage wire and onto the floor so I had to go get him/her and put it back in too. Then mommy fed them while I watched on. Thankfully Amita's box is taller and there isn't anyway for her's to get out, and Robyn but alot of hay and fur in her box, Amita did not.

Anyway . . . Lots and lots of bunny stuff. Neena, Skye, Kitty and Calleigh are all I'm waiting on. Calleigh's got three weeks, Kitty has two, Neena and Skye should have theirs by Wednesday. I shall be patient and just wait for updates on Arizona. :)

Amita's babies now too

Amita had hers the day after Robyn had hers! and she had one more! Amita had 5 on the 20th, Robyn's 4 on the 19th, I was hoping on Neena having hers on the 21st, but she didn't, and still nothing today. *pouts* well I had a good run. I know two of Amita's are blue, the other three I'm still tossed up between Steels(like their father) and Blacks which is the default color as I call it. I'm hoping for Steels, one of them black/steel babies looks very nice and promising markings to show and sell.
I'll get some pictures of them up tonight/tomorrow. Mommy's not being as hospitable as normal. I don't want to bother her too much. THe one day I did go to take pictures, the batteries in the camera died(Of coarse!) SO they're charging today and I'll get pictures tomorrow of the babies and at the show! One last NY show, well it's in Vermont, but I get the feeling I won't be in NY for the Cobleskill show. I'll have to take Aunt Lisa to a Rabbit show in Kentucky, let her see what they're about, so long as she takes me to a dog show(with the girls hopefully!) We'll educate each other on our show worlds if we move down(or when it seems).

Babies!!!!!

*squeals* I'm excited, my Dutch are starting to have their babies!!! Robyn is a first time mom and Sam is a first time Daddy so they only had 4 babies(all Blue of coarse!) and they look really decent for markings.

Neena is nesting now, expdecting babies in the next day or so on her. Then there is just Amita left this weekend(Both Amita and Neena are due to Wordy. Wordy's a first time Daddy, Neena's will be her second litter but hopefully first live one, and Amita's just a very good mommy.) And Kitty who's two weeks off from these guys. And that's Robyn in the background cage there. Robyn was a good girl, she put them in the box, Neena's insistant on building her nest in the opposite side of her cage on the wire . . . . silly little doe.

And here's Poppy's little ones, they keep laying down to sleep when I come in. But I do have a really cute one on the camera.

Skye is due this weekend for Holland babies, any that I do produce are already sold, we've (Rachel and I) Have a waiting list of people for Holland Lops. Calleigh accidently got bred last Saturday(Thought I have put her and Speedle as far as possible away from each other, apparently not.) So end of June I'll have a second litter of Hollands. *Shruggs* oh well, at least people really want those! I've got show people that want the Dutch, the others will probably end up as meat or pets. That's the tough choice with mismarked Dutch rabbits.

Painting Fun.

Well I went out this morning to Home Depot and bought the oil based paint(and one latex based) and started to repaint the Gnomes/Dwarves. I need to find a peach colored paint, I tried a yellowish color that I thought was going to go towards peachish but it's def. yellow.

His red, green and black was redone, along with their white beards.

This fellow, again red hat, black boots, but I lightened his overalls and darkened his green shirt. He came out the best and is my favorite by far.

This is the sickly looking dwarf. I used him when I tested that yellowish paint on his face. Poor guy, he's the reason that we have to pick up Peach or skin tone paint. I've got a small amount, but I don't have enough. His shirt will get repainted, eventually. I've got some metallic stuff for their belts, but again that will wait.

Baby bunnies have their eyes open and today were hopping in and out of the box. It's exciting, I love watching the babies grow up.

They're sleeping there. I'll get a new pic of them tomorrow, hopping around the cage.

No PIcs, but oddball update

Well, nothing much, warmer weather lots of rain. I was able to get out and lunge Jazz, she's in the best shape I've seen her in since I got her. Not too heavy, not rail thin (Like alot of Arabians). She could use a bit of bending games and excercises, get her to muscle up her back some more, but not bad considering.
Pheonix needs excercise, he's getting fat, there's no doubt about that. It's just been so wet and everything, I can't get out on him. He'll have to probably go out on the line as well for a little while just to settle him down, they've been getting sweet feed and no excercise due to the rain.
At least they're enjoying the green grass.
Cami has also come into beautiful shape now that I've gotten her out onto the grass. I've got to excercise her as well, again, three horses to excercise and next to no time to do it in. Well I'll give it a swing anyway.
My mini rex babies, well now that I can count, there's six, 2 solid black, 1 solid blue, 1 broken blue, 1 broken back and 1 Castor. I'm not sure which ones are sold, but a few of them are sold. More Pictures of them soon. Amita, Robyn and Neena all feel bred. Skye, I'm not daring to try and feel her. Kitty I just bred less than a week ago so I won't be able to feel anything yet. I'm hoping for babies from all of them. Several of them I know I can sell easily, depending on the colors they turn out. Robyn should have blues, Kitty should have torts, Amita and Neena (Blue and Tort respectivly) were bred to the Steel so Amita may produce some Steels, but Neena- Don't know! Anyway, back to my waiting game.

Babies!

well three of my five mini Rex babies are sold, They were born on April 28th, she had a total of 6, but one was deformed and didn't survive. I checked them again today and one solid black, one solid blue, one black otter, and two brokens (One black, one blue possibly?)

Picture isn't the best, and you can only make out four bodies there. Two pink and two dark skins. She was bred because I had people asking for babies from her bloodlines. So it does thrill me that three of the five are sold.

I do have three dutch and one holland due near the end of May. The holland, Skye, we have a big demand for around here, and Rachel and I can't raise enough of them right now. People seem to want rabbits since they can't have dogs in small apartments, but rabbits seem to be allowed instead. The hollands seem to be the highest demand. Well more of the rabbits later.

Jody is gone, though I'm glad he's gone, now he should be in an place were someone will take good care of him and train him to make something of him.

that's the last picture I took of him, he is 7 year old thoroughbred, he's short, at only 15 hands high, he's heavy and unregistered. He's a heck of a jumper, he can jump and he also has a nice quick turn of hoof too, he'd make a nice hunter/jumper or even a gymkhana horse once he's trained. While I'm glad he's gone, I'm also upset because me and him knew each other very very well, I've worked with him since he was just a year old. I could do so much with that horse. I kind of want to bred Jazz so I can raise that foal completely, that or buy a baby in and raise it.

Not yet, it's too early and I don't have the money or the facilities to train a horse.