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Ask Astrid Fridays: Releasing Primal Patterns & Revealing Dreamscapes ~ Part 2
As promised, today’s Ask Astrid blog is the sequel to Wednesday’s Part 1 that shared the same title. It involves a precognitive dream I had about Astrid a few days after the collective dream involving the wild and prehistoric animals I chronicled in that post. I didn’t realize at first that the same theme ran through it until days later, as I continued interpreting and integrating the message. There were of course personal energies involved, but they reflected the bigger picture moving through me, and as a result, also moving through Astrid since she and I always go through similar things even if in different ways.
I often have some of my clearest and most telepathic or precognitive dreams come through my rabbit companions – on and off Earth – as well as my Russian tortoise, Gaia. I remember one many years back where Nestor let me listen through her ear and I journeyed through it to where my parents lived (far away from me at the time) and heard an exact conversation they were having, which I relayed to them and got confirmed the next day. It was her way of showing me that the telepathic lines were open to receive clear messages through our connection and through telepathy itself.
From then on, the telepathic channels between me and my beloved soul companions who once did, or currently do, inhabit animal bodies have been opened and I receive powerful messages to assist the shift of times through my personal experience of it.
That kind of profound dream experience has happened with Nestor, Joy, Cosmo, Gaia, and of course, now, Astrid.
But this dream I had last week was a psychic one, and what unfolded in waking life ended up having the connection to the theme from the previous one. I didn’t know until a couple of days later that it would turn out to be precognitive, but it did indeed foresee what was going to happen to Astrid and its immediate effects on both of us.
In the dream I saw Astrid after some kind of incident/accident had taken place. I didn’t know what the particulars were of how, but the result was finding her with the tip of one of her paws cut off. I remember feeling horrified about it and although it was cut off, I didn’t see evidence of blood, but could see inside as if it were hollowed out from where it came off. I looked around for a towel to wrap it in and remember having difficulty trying to figure out what vet to take her to for like an hour, as I was stressing over my sweet girl’s condition. That’s all I remember.
I woke the next morning feeling bothered by it and relayed the dream to Dave, as I usually do when I have very clear and detailed or odd ones. He told me it was just a random dream, as his way to assure me.
Well, a couple of days later, I’m woken in the middle of the night by noise downstairs. My intuition and mom instincts know immediately that it’s Astrid dashing around the living room like crazy, as a result of being spooked by our male cat, Boojum. I get out of bed because I can hear her continue freaking out and running about, and start to head down the stairs when in the dimly lit corridor I see her shadow sprinting up the stairs and the sound of her nails on the wood clambering and sliding about from her speed. She’s in flight mode and when she gets scared like that it’s hard to center and calm her for a while. The only thing she knows – that any rabbit or prey knows – is to run like heck and escape at all means. When she sees me she doubles back down the stairs leaping several steps at once and appearing to take a sliding side tumble (or at least that’s what I could make out in the shadowy dark), not expecting me to show up, and then turns back around and passes me, while heading under the bed upstairs to hide.
All I remember is being horrified by the sound and sight – just like in my dream – as I’m just thinking about her injuring herself while running blindly.
I continue down the stairs just to see if my instincts had been right and there was Boojum, sheepishly sitting upright in front of the opening to her pen, as if to say, “What? I didn’t do anything.”
I knew that he’d entered her area in the middle of the night to steal some hay or water while she was peacefully just laying there in her meditative/off-planet mode, as she does, and when she realized he was there it was too late. It felt like a stealth attack and her prey instincts put her in flight mode, feeling like she was threatened by this sneaky predator moving in the shadows nearby.
I immediately ran back upstairs to check on her and found her huddled under my side of the bed, scared. I talked to her calmly and was worried, wondering if she was alright.
I went to the center of the room in front of the bed and laid down to wait for her to come out and she did. That’s when I noticed her lifting her front right paw up now and then, as if it was tender to put weight on it. And then she stopped to sit and lick at it and groom her face and the paw. This was on and off now and then. So of course I panicked, thinking she may have broken, fractured, or sprang her paw.
I was a mom mess at 2 am.
Like I’ve done in the past with my babies, I decided to lay there on the floor with her all night if necessary. I remember once spending the entire night, awake, under the bed with Nestor when she was sick, in order to see her through the night.
So I grabbed my pillow and wrapped a towel over me (all I could find quickly) and laid by her side in the dark while administering Reiki and calling forth all of my healing energies and help. I did this for about two hours and she stayed next to me laying mostly still and only moving a few times in different positions. When she did move she was still lifting or licking her paw, but grateful for my presence, the energy, and my talking her through the fear to a place of centered calmness again. You can be assured I gave my all for love.
She nosed me a few times and after the last time she did so, she then made her way back down stairs, saying, “Thank you and I’ll be alright now.”
I felt her telling me she wanted me to get some rest, so I made my way back to bed, falling asleep while sending her more healing energy and praying for the highest good to unfold the next morning. I only slept a couple of hours.
I woke and checked on her immediately and she was doing her normal routines, eating, drinking, pooping – all signs we rabbit parents look for because they are crucial to their well being. But on rare occasion I still saw her pick her paw up slightly or lick it. Not often, but even if once, it’s enough to warrant worry.
I couldn’t see anything and there wasn’t any blood anywhere. I didn’t want to poke and prod too much in case of anything being broken. So, I felt that taking her to a vet was the better option than my digging around. The challenge being that the next day we had to leave to travel to our new location, it was a Friday, and we were in a small mountain town.
I searched online and found a local vet, five minutes away, but didn’t see anything about them treating rabbits or exotics. I looked up where we were going next and DID find a vet that treated rabbits there and had great reviews about their rabbit knowledge and care.
While I wrestled with what was in her best interests – waiting to get her to a rabbit vet, or taking her in immediately to a vet that didn’t treat rabbits, I went upstairs to get ready in case I needed to leave right away while I asked for a sign and the highest good to be clear.
As I made my way to the second floor, my eyes were directed to something tiny on the corner of the stairs. I bent to pick it up and discovered the puzzle piece needed.
It was Astrid’s nail – the whole thing! I know her nails because she has dark blackish-brown ones and they are very thick. So now I knew that she had lost a full nail in her frantic clambering on the stairs in the middle of the night. Oddly, there was no blood on it, her paw, or the carpets or stairs, and the end where it came off was hollowed.
So far, all of this mirrored my dream – the tip of her foot cut off (in fact turned out to be her nail), the hollowed out area where it came off was how the nail appeared, as well as no signs of blood. The towel I looked for in the dream to wrap her in seemed to end up being the towel I wrapped myself in for the two hours I laid with her and yes, I did spend time trying to figure out which vet was best, as I weighed all the options and played out the scenarios and how they would affect Astrid in the long run – just like how in the dream I stressed for an hour about the same.
Finding the full nail with hollowed end posed the concern that I might not be able to see the site of where the nail came off and it could get infected, and that with this kind of pressure to rip it off, perhaps she might have a broken toe or some other kind of damage.
I decided to call both vets. First the rabbit vet where we were headed to get their thoughts. They agreed that if I could get her in right away it would be better, to avoid potential infection. Problem was we’d be traveling Saturday, so couldn’t get her in that day and both vets were closed on Sunday, so Monday was only available at the new place. But to me, that was just too long to wait and wonder, or have things potentially go wrong. Still, I made an appointment there just in case, as they had barely any spots open, while I continued to assess the situation.
I then called the local vet to ask if they saw rabbits, see what they thought, and to relay the incident, as to me it felt like something that could be assessed even if not expert with rabbits being that dogs and cats can also lose nails.
To my luck, the technician that answered was very sympathetic to the situation, has had many rabbits of her own, knows how to handle them, and knows quite a bit about them. She asked the doctor if she’d see Astrid even though it’s not her specialty and the doctor was more than accommodating. She relayed that if any extra advice or meds were needed that the doctor would confer with rabbit vets she knew in other areas. They were completely full that day, but said if I could drop her off in the next half hour after their scheduled surgery that morning, they would fit her in in between the appointments that day and watch her for us in the meantime.
So, I took her right away. I was sad to have to leave her for a few hours, especially since we were traveling the next day, which meant she’d have to be in her traveling case two days in a row. I also didn’t like leaving her with an injury by herself, but with the pandemic, curbside drop-offs and pick-ups are the only way anyway.
Of course I spent those long hours away from her thinking of her, telepathically talking to her, and sending energy while I calmed myself down in the solitude of the mountain on a ski run all by myself awaiting the doctor’s call.
And I got the best possible news. The doctor called and confirmed that she had torn off the nail, but there was no redness, no blood, no swelling, or any signs of inflammation or tear to the skin surrounding it. Although it was a relatively new injury, it all looked fine. The soft inner part of the nail stub was still there (why I saw the hollowed out bottom portion of the nail) and she said that’s why her paw is sensitive. She said it’s like if we cut our nails too short and that sensitivity we’d experience. So if she happens to touch it a certain way, this is why she will pick it up or lick it, as it’s tender. But the good thing is, it is not a weight bearing toe that she lost it from. So this is why there’s only occasional tenderness experienced.
And, she examined the foot and toe and felt no breaks in the bone so didn’t feel it necessary to x-ray her. Even if her toe had been fractured, it simply would have to heal on its own, as there’s little they can do and she said that rabbits heal pretty quickly in this regard. That actually was the case for the human/part rabbit me 😉 as I’ve broken my toe and both feet in recent years and there was no setting involved – just natural healing time to mend.
The doctor noted the same as I did that Astrid didn’t seem to be in any major pain except for the random tenderness, which had already decreased since the time of first impact. We both agreed that meds didn’t feel like the right option since she continues with all of her normal behaviors, is moving around normally, and there’s no sign of infection beginning. Meds can mess with their digestive systems and eating behaviors. So, I was told to keep an eye on her and if any behaviors change or I notice infection beginning, her not able to stand on the paw, or bad odor from the paw (sign of infection), to bring her in immediately. The nail will eventually grow back and once it starts in a few weeks, it will grow strong around the inner soft part and she’ll be good as new. This vet said they actually weren’t going to be open this weekend at all, but told me to call her and she’d come in just for her, which was very sweet. Or, I could take her to the rabbit vet in our new location.
I went to pick her up and she was so happy to see me and go back home. She continued on with normal behaviors and I hardly saw her pick her paw up, if at all, and the next morning we were on the road with Astrid on my lap in her carrier doing amazing as she always does.
We arrived at our new place where we won’t be leaving again for four weeks, so it’s the perfect settled time to allow her nail to heal, while there’s a good rabbit vet close by if needed, and for both she and I to integrate all of the energy themes streaming through.
And it didn’t take her long to get comfy in her new surroundings. I was grateful to find there to be no stairs in the new place, wall-to-wall carpeting so it would be soft on her paws, and a cozy compact home for the family to be all close together. Since getting here I haven’t actually seen her lift or lick her paw like she was anymore and she’s continued with all normal behaviors. In fact, she’s zoomed around with exuberance, binkied, and flopped harder than I’ve ever seen her flop (even Dave remarked he’d never seen her do this) – all signs of one happy, healthy, secure bunny. And she’s continued to have a fully open pen 100% of the time with mutual trust between us.
She’s even found her new throne.
Don’t you just love all the cute, eclectic western boots surrounding her and the bears, moose, and fish on the ottoman guarding her that connect with the animal messenger theme of Part 1 and with how I keep mentioning the recurring appearance of bears in my dreams, the sighting of the moose a few weeks ago, and my being a Pisces (the fish, who inhabit the watery emotional depths of the sub and unconscious).
The boots feel to reflect the spirit of independence, confidence, endurance, the American dream, traditional values, and visions of the old South West. They also speak to New Frontiers and having a dream you’re not afraid to go after. And while they were the beginning of freedoms for some, they also stomped on the freedoms of others.
Astrid LOVES this chair so much and will sit in it while we watch movies at night, lay in it sometimes awaiting us to come home from our outdoor time, and sits in it at night while we sleep. How do I know that? Because I can see both the chair and her pen space from where I sleep at night and can see her shadow and silhouette of her ears peacefully sitting on her throne listening to the silence of the night darkness.
It’s a great vantage point for her to stay centered and aware of all that is around her. Perhaps assisting her to be more present and conscious with expecting the unexpected.
It’s been a huge relief to see her bounce back immediately and on her way to healing. It’s also been so beautiful to see her pick right back up and build upon all of her enhanced connective, joyous, and expansive behaviors she’s evolved into on this journey. The cats have even been hanging out with her more. We’ve witnessed more nose-to-nose encounters with Boojum and Sweet Pea hanging out with her under the bed.
And as for the tie-in with Part 1, indeed there is the connection to releasing primal patterns that came through the actual experience itself that Astrid went through.
She had a moment of vulnerability, like I did the day I could feel the streaming through of collective anxiety, and then got overwhelmed by the oncoming primal energy that Boojum in his predator and very raw, primal behaviors embody. He’s not a super spiritually focused soul, but instead has come into this life to be more base and core focused in his experience of life – to feel the sensual aspects of physicality, luxuriating in ego-based immediate needs, and being instinctual and survival motivated. In this way, he reflects to me Astrid’s T-Rex.
Boojum didn’t mean to harm Astrid, but the primal energy he carries was a trigger to the core prey essence that is embedded within Astrid’s DNA, even if she IS conscious of more. And when we aren’t present and grounded (she is often integrating and journeying off-planet or in the in between realms), then things can knock you off balance very easily. They can take you by surprise and cause trigger reactions instead of having the ability to respond with more presence when you are embodied and centered.
The wild and prehistoric animal dream in Part 1 spoke to the clearing initiation for big change coming through the purging and releasing of old core energies. These collective pools of untamed, primitive and survival mode instincts have been unconscious for so long and are now surfacing in order to integrate them more consciously through compassionate embrace.
On some level Astrid called this experience up in order to move through more of these patterns and releases, just as I was working through them after the dream, and we all are worldwide.
As I mentioned, we also seem to help buffer the energy for others, the more we each can work through the energies, and I feel that Astrid did her own share of that buffering in taking on the old prey/predator, victim/perpetrator energies. On a soul and higher self level, she wasn’t afraid to face this fear – one of the greatest she would have as a prey animal. And played out this triggering experience in order to move through it, just as I have been facing the fears of the mountains through skiing every day these past weeks so I can integrate the core patterns more of these unknown terrains and these vulnerable spaces.
And rather than have something really horrible happen, it was only her nail – the tip of the foot that represents Pisces, watery, unconscious energies (like the ocean the animals ran to in my previous dream) that broke off. But it was not a vicious or horrible injury. It was one that evoked tenderness, both in helping to remember the value of the incident and the energies through physical tenderness, and to represent the bridge to wholeness and healing – through a tender heart and more compassion and kindness.
This was demonstrated by how she’s held no ill feelings toward Boojum or either cat, when she could very well have gone into defensive mode with charging and grunting and running them off when they come around. She could also have allowed the old triggers to consume her and put her in fear mode, but neither happened.
Instead, I’ve seen her AND the cats both engaging one another more since we arrived to our new place and without animosity or fear. They have been sitting closer, edging into each other’s spaces, seeking to be with one another, and Astrid has even allowed Boojum to sit at the back of her throne above and behind her while she sits in it, with both of them at peace. There’s even been a lot of super cute engagement on Astrid’s part where we witness her literally hopping in front of Boojum back and forth, asking him to play with her.
Just as I wrote in Part 1, “the interaction confirmed for me that these energies only hurt us if we try to run from them, dismiss, fight, or even deny them. There’s a sense of their wanting acknowledgment and understanding of their place within the framework.”
Although Astrid was thrown into a core reactive place of panicked fear when Boojum startled her, it was evident after the two hours I laid with her doing energy work for the highest good that night, that she had moved through things and integrated it with my support.
We are both deepening into being bridges of compassion for the collective purging, as best we each can. And while the DNA redesign that we’re all experiencing is hugely transformative, it feels like it can be integrated with greater ease than one might think. It asks of us to be open to the possibilities, to expect the unexpected, surrender to tenderness, and to trust that things are in divine alignment for the highest good of all concerned.
So, Part 2 was about a revealing, precognitive dreamscape that prepared me for the unraveling of Astrid’s literal experience to release primal patterns. On some level, the dream helped me to process things on the subconscious levels so that I could be more present for her.
Yet, at the same time, it was a shared experience of releasing primal patterns, as I feel everything Astrid does as if it’s my own, and so we went through it all together. I got to have my triggered reactions to it all, breathe my way back to centering and empowerment, and together we harnessed love to walk us through it. Not to mention, I was able to look at my own old patterns of judgment or fear around these energies through those raw emotions that took place at 2 am in the full darkness of the night.
But when brought to light in the dawn of the day, the shadowy figures, horrifying sounds and sights, and raw fears all softened to reveal the heart’s resiliency through compassion and willingness to understand each part for what it is.
Of course there is so much more I could express about all of the symbolism that took place through this experience, but you may be able to uncover those pearls for yourself.
I actually thought that this would be the conclusion to this theme desiring to be channeled through, but in fact on 2/2/21, three nights ago, I had another dream that wants to be shared and within that dream I was specifically shown three parts. So, I guess there’ll be one more.
Astrid’s Making Waves
This is just a fun update on Astrid’s queenly and cosmic reign extending out beyond our Faery Realm and Forest Portal here. We’ve been touched to hear of her showing up in people’s meditations and dreams, providing support and inspiration through the social media shares I’ve posted of her, her energy, and her messages, and even showing up in essence through rabbit sightings at divine timings that helped people with confirming decisions. And today, we found out that photos of her with her castle have made waves for our favorite rabbit and small creature supplier, Small Pet Select, as she was chosen for their Top Fifteen Cuties (it used to be Top Ten, but they just changed it with today’s Saturday Newsletter, as they wanted to include a lot of the sweet Guinea Pigs they have a backlog of.
Astrid was featured in their newsletter along with 14 other cuties that hit publication this morning. They don’t share in any particular order, but I found it interesting she was #6 and today they switched to the Top 15, which also equals a 6 – the number of harmony, balance, soulful integration, hearth and home, perfect union, communication, sincerity, unconditional love, nurturing, healing, truth, enlightenment, humanitarianism, reliability, compassion, empathy, and Mother Earth’s energy.
Here is the link: Top 15 Cuties: June 9th
Their caption compares her to Princess Rapunzel who has long, magickal, golden hair and an ethereal voice. 🙂
Astrid being a part of this was a surprise. I always review their products because I love and believe in them so much and on the last review about the castle I sent in photos, which I normally don’t, when the review prompt asked if I wanted to upload any.
I later received an email from my favorite employee there, saying that they loved her photos and that I should send them to their Top Cuties email. I did, and that’s how she got in the newsletter.
The people that work at Small Pet Select are by far some of the best I’ve ever communicated with in terms of customer service, friendliness, and feeling like family. I’ve gotten to know a couple of them, but one in particular who I correspond with now and then.
A couple of days ago I received emails saying:
“OMB (Oh My Bunny) she is just stunning and we sure do appreciate her showcasing her love for our products. Please look for her this Sat.”
And later:
“I forwarded all the pix you sent to Wolf, our Brand Manager so you just might see her pop up in other places. We usually don’t get such great photos of our customers using our products.”
This morning the newsletter hit and then I received an email asking if I’d seen that Astrid and her castle photos had been featured on their social media platforms separately from the newsletter. I checked it out and indeed several more photos were featured and receiving lots of likes, comments, and shares – more than their usual – and so it seems Astrid is helping other rabbits and small animals to receive the royal treatment too.
I even got some compliments about my painting hanging above her castle and someone saying they wanted it. 😉
Anyway, I thought it was a fun and reflective mirror of her energy getting out there more and more and I’m just so proud of her stepping up and out and willing to be seen. Like Cosmo and his ad campaign, she has a more public role I feel that will continue to reveal itself.
She’s not only doing a lot of work here at the Forest Portal with all of the little animals – more on that upcoming – but she’s spreading her reach through the portal too.
She’s definitely grown exponentially since arriving here and this is yet another celebration for her one year anniversary coming up with Summer Solstice around the corner.
I’m a proud momma!
Well We’re Movin’ On Up ~ Astrid’s Deluxe Castle In The Sky
Astrid is celebrating this special 5/5 day in Queenly extravaganza, joining in on the energies of this day with her own shifts into the next phase of her evolution. This day has special meaning to me not only because 5 is my favorite and most magickal number that when it shows up in repetition heralds big things for me, but because it is a cherished day of reverence to my dear ones. Today would have been my Russian Tortoise, Gaia’s 15th Earth birthday and on this day, 10 years ago, my beloved rabbit’s (Nestor) ashes were brought home to me.
Today’s also the last day to pre-register with a discount for the upcoming Reiki 1 & 2 workshop on June 23rd – the last I’ll be teaching. You can still register, however, until June 9th.
There’s definitely a lot of shifts taking place collectively and the energy of this day marks, to me, a big transitional opportunity for renewal. I love that as I write that, Astrid is grinding her teeth as she processes and moves the energy through with doing so.
But back to celebrations of big leaps. Astrid has graduated from her romper room playland to a full-on Queen’s kingdom here in Wonderland!
You’ll remember this was what she started with.
How did this evolve?
Well, she’s been growing leaps and bounds, or rather, revealing herself in huge ways because of finally having a safe, loving, and supportive home. If you follow along on Instagram or Facebook, you’ve likely seen her incredibly shifting fur exposing amazing images and symbolism, as well as her wisdom through the messages she imparts, and the joy in the videos of her that I share.
Recently, she has been asking for changes in her romper room, throwing out all of her hay and litter on the floor – which can be a very normal thing for bunnies who like to dig and play and create a natural habitat, but Astrid was wanting something more. I always listen to see if there is further meaning beyond simple and normal behavioral things. In the meantime, I had made adjustments that supported things until something permanent could take place. She also had chewed several holes in the playroom, so I knew it was only a matter of time before I either replaced it with another (I have one on hand in case) OR replaced it altogether.
The latter happened just yesterday in the late afternoon when her new, more supportive home arrived – a mega castle!
It all just came together in divine timing, as my favorite company, Small Pet Select, just put out new wood creations by their resident elf creator and they were exactly in response to Astrid’s new wants and needs and her growth, as well as my putting out there an intention to create something perfect for the new her. Love that instant manifestation!
I have several habitat things from this company, as well as a couple of other bunny companies, but I get all of her nutritional and daily needs from Small Pet Select, and have come to love their wood creations that are of such high quality and continually rising to the needs of our little ones. I love this company! They have the best customer service, friendliest people who I feel I know personally, fast shipping to keep things fresh, a great rewards program, awesome quality products, and Astrid loves everything from them. Anytime I have a question, the response time to receive help is immediate. I can’t say enough about them. They also support cruelty free shopping, rescues and shelters, and now have created the perfect castle habitat for Astrid.
It took me a little while to figure out the configuration of the set up for her, as I always have to think ahead to what will be most supportive, work in the space most effectively, and take precautionary steps for any unseens. And while doing so, Astrid was very curious and explorative. I always tell her about everything going on, with each step, and with assurance, as rabbits are creatures of habit so to change things can potentially be a bit scary. I also always want her to know that none of it means she’s going anywhere and that she’s safe and has a forever home.
Animals understand everything and they are just like us, with triggers that can bring up stuff. So you do want to explain to them what’s going on and give them every reason to know they are going to be fine, they’re safe, loved, and you will be with them every step of the way.
She did immediately start checking things out and licking every part of her new castle to make it hers. I explained how this wouldn’t be any different than the staircase she tackled so courageously and successfully here, and to get up and down would be a piece of cake compared to that.
The new set up has 3 stories and I placed her castle tunnel as a stepping piece for her to get up to the very top – this she already had, but in a different place. She tested things out, but was afraid to jump down into her litter box at first, although made it to the top floor where her hay is housed, quite rapidly.
I love this set up that was so well-thought out, as her hay can be housed without mess in this mess-free hay feeder, and her litter box that is on the bottom provides not only a private area to do her thing, but also supports her digging instincts and feeling of being in an underground tunnel to a rabbit warren.
Not to mention, keeps everything from being thrown out. Win-win! As no mess for mom and still everything is supportive to her. I add some hay in her little box as well as at top, and she also has a different kind of hay on her other castle across the room, so this provides variety and foraging fun, while she gets tons of exercise going in and out of tunnels, small spaces, hops up and down, more areas to lay and oversee her realm, and secret places to be in rabbit holes and tunnels too.
It all also happened to create even more space for mom in the room, as the romper room was larger and I now have a clear path to exit the sliding door without stepping over her things.
I shifted a lot around and in the end she ends up with quite a realm in Wonderland that outdoes the Queen of Hearts for sure!
She now has her Cosmic Castle (as I’ve named it) that sits under my 5th painting in my series, Universal ARKitecture titled Once in a Blue Moon that showcases Nestor and Joy (eventually to have Cosmo too).
So when she ascends up the castle it’s like she’s entering the Cosmos. It’s so cute to watch her stand upright and look at the painting just under Nestor and Joy, in recognition and as a way for her to reach for the stars and be one, as she is. This satisfies her Cosmic self.
Then, across the room she still has her other little castle, which I now call her Old World Castle that sits in the Old Country – a Faery realm resided over by a magick dragon, as you can see here. This satisfies her other world, Faery self.
And next to the sliding glass door she has her Carrot Cottage overlooking the Forest Portal, where she can connect with all of the critters that pass by, can sit and lay in her bed and watch the Moon and stars at night or dream away, and take in some sunshine by day.
There is a second bed to the left next to my desk where she can also take naps and channel to mom while she’s working. This satisfies her Earthly self, but truly merges all aspects together.
I’d say she’s got herself an incredible realm with so many beings as part of her kingdom to play with.
Not to mention, our exercise room is next to Wonderland, where she loves to run and play with me, enjoys hanging out with Buddha in the meditation cushions, and enjoys chewing on mom’s wood easel, which I encourage, as that’s a great thing for her to chew rather than other things, and infuses energy into it for when I use it. I think she smells the bunnies on it who were with mom before.
I figured she would come to love everything, even if at first it was a lot to take in and process, and that it might take time for her to jump into the litter box, but it was only a couple of hours before she got it!
Again, you can communicate with your animals and they WILL understand. I spent time telling her all about her new castle, how much mom loves her and why I got it for her, and that I knew she could figure it all out because she’s so smart. I helped with that, tuning in with her and sending the exact picture of how to use everything – walking her through it all and showing her how to get into her litter box and where the hay was. And she listened and understood. This all done telepathically. Immediately after, she went off to explore. She still wasn’t sure yet about the litter box and descending, so I got an idea.
I removed the top stories so she could see it in parts, just as I do with my own processes and take things a step at a time when things are too overwhelming or overstimulating like with my fear of heights. I only look right before me. So I did that for her and the second I removed the top stories, she hopped right in and realized this is easy!
Once she got out, I put the two stories back on and she immediately went right back and what do you know? She jumped right in again and that was it! She’s been using it ever since and realized how much fun it is.
I’ve found her enjoying every part of the new set up and laying on the top of her tunnel, which she never used to, laying inside of it, and going in and out of every little passageway.
It’s been so fun to watch and I know she’s super happy and grateful, as she’s been nuzzling and snuggling with me and loving all of the encouragement. I’ve even seen her sitting proud on each of her new realms, tall and dignified, full of peace and wisdom, just like the Queen that she is.
This reflects a significant stage for her and for me, and I love how it all happened in celebration of today’s 5/5 energies and my other beloveds. Things are transitioning in big ways for us both and I’m excited to see how it all unfolds.
She’s definitely “moved on up into a deluxe castle in the sky!”
If you remember the Jeffersons you’ll remember the song:
Well we’re movin’ on up
(Movin’ on up)
To the east side
(Come on, movin’ on up)
To a deluxe apartment in the sky
Movin’ on up
(Movin’ on up)
To the east side
(Come on, movin’ on up)
We finally got a piece
Of the pie
Yay Astrid!!
Bundates – Fun Bunny Updates & Stuff
A few sweet updates I thought I’d share to keep up the Astrid Chronicles and document her bunny garden progress. This morning finds us with 52 of the 72 seeds I planted late Saturday afternoon/early evening sprouting away in just under 5 days already. Astrid discovered them yesterday on the floor, as I move them to different spots throughout the day, and tried to get at them, chewing the little revolving plastic window at top of the mini greenhouse. She did manage to get it off, but I stopped her in time and told her to wait until they’re big plants so she can enjoy them more.
She’s SO smart and knows how to get into anything, including gated off areas we have downstairs so we didn’t have to bunny proof the room. And, she relishes in delight to show me just how smart she is, as each time I come up with a new way to keep her from opening the gate, she finds her way through it. She will actually wait for me to discover her and then springs in the air with glee and as I laugh, she darts around the room and then leaves and dashes part way up the stairs where she stops and waits again. Once I leave the room, she goes back and does it again. She’s discovered it’s a fun game to play with mom.
Needless to say, I decided to just go ahead and bunny proof the room, as the gate bothered me, so now she has full reign of the area and perhaps was her plan all along, as the Queen that she is. 😉
Anyway, it’s been exciting to watch the sprouts literally sprouting before my eyes, as every day more and more appear and even within a couple of hours. Plants are incredible! And I know these will be incredible delicacies for Astrid once they’re big enough to plant in my Garden Tower. Likely some of the outdoor bunnies will enjoy them too. So, I’ll have to think on that. Perhaps provide them their own plants on the lower level of the Tower so that they can have some too and tell them that those are theirs and the rest are for Astrid. We’ll see.
It will be another couple weeks before I get that going, especially since this morning we woke to a couple inches of Spring snow. I was excited yesterday to see that my daffodils already had yellow buds formed, but as you can see they are covered in snow this morning. It will likely melt off by end of today or tomorrow, but sure is pretty!
Nature is amazing! And that includes her children like Astrid.
She continues to reveal more and more of her magickal self and abilities. I keep noticing how much she reminds me of Nestor too, which feels like another full circle experience for me and very healing and special. Her fur continues to reveal amazing and ever-evolving symbols, just like Nestor’s did too. Currently she’s sporting a half Chakana symbol, as you can see in this photo of her coming out of her second castle tunnel to commune with her Faery friend.
She really loves her big sleigh bed that sits next to my desk and enjoys the afternoon sun there. I received a beautiful Swarovski crystal octagon prism for my birthday that hangs from my sliding glass door and creates rainbow light from the sun. It just so happens to fall on Astrid now and then too. Or is it that Astrid knows just the precise location, like a grid worker, to be in the line of its light and energy? OR, is something being revealed to me in this alignment? I love how it falls on her ears – telepathy connected.
She often sleeps in this bed as I write, keeping one eye open with awareness even though she is away in Dreamland. This is the way she reaches my Pisces subconscious. She keeps a stream of telepathic energy flowing between us and channels of communication wide so she can send me thoughts to assist with my writing. We are a team and together our work is more potent than if done alone.
Just as in life, cocreating and community is where powerful change is.
She’s such a dear and wise helper and our bond exponentially increases by the day. We are inseparable and we understand each other clearly.
I love our snuggle time and I love our play time. She makes me laugh out loud and my voice fluctuations of her name let her know it’s time to play. She’ll flip her ears, twist her head quick, and take the ready stance when I add a tone of excitement to my voice.
And other times it’s the love voice that beckons her to come to me for a snuggle and kisses.
Then there’s the treat voice that calls her name, as I send her thoughts of goodies she’s about to get, and she comes running.
And of course there’s a more stern “Astrid” voice maybe followed with a “no” if she’s about to do something naughty. This one doesn’t happen that much, as she really is a good and smart bunny.
In general, though, there’s a huge difference from how she was in the start.
I’m happy to share that there is no more charging anytime you approach her. She only does this if she’s under something or in her tunnel and someone tries to put their hand there, which makes sense. Hey! No one wants to be cornered or bothered when they’re trying to be alone.
I try to let people know how she likes to be touched, which is on top of the head and stroking along her back, which also avoids the element of surprise. Often people want to put their hands under her nose and mouth and she doesn’t like that. Rabbits can’t see directly in front of them, so it’s also startling. Every bunny is different, and can have different moments of being okay with things and then not. But she’s doing amazing with no more defensiveness and the only grunts I hear are when I get her her favorite foods and treats, if I’m not doing it fast enough. She sounds like a little piglet grunting in anticipation and delight.
But another huge difference is how she sleeps.
When I first brought her home she would always remain on alert and just sleep in a ball on all fours or lay down stretched out, but not on her side. I wondered when she would get into that relaxed bunny sleep, which indicates feeling safe. Sometimes I’d see her start to fall asleep and almost get there, but then wake herself up when she realized.
And now, we have this.
She would never have done this in the beginning. Throwing herself on her side and sleeping vulnerably is a huge trust and comfort thing, which makes me so happy. I love when she throws herself at my feet when I’m at my desk and goes to sleep. Those little silver dipped paws and tummy are precious!
She keeps me on my toes too, and makes sure I’m keeping up with my writing. I’ll often find her sitting in my cozy chair in my office – Queens like their thrones! She’ll nudge my feet and ankles and makes sure to wake us in the morning by racing around the master bedroom to rise for her greens feeding time!
Sometimes she’ll hang with the cats – the three of them in a row – as long as everyone remains at least a foot or two apart. Boundaries are a must! She also keeps the cats amused watching her race around the room.
She keeps a tidy realm here in Wonderland and sees to the happiness of all the beings that dwell here. It’s working, as everyone who walks into the room says things like, “this room makes me so happy,” or “this room makes me smile,” and most share that it inspires them in one way or another or definitely has the inner child vibe. We actually had four kids over recently with their parents and they of course went crazy over my room, which was a great sign of the innocence I’ve managed to reclaim and recreate here. That was a goal for me, to make this my inner child sanctum where all of my dreams could come alive – a world of pure imagination, as Willy Wonka says.
And that makes Astrid happy too, as she loves her room – spending the majority of her day in it. And the cats pretty much don’t come into it. They try occasionally to eat some of her hay on the top of her castle, but that’s as far as they get. They hardly come downstairs in general. Sweet Pea actually won’t come down unless her dad does. Both of the cats feel it’s safe if dad goes down, and then they follow. It’s pretty hilarious how much Astrid has established herself. And it’s only fair that she should have her own space too, as we know cats think everything belongs to them. 😉
Astrid is doing so good inside and out, and her health is testament to that. Monday I took her to her vet check up. This was the welcome sign for her – I thought it ironic with the cat on it.
We go to regular vet check ups every 6 months and sometimes 3 months to stay on top of any irregularities that could show up in her teeth. This is a must for bunnies since their teeth not only continually grow, but if not caught in time it can create huge challenges, or even be fatal with complications. I’m so grateful we have such a proactive vet who knows her bunny stuff and is just as sweet as angels come. She’s amazing!
And, so far so good. Astrid has continued getting clean and excellent bills of health. Marcy at SaveABunny had also said she never had issues as long as she was with them either.
We’ve been monitoring one tooth since the beginning but it’s doing well and no changes since the start. Sometimes a small irregularity is simply due to the way they chew so you just need to make sure it’s always maintained by your bunny or else will need maintenance. She’s doing well consistently maintaining it. We’re now keeping an eye on one other tooth where the gum is slightly protruding. She’s has no signs of problems, or issues in any way, and the gum and tooth is healthy, but the vet is staying on top of it to make sure it doesn’t turn into anything.
I love how gentle she is with Astrid and in general, she just has the softest energy about her, but not in any push over kind of way, as she has a strong presence, it’s just a gentle power. This vet has actually seen all of my bunnies (minus my first bunny Twinkie whom I had when I was in my teens) this to include Nestor, Joy, Cosmo, and now Astrid. So that also is pretty special given how much I’ve moved around. And this also makes Astrid number 5 – my fav magickal number.
Astrid did great and we’ll be back in 3 months to see how it’s all shaping up while I continue watching her for any slight changes. That’s simply a daily part of having a bunny…staying on top of knowing every little nuance since they can hide things well.
And that leads me to another Bundate – Bunny Update – from SaveABunny, actually.
You remember the white bunny, Big Sur (who to me is Zephyr) that I didn’t adopt. I mentioned getting a brief update from Marcy, but she had mentioned that she told his new mom to contact me directly. I hadn’t heard anything until yesterday morning and this was the beautiful news:
Hi Tania,
Marcy asked me to reach out to you and let you know that I formally adopted Big Sur. I know you had donated to help much with his care while he was at SaveABunny – thank you. In October we (my partner Ryon, my 10 year old daughter Dyllan and I) wanted to help out so we decided to foster Big Sur (we already had adopted 4 rabbits previously) Well months went by and we just couldn’t fathom the idea of bringing him back. So we totally foster failed. We love him so much words cannot express. He is such a special loving soul and we are so lucky to have him in our lives. Thank you for all your help and love. He found his forever home
~Lisa
PS – I’m also an adoption coordinator at SaveABunny…I’ve always felt a draw to him since he first arrived.
And here was my reply:
Hi Lisa!! I saw your message first thing this morning and it made me smile so big. I had to wait until I could respond more in fullness to you, but I first wanted to say how VERY grateful I am that you took time to write to me about him. I have wondered so much how he has been doing, as like you had been so drawn to him and felt that love and connection. I was very challenged with my decision as to who to adopt when I did arrive there, but felt in my heart he was telling me to take Deja Vu – who is now Astrid – and that he was going to be fine, needed that time to heal, and everything would end up perfectly. I am SO happy beyond words to know you have him with you and that he is in the perfect home and you are all sharing so much love between you. It confirms what I had felt and it also speaks so much of the bond you both have and why everything turned out as it did. I am so grateful for all of the work you do for SaveABunny, giving so many homes to rabbits in need, and now loving Big Sur so dearly. And you are so welcome for the help with him. It meant a lot to me to be able to do that. I’m so glad you foster failed! I’m glad to know you are the adoption coordinator…I can’t remember now as it was nearly a year ago I had first contacted about Big Sur, but we may have spoken via email. Marcy and SaveABunny mean a lot to me and Astrid is definitely my perfect partner. I couldn’t love her more and our connection has deepened so much since last June. She’s my second adoption from SaveABunny and likely there will be more at some point. So it’s good to know you! Thank you again!
Love and hugs to you
I love happy endings, don’t you? They lead to great new beginnings!
An Easter Message from Astrid
Mirror…mirror…Astrid sends bunny kisses and wishes everyone a Hoppy Easter filled with peace, love, and joy!
Astrid says, “Rabbits are not Easter toys and DO NOT make good Easter gifts. We need a commitment for life to all of our special needs and are not low maintenance. Although we love children, we really need sensitive care so please educate yourself about us and if you feel you can meet our needs, please adopt from a rescue or shelter. We are the third most euthanized animals and likely the most misunderstood.
Astrid Update, Special Needs & Rabbit Care
At just over two weeks, Astrid continues to adjust and settle in to her new home here with us. The journey continues to be one of patience, tuning in, and gauging where she’s at and what she’s ready for. As mentioned, although she is not physically challenged like Cosmo was, she is still quite challenged with special needs that call for an internal massaging of her emotions, conditioned behaviors, and adopted patterns that have been cultivated by her past. It is a tough journey, as any time I see things pop up I can feel where it is coming from, which is saddening, and the only way through it is to love her even more, not take it personally, and help to re-establish new patterns that support her into her more natural essence behind all of this.
Time, heart, and intuitive investment is necessary to help her through it all. And it may take months, a year….I don’t know. It could also happen more quickly, but I have no expectations or goals to meet, other than to do my best. I remember that it took 6 months to bond Joy and Cosmo, but it DID happen. And a daily investment of love, nurturing, and physical devotion also helped Cosmo to get stronger as well.
At the same time, Astrid is naturally an extremely sensitive empath, as well as highly attuned to energy and the frequencies she picks up all around her, seen and unseen.
Last night I watched these two moths resting on the outside of the window right above her sanctuary area of our bedroom. She was sitting under the window and facing toward me, however it was incredible to see how she could pick up the vibrations of their wings through the thick glass and outside in the dark – it was dimly lit inside the house too. One moth started to slowly move from one spot to another on the window, gently fluttering its wings and I watched, as one of Astrid’s ears slowly started following the flow of its flight pattern by moving in the same direction as the moth.
Vibrational resonance is her gift, but can also be her challenge, as she will mirror and take on whatever is around her.
That said, she also is blessed with an incredible strength and power that has seen her through it all and helped her to endure the pains and traumas, as well as supported her to thrive, and ultimately, to manifest a way out of what could have been her end many times.
I took Astrid in for her first wellness appointment on Monday to establish getting a handle on her physical health, since there are many unseens with rabbits.
It’s important to keep on top of your animal companion’s health, especially where rabbits are concerned because many things go unnoticed with them and if caught early can help avoid major challenges later. It’s also key to be very present and aware with them, noticing any little shifts in behavior, eating, and eliminating. Often times challenges are due to teeth issues so make sure to get them checked regularly.
But in general, check in and learn to understand and communicate with your sweet ones, as you will learn so much and create a stronger bond for overall well being and spiritual evolution and connection. They have so much to teach and so much they want to help us with, just as much as we can help them to also come into their fullness.
Astrid came away from her appointment with flying colors. The sweet, gentle, and incredibly knowledgable vet – I just love her and all of my bunnies have at one time or another been to her – said she was in wonderful health, perfect, healthy weight for her at 6 pounds 12 ounces, and in general she said I’d chosen well.
I feel that was a mutual thing however, and in this case since Astrid was a surprise, I feel this was Cosmically written in the stars for us and she’d chosen me for reasons I have yet to see.
The vet is exceptional at seeing and understanding the needs of rabbits and made note of very tiny points on her right bottom teeth that we’ll just want to keep an eye on. She has no problems, nor may this ever become a problem, but for precaution we will have her rechecked in 3 months instead of the normal 6 months to ensure nothing starts developing. Being proactive is important where bunny teeth are concerned. Likely she’ll wear them down on her own with continued good eating, but I like knowing that my vet is on top of things, as Astrid’s health and well being is my priority as her mom and guardian.
And good eating involves feeding them the right things that are healthiest for their sensitive digestive systems and healthy for strong teeth and helping to keep these always-growing-teeth naturally filed down.
I only give my sweet ones the very best. If it’s something I wouldn’t eat then they don’t get it either.
So that includes a variety of organic greens (cilantro, parsley, dandelion greens, carrot tops, spring mix, small amounts of kale, etc.) and small bites of fruit like strawberry or apple now and then and bits of carrot, the healthiest 2nd cut timothy hay, timothy pellets (in small measured quantity – 1 -2 tablespoons tops), drops of goji juice in their water, herbal blends of superfoods for general health and immune support (an echinacea blend and a calendula, chamomile, dandelion leaf, dandelion root, elder flower, flaxseed powder, goldenrod, hawthorn leaf, hibiscus flower, lavender, milk thistle powder, nettle, oat groats, green oat tops, plantain, raspberry leaf, red clover flower, rosehips, rose petals, strawberry leaf vita-licious blend I give her), and small (because you don’t want to overdue the sugar) natural, untreated pine cones (like these pictured with Astrid below) coated in healthy botanicals that support their natural foraging instincts.
I also provide a variety of chewy balls and twists of natural things like meadow, maize, willow and even mini logs/bits of tree to work those teeth and feel like they’re out in the fields and forests.
Here you see Astrid enjoying her cherry hibiscus pine cone (you can actually see her tongue out licking her lips in the photo below). There’s also a blueberry parsley pine cone as well.
She’s so good at grazing and not inhaling her food all at once like my other bunnies would. They’d be crazed when I brought stuff out and it would be gone quickly.
Astrid is much more calm about food and takes her time, but still loves her food. This pine cone she just nibbles on each day… So I don’t need to worry about her over doing things.
It makes me happy I can provide her with good things to make up for never having a forever home and all the past torment, pain, and grief I know she’s seen and experienced.
I will continue to work with her to help her through her challenges, while also listening to what she has to share through them about herself and for me too.
She has already given me a big piece of wisdom, which I shared at the end of my last blog post, but I know this will only continue to increase the more time we spend together.
I have loved seeing her relax into things here and watching her enjoying her freedom as she runs and jumps around like crazy.
On her good days she runs to me when I come near to say hi and nudge me with her nose. She’ll follow me and there are little to no grunts or attacks that take place.
But that doesn’t mean that is gone, as with everything, it’s all a process and while she has great days and moments, she’ll have the past creep up unexpectedly. Any little shift can result in a shift in her as well, which then takes time to rebalance again.
She also is very sensitive to too much energy around and will mostly stay in the second bedroom or under the bed there if there is too much going on, like having guests over. Then the second they leave she comes out.
She can’t take having too much all at once and definitely needs to be introduced to energies and other people slowly, as well as one at a time. Otherwise, her fight mode kicks in high gear. One reason why she’s so good at keeping the cats at bay, even if they are just being curious. Her attack mode is nothing to play around with!
She’s quite the guardian bunny.
But she truly thrives in and needs a peace filled environment and to be approached with utter purity of heart to help engage her to meet that with hers.
She is a special one and has also been helping me to work through more emotions around my bunny loves that have been cropping up since her arrival, including around Zephyr/Big Sur and my convictions around my path.
I love how we mirror each other and once again she shows me that the alchemy of togetherness with my rabbit familiars is more potent than me alone.
Update on Joy & Reflections of the Bonds Shared
While we’ve been exploring, creating, and living life where life finds us, my focus has also been on the little ones and ensuring their lives are as rich as ours. Joy and Cosmo are in their golden years at 10 and 12 years old – equivalent to being 100 and 120 in our years – so they have special needs and have recently each had health challenges that simply mean a weaving in of reflective care has been necessary to become a natural part of our lives like everything else.
I shared about Cosmo recently having gone through allergies that turned into pneumonia and how we got him back to balance again. He continues to do well, and I continue to do my best to keep his allergies at bay, which has been successful. He continues to need me more and more, but he’s happy, spirited, loving as ever, and a healthy little ancient one.
I was just commenting recently on how his fur has evolved since his being with us for nearly a year and a half. When he first came to us his fur was much more coarse and, of course, dirty and matted. He now has beautiful velvety fur nearly matching Joy’s and even his back end he lays on is so clean in comparison and I’ve learned to manage his cycles of matting to keep him looking beautiful. It’s amazing what good care, diet, and nurturing love can do.
And the same has been true with Joy and her recent challenge, in how the right care can make all the difference.
I mentioned in a previous post that she had a health issue come up right after I got a handle on Cosmo’s and he was balanced out again.
I thought I’d share more in detail about that, as I’m always wanting to help others out there with rabbits in understanding and caring for their little ones, as best as possible, through the things that I experience with my rabbits and that I learn. Plus, I like to share how our animal companions reflect so much for our own journeys.
So, I’d noticed Joy had started being more silent…that may sound funny since rabbits don’t make noise, but that doesn’t mean they don’t communicate in their own way. And she had been more internal, spending time off by herself, and just huddled, although was still eating and acting normal in other ways when not off on her own.
That immediately put me on alert to observe and keep an eye on her, as she is an extremely sensitive one and she also tends to process a lot.
Since that has been the case with her, in terms of needing her own space and time and going through things energetically, I allow her that space and don’t just jump on taking her to a vet just because she needs time to herself. As long as she eats and eliminates, I’m not on major alert, although energetically support what she’s going through best that I can.
Sometimes she, or we all, just need a little quiet time to work through things.
But when I started noticing her having difficulty eating…moving food around in her mouth, rolling it from one side to another, and spitting some out, half chewed…I knew something was up.
And since rabbits can get severe issues with their teeth – since they constantly are growing and can grow the wrong way (up or down into the jaw), can grow points and sharpness if not properly gnawed down through their hay eating, and can develop infections, and abscesses that then affect everything else, especially their delicate digestive systems and GI tracts…this was a red alert for me.
If there was a teeth issue, she’d potentially need dental surgery. And putting a rabbit, let alone an elderly rabbit, under is always sketchy.
So, I watched this for a day and she was able to eat a little, was still eliminating, but since she couldn’t get all of her food in, I got her on her critical care food right away – something to keep on hand if you’re a rabbit guardian, as it provides all the needed nutrients, but is a mixture that looks like ground flax that you combine with water into an apple sauce texture so that they can still eat easily.
We followed the instruction on the back in terms of amount per weight to provide, but later found out we could have given her even more.
And I started calling around to find a rabbit vet in the area.
This took place while we were in Colorado Springs on a Thursday…we were leaving to Golden on Sunday. It also happened to be right before Memorial Day.
So you can imagine I had quite the challenge getting her an appointment. I called about 15 places…half in Colorado Springs, a quarter in Golden, and the rest some ER places.
Every single place was booked until later the next week or had no rabbit doctors on duty at all. I was sent from one place to another each time I called.
In the end, I got an appointment for the following Wednesday in Golden and in the meantime just focused on managing any pain she had with Reiki, pumped her with Echinacea, and fed her the critical care food to see her through. I monitored that she was eating and eliminating, as if any of that stopped, I would have taken her to any ER or vet, regardless of having a rabbit doctor or not, as that would be a dangerous condition that couldn’t wait.
I tried to stay as positive as possible and not fall into any worry spiral that wouldn’t be supportive for her. This may be challenging in times like these, but staying as balanced as possible is the best thing we can do since our animal companions will take on exactly what we’re feeling.
I gave her my crystal rabbit and tortoise statue that are connected with Nestor and Gaia, to provide her tangible support from her dear friends so that she could feel them close while they were helping her energetically from afar.
It’s tough when you are sitting there waiting and feel somewhat helpless, knowing your loved one is going through pain. But it’s a test of having peace within chaos, as we can create different realities with the power of our centeredness.
I was seeing her start to lose her balance and fall a lot, indicating an infection, as well as frantic for food, despite my feeding her the critical care. I noticed her losing weight, but she still was eating and eliminating and still actively doing things like engaging with me and Cosmo and cleaning herself.
Then we left Colorado Springs and got to Golden. I started to see her improve. Her balance returned and she was able to eat her pellets and some veggies again, alongside her critical care.
I made a connection to the much higher than normal radiation in that area that had also affected sensitive mom, feeling much more drained while integrating that energy, as a transmutational process.
Joy is the ultra energy sensitive one and immediately picks up on energies, as well as tries to work with them with all of the powerful gifts she has for the greater good. But like Nestor, her fragile body isn’t always realized since her energy is so big and boundless, and so it doesn’t always support the things her soul are committed to doing.
So either the radiation was the trigger to the challenge, or she had a challenge that the radiation intensified, as her symptoms were also those of one affected by this.
Anyway, we finally made it to her appointment day, thanks to a lot of Reiki support also from a few friends that were sending her some at the same time, and keeping her eating and staying focused on the positive.
Long story short, we met with the female doctor who was very knowledgeable, once again, and we received her prognosis.
She was able to examine her thoroughly, which she remarked on being rare, but Joy allowed her to fully explore her mouth like no other rabbit she’d examined. This identified no issues there.
Phew!
She said her teeth were healthy and beautiful, without points, and the two potential issues of either growing up or down into the gums was not apparent in the easy ways to determine these.
Her heart sounded great, her eyes although blind in one and cataracts in the other were healthy, and nothing else apparent.
But she felt that since I mentioned her losing her balance, that indicated likely an ear infection, which would also cause nausea. In her case, not an outer infection, since the outer ear looked healthy, but rather an inner one.
This can’t be seen except maybe with a high power xray – not recommended for her age since she’d have to be put under for it and doesn’t always show up regardless – and so she felt we should treat the inner ear infection since that was safe and either way would take care of that, and in the interim we decided on a thorough blood testing to run two panels and check on everything including her organs.
In the meantime, we also gave her subcutaneous fluids for her dehydration due to the extreme weight loss, bringing her to only 3 pounds.
That was the sad part, as that nearly week of waiting and not knowing we could give her more critical care, plus her not able to eat other things until the last two days that her ability to do so returned, got her way down in weight.
No doctor would provide info over the phone when I called during our waiting, since they didn’t know her status and that was understandable since they could be liable for misdiagnosing, however also frustrating since there was no outside help.
Makes one turn within and call upon their own resources, which is always a powerful thing.
I was sent home with pain meds for her – the same Cosmo is on – and medication for her infection while we waited on the tests.
This now put us on huge regimes for both bunnies between each of their special needs and regular and special feedings, while I worked on trying to fatten Joy up.
And so, I am basically running a bunny nursing home these days with all that my dear ones are in need of in their older age.
This last vet we visited said she usually tells people that rabbits live until about 8 years old (only because they require specific care and attention that isn’t common out there), so at 10 and 12, she said mine are like 100 and 120 years old.
Ancient ones indeed, but ultimately these two are tough ones and although there are challenges that call for my time and energy, it’s a gift to be able to live out their golden years with them and support them with their paths. I love them with ALL of me.
We were supposed to hear on the blood tests the next day, but somehow Joy’s blood had gotten lost and hidden on a shelf.
The doctor did call once or twice each day to check on Joy, but it wasn’t until he third day that we received the results.
The doctor was not happy at what had happened so not only did she give them a piece of her mind, but gave me a $100 credit back for the mix up, which was unexpected, but very kind of her.
What we learned was twofold.
The first panel indicated things connected to dehydration so that was normal and we had addressed already.
The second panel showed a bit low white and red blood cell counts, which indicated one of two things.
The doctor is focusing on the one which would be association with infection.
The other one could possibly indicate cancer.
She’s not going there nor am I since she’s eating and doing better.
Plus, to put energy and focus there would be as toxic as cancer itself and create a reality that may not otherwise be there or would not support a spontaneous healing if in fact it was this, because we could be feeding it rather than simply seeing her in her wholeness.
So we treat the infection and watch her. If she stops eating or losing more weight we need to look further.
I’m happy to say she continues to eat well and doing all the normal things we’d want her to do.
The only challenge right now is getting her back on her hay, which is good for her teeth and digestion – the only thing rabbits really need in their diet, as the rest is like icing on the cake or yummy indulgences.
Joy has become addicted to her critical care food, which isn’t bad since it has everything nutrient-wise she needs, but to return her back to her regular diet would be good.
She’s eating her pellets, greens, and berries too and no more balance issues present.
So I continue to try and although the doctor said I could cut back on some of her critical care feedings, I also don’t want to starve her when she is still underweight. I tried for a couple of days, but she refused and so I find it more important that she is strong and perhaps will have to find other things for her to chew on if she decides critical care food is the new regime.
But this experience has revealed other things and may have had multiple purposes.
I’ve noticed Joy increasingly opening and being more vulnerable. She has learned from Cosmo about licks of appreciation and messaging. So she gives me tiny licks now and then, which is something new for her and a sweet reflection of her affection.
She continues to lean into Cosmo more, opening her heart so vulnerably to him and showing how much she does really need and enjoy the comfort of his love, which is so heart warming. I often find her not only energetically leaning into him, but physically she exhibits this by letting her weight fall into him, her head hidden in his fur, and simply just wanting to be as close as physically and energetically possible.
All of this is such beautiful expansion for her and learning to feel safe by exposing herself in this way and opening the walls of fear around her heart to letting someone in.
Something mom has learned too, and along with her.
And I also feel this experience has been partly a manifestation of her wanting and needing more nurturing, or at least voicing to me that she’s ready for more again. Whereas she’s always been self sufficient and not wanting to burden me (at least that’s how she would have seen it), she’s asking for help and she’s liking what she sees Cosmo receive with the extra physical attention due to his needs. So I feel she’s wanting some of the same.
That also reflects to me her opening to her own needs of love and self love, rather than just always being of service. Again, great reflections of the same mom has and is going through.
They both continue to keep me focused in the moment and on what’s truly important and of value in life, as those precious moments of caring for them, although can physically ask a lot of me, are true streams of giving and receiving out of pure unconditional love.
They have also taught and continue to teach me so much about rabbits and now to include elderly and special needs care, which may prove as training for the potential vision I have with this in a possible future to come.
They also continue to reflect all of the important things my soul desires to learn, and mirror my personal processes, as well as play out potential realities to spare me of the same, by my learning through their living it out for me so that I can consciously embrace the message. That’s how connected and heart bonded we are.
They continue to help me understand deeper levels and access the information for my writing, as my cocreators and partners in that dance.
And in the times each day where they are snuggled together and I place my head in the middle of them with hands and arms around them, we realize the power of love through the trinity of alchemy we bring together through our hearts.
But it is the looks of complete bliss on their faces, the way these two fragile, but powerful beings lean into me and each other, and the simple tender licks they give and reflect back during our group huddle, that makes me feel invincible, eternally and endlessly flowing in the power of love.
Love’s Eternal & Healing Bond
I’m so grateful these two have each other to see them through rough times and to cherish during all times.
After having seen Cosmo through his recent challenges, Joy has her own to face right now, and it’s such a gift to see them balance that support between them, which helps mom too.
Having two elder bunnies: Cosmo 10 and Joy 12, these are precious moments that remind me of what’s truly important and of love’s eternal beingness.