The Devotion of an Extraordinary Caregiver

The devotion a person shares towards an animal is an enormous testament to their character. Many times people bypass the “not so perfect” rabbit whether it is due to the way a bunny looks (think red eyes, the all white or all black rabbit) or a lack of knowledge about how a special needs animal can actually thrive. In fact, many people are on the hunt for a certain breed thinking they will take one home and life will be a bed of roses. There is no “perfect” …just like in humans, however you may just find unconditional devotion from a special needs rabbit who appreciates your love and care.

When I decided to start the Compassionate Caregiver series, there were some names that came to me right away and Sabrina was one. I have been following her on Instagram for sometime, in awe of the care she provides for her 2 rabbits and dog. Sabrina continues to promote adoption of special needs rabbits by showcasing Lulu’s resilience and ability to thrive with love and care and in the process, she is educating others about the joy, devotion and rewards of caring for rabbits others may look beyond.

March’s Compassionate Caregiver

The Devotion of an Extraordinary Caregiver

Sabrina Dier

My name is Sabrina Dier. My Instagram handle is @hellenaharlow. I’m a stay at home artist and fur mom. For fun I like to do anything arts and crafts related, watch TV and movies, garden, travel, and most importantly spending time with my pets. I also wrote a children’s book about my special needs bunny called Lulu and Carlos A Very Special Love Story that is available on Amazon.

Lulu’s Story

I have two rabbits, Carlos and Lulu. They are both mini lops and they’re both three years old. Both are still with me.

I adopted Lulu and her brother Henry about 2 1/2 years ago. Both of them were born with severe splay legs. Unfortunately, Henry crossed the rainbow bridge two months after we brought him home. A month after we lost Henry we adopted Carlos.

Because of the severity of Lulu’s condition, she does require some specialized care. Her legs and arms stick out on either side so instead of walking she has to scoot. We put down padded carpet squares, blankets, and washable pee pads in her enclosure area. This way she has something soft to move around on. Since Lulu can’t be potty trained, it was recommended to us to use diapers on her. This has been tremendously helpful. We use diapers that are loose on her. Keeping the diapers loose helps draw the urine away from her rear end so she doesn’t get urine scald.

When she produces cecotropes, I feed them to her and she eats them no problem. We keep the fur on her backside trimmed short to keep cecotropes from getting stuck in her fur. If her fever gets a little dirty, I use a rinse free pet shampoo. If her back end is really dirty we will do a quick booty bath. We only wash the area that’s dirty and we only do it if absolutely necessary. She gets treats and loving while she’s getting cleaned so that she doesn’t stress out. We also give her a hay treat every time we change her diaper so that she doesn’t stress out about that either.

As she’s gotten older, she does get a little discomfort from time to time, and we have meloxicam to manage that. She does really great with it.

Daily Life

My boyfriend wakes up before I do, usually at 7 AM, so he’s in charge of breakfast. Lulu and Carlos get half of their serving of pellets for breakfast. He changes Lulu’s diaper. Then he takes our dog Nelson for his breakfast and out for a walk. I get up a couple hours later to change Lulu‘s diaper again and take Nelson out. I also have to give Nelson his medication. A few years ago he had gallbladder sludge and now he’s on two medications to manage that.

I spend the day in my the bunny room which also serves as my art studio. In the early afternoon Lulu starts to produce cecotropes, which I feed to her. She gets a diaper change every couple hours. Around 4 PM is dinner time. Nelson gets his dinner and then I take him out for a walk. After he has his dinner, I get greens for the bunnies. By this time, Lulu is ready for another diaper change. At roughly 6:30PM Nelson gets his third meal of the day and I take him out again to go to the bathroom. Lulu also gets another diaper change.

Between 8-9PM Lulu gets another diaper change and I bring her in my room to watch some TV with Carlos and Nelson. She spends a few hours watching TV with me. At about 11 PM I put Lulu back in her room and she and Carlos get the second half of their pellet portion for the day. Then she gets another diaper change. Carlos will usually come back into my room and insist on watching TV for another hour or so! I sleep in a couple of hour blocks so I am up multiple times during the night to check on Lulu and change her diaper when she needs it.

If I have to leave the house for more than a couple of hours, we leave Lulu on disposable pee pads without her diaper. I try not to be gone for extended periods of time because when she’s not wearing her diaper, she ends up dragging herself through her mess. She does have an inflatable pool that I fill with shredded paper to let her play in without her diaper from time to time.

Challenges

For me personally, the biggest challenge is the negativity that I sometimes receive on social media. There are people out there who are under the impression that special needs animals can’t live a quality life and should be put to sleep.

These animals are family to me so receiving negative comments is hurtful. I’ve been through a lot of trauma in my life and it’s hard not to take the criticism and hateful comments personally. Especially when people say that Lulu doesn’t have a right to live just because she’s different.

In these instances, I just have to remind myself that there is always going to be someone rooting against you, but you can’t let them drag you down. I have so many amazing supporters on Instagram who have my back and that is also very helpful. Whenever I’m feeling down or doubting myself I remember all of the wonderful comments, love and support we’ve received on Instagram over the last two years.

I’ve had many people reach out and tell me that our videos have helped them through tough times or encouraged them to adopt a special needs animal. It feels really good to know that I am able to have a positive impact on people’s lives. That keeps me motivated to keep sharing our story and keep advocating for pets with special needs.

Adaptations

As I mentioned earlier, we did have to put down padding and blankets and Lulu‘s living space. She has normal play and enrichment, like any other bunny. She just has a different way of doing so because of how she moves. For example, she can’t run around and binky but, she does scoot fast when she’s excited. Especially if she knows she’s getting treats.

We adopted Carlos shortly after we lost Henry so that Lulu would have a companion. That has been really helpful because Carlos is so amazing to her. He takes such good care of her.

We did try custom wheelchairs to see if that would help with her mobility, but they didn’t work. She uses her front arms to pull herself and her back legs to push. The wheelchair made it difficult for to use her back legs to push herself. She has adapted really well to her unique method of getting around. If I notice that she is getting a little tired and needs help getting to her water or her hay, I’m always home to help her do that. I ended up putting my art studio in the bunny room so that I could be there with her in case she needs anything.

Support

Do you have an emotional support group?

My boyfriend and my mother are my biggest supporters. I also get a lot of support from followers on Instagram. The bunny community on Instagram has been such a tremendous help.

How do you manage stress?

As far as stress goes, my boyfriend and I don’t personally feel stressed out taking care of Lulu. I know people think it’s a lot of work, but for us we feel getting to take care of her as a privilege. We are grateful for anytime we get to spend with her. I do have a lot of other stress in my life, though. To manage it, I find art to be really helpful. In the summertime, gardening is another great way for me to relieve stress.

What tips do you have for self care?

For self-care, I recommend taking a little time out of your day for yourself. Do something you enjoy to help you unwind even if it’s just for a few minutes. Go for a walk, take a bath, read a book, play a game, watch a TV show you enjoy, etc. At night I like to unwind by putting on Netflix and snuggling with the fur babies.

Do you need or have help when you are not home?

It’s not often that I’m not home, but if I ever did need extra help, I do have my boyfriend and my mom.

Recommended Products

For Lulu‘s diapers, we use Pampers size one that we buy in bulk on Amazon. They fit loosely on her which helps keep her bottom cleaner. We use Ohcool Timothy hay cubes as treats for Lulu whenever she gets her diaper changed. Carlos gets a treat too to keep things fair. I like these because they’re 100% Timothy hay. I would also recommend washable pee pads from Amazon.

Advice

Having a bunny or any pet with special needs for that matter is a learning process. It will take a little bit of time to get to know your fur baby, their needs and abilities, as well as to figure out what works for them and what doesn’t.

Find a vet that knows about rabbits and that you can trust. That relationship is essential to ensuring that your special needs bun is getting the best care. They can always give you recommendations on how to best care for your bunny. Do what you and your vet feel is the best to provide a healthy quality life for them. Don’t let other people‘s opinions or negativity bring you down. There are groups on Facebook and lots of great people on Instagram who can help give advice on caring for your special needs fur baby as well.

Vet Recommendation

I would! We use Dr. Schnee of 518 House Call Vet in Albany, NY. He and his team have been so good to all of our animals.

Bun Mom’s Final Thoughts…

One of the most common questions I get is  “what is it like to take care of a special-needs animal?” I guess the best way I could describe taking care of Lulu would be like taking care of a toddler. She can do a lot of things on her own, but needs a little assistance with some things and some supervision.

Most importantly, I just want to emphasize that a disability in an animal doesn’t mean they need to be euthanized. There are plenty of special needs animals who are able to live happy, healthy, quality lives.

I understand when people first see Lulu that they feel sad for her. Especially if you’ve never seen a bunny with a condition like splay legs. But when you take the time to get to know her, you can see just how well she has adapted to her condition. She can eat and drink on her own. She can move in her own way. She cleans herself as best she can. She plays. She loves to cuddle. Other than the position of her legs, she’s a healthy, happy bunny. I honestly don’t know if she even knows that she’s different from other bunnies. If she does, she hasn’t let it stop her from doing anything. Adopting Lulu has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. I am incredibly lucky for the privilege of loving her and being loved by her.