Blue Himalayan

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Guest Post by Janice George

When I asked to learn more about unconditional love, my Spiritual Teacher sent a special messenger. As it turned out, he also taught me about communication and much, much more.

In the fall of 2012, I began looking for a Himalayan rabbit to replace the pet/companion animal I’d recently had to put down due to illness. I wanted a Himalayan rabbit because the breed is noted for its intelligence and friendliness toward people.

I had trouble finding a breeder; Himalayans aren’t a common rabbit breed. I kept having recurring dreams of the head of a Himalayan rabbit, a blue “Himmie,” so I knew that I would eventually find one. It took about two months to locate a breeder; although this one was in Caldwell, Idaho, a significant distance from Vancouver, Washington. But I made the trip and brought home a six-week-old blue Himalayan buck from one of the two top breeders of Himalayan rabbits in the U.S.

My new Himalayan rabbit, Blue, uses the rabbit danger signal—hind foot thumping—to let me know if there’s something he thinks isn’t right. But he has also alerted me when something important is coming. We are very tuned in to one another.

A couple of months ago, I was waiting for a particularly important delivery in the mail. I’d been commissioned to make a necklace, and the package contained jewelry supplies that I needed to finish it. Normally, Blue ignores the sound of the USPS truck when it stops at our mailbox, but on this particular occasion, Blue stomped his hind feet when it pulled up. Was he telling me that my order had arrived? Sure enough, there was the package I’d been waiting for. So far, that was the only time he has stomped to let me know the mail has arrived.

Blue is a very special little furry-faced friend. He has a funny sense of humor, and he makes me laugh. He obeys commands—wait, back, turn around, stay. When I ask him if he wants to go back in his cage, he will pull at my pants leg. If I ask him if he wants to be petted, he stretches out in a relaxed position, or he will shove his head under my hand. Blue will open his mouth for medication when I say “Open, please.”

Blue will pull his pellet dish across the floor, and gently tip it over to decant the dried herbs and flowers that are on top of his feed pellets. Then he will carefully set the dish upright. 

Another time, he didn’t like his veggies, so he ate the ones he liked and set aside the ones that didn’t meet his standards. The heavy pottery veggie dish he shoved off onto the next level below, where he buried it under the hay. What a comment! Pretty funny. 

I used to take him to physical therapy with me, at the request of several therapists who wanted to see him. I would open the top of his carrier, and tell him, “You can look but you have to stay.” To the surprise of the therapists, that little rabbit would look around at the activities but he stayed in his carrier. They were shocked that a rabbit could be taught to obey commands.  The fact that Blue, a  mere rabbit, was better trained than their dogs was mind-boggling.  

Blue also lets me know when things aren’t right. One day I opened a couple of windows to let in some cool morning air, thinking that the wildfire smoke we’d been experiencing had passed. Shortly afterwards, I heard odd noises coming from Blue. Normally his danger signal is loud, rapid, rhythmic hind-foot thumping. But now, I heard a very slow, muffled thumping. It was his way of asking me if the wildfire smoke was a danger.

When I checked on him, I found him agitated and nervous. Investigating our surroundings, I found that the windows I’d opened earlier to get fresh air were letting in smoke. This was unfamiliar to Blue, and he was asking me in his own unique way if this was okay. I closed the windows and explained to him, “It’s okay, it’s just wildfire smoke. It’s okay.” He understood and immediately stopped thumping. 

Blue calmed down after that. He knew something wasn’t right and had communicated his concern by modulating his thumping. I gave him lots of praise and his favorite reward, which is being petted. What an intelligent and amazing rabbit companion I found. 

Please note: Images on this site are for illustration purposes only. Any resemblance to actual persons, either living or dead, is purely coincidental.

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Janice George was employed by various federal land managing agencies as an archaeologist/ethnobotanist in six different western states. As an artist, Janice has designed and crafted jewelry since the 10th grade. Her current focus is on representing the interests and concerns of the Assisted Living residents at the retirement facility where she resides.