Feeding Time in the Bun Room

One of the Buns' favorite times of the day is their evening feeding. As soon as my daughter Evelyn and I open the door to the Bun room, two dozen sets of eyes immediately swing our way, with hungry looks and sudden excitement.

First up is Quinoa, who excitedly races up and down the ramp in her two-story cage. She practically levitates with joy. Next is Sullivan. He's happy for food, but he's always happier to receive some quick pets and snuggles before diving into his bowl to calmly eat his pellets. Chummy's all about playing "keep away" until her tummy is full, so we dispense with the pleasantries and just try to hold her back far enough that we can get her scoop of food safely into her bowl without spilling them everywhere. Loofah alternates between playing keep away and levitating with joy that it's dinner time.

Zinnia does laps until the food is in her bowl and practically attacks it in her exuberance, Goldilocks (one of our pet Buns) tries to chew the bars or the pen door until I open it to show her the full scoop of food. Kayak, Scuba, and Cabana, all share a cage, and they tend to be more nonchalant about feeding, since they share a large bowl and are fed free choice.

Hopscotch sits with her front paws in her food bowl, waiting expectantly. Sweet Tart hangs back a bit until her meal is properly delivered and then dives in, raring to go. Francesca tries to put on her best "judging" face of annoyance that her dinner was two minutes later than it was the previous evening, but is secretly happy to see her food delivery service working properly.

Henrietta is similar to Sweet Tart and waits at a safe distance to avoid impeding the delivery of her dinner and practically jumps into her bowl with glee. Frisbee keeps us in his visual crosshairs, perching on his litter box until he hears the food landing in his metal bowl. If Boggle is free-roaming, she dances and binkies her way to her bowl, either trying to trip us or lead the way, we're not quite certain.

Noelle waits her turn very patiently, but doesn't rest on her laurels when the food arrives. Posey politely greets me and waits for some pets before turning her attention to her meal. Penelope is laser focused and barely gives me the opportunity to move my hand out of the way. Her enthusiasm leads to frequent spills. Finnegan waits for pets. He would let me pet him for half an hour before eating if it meant more time for cuddles. Gumption loves his food, so he dives in quite quickly, looking rather apologetic for his urgency. Sweet Tea waits with his paws in his water bowl, and greets us with joy and soggy paws on my sleeve as a polite greeting before dive-bombing his bowl with glee.

Sunshine greets the food bearer with happy kisses to the hand and then eats with gusto. Rosie tries to say hello but the call of the pellets is usually stronger than her desire for affection in that moment. Missy is appreciative but looks mildly annoyed that she's always the next to last to be fed. Princesses should never be kept waiting. And finally Miss Sukie has her turn. Since she's a bigger girl and not a Holland Lop, she gets a bigger portion of pellets, and munches her way through them rather methodically, without much thought to leaving a tip for her server.

Even during something as mundane as mealtime, each Buns' unique personality shines through and we have learned exactly what to expect from them. It’s impossible not to smile when every evening ends with this chorus of eager faces and happy hearts.