After Flop died, I was feeling very lonely and lost. I really missed greeting her each morning
and still felt that Sophie would be better off with a companion. We talked about it and
decided that adoption was the only way to go, so phoned the local pounds. One didn't
keep homeless rabbits, they were euthanised straight away. The woman told me I was the first
request they had ever received. The other did keep them, but had none available at that time.I had seen a news story for Monika's Doggie Rescue a few months before and knew that she rescued rabbits as well. I call and arranged a time to go out there and see them. They were all so beautiful, I wish I could have taken them all home, but I kept coming back to Sultan. He wasn't hiding shyly in a corner, he didn't come straight up to me and he certainly wasn't the runt of the litter. In fact he just kept going on about his business like he really didn't care one way or the other. Not aloof, so much as supremely confident in his place in the world. It was this attitude that drew me to him and gave him his name.
He and Sophie spent a few weeks sniffing at each other through their respective cages, and it wasn't long before I noticed that they were spending more and more time laying near each other. Their face to face introduction went extremely well and they've been a close couple ever since.
In any group of rabbits that live together, there is a king and Sultan is definitely that. He runs
a tight ship, woe betide anyone that oversteps their alloted place in his fiefdom and that doesn't restrict itself to
the rabbits of the clan. When I clean and scrub their area, they all hide out in the top of the condo
until the procedure is over (Sophie and Apache launch covert forays to make sure I'm not doing anything too drastic). It can
get a little crowded up there and they all end up jostling each other for position. One particular time,
Sultan was having a bad hair day and kept nipping Apache until he was bouncing around and upsetting the girls. I leant in
and told Sultan off, tapping his nose gently for emphasis. With my hand still on the the edge of the
top floor, I went about cleaning out the bottom. Suddenly I heard a growl and felt a nip in my fingers!
I looked up and saw Sultan, his ears flat back against his head and a 'just who do you think you are' look
on his face. Guess I shouldn't have questioned his authority! He very magnanimously let me make up, feeling, once again in charge.
For all of that, he is cuddly and loves being stroked and petted. He is the one that will lick me in return, a high honor in bunny terms, and the first one to come running when I go out there (it's not for the treats, really!)
Sultan is lord of the manor and has no qualms about leaving lesser duties to his subjects (like keeping an eye on me). He is very confident in his position, enough to even be nice to Apache.. don't tell anyone, but I've actually seen him swipe his tongue across Apache's head.