Shelter Adopted:  

Every summer, my summer camp, Seafari Girls, does a fundraiser for the Nantucket Safe Harbor for Animals. On the last day, we bring them the money that we raised and take a tour of the shelter and see some of the animals up for adoption. During the summer of 2018, Bugsy was living there. A volunteer named Susan Richards allowed a few girls to go into her cage two at a time to hold her. Once I saw the bottom of her feet (they are huge!), I was instantly in love. I was interested in adopting her, but I had just opened my new school, where I was planning that she could live. There were a couple of logistics that I needed to figure out as far as where she should live in the play area and who would watch her when we travel, but once we had it worked out, Bugsy came to live with us for a trial run.

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My husband and I picked Bugsy up on Easter morning and got her settled at the school. We set up her hutch in the play yard and put a gate around it so that she had space to move around. The students were so surprised when they came back to school the next day. They were allowed to go into her cage two at a time to pet her, brush her, and help keep her area clean. Everyone loved Bugsy so much, and a day didn’t go by without someone visiting her.

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One thing that we learned about Bugsy was that she wanted to get out of her cage area. She would try and dig holes on the ground and chew through the fencing. We decided to bunny-proof the entire schoolyard so that we could let her out and give her more space to explore. We were so excited to see Bugsy hop around, and just that’s what she did! We learned that bunnies like to dig and spread sand around like they are paving a road. Bugsy loved our sandbox and never once used it as her litter box. She also really enjoyed hiding out in the gardens under the plants. Bugsy seemed happy and loved her life here at Exploration Station. Sadly, Bugsy passed away on the morning of June 6, 2020. It was unexpected, and we were utterly devastated. She was our first Flemish giant rabbit, and she will not be our last. She was the most beautiful rabbit that we’ve ever seen and a peaceful giant. RIP Bugsy.