On this site I wrote on interactions, places, books, news and movies. There was nothing personal. But today I wish to write about my interaction with my little rabbit – Rozy.

In the year 2022, we were posted to a new location. The allotted accommodation had a huge front lawn and a big backyard. We got three rabbits – two males and one female. Pansy, the female rabbit, was three months old. Smith, the male rabbit, was two months. Cherry, another male rabbit, was only two weeks old. The three roamed freely in our house. They played together. In their routine was an hour in the lawn to play in presence of an adult (human). Watching them and playing with them was a lovely feeling.

After three months, Pansy and Smith attained maturity. They were now together. Cherry distanced himself and was not happy. Then started the fights between Cherry and Smith. Both were unwilling to give up. We now confined Smith and Pansy in one room and Cherry in another. We thought of getting a female rabbit for Cherry. Rozy came – a little two months old female rabbit.

Rozy was full of life. She would eat her grass and fruits. She drank water from her bowl. She took short naps in my lap. She played by herself by running in circles. She followed me everywhere inside the home. We grew lots of carrots in our backyard. Rozy would spend long time eating the carrot grass and whole carrots. In lawn, she played with birds and squirrels.

Cherry and Smith accepted Rozy. Pansy never accepted Rozy and chased her whenever they crossed paths. Cherry and Rozy were happy playing together. Sometimes, Smith too joined them and three would play in the veranda. One day Rozy was hiding in a corner with a small bite mark on her ears. There was fur in the room. Smith and Cherry had a fight. From that day, we separated Cherry and Smith to avoid any injury.

One day we observed tilting of head in Rozy. We visited veterinary care. The medicines didn’t help. We referred to another veterinary care. Both had different opinions. We were confused. Rozy was laying helplessly and not eating. We consulted a third veterinary doctor. He suggested one line of treatment, and we agreed to follow that. I hand fed her liquid diet every hour using a syringe. One day, my little Rozy was agile and full of life again. My Rozy survived.

Days went by. She delivered litters few times for whom we found pet parents. The adult Rozy was a responsible mum and a mature companion. Whenever I felt sad or weak, I use to sit with her. She would sit beside me and show support in her own ways. At nights, when I arranged dinner plates for my Rabbits, she would gently nib my toe. It was a reminder that she was there, so I should hurry up.

We went for a short vacation. One trusted person was there to take care of the basic routines of the rabbits in our absence. There is a complexity in rabbit’s social behaviour which (in my opinion) is learned through observation, experience and readings. One night something caused chasing and fights among rabbits. In morning, the trusted person observed that Rozy was not moving. The X-ray identified multiple fractures in her one hind leg. The Veterinary practitioner placed a plate but Rozy removed it by chewing overnight. We shortened our trip and came back. Rozy was operated. Her movements were restricted for about a month and daily injections were there. Rozy and I were together almost all the time for a month. It was winters. We both use to spend time in lawn together – Rozy in my lap or I sitting beside Rozy. After six weeks of the successful surgery, my Rozy was running again.

The days passed by. A person supervised the rabbits in the lawn. Cats and dogs always posed a threat of attacking them. A new person joined. On 14 May 2025, Rozy went to lawn as per her routine. We both looked at each other (maybe) for a minute. I then stepped inside the house to attend to the daily chores. The new person left the front lawn and went to backyard. When he returned after 15 minutes, a stray dog was eating my Rozy. The dog ran away quickly. No one heard anything, no noise. The nature’s law of prey and predator is dominant.

My Rozy died. She was only two and half years old. I watched the Netflix Series – Watership Down. The series tells a story about rabbits. In the tale, it presents the challenges of wild rabbits and sorrows of a hutch rabbits. I felt, my Rozy was untouched by a few challenges that wild rabbits face. She perhaps have not have experienced a few sorrows that hutch rabbits feel. My Rozy knew to love, fight and survive.

(Views are personal.)