The Amazing Ms. Kirby

At the end of last year, right after Christmas, a foster bunny came to stay with me for a while. Kirby is a brown and black Holland lop mix, weighing not much more than three pounds when she got here. That didn't include the weight of the splint and bandages which wrapped her left hind leg.

Kirby had suffered some sort of terrible trauma or accident. I was told when she was turned over to the vet she was dragging her leg behind her. I saw the x-rays, and they were quite startling. Her tiny little thigh bone was broken in three places. The first break was below the hip joint. Then there were two bone fragments completely detached, floating free, and then the knee joint.

Normally a compound fracture such as that would have resulted in a leg amputation. But luckily the veterinarian, Dr. Donald Holmes of Pecan Grove Animal Hospital in Tempe, is one of the best in the region when it comes to broken bones. He inserted a long, thin metal rod through all the pieces and reconnected the fragments with Kirby's knee and hip joint. He told me he was very pleased with how the different bone pieces aligned and came together. There was some hope after all that her leg could be saved.

Kirby had to wear her splint and bandages for at least four weeks, but to watch her move around and even run, you would never had known anything had happened to her. From the very start, she acted like there was nothing wrong at all, and to her the splint and bandage weren't even there. Always happy and very active, she never let anything come between her and a good time. Her spirit is absolutely indomitable, and she continually amazed me with her energy and activity. Here was a bunny who would not allow herself to be slowed down one iota by a slight inconvenience like a compound fracture.

Now, three months later, the bandages and the splint are gone, but Kirby is still with me. Also still here is her incredible energy and spirit. It is quite impressive to see her run and even jump. Her leg did not heal perfectly straight, the bottom part of her left foot noticeably turns in toward her body, but like everything else that has gone before, she could not care less about that. She is an extremely happy, active and friendly little girl who knows her name and comes when you call her. She loves any and all treats and her daily green vegetables. Every time I walk by her cage she puts her paws up on the bars and greets me.

Like all of the rabbits I have had the privilege of knowing, her spirit and courage are truly impressive, and the strength of her will to live her life to the fullest, in the present, and with no regrets, is inspiring. Human beings can truly learn so much from these amazing little creatures when it comes to accepting and overcoming adversity.