Danette Borg, a registered nurse by profession, cooed at the little cotton ball of a bunny who was peeking around the corner. "You certainly are a Curious George," she quipped. "But, that's not your name." The little bunny scurried around. "My goodness, you're a Scamp," she said. "But, that's not your name, either."

Renee Phelps, a Best Friends staffer, approached the cage. "You're just Precious." She stroked the tiny rabbit. "But, that's not your name. And you're a little Smooshy," she said to another bunny. "But that's not your name."

Danette spent much of her week at the Best Friends rescue ranch working in the critical care unit, helping newborn babies. Many of their mothers were sick when they were rescued, and that meant that despite her loving, professional care, many of these newborns had not survived. She'd given lots of them names, too, and now she was beginning to feel like giving them names was bad luck. So she started giving them "pet names," as opposed to "real" ones.

A resident of Salt Lake City, Danette spent her vacation time working with newborn rabbits, assisting with spays and neuters, and washing the never ending supply of cages. She honed up on bunny care through books and the internet, but said her best rabbit knowledge came from hands-on experience.
"It's been a lot of hard work, but the rewards are worth it. The bunnies brought to critical care are very weak. We give them IV fluid, a little warmth and food, and for the most part, they perk up and are soon ready to return to the pen. It's gratifying work."

Danette departed the rescue ranch with two tiny newborns in tow. When asked how long she was going to foster them, she replied. "I don't know... maybe forever?" She petted the mini bundles. "This is A and this is B, but of course, those are not their names!"

Story by Shelley Thayer.

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