I waited an hour, nothing. I called my mom, who didn't answer. Another hour, still no call back. Then again, worst case scenario playing in my head - what if they took my rabbits? I mean, they're fed and watered daily, they have appropriate enclosures, they all have a roof to keep the rain off... All legal requirements for caring for them are met... but in our city that doesn't always mean anything. I called my Mom again. I knew she had today off. She answered the second time and I explained what was going on. She said she'd just gotten out of the shower and would be over when she was done getting ready to go.
I left the hotel at 3:30 and was back to the hotel by 4:15. In that amount of time, I fed and watered all of the bunnies - who were still safe and sound where they belong. I'm so relieved. I made sure to move the tarps around, move the water bucket, and move some of the boards to make sure if they come back it is obvious that I have been by and done the chores.
As for that neighbor, I'm sure karma will bite her in the butt. She just doesn't like seeing the bunny barn out her porch window... but the bunny barn was there long before she moved into that house, and I make no apologies for opening the tarps up on nice days to let the rabbits have fresh air and feel the breeze. We can't get moved to the new house fast enough.
Still no word from anyone on that either. We submitted the paperwork for the railroad for permission to cross the rail on the (existing) driveway last Wednesday. We were warned it could take up to 30 days but they'd try to push it through within a week. As far as I understand, as soon as that comes back we should be good to go with finalizing paperwork and signing and paying the down payment - and then moving. It just feels like this process is taking so much longer than it should. It can't come soon enough. Between running back and forth to do rabbit chores, new neighbor/police issues, and living with five kids in a hotel (we're closing in on six weeks now)... I'm getting anxious to move on. I need to get my kids and my animals to the safety of the new house where they can run and play and not worry about what neighbors say or how loud they're playing or if they have a meltdown. I think that will take a lot of stress off of my shoulders too. Until then, I'll just keep waiting...
UPDATE: So after I wrote and posted this blog, we went back to the house (because I didn't take care of the cats or the gerbil earlier). The animal control officer had left his business card taped to the front door. I went ahead and gave him a call and asked why we got a complaint. I was actually really nervous to call him, despite having known the guy loosely for many years. Remember, I volunteered at the area impound for about 10 years off and on, and then ran my own rescue for about 10 years off and on, then worked in the local pet store for many years until they closed... Anyway, he was really nice about the whole situation. He said the neighbor hasn't seen us come to feed and water them and was worried we were neglecting them. She called the police, the police called animal control, and both animal control and a police officer came out to investigate. I explained the situation (living in a hotel, but coming back to care for them). He then complimented our rabbits, said they were some nice looking rabbits, pointed out the lop and said she was gorgeous (and she is). Then he told me about how he and his dad used to run a rabbitry with 400 rabbits. Mostly meat rabbits, but he had about 50 show rabbits and was one of the first to get fawn rex in the area. How cool! He said he'd win all kinds of shows because it was a new color and it caught people's eyes. Anyway, he said to avoid the neighbor complaining again, I should consider shoveling the one spot under the cages closer to the house (where the J and L litters are located), but beyond that everything looked good, the rabbits are in good condition, and he didn't have any problems with our little breeding operation. I am so relieved! Tomorrow morning I'm heading back over to go shovel out that one spot and we can rest easy until we move!