In the AP Environmental Science classroom, animals are lining every wall. At Bridgeland High School, teacher LaGina Nosavanh is known for keeping plenty of furry friends in her classroom for students to awe and gawk at, two of the most loved being Ace and Bunny Bao, a bonded pair of male Lionhead rabbits. The two bunnies share the classroom with over a hundred students every day, making them feel right at home and more eager to learn in the classroom.
Bunny Bao was the first addition to Nosavanh’s family out of the two bunnies. After having rabbits as a child and being an avid lifelong animal lover, it was hardly a question for the environmental science teacher.
“Mrs. Bolinger, she’s a biology teacher here at Bridgeland High School, her husband works for animal control and they actually found Bunny Bao out in the wild, so they rescued him,” Nosavanh said. “They asked if anybody wanted to adopt him because they were pretty much fostering him, and they know I have a lot of animals as class pets. They asked me. I was like ‘I’ll give it a shot.’”
However, Bunny Bao’s gratitude for being rescued was somewhat delayed. He displayed distressed behaviors before eventually warming up to Ms. Nosavanh and becoming the loving, social bunny he is today.
“At first he was a bit timid and a little aggressive. Whenever I would put my hand in the cage, he would scratch at me,” Nosavanh said. “But he became very adoptable. He hopped around the room, watched TV [and] cuddled with me.”
Following the adoption of Bunny Bao, Ms. Nosavanh welcomed Ace to her classroom just a couple of months later. He came in a pair with Timmy, the class bunny that occupies Ms. Turner’s forensic science classroom.
“I went on the Nextdoor app, and I was just looking for animals. There was this post: ‘Free bunnies. I’m going to college,’” Nosavanh said.
Since being able to flourish in the classroom environment, the two bunnies’ distinctly different personalities have been able to shine through. While looking extremely similar to one another, they can be immediately told apart by their differing demeanors.
“[Ace is] a lot more to himself than Bunny Bao, but Bunny Bao loves people,” junior Tyler Oxford said. “You can always tell when he wants to get out of the cage because he’ll start running around and jumping up and down, and then Ace will just sit there all class [and] doesn’t move. If you open the door, Bunny Bao will try to run out, but Ace just sits in the corner.”
Several students have formed a relationship with Bunny Bao because of his social tendencies. He creates a safe space for the students, where he can be included in their daily activities and complete their tasks with them.
“On days when we don’t have a test, I usually come straight in and get Bunny Bao out, and if Ms. Nosavanh’s lecturing, then I’ll just hold him,” junior Grace Truett said. “If I need to write, I’ll put him on the table.”
After a long, exhausting week of being cute and munching hay, the rabbits go home with Ms. Nosavanh. They stay in a room dedicated to all of her animals.
“They get fed daily, so I take them home every weekend,” Nosavanh said. “They have their own carriers, and I put them in the wagon. At home, they have their own cage, a three-tier so their own little apartment.”
Ms. Nosavanh is not the only one who has taken the rabbits home however, as Oxford was permitted to take Bunny Bao to her house once for a night. She recalls how hyper and active he was.
“I had a carrier, so I would take him around; we went to Petsmart, and I got him treats,” Oxford said. “I let him run around my room, on my bed and bathroom, and he would just not stop running around. If you tried to get in he would just run.”
The bunny duo steals the hearts of almost every student that walks into the classroom. Their full-time job is putting the students at ease and encouraging them to enjoy more than just academics.
“They definitely keep me more engaged,” Truett said. “[The rabbits] give me something to look forward to after I get my work done. I want to get my work done, so I can go play with Bunny Bao.”
