Nope don't want another one!
Weeks prior to this I had noticed two small brown bunnies on a neighbors lawn and had spent a few days trying to catch them. I was unsure if they were wild or domestic but since the previous renter of that home had bunnies I thought they may have been one of hers. Sadly I met her after the fact, she had 8 un-neutered and spayed bunnies and she told me she gave them all away to a petting zoo before I met her. I am saddened by their fates as petting zoos only want the babies and the parents never have a chance. I can only imagine the fates of those unaltered 8 bunnies and that of their babies. Domestic bunnies don't fare very well when they are "let go" by irresponsible owners. Their coloring and lack of wild instinct make them easy prey and many are killed their first night of release. Not only that ,but as they are not natural to that environment ,should they be lucky to escape predator attacks..we know what bunnies do. Within a short time a neighborhood can be innundated with as many as a 1000 in a year. Usually culls then occur as gardeners and suburban neighborhoods don't want an influx of bunnies. We already discovered many neighbors had seen a lot of bunnies around when knocking on doors. Already I saw the tell tale signs of many bunnies..holes in gardens, people mentioned many babies under sheds ects... Still not sure if they were wild or not - I momentarily stopped trying to catch them as catching wild bunnies and relocating them is illegal unless I was a wild life rescue. The other evening, late at night I recieve a call...it's the previous owner of the bunnies asking if I want another one. "No way!", I said. "I already have enough and really don't want more". "Oh we'll just let it go then", said the woman. NO! "Where are you?, I ask. She mentioned she and her hubby were visiting a former neighbor and happened to catch one of her previous bunnies that was roaming around. "I'm in front of your house". I'll take him/her I said. They didn't know the sex, nor ever had a name for bunny, and of course didn't want to contribute to the spay or neuter but wanted to wash their hands of responsibilities. I'm not a rescue and although I now have to find the cash to spay the bunny on my own dime, I'm still grateful that they did call me but also peeved that these two adults never considered the consequences of their actions. I pick up the pieces. This is also with cats/dogs and other smaller creatures. Okay enough rant. Turns out the brown bunny I had viewed previously was a domestic bunny after all. 2 days later the co-ordinator of Small Animal Rescue comes over and evaluates bunny and sexes it .It was horrible, the poor thing was lactating and somewhere had very young babies . Again my friends came over and we searched the neighborhood but were unsuccessful. We all felt like crying as in some ways we were playing God. We couldn't let her go as she was not spayed and yet somewhere out there were her babies and now were probably either dying or already dead. Her litter mate had also been killed the previous week after being hit by a car. Poor little brown bunny and her poor babies. RIP little babies who were out there somewhere. Sometimes rescue sucks..we don't like the choices we make and I feel crappy about the whole thing. This incident gave me the motivation to yet again extend my 40 foot bunny enclosure as now I have 12 bunnies and 2 piggies. I had some in temporary enclosures which is how Hefner dug out but realized I too have a responsibility that those now in my home(all are fixed) have to be in rabbit proof enclosures. I lugged home cement, post and hardware cloth. This weekend now that the outdoor cat room is finished , I'll be working on the extension for the "bunny farm". |
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| OMG that is horrid, poor baby bunnies. Just hope they all stayed together and died all cuddled up in each others paws.
Well done you for rescuing. I used to rescue small furries when my kids were young and their friends got fed up with gerbils, hamsters etc. Never had rabbits though! |
| Oh Marianne,
How heartbreaking and incredibly frustrating too. Those poor darling babies . I really respect what you do as just having one foster dog in my house sometimes overwhelms me . You and Lisa have so many and you, in particular, have such an assortment ! On behalf of all those sweet little ones who can't thank you ...Thank you for what you do and who you are . What you do is important and makes a difference . One bunny safe , one at a time. |
| I couldn't have done that. I would've let her go and tried to watch where she went so I could've collected the babies. Spayed or not............
But, you did what you felt was right. Just like when we make the choice to put down our beloved dogs. It is acting as God, but I think since He put man over the animals, to watch over them, we have to make some of those choices. Don't fret over something that's done and over with. YOU can't save them all on your own. And, those you do save, are the ones that God sent to you WITH the ability to do so. Keep up the good work. Use your ability to cheer up others and cheer yourself up. After all, there are NO SAD clowns! 
God bless. Pam (mouthypf) |
| Marianne...I raise some show rabbits. At this time of year there is a possibility that the babies can make it without the milk anymore. They start eating hay and food a lot sooner than we would normally wean them. They can make it after 4 weeks on solid food alone, and most babies I have seen around here look like they are about 12 weeks old. They will continue to nurse for 10 weeks if it is availiable. I know it isn't a definate, but they still might be ok. Just wanted you to know. We usually wean at 8 weeks. |
| Hi Wendy,
Myself and the co-ordinator of the bunny rescue were hoping her babies were at least that old and would have a chance. Sadly, I think she gave birth last week as many of us that went door knocking heard comments from neighbors that this particular bunny was pretty big only a week ago. This is when 8 of us spent hours asking neighbors if we could search their back yards, under sheds, ect..like looking for a needle in a haystack. My neighborhood is particularly very lush with lots of vegetation and shrubs. We didn't even see the numerous bunnies that are reportedly there but heard about them from all the people living at that end of the block. I feel so sad about the whole thing and no wonder this poor terrified bunny was kicking so hard when those people showed up at my door with her. Life isn't fair sometimes. Marianne |
| I can never tell if my rabbits are pregnant even if I know they are. I am guessing the big bunny they saw was a different one. They are prey animals, and therefore hide all symptoms of weakness. I am really bad at palpating their bellies for babies. The only way I know if they aren't pregnant is if they don't have babies. Just a thought. |
Marianne wrote: .....search their back yards, under sheds, ect..... My neighborhood is particularly very lush with lots of vegetation and shrubs... I feel so sad about the whole thing....Life isn't fair sometimes.
Marianne, My husband found 2 nests while cutting grass a few years ago. The first one was next to a dogwood tree. The tree is near the sidewalk that leads to our front door. Once we knew they were there we enjoyed watching them (and momma), but we feared for their safety. He stopped mowing that part of the yard until they moved on. Unfortunately, the second nest was found as he rode over it. Tiny babies scattered in all directions, except one.  Momma made her nest completely out in the open, in the middle of the backyard, in a small dip in the yard!
I always wondered why they did that. There are fields across the street and behind us. We have a shed in the backyard only a few feet from where the second nest was found! She could've gotten under there with NO problem. (Maybe it was already taken.) 
There are many other more enclosed places they could've picked. I wondered if they were first time mommies and didn't know what to do, or went into labor away from their planned nest and just delivered where they were???? I have some babies under the shed right now! I always watched my dogs from the kitchen window. Now, the Lord has sent me baby rabbits to watch and enjoy! 
Please don't feel bad! You tried! You gave it your best shot!! If, the Lord wants those babies to survive, they will!!! Just believe they did!!! |
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