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Bunny Blog Archives

August/September 2006

September 25th, 9:30 p.m. Baby Bunny Halts Rugby Game - The Northwich Chronicle in the UK reported that "Witton Albion's match was held up by a pitch invasion and vandalism - by a baby rabbit."  A hole appeared during second half in the goalmouth.  The goalkeeper told the referee and "a policeman pushed the long arm of the law into the hole to arrest the miscreant."  The bunny didn't go to far and while repairs were being made, "six inch long offender cowered nearby."  He "was - very gently - evicted from the stadium by the groundsman."

Thumpin' Down the House - It's an open house and a fundraiser for the Great Lakes Rabbit Sanctuary on October 8th from noon to 5:00 p.m.  Meet the 511 new rabbits from Reno, Nevada.  There will be a silent auction, rabbit items for sale, pet massages, clicker training demos and more.  For info call 734-461-1726 or email info@rabbitsanctuary.org  If you can't get to Michigan go to their link above to see the video and photos of these hundreds of rabbits.  It's amazing!

Quiet Time Kennel Beds (They're for dogs, but great for rabbits!)

I know they are available from Petsmart in various sizes. They are made of synthetic fleece and have made my older rabbits a lot more comfortable.  Bumble loves the extra padded bumpers on the edges because he has cataracts and it helps him feel secure.  They are machine washable.  I know this since I have washed mine a zillion times and they really hold up well. Rosemary and Bumble pictured  above have a large one in their condo and one outside in their x-pen area.

Rabbit Hoppenings:

Gainesville Rabbit Rescue will have a booth at the Gainesville Pride event - If you live in that part of Florida, visit their booth on October 14th in downtown Gainesville. Also, GRR hosts Bunny Spa Day every first and third Sunday at PetsMart from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. They are available to answer bunny-related questions and for a small donation they offer rabbits a thorough grooming. Also, meet their rabbits available for fostering.

Fall Rabbit Fest in Springfield, MA held by the House Rabbit Connection.  If you live in Springfield, MA mark your calendar for Saturday, November 18th! HRC volunteers will conduct adoption interviews and provide rabbit care education for current and potential companion rabbit caretakers.

Rabbit Advocates in Portland, Oregon will host their Outreach on October 21st from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm at Western Pet Supply, 6908 SW Beaverton-Hillsdale Hwy. Come meet adoptable rabbits and RA volunteers, or just come with your questions - they love to talk about rabbits.  That's Faith, Hope & Charity above.  As they say "Beauty runs in this family!" They are seven month old New Zealand girls who are easy going and easy to handle. They would love to be adopted together. Contact : KokoEwok@msn.com

Rabbit Rescue, Inc. Downey, California now offers boarding services. What better place for bunny to stay than a center dedicated to the care of rabbits. They are able to cater to most special needs rabbits. Accommodations are indoor with central heating and air for bunny's comfort plus a fenced in yard if bunny wants supervised outdoor playtime.Call or bun-email them at 562-862-8844 or vegancat@rabbitrescue.com for rates and more info.

Hare Ye Hare Ye!  RRR/HRS Twelfth Annual Rabbit Care Conference will be held on Sunday, Oct. 22, 10 a.m.– 5p.m. at the Radisson Hotel in New Rochelle, NY. Visit their website at New York HRS - Rabbit Rescue and RehabThis conference will cover everything from bonding, rabbit health, demos on medicating and lots more.  If you live in New York State don't miss this one.

Bunny Bento Box - Now there's a cute name for a rabbit ... "Bento."  A Bunny Blog visitor sent this photo along to show the vegetable artistry of a Japanese bento box for pet rabbit lovers.  Those rabbits are made of vegetables, of course. Click on photo to see a larger version.

September 20th - 10:30 p.m. - "Pet Rabbit Does the Trick" especially for folks at an assisted living center in North Carolina.  The Reflector reported that a "big-eyed beauty who just moved in at the Stafford Glen assisted-living facility has become quite the conversation starter."  A rabbit called "Honey Bunny" who is a 5 month old dwarf rabbit came to live at the facility a few weeks ago.  Apparently, Honey Bunny is working her magic.  Staff say "more [residents] come down to activities just to see the rabbit" and "it makes the assisted living more of a home."  I'd agree since I can't imagine a home without a house rabbit!

Rabbit Survives Hare Raising Toss from Car - According to the Manchester Evening News in the UK, a small lionhead rabbit (pictured right) managed to survive being thrown from a speeding car!  A couple witnessed this from their balcony and ran down to the street to rescue the little bunny from the pavement.  They took the rabbit to the vet for care and then to the "Pets in Need"  animal sanctuary.  The founder of Pets in Need stated, "she is a very lovely little rabbit, very playful."  She is now named "Poppy" and has some determined people looking for a good home she deserves.

Apple Flavored Medicines If you have ever had to give your pet rabbit a liquid medicine that tastes like medicine or worse yet, tastes like medicine for cats (meat flavored), then you will appreciate this.  There are a couple of pharmacists in Issaquah, WA that specialize in custom compounded medications.  In other words, they will make up an antibiotic liquid or other medicine that tastes like apples or other good tasting flavors for rabbits from your vet.  Contact the Medical Center Pharmacy at 425-392-8650.  They ship in the USA. My rabbit, Rosemary thought it was a treat!

New Blog from Magic Happens Rabbit Rescue Baton Rouge, Louisiana has been online for about a month or so.  Their rescue group has several events scheduled for October and, of course, many beautiful rabbits for adoption. You can also sponsor a rabbit. Check out their blog and website at the links above.  The photo on the left is one of their rabbits.  Now, that's a happy rabbit and binky caught in the act!

Fabric Softeners I discovered Jill Watson's Flickr photo gallery of her rabbits this past weekend.  I'm glad I did.  Not only are some of the photos hilarious and inspired, the captions on them like the one on the left are great.  Click on the photo to see a larger version or better yet go to Jill's gallery of rabbits and see all 80 pictures of them.

September 17th - 10:00 p.m. - Jack Hanna Educates Larry King on House Rabbits - On September 1st I was amazed to see Jack Hanna with a couple of Flemish Giant rabbits (with the rest of the exotic animals) on Larry King's show.  Apparently, Larry King has two rabbits at home, but not in the house.  Jack Hanna then told Larry and his huge audience that his rabbits need to be brought inside by saying "No-no, they've got to go in the house" when Larry told him his rabbits were "just in the yard."  There was more to it with Jack Hanna offering to litter box train Larry King's rabbits. Thank you Jack Hanna for telling America about House Rabbits! Pictured above is Louise who was brought into the Giant Rabbit Rescue in the UK with her sister Thelma.  She is a now a permanent resident at the rescue and what a lovely big bunny girl.

"Rabbits and Cats, Rabbits and Dogs: How to Make It Work" There are many people who love rabbits, but think they can’t have one because they already have a pet. So the Pittsburgh House Rabbit Club is excited to present this talk "Rabbits and Cats, Rabbits and Dogs: How to Make It Work"  with speaker Marsha Robbins, a veteran dog and rabbit trainer.  So if you live in Pittsburgh you won’t want to miss this event at the Western Pa. Humane Society , 1101 Western Ave. in Pittsburgh, PA 15233

Saturday, Sept. 30, 2006 – 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Rosemary Rabbit (now 7 1/2 years old) pictured above with my cat, Pele (2 years), doesn't have any rules about dating younger cats or outside her species.  See: Rosemary Rules! 

Rabbit Helps Woman Bearly Escape Kanga (rabbit pictured on left) was rescued from a parking lot wandering outside.  He had been adopted by a large family who could not let him live inside in safety. The rabbit rescuer placed him with a lady who was an experienced cat and rabbit owner. It seems Kanga and his rabbit friend knew the danger when  they thumped to warn the woman that a bear had managed to get into her house!  The bunnies saved the day. 

Big Bunny Lounges in Poland - 2006 High Tide was the first major exhibition of its kind shown in Poland, presenting work by thirty-four artists and two collectives from Australia and New Zealand.  Everyone's favorite was a huge rabbit sculpted in heroic scale flopped over on its back. (Michael Parekowhai’s Jim McMurty)

Beach Bunny - My favorite artist, painter Kim Starr, has done an oil  painting that captured my heart.  The original is sold, but limited edition prints are available.  This painting combines two things I love...rabbits and Hawaii.  And, this Beach Bunny displays a close resemblance to my rabbit, Mr. Hops.  Kim captured the rabbit's personality perfectly.  Be sure to visit her wonderful online gallery at Kim Starr Gallery. She and her husband operated Kim Starr Galleries on Kauai for several years.  Plus, she has many commissioned paintings in the finest resorts in Hawaii and around the world. I have three of her posters (cats) adorning my walls. It is wonderful to see her artistic vision includes a big white rabbit! 

September 10th - 9:00 p.m. Things are Really Hopping at the Great Lakes Rabbit Sanctuary especially when they took in 511 Reno Rabbits! Out of the approximately 1,700 rabbits rescued in Reno last spring over 500 of them found a home at a the GLRS (Great Lakes Rabbit Sanctuary) in Michigan.  Wow!  the local Michigan paper quoted Lake Jacobson, found of the GLRS as saying, " It really is idyllic as I had imagined - a pasture with 500 hopping, burrowing, dancing bunnies - it is absolutely fantastic."  Yes, it is fantastic and an enormous undertaking to take a caravan of that many rabbits in air-conditioned trucks all the way to Michigan in style.  The GLRS is operated completely on donations and if you would like to contribute contact them at info@rabbitsanctuary.org. 

Head Tilt Sends Us All into a Spin - It is every rabbit caretaker's nightmare to experience the sudden onset of "head tilt," "wry neck" or more properly called "Torticollis" in their pet rabbit.  It is especially unnerving when it is a holiday weekend when vets are gone and labs are closed.  It happened over Labor Day Weekend to the little 6 1/2 year old, 3 lb. Netherland Dwarf, Miss Sage, who is my twin sister's rabbit.  Sage is a precious and sweet pet who has never had health problems.  Bonnie was fortunate to get Sage into see Dr. Vandersoll with the Alpine Veterinary Hospital in Issaquah, WA.  Baytril was started initially, along with eye drops (liquid tears work), Critical Care syringe feedings (get it at www.oxbowhay.com), anti-dizziness meds (Meclizine) and lots of round the clock attention and loving care.  A veteran rabbit rescuer once described head tilt to me as "the right turn signal is always on with a vengeance." It is distressing to witness.  The rabbit rolls and cannot regain their balance. The Quite Time Kennel beds (see Product Corner above) with their "bumper" edges came in handy immediately. Miss Sage is part of a bonded pair for the last six years.  Her devoted friend, a dwarf Hotot called Basil, is confused by Sage's rolling yet extremely attentive in grooming her when she is still.  Not all possible causes have been ruled out because her test results are not back. At one point Bonnie thought she was going to loose Sage and then the next day Sage started to try standing and her eyes stopped the rapid movement.  Sage is a brave little fighter and has shown a lot of spirit since this began last week.  See two great articles on Rabbit Head Tilt at: Treating Head Tilt by Dana Krempels PhD and Head Tilt and Its Causes

Helpful Tips:  Easy Feeder hand feeding syringe for small animals with tapered tip by Four Paws has worked best.  Also, to keep up good hydration, mix fruit flavored Pedialyte (find at grocery stores or pharmacies) into the Critical Care with water.  See "Apple Flavored Medicines" in Product Corner on the left for an excellent source of good tasting medicines for rabbits.

August 28th - 9:30 p.m. - Bunning Around" at the Fair - My sister Bonnie and I went to the local fair this past weekend. The atmosphere was folksy and friendly.  We ended up talking rabbits. The "Rabbit/Poultry" building is a bittersweet place at fairs.  In August it is usually hot, crowded and full of small wire cages that contain beautiful, nervous rabbits of all breeds. For us, it maybe a stressful place to be, but it is also place to chat up people about rabbits as house pets.  No booth needed.  People actively enjoyed seeing the rabbits and we just told them how great it would be to have your very own.  Bonnie and I headed to the hot, rabbit-filled barn first.  We spent a whole lot of time inside the "bunny barn."  "Yes, rabbits can be litter box trained."  "Rabbits make great pets especially if neutered and spayed."  Etc.  There is a lot of educating to do.  We kept starting friendly conversations about the wonders of a pet rabbit.  We had a captive audience.  The curly fries, caramel dipped apples and Indian fry bread had to wait until later.  

Jamocha’s Leg is Broken, But Her Spirit Isn’t -  She is a Dutch mix who came to  Rabbit Resource several months ago when someone found her as a stray with a broken leg and could not care for her medical needs. Upon arrival it was discovered her leg had been poorly set in a splint for several weeks. It was too late to reset.  After several months, the leg did not properly heal and now must be amputated. Jamocha has a sweet disposition despite it all. Go to the website for more information on how to help:  The Rabbit Resource

Rabbit Haven Lives Up to Its Name for 43 Rabbits!  Volunteers transported 12 babies, 12 females and 19 intact males in a recent Tacoma, Washington rescue.  These dedicated people worked into the wee hours of the next morning cleaning and setting up cages. If you live in the Puget Sound area (Rabbit Haven is located in Gig Harbor), they are looking for available, experienced foster homes to take in another rabbit or two. Shelters and foster homes can e-mail angie@rabbithaven.org or helprabbithaven@comcast.net  Pictured above are just a few of the babies rescued.

Rhode Island Rabbit Rescue –  Channel 10 in Rhode Island reported on a removal of 39 rabbits and rats from an East Providence home last week.  According to the newspaper “All of the Animals have been checked by a veterinarian and are said to be in good condition.  The biggest concern was the conditions in which they were living.”  The home was in such bad shape it was condemned.  The Animal Control Officers contacted Sweet Binks Rabbit Rescue who took the rabbits to their shelter in Foster.  You bet all of these deserving rabbits will be available for adoption once they are ready. Rhea pictured above is a 1 1/2 year old Mini-Rex.  She is just one of many gorgeous rabbits available for adoption at Sweet Binks in Rhode Island.
 

Rabbit Saved Pregnant Woman - A Bunny Blog reader emailed a story from sometime ago in her Port Bryon, Illinois neighborhood.  A rabbit apparently saved a pregnant woman.  The pet rabbit was really noisy one evening and creating a racket in its cage.  The husband tried to calm the rabbit down, but the rabbit wouldn’t stop.  The man who couldn’t get any sleep realized his wife was oddly asleep with eyes wide open.  He phoned 911.  She was in the hospital for almost a week because of a diabetes condition induced by her pregnancy.  The couple celebrated the birth of a healthy baby a few weeks later.  If there was a child that should have been named, “Bunny,” this one should have been it.

Rabbit Hoppenings in September!

LA Adoptathon – The Los Angeles area is overflowing with unwanted rabbits. To help save them, L.A. Animal Services will be holding a Super Adoptathon at Westchester Recreation Center
Sunday, September 10 from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. All rabbits will be neutered and microchipped prior to adoption. Please call 310-713-2478 for more information and visit the web site for house rabbits in the L.A. area, www.larabbits.org. 

Colorado HRS BunnyTune-Ups – Colorado House Rabbit Society The class covers everything from properly handling a rabbit to checking for health problems. Email co-hrs@comcast.net  for class times and dates in Highlands Ranch and Broomfield locations.

Bunny Briefing Kansas City, Missouri will be held September 16^th from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.  Get briefed on how to help keep your bunny happy and healthy by the Missouri House Rabbit Society volunteers who will be on hand to answer questions and trim your bunnies nails for FREE! Call 816-356-3900 for more info.

Rabbiteers Rendezvous in Madison, Wisconsin including a Pot Luck Picnic, Saturday, September 16th at Token Creek County Park.  Get a map at and more info at Wisconsin House Rabbit Society

Canadians in BC – Mark Your Calendars for the Vancouver Rabbit Rescue & Advocacy Rabbit Festival 2006 at the Trout Lake Community Centre on Saturday, September 30th, 12:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Info here.

Bunny Outreach in Portland, Oregon September 23^rd from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm at Western Pet Supply. Come meet adoptable rabbits and Rabbit Advocates volunteers.  Bring your questions – these folks love to talk about rabbits.
 

The Rabbit Habit in Pennsylvania needs volunteers on September 17th for a Shelter Cleaning from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at their shelter.  It’s a dirty job, but there is a lot of satisfaction seeing rabbits in sparkling clean accommodations afterwards. 

 

August 22nd - 10:00 p.m. - The Soft Touch of a Therapy Rabbit - The Wichita Eagle reported on a new club "that hopes to inspire rabbit owners to train their pets as therapy animals."  The club will share information about rabbits, but an important focus of the club will be on training people how to get their bunnies certified as therapy rabbits.  According to the article, for the past four months pet bunnies -- Fluffy, Sky and Marshmallow -- visit children in a program called Respite Outreach Care for Kids Organization, or ROCKO.  "The program, which started in April, offers activities for children with special needs while their parents take a much-needed break." Bunny nights include reading stories about rabbits and playing games like "Catch the Carrot," and they pet rabbits. Many rabbits aren't suited to this type of therapy animal program.  It takes a very calm personality.  My own rabbit Groucho went right up to children for pets and this type of "rabbitude" is great for a therapy rabbit.

 

Rabbit Strollers?  This was a new one on me. With all the dogs in the parks in my city, this would be impossible.  But this photo is from somewhere in Japan.  A Bunny Blog reader sent this picture along in an email last week. Neither she nor I would ever recommend "strolling" with your rabbits outdoors especially in open baskets. 

Also, I want to know why those rabbits are staying in the baskets and haven't gnawed them into little pieces.

 

Hip Hop Hurray - A good samaritan returned two 14 week old rabbits to their owners in Liverpool, England when he realized they were stolen pets. The man found them in a bin bag in an alley and had built a hutch for the rabbits when he realized the 14-week-old rabbits Tamzan and Eupta were on "missing" posters.  The owners said, "The thieves just left empty hutches. Everyone was devastated. "We put posters up, and a man suddenly walked in with the two rabbits. They were very scared, but we're so pleased to have them back."  By the way, the "stolen" rabbits now have two more companions since they were replaced during the time they were missing. All the rabbits are home to stay.

 

Teaching Veterinary Hospitals for Rabbit Care - If you are lucky enough to have a veterinary college in your area, you might find out if they have a clinic for exotic pets (rabbits are considered exotics).  There are several veterinary schools in the United States that have "teaching veterinary hospitals" and see animal patients in a clinic.  The nearest vet school at Washington State University is at the opposite end of the state so it's an overnight drive for me.  However, when I was in Minnesota, my vet was associated with the vet school at the university and my rabbits had the benefit of state of the art care.  Most of the vet schools have full service laboratories and see small animals by appointments  WSU even has a 24 hour emergency vet service.  For names and locations of some colleges to contact to find out if they see rabbits try: Veterinary Colleges with Exotics Animal Programs

Links to Colleges with Veterinary Programs  

 

August 15th - 9:30 p.m. - Noodle Loving Rabbit - Earlier this week several headlines like: "Pet bunny dislike carrots, crazy about noodles" described a pet rabbit kept in Beijing.  The rabbit eats noodles with sauce.  They need to study  the rabbit food pyramid at Rabbit Food Pyramid (PDF document).
"My bunny usually eats with the family at the dining table," the rabbit owner was quoted as saying by 'Legal Evening News.'   Apparently, the rabbit eats at the table and nibbles his noodles from chopsticks. It must have been a slow news day and I'll bet that rabbit has never been offered hay or fresh vegetables. 
 

Help the House Rabbit Society When You Surf the Net! If you haven't been to GoodSearch.com, it is a search engine that lets you designate a charity and then donates half its revenue from your internet surfing. It's new and you can go to their website for a full explanation: www.goodsearch.com The House Rabbit Society will be the Charity of the Day on August 23rd so be sure to do some internet surfing on that day.  Be sure you enter the HRS as your charity. 

 

"Single-White-Male, Vegetarian who is affectionate with big ears seeks someone to come to his rescue for a long-term relationship." This was the beginning of an ad for a single, male New Zealand rabbit on craigslist.org the other day.  Yes, they were charging a hefty adoption fee for this lonely guy. 

 

August 12th - 3:30 p.m. - Grieving Rabbits - An email yesterday reminded me of how rabbits grieve their own. The woman who wrote me was very sad over loosing her rabbit, but even more upset over the remaining rabbit's behavior.  The rabbit had lost a partner of six years. Her rabbit wouldn't eat, was pulling hair excessively and digging at everything. I could relate.  I saw my Harlequin rabbit, Rosemary, sit in a corner and not eat very much over two days after Groucho passed away.  Even though I was distraught over loosing Groucho myself, I went to the humane society and adopted Bumble (another mini-lop) to keep Rosemary company.  She definitely wasn't impressed with him at first, but Bumble got her interested in food and being active again in short order.  Bonding with Bumble didn't take very long at all and I was very relieved to see Rosemary back to her feisty behavior. Getting another rabbit may not always do the trick.  The articles below give other options to consider. (By the way, Luca the cat, still meowed and looked for Groucho for days.)  The two articles that helped me were from the House Rabbit Society website:

The Right Stuff for a Bereaved Bunny

Pet Loss Support for Your Rabbit

 

Felt Bunnies These are the sweetest little critters short of the real thing. Mio can make special requests of these felt bunnies on the Estay website at the link above. If you see something you want in the "items sold" or want something in a different color, you can send a message at "contact seller" link. The felt toys can be made into a brooch with the addition of a pin. 

 

The Bunny Museum They call it the hoppiest place in the world.  It is the Pasadena, California home of Candace Frazee and Steve Lubanski.  It is jam packed with all things rabbit. They have over 21,000 bunny collectibles.  That’s everything including most of their furniture, light fixtures, kitchenware, toiletries, books, and games.  Yep, all of it is bunny themed. Plus, they have seven real (rescued) house rabbits who are cage free and litter box trained.  They accept visitors by appointment and on my next visit to Southern California, this will be on my “must see” list.  Somehow this museum makes me feel less "rabbit crazed" that I thought I was.

 

August 9th - 9:30 p.m. - "Rabbit rescue ends some bad hare days" -  The Great Rabbit Rescue has seen great success in the last 9 months.  An article in USA Today yesterday reported that The Best Friends Animal Society "efforts have been successful. As of Monday, all but 250 of the bunnies were spoken for."  This is out of 1,700 rabbits total rescued!  This effort had at least a 100 volunteers who did everything from neutering/spaying to feeding to building bunny runs and finding homes for a huge number of rabbits.  Visit their website for news and stories on this amazing rescue operation at: Great Bunny Rescue 2006  Pictured above is just one rabbit out of hundreds rescued who is healthy, cared for and happy!

 

Bloat or GI Stasis?  A couple of years ago I thought Mr. Hops had a case of GI Stasis.  After a visit to the vet and x-rays, it was obvious he had a large gas bubble in his abdomen.  Bloat can appear fast and is life threatening. It can become very painful, too, putting pressure on other organs. Fortunately, because I live so closely with my rabbits I see any changes in their behavior right away.  Hops was in the vet at the first sign of trouble.  He was treated with simethicone, a shot for pain, and massage to help break up the gas bubble into smaller bubbles.

Around the time Hops was treated for bloat I found an article which covered this topic very well.  See Bloat in Rabbits.  It was written by L. Seeman who faced a very bad case of bloat in their mini lop, Pokey. This article really helps to explain the difference between the condition of bloat and GI Stasis including treatment and symptoms.

Zooh Corner Rabbit Rescue of San Gabriel, California as a special Adoption Day at Dr. Domotor's Animal House in Monrovia on Sat. August 26th from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.. They will have shelter rabbits for adoption, as well as lots of hay and toys and goodies for sale! Download a flyer here.  

Snuggle with Some Bunnies - Zooh Corner has a program to join "Friends of Shelter Rabbits" and help care for bunnies in need. No experience needed and they are happy to train anyone interested! Volunteer hours can be arranged to fit your schedule. For more information contact Kevin at: kevin@mybunny.org 

The little bunny above is Lionel who is one of Zooh Corner's featured rabbits for adoption.  Lionel is a very affectionate, beautiful boy. Loves to be held and petted. He has an appointment to be neutered, but he's already a pretty mellow guy!  Litter box trained.

 

August 6th - 2:30 p.m. - 27 "Meat" Rabbits to Become Pets

On July 29, 2006, according to the Sweet Binks website, the “Cranston Animal Control and police seized 27 rabbits living in squalor. This was a meat rabbit operation being ran out of a 100 degree, dark, maggot/rat infested garage.” See one of the less disturbing photos above of their cages. Thanks to the good people at Sweet Binks in Foster, Rhode Island for taking 21 rabbits out of 27.  The 21 rabbits at Sweet Binks are being well cared for and several are already placed. The other six at the shelter are Flemish giants and mixes who need homes soon!  “The Cranston shelter is doing a great job, but they are just not equipped to handle rabbits, especially many rabbits.”  Apparently, the rabbits were surrendered voluntarily or the owner would have been arrested. These wonderful rabbits were “only being fed 5 times a week.”  It was a meal of green, moldy bread and water green with algae.  See the photo on the right above of just a couple of the rabbits now waiting for homes at the shelter and they are doing much better!  Gotta love those big ears! 

Hay! What a Great Indoor Barn - This is the picture of hoppiness at Harvest Home in the San Joaquin Valley, California. The animal sanctuary which houses sixty five rabbits was formed to "aid homeless and abused domestic and farmed animals in the San Francisco Bay Area and the San Joaquin valley."  What a great job they are doing! Founded by Karen Courtemanche and Annemarie Engelhardt (HRS volunteers/fosterers), they sold their homes in the Bay Area to buy property in the San Joaquin Valley for Harvest Home.  They have 2 1/2 acres of farmland to care for five dozen rabbits, a donkey, a sheep, about three dozen chickens, two ducks, 9 cats, and four dogs according to their website. Also, Phyllis Tenney, another longtime House Rabbit Society volunteer, lives and works on the sanctuary. Visit their website to see more of their photos and learn about the sanctuary.  Keep up the great work ladies!

"Rabbit Survives Journey in Car Engine" - According to the BBC, a little bunny, now named "Dipstick" managed to live through a 75 mile drive inside a car engine.  The car's driver found the rabbit after driving all the way to work in Poole, Dorset from his home in Portsmouth. "He then called the RSPCA who checked Dipstick over before releasing him back into the wild."  An RSPCA spokeswoman reported Dipstick happily munched away on some rabbit food before hopping on his way.

Domestic Dispute Becomes Animal Cruelty - According to the Butler Eagle in Pennsylvania a man allegedly shot his wife's two pet rabbits in their cage. The wife stood next to her husband and "tried to wrest the gun away."  The man was charged with reckless endangerment, cruelty to animals and harassment and is in the Butler County Prison.  Fortunately, a few states have passed legislation for women who are victims of domestic violence so they can take their pets to humane societies and some animal shelters will take these pets as part of their policy.  The statistics between the incidence of domestic violence and animal cruelty are frightening. For more information on this problem see this article at:   Domestic Violence Strikes Pets, Too

August 2nd - 9:10 p.m. -  San Diego HRS Bunnyfest on Sunday, Sept, 24, 2006 will be a day of fun, education, great shopping, exciting bidding on Silent Auction items, and more!  Buy a ticket for the Bunnyfest Raffle, watch the bunny Clicker Training and Agility demonstration, enjoy yummy treats at the Cottontail Cafe.  Sunday, Sept. 24th, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Heritage Park, Old Town, San Diego Get all the Details on Bunnyfest!  By the way, that is "Randi" pictured above who lost her lifetime companion.  Miss Randi is about 6 years old and is an energetic rabbit as you can see.  She would love a mellow bunny boy companion. She has good litter box habits!  Find more info on Randi at San Diego House Rabbit Society Chapter

 

New Jersey House Rabbit Society Fifth Annual Bunnyfest! Saturday, November 4, 2006 11:00am to 4:00pm Matawan Community Center in Matawan, NJ. Their speaker will be Dr. Michael Doolen, Oakhurst Veterinary Hospital who will give a presentation in the morning and will host a Question & Answer session in the afternoon. There will also be a Rabbit Photo Contest! ~ Rabbit Nail Trims! ~ Nearly New and Really Great Old Stuff for Sale Educational ~ Refreshments! ~ Toys & Supplies! ~ Gifts for Humans for Sale as Well!  PS.  The two beautiful white rabbits above are New Jersey HRS rabbits looking for a home as a bonded pair.  These sisters are 9-lb New Zealand White rabbits who have been in foster care since October 2005. For adoption info go to New Jersey House Rabbit Society website

 

Sweet Binks Events  This rabbit rescue group is very active and has the following events coming up:

Potter Pet University (for adults) Wednesday August 16th at  6:30 pm -  A brief rabbit orientation class
Rabbit Education Seminar - This is an open to the public, educational event to be held at the RSPCA on Sept. 9th from 10 pm to 3 pm. Attendance is free (but donations gratefully accepted!)  The two rabbits pictured above were recently rescued from a garage meat operation.  They will be big bunnies when they grow up and would love to stay together.