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BUNNY 911 – If your rabbit hasn’t eaten or pooped in 12-24 hours, call a vet immediately!  Don’t have a vet? Check out VET RESOURCES 

The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

Forum RESCUE EFFORTS FOR SHELTERS Advice please :)

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    • Tipsy Bunny
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         So I figure it was appropriate for this topic area because it considers bun saftey that is not of my own bun.

        So I went into a pet food store today and was only expecting pet food, it was the first time I had been in there.  So this place boasts organic and great pet food blah blah, but I also find rabbits for sale.  Rabbits not in bad shape mind you, but in need of some help.  They have absolutely no toys, none, not one.  They only have pellets.  I believe they are alfalfa based because the brown sable rex is just a chub.  Not one single strand of hay in sight.  So, they cant knaw on anything to save their lives.  They cant grind their teeth down as they dont have toys or hay.  They just get fat off of pellets.  They look to be about… 3 months old.  Knowing those kinds of places, they say they are mini, but they are for sure babies.  Two rexes and one satin.  The rex I held was just a sweetheart.  Startled at first, but once he realized I wasnt going to hurt him, he almost fell asleep in my arms… I just about fell in love till I snapped myself out of it.  He did a bunch of binkies in his cage and flopped right in the middle… so he was happy, but he/they could be happier and healthier.  But I honestly, just coundnt get over that giant belly!  I cant deny, it did make me giggle some.  I picked him up and said, “oh my you are a fatty!” and the associate said, “yes, we feed them well!”  I was just thinking to myself, uh huh…….

        Anyways, I want to confront the manager and let him/her know that these rabbits are not properly cared for but how do I go about this without seeming like a crazy person or being mean?


      • Monkeybun
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          I kind of did the same thing with a pet store here. I emailed the owner, and brought them over a little packet of info about house rabbits at their request when I got an email response from them. They were eager to learn how to better care for their critters, so I was glad to put together some info for them

          So I would say, if they have a website, check it out, see if you can email them expressing your wish to help them learn more about their rabbits and how to care for a rabbit that is more than livestock. They may be interested, and it is better to do that than just confront them about it.

          Good luck!


        • bunnyfriend
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            I like Monkeybun’s idea, and with email you can also be anonymous if you want. An email that is more like “hey, rabbits are exotic animals and a lot of people don’t know how to care for them properly” and that you mean no offense is better than an angry email outright accusing them. The biggest thing I would stress is the hay issue and how important it is, if they end up being they kind of place that doesn’t care about the rabbits’ well being I would bet if they still would want to keep them alive at least. Either way you’ll be doing a good thing for those rabbits. Good luck


          • Tipsy Bunny
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              I wanted to just buy them all but I knew if I did that, I wouldnt be accomplishing anything. Just fueling the need for more rabbits and no education. I like the info sheet idea! I know my rabbit rescue down the road has a ton of fact packets and would love to help me out!
              The lack of hay is what really bothered me… clearly the reason why the one rabbit is utterly overweight, and just a baby!!


            • Sam and Lady's Human
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                To be honest when you said he was just a baby and overweight, it seems more likely that he’s ill and its bloat. He’s only been away from his mum what, 6 weeks at most? And baby bunnies are supposed to have an alfalfa based, unlimited pellet diet until around 6-8 months. Sure no hay will up the intake of pellets, but it shoudn’t be enough to get fat so quick.


              • Tipsy Bunny
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                  I was watching him for some time.  He pooped normal, as he pooped on me out of nervousness too… and he peed as soon as I put him back in his cage.  He did lots of binkies and had the most energy of the three, but that could be a spurt. I do believe they are alfalfa based which is perfectly fine, but to not have any hay concerns me greatly. I will visit again tomorrow to check up on him to see if he is ill or if its fatness


                • FrankieFlash
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                    Tipsy Bunny- I can empathize with you on so many levels. Not only did the store I got Bunjamin from (I know now that I fed the problem instead of helping it) not put hay in his area, but I went into another some-what chain petstore that had rabbits in even worst condition. A quick summary: Super small cages, on pine, water hard to reach, no hay, no toys, no place to hide, etc. I wanted to post something on here but I thought it would depress people so after consulting my mom (who has reported stores before and is a big animal softy like me) we decided the best thing would be to call and talk to manager. Well, of course this poorly ran store didn’t even answer or have a working number! So I did the second best thing- I went online. Hoping to catch the attention of someone of importance I wrote a somewhat lengthy (oops) but nice letter about the importance of hay, and some of the other things I saw that were well sad. Unfortunately, I never heard back. I tried to report the store to aspca but there wasn’t a case since they supplied food and water and none of them looked sick, etc. I haven’t been able to go back to the store and I’ve been trying to make sure people know that place is no-good. Where I live the best thing I can do in my situation is spread the truth and it’ll hurt their reputation.

                    Basically, the point of my story is don’t be too disappointed if they don’t do anything. I get so sad thinking about it but I have to turn around and focus on my own Bun. I wish you luck and I’ll be very happy and proud if you can get them to better those buns (temporary) living situation. When in doubt, my new plan is to buy a bag of hay myself, and then hand it to an employee and ask they feed it to them. I’d hope that would maybe make them see it’s easy to do and makes for much happier buns.


                  • Tipsy Bunny
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                      I know exactly what you mean Frankie.
                      I have to be honest. I used to work at a puppy store in the mall. But I treated those puppies so well and with the most love that the person who hire me didnt want me to leave. I would let the puppies out individually and let them run around while I mopped and cleaned, I would even take the time to let them sit on my lap and my stomach while I pet and kiss their cute little heads. I guess, the way I see it, it was my way of helping them out while they get to be stuck in the store.
                      Anyways, I do understand that my expectations shouldnt be too high. I have been to many pet stores, and they are almost all the same. Poorly cared for animals and uneducated employees. One had a beautiful macaw parrot that employees were afraid to hold because he had an attitude, but that bird loved me. He didnt want to leave my arm, literally, I had to force him on to the perch so I could go home haha, darn booger broke my button on my favorite sweater too. But I am not expecting much, but if they do do something, man will I be so happy!
                      I did come home afterwards and gave my bun a kiss on the head and an apple treat.

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                  Forum RESCUE EFFORTS FOR SHELTERS Advice please :)