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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 THE LOUNGE RSPCA

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    • Delilahbunny
      Participant
      53 posts Send Private Message

        Hey everyone,

        I’m in need of a true rant so I apologise in advanced

        For a while I’ve been thinking off a adopting another rabbit as a friend for Delilah so I thought id go to the RSPCA which is an animal charity in the UK

        Anyway I rung up previous expressing my interest explained my situation and the guy I spoke to was all ok with what I said and arranged for me to come down to visit the rabbits

        As soon as I arrived they had made their decision I am 22 but I look young for my age I went through with the lady on reception how I wanted to adopt a rabbit to be a house rabbit as I have a house rabbit already. The look I got when I said that was unreal she also asked me if I had a hutch which I explained I had a secure place for the bunny if she feels frightened that is just her space but she is able to roam free all day with all cables safely tubbed or up high again I recieved another look as if to say why would you not have a hutch to lock an animal up in.

        She asked me to fill out a form and them once I finished she explained to me that out of the best interest of the rabbits it should be kept outside with a fun attached to dig and have a supply of fresh grass.

        I’m not an expert on rabbits but I felt like crying when I left as now I feel I’m treating Delilah in a wrong way

        She gets given a fresh supply of hay and veg everyday alongside her pellets she has blankets and towels to dig or a box of Hay paper etc

        I just can’t believe they think it’s best to lock up a rabbit all day outside in a hutch

        Sorry if I sound confusing I’m just so angry

        These people are like the people at seaworld who believe what the directors tell them that’s best

        I hope Delilah likes to be inside and it’s the right thing to do

        I must say I want to complain about the RSPCA as I feel I’ve been discriminated on for my age and how I care for my animal

        The lady also felt it was wrong my bun doesn’t go outside everyday but ATM we have had severe winds and rain everyday I know Delilah and I know she would not want to be running about on a swampy bit of grass


      • Tessie
        Participant
        1231 posts Send Private Message

          Don’t feel like you’re doing the wrong thing at all! Forget all this second-guessing, you are taking wonderful care of Delilah. 

          I too have some gripes with the RSPCA.  When I was looking for a second bun I had a similar experience to you, I was told that the rabbits ‘hate’ being inside (how would they know that when the rabbits are kept outside? Who knows.) and that they need grass, they said if I ‘had’ to keep them inside that I must grow grass in a tray. 

          Anyway, I filled out all their forms, they told me someone would be in touch to do a home visit, and no-one ever contacted me! I’ve also heard countless stories of people failing home visits for ridiculous reasons. It’s very frustrating, you’d think they want these animals to find new homes, but they aren’t encouraging at all in my experience.  The place I went to kept the buns in tiny 1ft by 4ft hutches, and yet they require at least a 50 square ft enclosure for anyone wanting to re-home them?! Who has a spare 50 square feet in their garden? It’s really disappointing. 

          Anyway, I agree, there are lots of things about the RSPCA that leave much to be desired (Google it and you’ll find many like-minded people). Most of the members on this forum are US based so they’ll have no experience with the RSPCA, but I understand the need to vent that frustration! haha 

          Perhaps find a bunny-dedicated rescue nearby? They’ll understand the needs of bunnies better. 


        • Delilahbunny
          Participant
          53 posts Send Private Message

            Thank you so much I really appreciate it I’m so fuming with them as they was telling me a hutch was better then my whole house


          • LongEaredLions
            Participant
            4482 posts Send Private Message

              You take wonderful care of Delilah, the RSPCA is wrong for saying that bunnies need to live outdoors. If only they knew. *Sigh*


            • MissD
              Participant
              302 posts Send Private Message

                RSPCA suck. There are no rabbit rescues in my nearest area so when I started looking for a friend for Buddy, I went to my local RSPCA. They have a lot of bunnies looking for homes advertised on their website. I had a chat with a girl there and filled in some forms, I told her Buddy was a free range house rabbit with a 4 foot cage for a bedroom and toilet and she was fine with it but told me I had to measure my living room to see how big his exercise area was. It’s 16x12ft and Bud has the hallway, kitchen and bathroom to run around but they decided it wasn’t enough and refused to let me adopt. The funny thing is, those bunnies are locked in small cages where they keep them, do they really think they are happier there? So in the end I drove to a private rescue 45 miles away from my town and got Hannah. Forget RSPCA, all they want to do is put animals to sleep for no reason.


              • LittlePuffyTail
                Moderator
                18092 posts Send Private Message

                  That is too bad. They need to update their rabbit info. It may have been the norm 20 years ago to keep rabbits outside, but it’s not anymore. It’s sad because they are giving people incorrect information about rabbits.

                  My local SPCA is pretty up-to-date with rabbit info. Unfortunately, the staff have zero people skills and I actually stopped volunteering there because the staff is just so unpleasant.


                • Delilahbunny
                  Participant
                  53 posts Send Private Message

                    The RSPCA truly suck!

                    I wrote a letter to them to shed some insight with articles and websites that have information about the benefits.

                    Their point was it’s not natural but keeping them in a tiny cage outside is not natural.

                    Cats in the wild hunt for food so if I was to rescue a cat and let it only hunt for its food i would have that animal taken from me.

                    The same as if I had a husky dog should I have to live somewhere with constant snow their information is so wrong and they should change as these poor animals are getting wrongly treated by it

                    I will let you know if I get a response


                  • Delilahbunny
                    Participant
                    53 posts Send Private Message

                      Write I got a response they apologised and said they believe that the member of staff may not of been up to date with the information they were giving and they are sorry for that and are looking into it they also told me they have a guide on how to keep house buns and don’t think either is better than the other


                    • manic_muncher
                      Participant
                      1061 posts Send Private Message

                        Well that’s good that they at least have the up-to-date information. Scary thought though at home many people may have been turned away due to ignorance.

                        So where does that leave you? Are you planning to go back there and try to adopt again? I know sometimes a bad experience can turn me off and completely change my mind…


                      • Roberta
                        Participant
                        4355 posts Send Private Message

                          I was thinking about what the RSPCA said about living indoors not being natural for a rabbit and that outside was more appropriate…
                          Think about it… Rabbits build warrens under ground. These are a series of rooms connected by corridors or tunnels, they do this so they are indoors and not exposed to predators or the elements. They are naturally social and live in groups not individually,…It’s their natural instinct so really a house rabbit leads a life much closer to that of a wild rabbit in that they are indoors protected from weather and hunters (four legged and two) and they are part of the family unit.
                          So really sticking them in a hutch and isolating them, above ground, fully exposed and limiting their movement is the most unnatural environment they could possibly be in..
                          If you go back hit them with that argument and see what they can come up with.


                        • Bam
                          Moderator
                          16835 posts Send Private Message

                            I sometimes think these organizations to a very large extent are about control and power-trips. There are cat-shelters in Sweden and dog-rehoming-organizations that demand not only that you are a perfect pet-owner with solid economy, no full-time job, a big house, they also demand that representatives of the organization are allowed to come for random house-calls for many YEARS and do check-ups. And it’s not allowed to re-home or have the pet put down for any reason incl grave illness/old age without contacting the organization first and pay them to do it.

                            So if you adopt a pet through such an organization, you sort of sign over your life to the organization and they have the right to confiscate your pet at any time should they want to, for any reason.

                            Fortunately, this is totally against the Swedish law, but many people don’t know this, they think such a contract is valid. It isn’t. If you buy a pet the pet is yours just like if you buy a car. And if you mistreat your pet, it’s the authorities that have the right to confiscate it, noone else, and you actually need to mistreat your pet first, it’s not just a random decision of a hysteric animal-protection-person who thinks maybe little Woolfie doesn’t get fed enough pate de fois gras. Or too much pate de fois gras.

                            Well, I know they’re having all these rules to ensure that the wrong people don’t get dogs or cats for the wrong reasons, but it’s over-kill. Not many sane people would agree to those terms, and most insane people shouldn’t have pets anyway. Not even if you adopt a child the adoption agency can come barging in at any time and shake down your house.


                          • Eepster
                            Participant
                            1236 posts Send Private Message

                              It’s old fashioned thinking from people unwilling to open their minds to new possibilities.

                              I had my first bunny when I was a teenager back in the ’80s (no comments from people who were born in the ’80s.) I was taught keeping a rabbit indoors was extremely unhealthy. They needed fresh air or they would develop pneumonia. Litter training was never considered as a possibility even though bunnies generally choose a corner of their hutches and diligently stuck.to peeing and pooping only in that corner. Food was pellets, no greens, greens were bad. Alfalfa hay was given, but was viewed primarily as bedding, that was reasonable nutritious since bunny might happen to eat his/her bedding. Etc,etc, etc. It was all based on the livestock model.

                              If one learned about bunny care 25+ years ago and refuses to believe in the possibility that there might be other ways of doing things, they are going to feel you need a secure outside hutch.


                            • Delilahbunny
                              Participant
                              53 posts Send Private Message

                                Roberta I did say that to them and she just didn’t answer I think more to it was my age and I dress like I’ve walked out of the 80s or 90s so I think that also had something to do with it. What people don’t realise is I’m a true animal lover here in the uk a lot of high street shops were using angora I campaigned and signed petitions and boycotted these brands in sure a lot of peoples age would not think twice about where their clothing comes from.

                                I’ve decided to search out other rescues and I’ve found a lady who is so lovely and Delilah is going there in 2 weeks as it is my birthday this coming weekend to meet her husbun,

                                I’m so excited to go and see who she likes and gets on with.

                                I think RSPCA is another sea world where they believe what they are told

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                            Forum THE LOUNGE RSPCA