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The Bunny Hop?
What to Consider Before Bringing Home a Rabbit
By Alex Powell
You're relaxing on the couch with your favorite DVD, when suddenly you're surrounded by rabbits. That's a typical situation for Jill and Bob Mills and their daughter, Ashley, of Sacramento, Calif. The Mills family has four Dwarf Dutch rabbits who are litter box trained and have the run of the house. The bunnies spend their mornings frolicking in the backyard, afternoons napping under the beds and evenings snuggling and socializing with their human family.
Unfortunately, not all pet rabbits get to enjoy this kind of life. Caroline Charland receives around 30 phone calls a day from people trying to get rid of unwanted rabbits. Many of these animals are children's pets, says Charland, president and founder of the Bunny Bunch SPCR (www.bunnybunch.org), a rabbit rescue organization based in Southern California. Parents tend to buy their children rabbits on impulse, especially around Easter. But the new owners often haven't researched rabbit care or behavior, and before long, Charland says, the kids aren't interested anymore.
According to the House Rabbit Society (www.rabbit.org), an international rabbit rescue and education organization, thousands of rabbits are released outdoors or abandoned at animal shelters every year.
Considering a rabbit as your next family pet? Here are a few things to think about before buying that bunny:
- The rabbit is going to be your rabbit. It's really important for parents to realize this, Charland says. Children simply don't have the maturity to provide everything a rabbit needs, and expecting them to be responsible for a rabbit – or any pet – is unfair to both animal and child.
- Rabbits are a lot of work. "My top concern with families and rabbits is the amount of work that rabbits take," says Susan Davis, co-author of Stories Rabbits Tell: A Natural and Cultural History of a Misunderstood Creature
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