Your experiance with rescues?

Rabbit Talk  Forum

Help Support Rabbit Talk Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Most rescues tend to be associated with the house rabbit society, which is an anti-breeder group that tends to lean towards animal rights extremism. There are some practices of theirs that I don't agree with; mainly: the way they shame anybody that doesn't spay/neuter their rabbits (which is an expensive, dangerous procedure in rabbits), look down on anybody that doesn't keep them in pairs (although rabbits are territorial and quite often do better alone), advise against feeding pellet based diets (although humans might not like eating all those pellets, they really are the healthiest and most balanced diet. Good pellets, that is. Some pet stores sell cheap, poor quality food.), and preach wire floors as dangerous (where they are the best way to keep the rabbits clean, and well bred rabbits of most breeds don't have problems with the floors. Himalayans don't; flemish and belgian hares are two breeds that do. But breeders know their own breed.). (if find resources online that say these things; well, you've found house rabbit society resources then) Breeders & the house rabbit society don't get along very well, as you can tell. They mean well though; and if you find a rabbit there that love, go ahead and get it. Another portion of rescues are those which are mainly dog & cat rescues, that just happen to get a rabbit every now and then. I've talked to some of these, and helped them figure out the breed and care stuff for their rabbits, but the majority of dog/cat rescues don't know how to care for a rabbit that well. Then there are a small number of rescues that are good, but those are harder to find. I definitely recommend buying from a breeder, but if you really want to help out a rabbit, and don't care too much about breed, try talking to your local 4-H club. 4-H leaders and those associated with 4-H often end up with unwanted rabbits (either those of 4-H kids that had to get rid of them, or just ones that show up; once they get known as the 'rabbit person' that happens), and, at least the ones near me, are always trying to find homes for these. 4-H leaders would be a good source of information if anything goes wrong, too.

I know some people that have gotten rabbits from rescues. Sometimes it turns out well, sometimes it doesn't, but that's with getting a rabbit from anywhere.
 
My only experience was with Friends of Rabbits of Columbia, Maryland years ago. I had to give up my whole herd of over 50 rabbits. They were able to rescue all of them from the county shelter. They contacted other rescues to help take a few each. I saw most of my rabbits listed on Pet Finders. Although I never got a rabbit from them I do really appreciate the fact that they rescued my rabbits even if all of them got fixed before being adopted out.
 
SableSteel":iesuzfc6 said:
Most rescues tend to be associated with the house rabbit society, which is an anti-breeder group that tends to lean towards animal rights extremism. There are some practices of theirs that I don't agree with; mainly: the way they shame anybody that doesn't spay/neuter their rabbits (which is an expensive, dangerous procedure in rabbits), look down on anybody that doesn't keep them in pairs (although rabbits are territorial and quite often do better alone), advise against feeding pellet based diets (although humans might not like eating all those pellets, they really are the healthiest and most balanced diet. Good pellets, that is. Some pet stores sell cheap, poor quality food.), and preach wire floors as dangerous (where they are the best way to keep the rabbits clean, and well bred rabbits of most breeds don't have problems with the floors. Himalayans don't; flemish and belgian hares are two breeds that do. But breeders know their own breed.). (if find resources online that say these things; well, you've found house rabbit society resources then) Breeders & the house rabbit society don't get along very well, as you can tell. They mean well though; and if you find a rabbit there that love, go ahead and get it. Another portion of rescues are those which are mainly dog & cat rescues, that just happen to get a rabbit every now and then. I've talked to some of these, and helped them figure out the breed and care stuff for their rabbits, but the majority of dog/cat rescues don't know how to care for a rabbit that well. Then there are a small number of rescues that are good, but those are harder to find. I definitely recommend buying from a breeder, but if you really want to help out a rabbit, and don't care too much about breed, try talking to your local 4-H club. 4-H leaders and those associated with 4-H often end up with unwanted rabbits (either those of 4-H kids that had to get rid of them, or just ones that show up; once they get known as the 'rabbit person' that happens), and, at least the ones near me, are always trying to find homes for these. 4-H leaders would be a good source of information if anything goes wrong, too.

I know some people that have gotten rabbits from rescues. Sometimes it turns out well, sometimes it doesn't, but that's with getting a rabbit from anywhere.

I'm most likely going to go through a breeder.

I don't like not REALLY knowing the animal's history. What the rescue knows about the animals is what the owners tell them and how do you know if the owner wasn't lying or if the rescue is sugar coating the animals faults?

I'll get a dog, as a puppy, through a shelter or rescue, but I'm not going to take the chance on rabbits. I understand dog behavior and health issues more than rabbit ones, and since this will be my first one I don't want to take any chances.
 
Back
Top