Found a rabbit outside, seems domesticated?

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This topic has 18sd replies, 7 voices, and was last updated 6 years, 11 months ago by kurottabun.

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- 07/02/2018 at 6:35 PM
  Toasty
  Participant
  17 posts
  So my neighbor across the street knows I have an un-neutered male rabbit as a pet. She called me saying they found a black widow on their trash can wheel and behind their trash can was a rabbit. I went over there, my boyfriend sprayed the black widow while I reached down for the rabbit. She’s a big girl, I’m not sure if she’s pregnant or just fat. I don’t know if she’s been bitten by the black widow or if she’s domesticated. She didn’t put up a fight, I held her in my arms for over 30 minutes, gave her some water and tried to feed her. She drank the water, licked my arm and hand but didn’t seem interested in food.
  
  There is a house on our neighborhood that had what looked like a rabbit hutch laying outside and now I’m thinking she may be a domesticated rabbit that was tossed out since there were TV’s and furniture outside, maybe they were evicted and just let her loose?
  
  I put her in our backyard under the deck and threw down a bowl of water and some orchard grass, I’m just not sure what to do next. The animal shelter here is closed. I really want to keep her because she was so sweet, but with an unneutered male my boyfriend won’t allow it.
  
  What’s the best course of action? The fact she was licking me and didn’t fight being held makes me feel like she’s a pet that isn’t meant to be just released to nature. She’s too fat to fit through our fence so right now she’s just a backyard bunny. Should I just leave her be and let her live in the backyard? Should I contact an animal shelter to take her in? I would feel awful if she got put down or stuffed into some cramped cage when she really can have the whole yard to roam.
  
  But I also don’t know how to tell if she’s domesticated or wild.
- 07/02/2018 at 7:17 PM
  Bunny House
  Participant
  1241 posts
  Hi,
  Would you be able to take her to a vet and have them look at her and see what she is?
  If she turns out to be domesticated, is there a way you could foster her in a separate room of your house until you can find a loving home for her since shelters often to not know how to feed or look for signs of illness in bunnies?
  And of course, if you grow too attached to her, maybe your boyfriend would allow both of them to get fixed and then bond both of them, but of course it all depends on if she is wild or not.
  
  Would you be able to post a picture of her? Maybe some experts can say what she is.
- 07/02/2018 at 7:35 PM
  Toasty
  Participant
  17 posts
  Here’t the baby girl. I don’t even know if she’s a female, but I didn’t feel testicles on her. I feel so bad for her. Anyone want a rabbit?
- 07/02/2018 at 8:12 PM
  kurottabun
  Participant
  908 posts
  Aww she’s adorable. Hmm neither the colouring nor the features resemble a wild bunny. You are right in saying that domesticated bunnies shouldn’t be released into the wild, because the wild buns won’t accept them as their own.
  
  Sometimes males can “suck” their testicles up and you wouldn’t see them in their dropped form. So it could still be a male unless you’re able to properly examine the underparts and rule that out. Either way if you decide to keep this bun together with yours, both would need to be fixed before bonding can happen.
  
  As for what you should do, it really depends on what you “could” do. There are a few options:
  
  1) Keep them both. But they will need to be fixed and go through a proper bonding process in order to live together. Caring for two rabbits will of course mean spending almost double for everything. So you need to evaluate if it’s something you can afford.
  
  2) Like Bunny House said, foster until you find her a new home. Is your own bun free roam? If he isn’t then you could put new bun in a separate room. Either that or you could thoroughly clean out one of the rooms and let her live there, but make sure your current bun doesn’t have access to it. This option would also depend on how both would react to a different scent (they will most likely be able to smell each other). Some buns react negatively and start displaying hormonal behaviour, but others are quite neutral about it.
  
  I’m not sure if letting her live in the backyard is the best idea – do you have a protected hutch for her outside? There could be dogs, cats, birds of prey or even foxes around that can easily get into a backyard and harm a bunny, plus the fluctuations of temperature/weather outside. Keeping bunnies outdoors could work but it requires a lot of effort to make sure they are safe and comfortable, so ideally she should be kept indoors. Also, a lot of bunnies are actually quite good at escaping from small spaces (the fluff is deceiving and they could actually squeeze through what we think they can’t). She could also dig her way out.
  
  3) If you can’t do any of the above, the best way is to find the nearest rabbit shelter and bring her there. It’s probably a better chance of survival compared to being let loose.
- 07/02/2018 at 8:23 PM
  Toasty
  Participant
  17 posts
  I don’t want to risk my male rabbit spraying or getting in a frenzy over the scent, so tomorrow I’ll call the animal shelter. It’s so disappointing to think that this was someone’s pet that they just let go. Seeing the rabbit cage in the trash really makes me think she was just released with no consideration.
  
  It sucks, my current rabbit does not like to be held, rarely spends time with us, but he’s our original and our baby. There’s that loyalty to him. He is free roaming and unfortunately the only other room in the house is dedicated to a hydroponic garden and some baby fish that I have in a tank, so there are cords and wires laying around everywhere.
  
  She’s shedding a ton but I was feeling around on her and she’s a thick thing, there’s no way she can fit through the fence. Right now she’s comfortable and laid out under the deck with a fresh bowl of water and some hay, hopefully it’ll be easy getting her out tomorrow to take her to either the fish and wildlife foundation or an animal shelter.
- 07/02/2018 at 9:07 PM
  kurottabun
  Participant
  908 posts
  Unfortunately things like that happen :/ But it’s good that you found her!
  
  Is she eating the hay? If she’s overweight then she was most likely given a lot of pellets and very little hay in the previous home. Buns used to that kind of diet sometimes refuse to eat hay.
- 07/02/2018 at 9:20 PM
  Toasty
  Participant
  17 posts
  I’m not really sure. I put her under the deck and she just plopped down on her side then I went out there and threw a bunch of hay under there. She was eating the clovers and grass under the deck, drinking the water from the bowl. I’ll check tomorrow morning to see if she’s still under there or at least in the yard. I feel bad, she kept licking my hand and arm, I felt like we bonded.
- 07/02/2018 at 10:23 PM
  LBJ10
  Moderator
  17107 posts
  That is definitely a domestic bunny. If you can’t bring her in, then see if you can find a local shelter to take her to.
- 07/02/2018 at 10:48 PM
  charlierae
  Participant
  18 posts
  Awww, how sweet she is! Where are you located? I’m always a sucker for rescues. It’s so sad somebody just dumped her. Poor thing.
- 07/03/2018 at 4:01 AM
  meridiian
  Participant
  157 posts
  This is so sad! A domestic bunny discarded with garbage. Outrageous. Poor, poor bunny.
  
  Thank you for looking after her, she is probably confused and very very sad. She has lost her home.
  
  Whatever you decide, please give her lots of love and attention at this time. I’m sure you do! Whatever you decide lets hope she finds a home where she is given lots of love after this ordeal.
  
  xx
- 07/03/2018 at 4:03 AM
  meridiian
  Participant
  157 posts
  Thank you for the pic. She’s beautiful! Clearly domestic. xx
- 07/03/2018 at 5:26 AM
  meridiian
  Participant
  157 posts
  Please make sure, should you take her to a shelter that they have a ‘no kill’ policy.
  I’m sure you know that but many shelters don’t have that policy and they are getting overwhelmed right now. All the best bunny! Good luck. xx
- 07/03/2018 at 10:54 AM
  Toasty
  Participant
  17 posts
  I’m in Richmond, KY! If you want her, she’s yours! She’s just been lounging around under the deck. Doesn’t seem too interested in the hay I threw down but she was definitely thirsty.
- 07/03/2018 at 10:56 AM
  Toasty
  Participant
  17 posts
  I’ve called around to every shelter, the fish and wildlife center here, nobody seems to take in rabbits unfortunately. They all just tell me that they deal with dogs and cats only. But yeah, I’m definitely making sure to ask if they are a no-kill shelter and am adamant on her finding a good home.
  
  I just posted on Craigslist to see if anyone is interested in taking her in. It’s kind of hard to advertise her since I don’t know anything about her, but I’m hoping some rabbit lover will see it and just be willing to open their home up.
  
  Thanks for all the help
- 07/03/2018 at 11:17 AM
  tobyluv
  Participant
  3311 posts
  It’s actually not recommended that you list rabbits on Craig’s List. Many people who get rabbits from there, want them for reasons other than as companion animals. If anyone does respond, make sure that they really want a rabbit for a companion animal, that they know all about rabbit care and their ways, and it would be great to get a vet reference from them.
  
  You could try speaking with your vet. Sometimes they can help in placing a rabbit, or they may let you put up a notice in their office.
  
  There are 3 rabbit rescues in KY. I don’t know how close they are to you. Many rescues stay full, and some rescues only take from shelters, but you could try them.
  
  http://www.harveyshouse.org/
  http://www.pamperedpetsanimalrescue.org/
  http://www.bunbunbrigade.org/
  
  You may be closer to a rescue in a neighboring state. Here is the state by state listing of rescues. The list may not be completely up to date.
  
  https://rabbit.org/independent-rabbit-rescue/
- 07/03/2018 at 11:48 PM
  Toasty
  Participant
  17 posts
  I’m including an adoption fee for her to make sure she isn’t used as someone’s snake food or something. So far I’ve had two responses, one woman who kept making bunny puns and said she could provide a “hoppy” home for her.
  
  My neighbor across the street has an aunt that lives a couple of hours away that may want to adopt her, they’ve had rabbits all their lives. I’m just not sure how long it’ll take for her to make it down here. The heat index tomorrow is 115 so I’m really nervous about overheating. It’s cool under the deck, full shade and clay underneath that keeps cool and moist. I have a few jugs of water in the freezer so I can put them under there tomorrow for her in case she wants to rest against those.
  
  Thank you for those links Toby. Harvey’s House is in Louisville about two hours away so I will try and reach out to see if they’re open tomorrow on the 4th. If it seems too hot out there my boyfriend may just have to get over it and let me bring her into the house and try and keep her separated from our male rabbit.
  
  I’m determined to get this poor thing a good home.
- 07/04/2018 at 7:31 AM
  Bunny House
  Participant
  1241 posts
  If you can bring her inside just for today because with that heat, even in the Shade, a bunny can overheat and die with cooling items. If there’s extra room in your place to block your bunny from getting to, that would be great and then after tomorrow you can deep clean that area with vinegar and water so he won’t spray.
- 07/04/2018 at 10:27 AM
  Toasty
  Participant
  17 posts
  I did exactly that. Froze a bottle of water and laid it out there with her next to the fence until the heat started coming in, then brought her in and put her in my laundry room with some food, hay, and water.
  
  Happy to say she was just adopted out! The guy had a little bunny carrier and everything, we sat and talked about how awful it was for someone to just abandon a domesticated animal like that. I waived the adoption fee just because he seemed like he wouldn’t be cruel at all. So all is good here! I miss her but glad she’s got a good home to look forward to.
- 07/04/2018 at 7:40 PM
  kurottabun
  Participant
  908 posts
  I’ve seen some people posting on Petfinder that adopters must agree to “house visits” for a certain period of time after adopting the pet. I’m assuming this is to ensure that the pet indeed went to a loving home and not to be mistreated again. Just putting it out there so if you feel like you want to do that, you can Otherwise hoping that she gets all the love she deserves now in her new home!
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