Photo of Winston’s First Binky, and the Story of His Past

[dlscanne]

Ok this picture is actually 3 months old, from when I first got him.  But figured you guys would still appreciate it  

He was absolutely terrified of everything when I first brought him home, so I didnt even try letting him out for a full two weeks.  Even then I thought he would be too overwhelmed, but couldn’t resist.  He was a pet store rabbit, and I didn’t know it at the time but after some research I discovered that he came from a rabbit mill.  I have felt so incredibley guilty since I learned that horrible fact.  My boyfriend Sam and I have vowed to never get an animal from a petstore again…we should have known better.

BUT the good news is that with a lot of patience he is starting to really bond with me!  He is still terrified of Sam but will let me pet him and rub his ears.  He’ll even sit in my lap now.  He’ll lick treats up from the palm of my hand so gently.  He probably would have been labeled “cage aggressive,” when I got him, because he attacked the dustan, tried to box me and growled. The little bunny was so scared. but with patience and security that behavior is completely gone.

The picture quality isn’t very good (and its a little messy since we were still moving the little guy in).  However, I really like how symbolic it is of him turning over a new leaf!  The first time I let him out, there was a horrible period of time where I though he was injured…he didn’t hop, but walked awkwardly with his hind legs one at a time, like a cat.  Turns out he was just hesitant, because after about 15 minutes he did his first binky!  Luckily I had my camera and caught it. 

He was zooming and binkying so much I couldn’t beleive it!  It was like he was thinking…so THAT is what a rabbit is supposed to do!  I cried because I realized he had probably never had room to stretch, let alone run in his entire life. He had probably never used many of the muscles in his body.  I couldn’t imagine the conditions he had probably been born into and then raised in. He had never felt safe before.  I was so happy that little Winston was home.

I’ve wanted to share this for awhile but have felt so bad about supporting such a terrible place.  I can’t imagine what little Winston Church-Hare has been through.  I urge everyone who is tempted to get a rabbit from a pet store to seriously question the staff and do your own research.  Although I don’t regret giving Winston a good home, I really wish I had adopted.  Please learn from my mistake!

Sorry this is so long, but thanks for listening.  Feels good to get it off my chest.

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[dlscanne]

2 more pics…can’t resist

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[wendyzski]

I remember when Pepper did her first binky – I cried too! She had been dumped in a park as a cranky teen and spend almost a year in the shelter system.  I was just sooooo happy she was finally comfy.

[Beka27]

oh my gosh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i LOVE it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

he’s so CUTE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

thanks so much for sharing the pic and his story. PLEASE do not feel bad. we’ve all at one time or another done things we weren’t proud of, but what counts is that YOU have him and he has a great life with you NOW.

it’s a double-edged sword. rescuing buns that are (or have been) in bad situations is ideal. but petstore bunnies need homes too… there’s always the risk that they’re going to be impulse buys, or bought for a child, or stuck in a hutch in the backyard, or a bunch of other less-than-desirable situations. chances are high that this very rabbit would have ended up in a shelter anyways once he reached maturity and they didn’t find him as “cute”… you just cut-out the “middle man” and you’re giving him a good home from the very start.

i think many of our bunnies are from these kinds of situations. really, unless you bought from a breeder directly (still not ideal), you have no idea where you’re bun truly originated from.

[skibunny8503]

Aww!!  Too cute

[Cassi&Charlie]

Ooh, what a cutie! How lucky of you to get him mid-binky too!

A lot of us have pet store buns. I wouldn’t get a bun from a pet store again but Charlie is the love of my life, he is my soul-bun and it was fate or a blessing or something that brought him into my life and it doesn’t matter to me that I got him from a pet store and I don’t feel guilty about it.

He’s a beauty – you’re really lucky!

[Addy]

I love Winston’s ears!!

Addy was a pet store bunny too. …And a complete impulse buy…on sale… I’m extremely glad I got him, because I know I’m giving him a great life. If I hadn’t gotten Addy, I would probably never have adopted Bella from RasaRescue because I didn’t know anything about rabbits before I fell for Addy. Now, I plan to keep bunnies throughout my life–No matter how crazy my family thinks I am.

[jerseygirl]

Absolutely! Don’t feel bad. I have an impulse buy pet store bun too. It was only through getting her that I’ve become more educated about pet shop bunnies and the need for adoption of rabbits. Now I feel I can pass this knowledge on, be an advocate for adoption of all animals and prevent further pet shop buys.  Sometimes, they’re just too hard to walk past and forget.  Winston was lucky you came by!

[kralspace]

wow, both the bunnies are beautiful and the Winston’s binkie is awesome!

Dont’ feel bad, one of mine is a pet store bunny, left over from Easter with a clearance sign over his head. I needed a companion for my diva Pringles and brought Daisy home.

It was over a year before Daisy would come to the front of the cage on his own and let me touch him voluntarily. I think he was so traumatized at sitting several months in that small glass kiosk with no where to go for cover or a bit of privacy. The pet store employees said they loved to catch and cuddle him and that you “could do anything with him.”

Poor baby, if you even looked his way, he’d completely freeze into as small a cowering little bit of fur as he could and he’d stay that way for as long as you had your hands on him or held him. Even his eyes were frozen completely still, it was like handling a dead animal, which I guess was his defense.

He’s still that way if strangers come in the house, I just make sure he’s got one spot in the condo where he can go and be completely out of reach so it’s his decision whether or not to come out.

[dlscanne]

Thanks everyone for the kind words! I guess I’m a lot more over it now than when I first found out where he came from. I definitely feel like Beka said that I probably did “cut out the middle man.” He’s adorable but had some very challenging behavior at first, I could see him being abandoned for “behavior problems”. But he’s really coming around.

Even though we knew that pet stores weren’t all that great, I couldn’t stand the thought of him getting in the wrong hands. About a week after we first saw him I went to see Sam at work and told him we had to go get Winston right away…I couldn’t get any work done because I kept thinking about him there in the store!

[MarkBun]

[Crayon]

I love the binky picture! So cute.

[dlscanne]

Markus…hahaha! Wasn’t expecting that!

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

That picture is GREAT! Wow! Its so hard to catch binkies and yawns on camera-my goal in life really And it’s centered and it’s a HARLEQUIN colored LIONHEAD omg CUTE!!

[hooty22]

OMG K&K… It’s like a Frankie/Felony hybrid, which to be honest would probably be the best hybrid ever.

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