Rabbit used for classroom pet!!!!!!!

[PJ'n'Me]

I work for a school, and recently found out a teacher wants to bring a rabbit in to become the dreaded “classroom pet”.  This sent chills down my spine for many obvious reasons.  I need advise on how to prevent this from happening.  The rabbit will sit in a cage 24-7, taken “home” on weekends, probably to sit in the cage till one of her grandchildren comes to visit.  The temperature fluctuates daily, the air is turned off at 4 in the afternoon every day, and no heat or air all weekend.  What will happen when they have a snow day and she doesn’t have to show up?  Let’s just say I witnessed how they view the animals when they become classroom pets.  Numerous teachers will leave pets all summer long, in filthy cages, no food, no water, they may or may not make it.  Treated like they are some kind of specimen.  It’s absolutely disgusting. 

The thought of leaving a bunny alone all night brings tears to my eyes, knowing how excited PJ is when I return home and we play, then we laydown together and fall asleep.   He greets me in the morning at his leisure, I feed him his blueberries and greens, and then he lays down for the day….A rabbit being forced to stay awake all day with a loud bell ringing every 30 minutes and kids poking around…no.. I couldn’t sleep because of this, and I have to be cautious of how I approach this situation, considering I’m only the useless janitor, and well…. who am I to be telling an educated person what to do,.. I’m so tired of people thinking rabbits are some kind of entertainment animal. 

This needs to be taken very seriously, because I can see myself loosing my job over this.  I need the job to take care of PJ…  I’ve printed out some articles and highlighted key points, but I don’t know how to approach this. Working as a janitor for a very well-to-do district, there is certainly a separation of class, unspoken or not, it lingers thick in the air.. I’ve had issues in the past with people challenging my “self-awareness”.  If someone has a suggestion, or can give a reason why this might not be the best idea, I would greatly appreciate it!!!!!! 

[TheDuchess]

Personally, I would meet with the principal about the matter.

Bring your knowledge of bunny care and express your concerns that a classroom is not a suitable environment for a rabbit. I would also bring up the fact that having a caged rabbit as a classroom pet WILL reinforce that misconception that rabbits are “easy” or “kids pets” (neither of which are true). Explain that by allowing the rabbit to live in unsuitable conditions will only encourage parents and children to think that this kind of treatment is OK, when it is absolutely not. It will not be teaching the children proper care or responsibility, therefore I see no reason to allow such a thing.

Good luck!

[Cocoa]

I hope you are able to prevent it from happening. I have no advice but good luck!

[Asriel and Bombur]

I think you really need to say something in this instance. Will the teacher listen to you? If so, I would start out on a personal level and say that you have a bunny and express your current situation with your own sick bun. After being personal, I’d really present the facts to her and explain to her that instances like your bunny, if it was at school all the time you wouldn’t have known how sick he is or what his behavior is like or even the little things. I’d stress how high maintenance they are and why they do not belong in a school setting and the dangers of being in a school 24/7.

[Sirius&Luna]

I’ve never understood this American thing of class pets. It’s so inappropriate and gives children entirely the wrong message about the responsibility of a pet. We used to have a class teddy bear that people could take home and on holidays

If they don’t listen to TheDuchess’s great points above, I would focus on the risk to the children – they might be more likely to pay attention to that! Plenty of people are allergic to hay, so I imagine at least a couple of children would be having sneezing fits over the hay. Their fur can also cause allergies. You could also point out that rabbits are likely to bite and scratch when scared, and being in a classroom is an inherently scary situation. Lastly, I would point out the vet costs. Hopefully all these factors combined will be enough to dissuade them.

[PJ'n'Me]

Thank you guys for the support!!  Because of your responses I am feeling confident now to approach this situation with plain and simple facts.  All of these suggestions are exactly what needs to be said.  I was planning on using this discussion as a back up as well.    Maybe them seeing other experienced rabbit parents having the same concerns will help persuade them to do the right thing.    I am not sure if the principal will care honestly, I am assuming he has already approved this, taken in to account the teacher told my co-worker the rabbit will be arriving shortly…….ughhhhh   It’s 2018, I don’t know why this is even legal to do anymore, we might as well be dying chicks pastel colors and handing them out to the children on Easter….  I spoke with a long distance friend earlier this morning, and his roommates decided to get rabbits, I tried to explain to him that they shouldn’t do this, and that they require a lot of care and attention, they are very unique in many ways, language, care, sleep patterns, digestion.   He didn’t listen to me, I asked him how the rabbits were doing, he replied and said, one died…  I hate being right.. I really really do…    IGNORANCE + RABBIT = DISASTER!  Thanks again for the encouraging words and suggestions!!

[Nutmeg]

As much as I *HATE* to say this… for the well being of the potential rabbit… you need to focus on why its not a good idea for HER or the Kids… Sadly, you may have to put the well being of the bunny as the after thought when making your case to start.

1. Bunny’s are a LOT more work than people realize. They get sick OFTEN – I’ve only had my two bunnies for a few months and have already had Gas attacks where they weren’t eating and had to be force fed…. does SHE want that much extra work.

2. Bunny’s bite when they are scared, children will scare them and their teeth are MUCH bigger than a hamsters. Bunny’s also HATE to be picked up and will not get used to it and again will bite (unlike a hamster – the normal class room pet, not that I agree with that either)

3. More children are allergic to the hay that bunnies need as 90% of their diet and some are allergic to them (like cats and dogs) unlike other small animals.
(I’m not exactly sure if that second part is true, but she’s not educated on bunnies anyway, so feel free to over exaggerate)

4. Bunnies need to go to an exotic vet and they cost way more. Hay’s pretty expensive where I come from too… I pay $60 a month just in Hay for my two… Most teachers are on a tight budget for things.

5. And then obviously everything you already know about how this is not good for the bunny if you need to get to that point.

** MAN that was horrible to even write, let alone deal with it. I am so sorry for you and your stress!!!

**** I would also suggest just approaching the teacher first (unless you already know she wont talk to you, in which case skip this step) and just say
Hi, I heard you were thinking of getting a new bunny as a class pet. I have a lot of experience with rabbits, so I was hoping we could have a quick conversation because I got some very big surprises with mine that no body seems to realize about rabbits until they have one….” or something like that.

Lead off like you are trying to be helpful and not confrontational, as that makes people shut down. It will be hard to not go into it angry and upset when that’s what you are feeling. But try your best to leave those feels at the door and look at her like an uneducated woman who doens’t know any better.

If that doesn’t work then go to the principal. You already don’t socialize with these people, so who cares if she gets upset that you go above her head.

So much good luck your way!

[Whiskers]

Urgh. Some people. Why can’t they do a show and tell instead where a parent brings in a child’s pet at a certain time of day for like an hour and the child explains care name type of pet etc and then parent takes pet home.

All the previous responses are awesome. I will suggest ( I have dealt with teacher and principals who never liked to listen) if you get nowhere with teach or principal see if your local humane society or rabbit rescue can set up a meeting or write a letter make a phone call to the principal and see if they can be the “educated” ( I hate to say it that way) wisdom the school will listen to. If all else fails it could help you out

Will be hoping your expertise will be all that is needed. Please keep us posted

[TheDuchess]

Whiskers, I think that is a really great idea! Getting an outside entity involved may force the principal to consider the public implications of putting animals on display in the classroom…

Unfortunately, I think it’s all too common these days that animals are treated as “novelties”. ESPECIALLY when it comes to exotics… “I’ve got so and so as a pet”, as if having an unusual choice of house pet somehow makes them an interesting person… It’s especially sad for bunny lovers, because due to years of portrayal as “cage-dwelling starter pets”, most rabbits probably end up in the hands of some ignorant fool who won’t give the bun half of what they need to be happy.

As sad as it is to admit, they will likely let the teacher just go ahead with it anyway. BUT I don’t want that to discourage you from speaking up. I think that you should do everything you can to dissuade them. If they still go ahead with it, you’ve at least got a clear conscience. And *god forbid this* but if something goes wrong and the bunny or a child is harmed, they may recollect on the things that you mentioned and decide that it is something that they will no longer do in the future. Whereas if you say nothing, they might chalk it up to an individual issue with that particular rabbit and think that it won’t apply to future classroom pets.

Best of luck, I’m sure it’s going to be frustrating for you!

[Bunny House]

Ugh, this made my blood boil. I really hope that you can get that teacher to not get a bunny.

[PJ'n'Me]

Just a quick update, I spoke with Rabbit Wranglers yesterday, they are a non profit organization that rescues and relocates bunnies in need, they suggested I speak to her about it as well, they also offered to bring an ambassador bun in to the class and do an education piece about rabbits.  They also said in a message  that it would be inhumane for her to have the rabbit in a classroom setting and that I wasn’t wrong.  I am going to try and speak with her today.  Thank you for all the good luck wishes and support!!!  I hope everybun  has a wonderful day!!

[Bunny House]

Keep us updated!!

[Whiskers]

Do your best. If they go along anyway at least you k ow you didn’t sit back and just watch.

Our school district doesn’t allow classroom pets due to allergies and mistreated animals. When my kids were little (middle 90’s- early 2000) they had a teacher who sent home a paper asking permission to set up a show and tell date. Asked if there were allergies amongst the classroom. There was so every child was asked to bring in a photo of their pet (parents were invited to attend) there were a lot of cat and dog photos shown plus exotics. Each child had to describe their pets behavior, how much food was given, how often they watered it, what is the hardest and easiest part of taking care of it, how many times it sees the vet and why is that important, etc. It was almost a book report/science report. At the end of the week they had a worker from humane society come in and talk all about the different animals and their care. It was a joy to watch.

I do not agree with classroom pets and I must say I was surprised that they still exist. I don’t see how they can have them with kids having so many allergies, fear of certain types of animals, etc. Not to mention constantly reading about abused animals in the paper. Humane societies are over run with sick animals that have been neglecting. Such a shame.

[Nutmeg]

Good Luck!! And maybe bring a print out of that message with you.

[PJ'n'Me]

Thought I would do an update on the situation.   Not much has happened the past few days with this.  I heard she rescued the rabbit because someone was going to toss him/her outside and she couldn’t find any shelters…. Not sure if that is true, I haven’t talked directly with her, but have two people that I know are going to help.  I guess she didn’t find Rabbit Wranglers while searching for a shelter.   I am still on this, and yes it has been approved already by Principal.. not surprised..  I also found out there is no policy regarding class pets, so ridiculous.  We are waiting for the Alligator class pet next….  I am going to start taking photos of this and reporting it.  This isn’t educational or anything less than abuse..  

[Nutmeg]

Oh man – thank you for keeping us posted and good for you!
Send so much good vibes your way!!

[Cocoa]

Good luck! I really hope you are able to prevent this. If they get a bunny, it will most likely be kept in a tiny space. I’m so glad there are people like you.

[BunnyLass568]

I can’t offer any real advice, by that I mean my advice would be to rescue the poor bun before any damage is done and if someone were to try to villianise you then go to town with your care expertise and prove that you did the right thing. I really wish you the best of luck.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Pets-Passed away: Hailey (9 years old, half rat terrier and miniature pincher, Feb-5-2019),Monster (13 years old, mixed breed, Lhasa Apso and some form of terrier, Sep-14-2020), Demon (14 year old Lhasa Apso, Aug-3-2022) Blossom (6 year old bunny breed(s) unknown, April-7-2024) Thumper (6 year old bunny breed(s) unknown, April-12-2024)💔💔💔💔

[BunnyLass568]

I can’t offer any real advice, by that I mean my advice would be to rescue the poor bun before any damage is done and if someone were to try to villianise you then go to town with your care expertise and prove that you did the right thing. I really wish you the best of luck.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Pets-Passed away: Hailey (9 years old, half rat terrier and miniature pincher, Feb-5-2019),Monster (13 years old, mixed breed, Lhasa Apso and some form of terrier, Sep-14-2020), Demon (14 year old Lhasa Apso, Aug-3-2022) Blossom (6 year old bunny breed(s) unknown, April-7-2024) Thumper (6 year old bunny breed(s) unknown, April-12-2024)💔💔💔💔

[Author]

Messages