VOLUNTEERING!

[tanlover14]

So… I’m looking into strongly volunteering at our local shelter with the bun buns!  I sent in an application to two of the rescues we have here (one of which is right down the street and the other one I would need to get to by bus).   But I also have some questions for anyone in the forums who has volunteered with the bunnies before!  

 

The first thing I’m worried about is the conditions at the rescues.  From your guys’ experiences, how has the conditions at the shelters affected you?  I mean.. I’m pretty positive I give my buns a great life and I’d like to help any bunny out there I possibly can have a chance at a good home also but I’m worried about the conditions I may encounter that are probably not soo…. up to par I suppose.  I know the Humane Society in my area has their buns walking on the wire bottoms in their pens.. and as of right now I know they have a ton of rabbits in really small cages because they’ve been completely overloaded with them.   How did you guys respond to such conditions? 

 

The second thing I’m worried about is being around other rabbits and coming home to my rabbits.  What precautions can I take to ensure nothing gets transferred from buns there to mine? 

 

Any other help/advice/thoughts would be greatly appreciated as I really have not a whole lot of idea what I’m getting myself into but would really like the opportunity to become more involved!!

 

[LittlePuffyTail]

That’s great that you want to volunteer.

About a year ago, I did some volunteering, once a week at our local SPCA. There is no rabbit rescue near hear, but our SPCA usually has 3 -10 bunnies. I can only relate my experience with this particular shelter.

The bunnies had nice big, clean spaces so I didn’t have to deal with that. The hardest thing was a couple of the buns seemed really depressed. I just did the best I could while I was there. I brought them in the cat play room to let them have run time/human time. I also brought them treats. I’m a super germophobe when it comes to rabbits so I was super careful. Your shelter will probably stress this, but it’s important to wash your hands between handling rabbits at the shelter to keep them safe as well.

I bought a cheap pair of sneakers that I only used at the shelter. They never came in the house, I would leave them in the trunk before coming in. As soon as I got in the car, I used antibacterial gel on my hands. As soon as I got home, I stripped down and put my clothes directly in the washing machine and then took a shower. You can’t get more thorough than that! I also volunteered with the cats whom many had respiratory infections so had to do this to protect my cats as well.

I’m planning on starting back up volunteering again soon. I miss the shelter bunnies. It was hard but also very rewarding. I hope you have a great experience.

[peppypoo]

Aww, that sounds great! It’s great that you’re putting aside the time to help out . Though I haven’t volunteered before, I’m pretty familiar with my local bunny shelters.

In a shelter situation, it’s impossible to give each bunny as much space and freetime as they deserve. Sometimes, seeing how long certain bunnies had been in the shelter (years!) was quite depressing. However, I just tried to remind myself that the limitations were not due to a lack of knowledge or love, but simply feasibility. Not to mention that they were the lucky ones who had a good future ahead of them! If you do see something that could be easily and cheaply fixed in your local shelter, such as the wire cage bottoms, you could recommend adding rest areas in each cage to help their little feetsies.

What LPT described sounds great in terms of contact isolation…as long as you change clothes/shoes and shower, I think your own buns should be safe from whatever pathogens you might have picked up.

Do let us know how it goes!

[Sarita]

I’ve volunteered at quite a few different rescues – never at Humane Societies or SPCA’s however for rabbits. I think you have to realize that while they may not have the ideal housing conditions, they are much better off than they would be otherwise. Also you have to realize that most shelters have very limited resources and do the best they can with what they have.

As for your rabbit contracting anything, it’s highly unlikely. I will say that you will most likely change and shower anyway once you get home since working at shelters is a very messy thing. I’ve never ever had problems with my rabbits contracting anything from shelter rabbits – there isn’t anything they can contract once you leave the shelter since they are not in direct contact.

[Snowytoshi]

My shelter is geared towards cats and dogs, but we also accept small animals and since we’re the only shelter in our area that does that we get a lot of small animals.

The conditions in my shelter are not what I would ever house a rabbit in and the shelter staff do realize that. They do the best they can for their rabbits based on funding and it is certainly better then most homes that the rabbits came from. I think that a bigger concern should be what conditions the rabbits have lived in, instead of how the shelter houses them. For rabbits that have lived their whole lives in cages where they could hardly turn around, rabbits who were strays, or left in hutches to die, the shelter is heaven. Many rabbits that come in do not even know what hay is or are so afraid that alll they can do is shake in your arms. Though the shelter conditions may not be what we would keep our rabbits in, it is preferable to where they came from. The shelter staff will listen to you if you bring up concerns in a polite tactful way.
When I come home from the shelter I have to shower and change my clothes. If I do not Toshi will chase me, attack his wife, and release some delightful male hormones, Joshua will run away in terror (he spent nine months at the shelter) and will sit in a corner, shaking. For both those reasons and the health reasons it is a good idea to completely clean yourself after visiting the shelter.

[FrankieFlash]

everyone’s suggestions were great and I also do the strip and throw in washer machine and the washing hands at shelter and sanitizing in the car. As for the one with wire cages maybe you go with a measuring tape and measure the cages when you are there. Then the next time you come, bring some 2x4s that are already cut and ask them if it’s okay if you provide relief boards for the their hocks. A lot of places just don’t have the resources or time to make the extra step.

I also usually shower after volunteer time depending on what I did. Might seem like an extreme procaution but if I’m super smelly anyways than its a win-win.

[longhairmike]

the people who run TTAS are amazing, and the conditions for the bunnies there is too.
Kelli & Rick actually used to volunteer at another phoenix area shelter but did not feel it nurtured the bunnies enough, so they started their own.
they also run a for-profit business together selling security & surveillance equipment (everytime someone tries to dump a bun off outside the shelter at night, they dont realize they’re being completely recorded in HD)

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

I don’t think it will be that hard-it’s not like they’ll be wasting away with no food or anything; just that you’ll likely see bare minimum for space and enrichment. It’s meant as a temporary home and has to meet only basic needs.

By volunteering you’ll be enriching their lives and helping them to increase capacity.
You can also do a lot to help once your established there. You may be able to convince them to put a section of plastic into the cage so the rabbits can get off the wire. It will be sad but not heartbreaking and don’t underestimate what you can do and how much you’ll help

[Elrohwen]

When I lived in CT I spent some time volunteering with a private bunny rescue. Every day volunteers came to clean cages, so the bunnies had fresh newspaper on the floor of cages (all dog crates, usually) and clean litter boxes. It did make me sad that they generally didn’t get much out of cage time, or human interaction (especially the cage aggressive ones – I certainly wasn’t going to try petting a bunny who was boxing and biting me). But many were found on the streets or living in much worse conditions, so they were in a better place. The rescue was at the house of the owner (she converted a garage and part of her house for them) so they were well loved. She took especially good care of the disabled rabbits.

Some people find it hard to work in rescues – they want to take every one home. I’ve worked with a few shelters and I haven’t had that problem (though a few have really touched my heart, of course). You might handle it differently, but it really is rewarding to make their lives a bit better on the days you go in.

I always changed my clothes and washed up a bit when I got home, though I didn’t take a shower. 

[tanlover14]

Thank you guys for all of your advice!!!!

I actually applied to TWO shelters… I usually work at night so I think I’ll be able to put aside 4 hours in the mornings to go and help out! One is really close and the other I have to bus-ride there. I really hope it’s a great experience. I’m so excited for the opportunity to help these little guys!

I have a Bunny Buddying Introduction next Saturday so I’ll let you guys know how it goes when I complete it!

[LittlePuffyTail]

Awesome. Good luck!

[Stickerbunny]

For wire bottoms a cheap thing you could do to help is get grass mats and ask if the shelter will let you put them in the cages. It is two fold, a soft stand and a toy. Even just putting some hay on the floor will pad it a bit. Most shelters are pretty willing to do what they can for their animals. Just don’t put them on the defensive.

For hygiene yeah just change and wash before handling your buns. If you don’t want to buy new shoes for it, you can get the shoe covers like vets / doctors use if you want. Most things won’t transmit off clothes but there are some that may.

I am sure the bunnies will appreciate the extra care. I wish I could volunteer at our shelter, but no car makes it impossible for now. Good luck!

[tanlover14]

In case anyone doesn’t keep up with the January Chat — I had an ABSOLUTELY amazing time at the shelter today! I’m going back on Tuesday for some more bunny buddy volunteering! It made me so happy to know I care for my buns so well and it felt sooo great to be able to socialize and get the buns out for some run time while there. They were Bunny Romping when we came in today so for our first day we got to help out with the Bunny Romp. I fell in love with about 4 bunnies. 3 of whom loved me and 1 who kept running away. I’m determined to get him to love and trust me. AND he’s harlequin! This site has made me fall in love with their coloring!!! It was the perfect day!

And I realized that all the cages had towels laid down to help protect the little bunny feeties so after I’ve been spending time there I’m thinking maybe I can introduce something even better (that I can supply). I’ve already started saving toilet and paper towel rolls to bring in as toys for all the buns! I really loved all the volunteers – not many of us but they all seemed very dedicated to the rabbits and their happiness. So excited for Tuesday to get here!!

[Snowytoshi]

tanlover, when we go to our shelter we have to give ourselves a long talking to about not getting any more bunnies! In the case of Joshua and one of our guinea pigs we gave in to temptation It can be so hard to get to know a bunny really well and then see them adopted.

I am so glad you’re having such a good time there!

[LittlePuffyTail]

I’m so glad you had a positive experience.

AND he’s harlequin! This site has made me fall in love with their coloring!!! It was the perfect day!

Pictures PLEASE!

[Author]

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