Every summer, shelters fill with rabbits once the Easter bunny excitement has worn off..
Domestic rabbits are the third most surrendered pet in the US, behind dogs and cats. They live eight to twelve years, need specialized veterinary care, and eat a diet that's mostly fresh hay, not carrots. They bond deeply with their owners and get lonely and depressed in isolation. They are not low-maintenance starter pets, nor are they wild animals.
When people realize that, a lot of them release the rabbit outside. This is a death sentence. A domestic rabbit has no survival instincts suited to the outdoors. It can't recognize predators, can't find food, and is visible to every hawk and fox in the neighborhood within hours of being set loose.
The ones that do survive long enough to be found are usually in bad shape by the time a wildlife rehabilitator gets them, and wildlife rehabbers aren't equipped to take domestic animals anyway.
If you have a rabbit you can no longer care for, the right move is a rabbit rescue or a shelter with a rabbit program. The House Rabbit Society has a rescue finder. Most metro areas have one. It's not glamorous and it's not a happy ending, but it's the one that doesn't involve the rabbit dying alone in a field.
If you're thinking about getting a rabbit for a child: get a stuffed one. Or better yet, find a rescue that allows visits and let the kid meet a real one first.
If you live in a country that sends poor people to jail for using drugs, but doesn't send rich people to jail for raping kids, you live in a shit hole country.
We were given a planet that grows its own food, overflowing with trees, fruit, water, medicine, and sunlight, where life itself is abundant and generous. Yet we built systems of debt, competition, division, and war instead of learning to live in balance with it.
Stand with us to protect the future of Nashville Zoo.
A proposed 69,000-square-foot data center is planned next to the Zoo, but no environmental impact studies have been conducted. Sign our petition to help protect the animals in our care ➡️ https://t.co/q2ISQnxLBK
Just watched Steve from Blue's Clues on Tiktok, checking up on his audience who were just innocent kids and now are adults. And I read the comment section.. 😭😭