Almost half (278) of the UK rabbit rescue centres contacted by the Rabbit Awareness Association & Fund (RWAF) are closing, or have already closed this Summer as result of lack of financial support, staff emotional burn out and poor health. Yet the number of abandoned and unwanted rabbits continues to increase with remaining rescues struggling to cope.
As we head towards autumn, it will be a particularly challenging time for these remaining overburdened rescues. It’s a time of the year when a significant number of people give up the pets that they bought over the summer. Sadly, once the temperature drops and rabbit care becomes more arduous, the novelty of first-time rabbit ownership can quickly fade. It’s a scenario that is sadly all too common.
Today the average cost for caring for just one rabbit in rescue is around £1.4K a year** and the cost of prepping a pair of rabbits for rehoming – which can include neutering and treating medical conditions – is between £200-£400. Of the rescue rabbits who are adopted, most will wait up to 12 months for their new home.
A NEW survey by the Rabbit Welfare Association & Fund (RWAF) has identified the most common reasons for surrendering pet rabbits are:
• Lack of time
• Financial problems
• Children have lost interest
• Change in circumstances
“The situation is becoming more and more challenging as more rescues find themselves under increasing pressure”, says Lea Facey, Rescue Centre Manager at The Rabbit Residence in Henlow, Bedfordshire. “We have up to 100 rabbits at our centre at any one time and would take more if we could. With so many rescues closing and still no proper legislation to control the breeding of rabbits***, I’m not sure how we are going to be able to ensure the safety and wellbeing of so many unwanted and abandoned pets.”
How can people help?
“Our key message is a very urgent one and it’s to any prospective rabbit owner is please don’t rush into it and please do your research first”, says Rae Walters, CEO at the Rabbit Welfare Association & Fund. “Rabbits are intelligent, sentient creatures with quite complex welfare needs that are so often overlooked.
“Contrary to the long-held stereotype, they are definitely not an ideal ‘first pet’ for children. The proof is in the alarming rescue numbers, which reflect how thousands are abandoned year-on-year, once the novelty wears off and the challenges of rabbit guardianship kick in.”
“We must reach the point where it becomes socially unacceptable to buy rabbits for young children only to rehome them soon after. Meantime, we’re asking anyone looking to get rabbits to please adopt, don’t shop.”
*Neutered rabbits should always be housed in pairs or groups. The Good Practice Code for the Welfare of Rabbits can be found here: https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Rabbit-CoP-July-2023-final.pdf.
For details of what a suitable environment for rabbits to live in see the Good Practice Code for the Welfare of Rabbits http://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/codes-of-practice/
** Figures provided by The Rabbit Residence https://rabbitresidence.org.uk/
*** For more information on the RWAF Breeding Amnesty campaign: https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/breedingamnesty/
For more information on the RWAF survey or to arrange an interview, contact RWAF@nobullagency.co.uk
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Dan Everett
Jo Abraham