It’s that time of the year again! Flowers are blooming, skies are clearing up, and allergy season is in full swing. Store displays are filled with warm pastel colors and parents rummage through the “$5 or less” section searching for miniature trinkets to hide in small plastic eggs for the annual Easter Egg Hunt. Bubbles, candy, cards, and more, serve as fun gifts for kids to celebrate the commercialized holiday. However, many young children are indulged with live animals. After being given an adorable baby bunny, the novelty quickly fades and suddenly, local shelters are suddenly flooded with hundreds of Easter bunnies.
The neglect and abandonment of pet rabbits is a massive issue. Domestic rabbits are often abandoned in shelters and rescues weeks after being purchased, with a massive spike in the weeks following Easter. Sometimes, they are even dumped on the streets to die. The House Rabbit Society, a nonprofit dedicated to rabbit rescue and education, reports that rabbits are the third most frequently abandoned and euthanized pets in the United States. There are many different reasons behind this issue, but they all stem from one root cause. Rabbits are wildly misunderstood creatures.
The primary misconception is that rabbits are beginner pets. This is, however, far from the truth. Rabbits are anything but low-maintenance and are definitely not acceptable pets for young children. Breeders rarely educate buyers on proper rabbit care, displaying them in cramped and inhumane cages and providing buyers with inadequate diet and exercise information. Once the initial novelty wears off and owners realize the demands of caring for a high-maintenance pet, they quickly become frustrated. These inexperienced and unprepared owners then hastily rid themselves of their pet, dumping them at the shelter or even on the street. Since the majority of these rabbits are not fixed, shelters tend to receive pregnant rabbits, resulting in an even larger population of rabbits without homes.
Moreover, breeders often sell rabbits too young in order to increase their marketability and gain maximum profit, because children find smaller rabbits cuter. Young rabbits, specifically before they are neutered/spayed, are extremely difficult to manage due to their behavior issues, including marking by urinating and soiling around their area, “aggressive behavior,” and so on. A rabbit’s sudden hormonal shifts, paired with a hyperactive child, often results in a painful bite. As soon as the initial novelty wears off, and the mistreated rabbits instinctively defends itself, the family is forced to throw it out.
Shelters and rescues play a crucial role in breaking this cycle of abandonment of rabbits by spay-neutering rabbits, socializing them, providing education to the rabbit owners and screening the adoptive families. The “Make Mine Chocolate!” campaign raises awareness and educates the public on the reality of caring for a rabbit, hoping to discourage potential owners from purchasing a live rabbit as an Easter gift. Living with and caring for a rabbit is an amazing and educational experience, but it is crucial to adopt with the knowledge necessary to make the process smooth and enjoyable.