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Disposable Pets

Jenova

Wise Old Thumper
This is my article for the RSPCA newsletter if anyone is interested in reading it. I'm not quite sure it has enough continuity and jumps from one topic to another, but the basic idea is the rabbits are not just impuse buys, they are just as much a family pet as a cat or a dog and are a lot of hard work and money. But also that they are as loving and rewarding as owning a cat or dog too.

Here it is:

Disposable Pets?

Imagine your beloved pet who you adore as one of the family is very ill. Imagine you almost lost them a few months ago but they are slowly recovering. Now imagine on your way to the vets for a check-up someone very calmly and sincerely says you must be putting them down. Why? Because your pets isn’t seen as a real companion animal, because it is a rabbit.

This happened to me as I was waiting for the bus with my two rabbits. An old gentleman saw the carrier and asked me with genuine curiosity if it was a “pussy cat”. When I told him it was rabbits he suddenly lost all interest and made the usual remark of how was I going to eat them? Having owned rabbits for over thirteen years I’m used to this, so I just said they were too old and tough to eat, plus one of them is very ill and I’m taking him to the vets. Which was followed of course by “Oh, to put them down.” Not a question, a statement. Because like a lot of people he thinks rabbits are disposable pets. If they’re ill, you kill them and get another one. They couldn’t possibly be a member of the family with as much personality as a cat or a dog. Could they?

Rabbits were originally bread in the UK for meat and fur and it seems hard for many individuals to step away from this connection and see them as a family pet. People find it amazing when rabbits beg for food like a dog, or head butt your hand for attention like a cat, although this is normal rabbit behaviour. But just like any other pet, you can’t take a rabbit home and expect him to act exactly how you want. You have to spend a lot of time with them, socialising and training them, and as they’re prey animals this can take a lot longer than a cat or dog.

Rabbits are very rewarding and loving pets. The more attention you give them, the more their personalities grow. But they are also a lot of hard work and money. Some rabbits will be quite happy to sit on your lap for hours of cuddles where as others will spend hours running circles around your house or garden. All of them will chew through every wire you own and eat all your favourite plants. They need regular vaccinations and can develop as many medical problems as any other pet although it is a lot harder to find a vet that’s qualified in rabbit medicine as they are still considered exotic pets.

If you ever did consider having a rabbit as a pet, please think about adopting one. There are many rescue centres across the country that are full to bursting point because people impulse buy rabbits and don’t understand how much work they are. Pet shops are a business and their primary goal is to make money and most of them will never give you the correct advice on owning any pet. Did you know that the majority of a rabbit’s diet should be a good quality hay and that they should only eat a small amount of pellets and vegetables? And most pet shops sell hutches that are far too small for one rabbit let alone two.

Rabbits should never be kept on their own. They are very social animals and need a friend or sibling to keep them company. Not only is it cruel to keep them on their own, but they can get into twice as much mischief if there are two of them. However, pet shops very rarely promote neutering. As two unneutered males will fight viciously this often means they are condemned to a life of solitude when simply neutering two brothers would let them live happily together. Pet shops (even very well known ones) often sell two ‘female’ litter mates together where one turns out to be a boy. And then of course there are more unwanted rabbits. Spaying females should also be done for health reasons as the majority of them develop uterine cancer by the age of five and this will almost always prevent it.
 
that's very thoughtful, and gets the message across in a quite gentle way. very good work! well done.
 
Thank you. Our branch manager's trying to open a rehoming centre go Yarmouth but at the oment although there is a dog and cat rescue centre there is nowhere for small animals. I wish I had the time to do it myself, but go the meantime the best I can do is an article... :?
 
It's really good, I just want to highlight one error for you, 3rd para - bred not bread. Hope you don't mind just thought it might be better than it being printed. I think it's a really good article and I hope people take notice and think about it. Well done x
 
I'm sick of 'rabbit stew comments' too! I hope people read this before they get rabbits. People don't realise what it takes to keep rabbits happy and healthy.
 
It's really good, I just want to highlight one error for you, 3rd para - bred not bread. Hope you don't mind just thought it might be better than it being printed. I think it's a really good article and I hope people take notice and think about it. Well done x

and third line should be "pet isn't" or "pets aren't". And fourth paragraph, "whereas" is all one word. I also think it ends quite abruptly, it should really have a conclusion or build to a point. Hope you find that helpful and not a criticism :D as I love the article as a whole, it doesn't tell people what to do, but has rhetorical "Did you know..." type questions, and mixes anecdote with facts, excellent tone :D
 
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