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Why shouldnt you buy a rabbit from pet shops?

lauramc888

Warren Scout
Im not trying to cause controversy!! Or arguements!

Just genuinely curious. I have to say, I got my bunnies from a garden centre but didnt know anything about rescues until my friend told me about this site. I just wondered, the rabbits in rescues, did they not come from pet shops and if not, where did they come from to be in a rescue? And what happens to the poor wee rabbits in pet shops who dont get sold? Ive saw the same ones in my local P@H there for ages, and feel so sorry for them :(


genuine curious questions! Any info would be great thanks
 
my personal reason would be,

1. I learnt the hard way baby animals and me dont suit, i much prefer an older pet
2. I HATE the spay/neuter op, i cried when i saw what i did to Alvin so unless petshops start selling animals ready done i wont be buying one.


thats it for me. babys and neuturing waaay too traumatising :oops:
 
Well

the reason is rescues are full with unwanted pets and yes most of them will have come from pet shops originally..thats why we are anti those shops
We rescuers are one of the few "businesses" that would really like to not be needed any more..but sadly that is unlikely:cry:

So we want pet shops to stop selling animals..they only see them as stock..do not care where they end up as anyone can walk in and buy a bunny..usually with a very tiny cage and rubbish food:cry:

If you buy an animal from a shop then it is supporting the trade and encourages the shops to stock/sell more

If they do not sell as many..then they may stop stocking them
Sadly if you buy from a shop you are not "rescuing" a bunny..you are just encouraging trade in these poor little creatures
 
Jill has said it all. It's a question of supply and demand. While the demand for cute baby bunnies exists, petshops will continue to sell them. The more people who go to rescues instead, the less customers for the shops.

In principle it's very simple - if you don't support unnecessary breeding and the pet shop trade, don't put your money into the system :)
 
What if there is no rescue rabbits?
I am in sweden and we dont have ANY rescues here and my bunny is from a pet shop.:oops:
I completely agree with the fact that it is not a fantastic thing to get your bunny from a pet shop,and it it not rescuing by doing so.
The next rabbit i get will be from a good breeder though.
 
What if there is no rescue rabbits?
I am in sweden and we dont have ANY rescues here and my bunny is from a pet shop.:oops:
I completely agree with the fact that it is not a fantastic thing to get your bunny from a pet shop,and it it not rescuing by doing so.
The next rabbit i get will be from a good breeder though.

I'm in Sweden as well! :wave: And YES it really sucks that there aren't any rescues around here :( You could always go on Blocket.se though,sadly there's always lots of unwanted rabbits for sale on there :cry: My two were both doomed to end up on there had I not taken them on. People just don't seem to realise that they don't stay tiny and cuddly forever. I find it so upsetting :cry:
 
What if there is no rescue rabbits?
I am in sweden and we dont have ANY rescues here and my bunny is from a pet shop.:oops:
I completely agree with the fact that it is not a fantastic thing to get your bunny from a pet shop,and it it not rescuing by doing so.
The next rabbit i get will be from a good breeder though.

Well if you are looking to give a bunny a home and there are no rescues then you don't have much choice. I got two of my rats in a pet shop because there are none in rescue where I live, I could have travelled to the UK really but I was feeling a bit desperate at the time because I knew one of my boys was going to die soon and leave his brother alone. But I won't buy their rat food in a shop that sells animals :lol:

Agree with what Jill said though and would always rescue where possible, apart from my two lads I don't support shops that sell animals
 
I would like to add that there are pet shops and then there are pet shops.Not all of them are equally bad,but from what i have read on this forum the uk shops are maybe a bit different than the swedish ones.:?
 
2 of my buns were pet shop brought, the first one,Tilly, I rescued from a girl who bought her as a cute baby and then lost interest. The second one, Timmy, I got as a companion for my beloved Tilly. There's no rescue centres around where I live (Chamonix, France) so unfortunately I didnt have many options. Both of these buns, despite perfect diet and care to the best of my knowledge, are prone to stasis, infact tragically my precious Tilly died of it 2 months ago. We rescued Mimi a month and a half ago from a rabbit shelter in Switzerland (3 hours drive!) for our lonely Timmy, and she has so far had no probs whatsoever, despite a VERY long car journey home, and the stresses of bonding. I am not saying that rabbits from pet shops are more prone to illness, just that if there is a genetic defect in the breeding rabbits that supply babies to the shop, many of these babies will also have problems (just my opinion and thoughts.)
I also totally agree that rescuing a rabbit that has had a sad life and needs a good home is a lovely thing to do. Mimi was very neglected and abused before the shelter rescued her, and is quite shy of humans as such. It is comforting to know that out of the tradegy of losing Tilly, Mimi has ended up in a nice loving home with a new bunny friend and carers that are willing to love and nurture her. Already her behaviour is improving.
Another reason why I am more in favour of rescue centres over pet shops, is that baby bunnys are considerably fragile and complex creatures, who change alot as they get older. Pet shops often dont take the time to educate new owners about their new bunny, and it is amazing how little joe public knows about caring for a growing bunny! Rescue centre owners are in my experience extremely dedicated to their cause and ensuring that all of their bunnys go to a good, knowledgeabe home. They will also offen neuter/spay them before rehoming, which takes the pressure off you.
Sorry for blabbing away! I hope my opinions dont offend anyone!
 
I agree with what Jill has said.

In my opinion, rabbits should only go to homes where adults have researched rabbit ownership thoroughly, understand what they will be taking on and have prepared for it. Particularly the fact that rabbits typically live for 10 years and often longer.

Rabbits are just too easy to buy from pet shops and are often purchased on impulse in response to pester power. I am sure if you asked a pet shop what they did with their "unwanted" bunnies you would get some very evasive answers. Putting them in a so-called "adoption" section may just be a means of getting rid of them at a discount.
 
Another point is that pet shops don't tend to know about any health problems because they haven't shown up yet or they haven't had a checkover by a vet. My Leo has a funny jaw shape, which wasn't obvious when i first got him from pets at home, and it led to him having to have his teeth removed. Rescues get their buns checked over by vets, and also they're mostly a bit older so they know of some health problems.
 
Both my bunnies were pet shop bought (and thanks to that I ended up with five babies :roll:) But I wouldn't take it back. I love them as much as I would an adopted bunny, my next pet will hopefully be from a rescue. But I'm glad I got scooch and joey because if I didn't I know for a fact some uneducated moron would of had them :evil: (I used to work in the petshop I got them from and now the majority of people there didn't have a clue :roll:)
 
Toffee was from the pet shop.

Problem one - Told us he was a she! :roll:
Problem two - had worm/s in his eye - had to be removed.

:(
 
:wave: Often the animals have come from awful breeders who are just in it for profit, they are transported a long way and kept in un-satisfactory conditions waiting to be sold.

Without demand there would be no supply, I actually don't think animals should be sold at all through pet shops, it should be banned altogether in my view.

Breeders should have to apply for a licence and pay for it, they should be subject to inspections twice a year and have to accomodate their animals in better standards of accomodation than is expected by ordinary pet owners and they should have to ensure all their animals are health checked by a vet prior to sale. Responsible decent breeders only then would exist hopefully, the bad ones could be phased out. This in turn would help the situation of surplus animals sitting in rescues, they would be able to do what they want to do which is rescue not just pick up the pieces of irresponsible breeding and people impulse buying in pet shops as if it is a throw away pet.:evil:
 
I am a bit amazed and shocked about the huge problem there seems to be with rabbits in the uk.:shock:
The only way to get a bunny here in sweden is to either buy at the petstore or from a breeder.Or,you can check out a advertising page online and see if you find one that suits you.There are usually quite a few of them on that page that are bought for kids and then the kids get tired of them.
The shop where my bunny is from is IMO a good one,its a small shop run by 2 very nice sisters and they were very helpful when i bought my boy.
Its awful what alot of your bunnies have to go through and well done for all of you for doing what you can to help them!:D
 
see in a lot of countries rabbits are popular dish, the fact those who have rabbit as a popular dish, have none or next to none rescues, which makes me shudder for those buns who are burnt for fuel ( see another thread) or just disposed of

plus alot of people are soo bloody ignorant in this country in even the basic animal care, and im saying all animals not just buns its unbeliveable, and im not tarring everyone with the same brush before i get attacked, but we all know someone who just wont listen to the simplest of advise outside
 
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