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Would You be Happy if There Were no PET Rabbits, Just Wildies ?

J

Jack's-Jane

Wise Old Thumper
The statement 'But if there were no Breeders then there would eventually be no Pet Rabbits' is often made by those who are pro Breeding.

Would you be happy if only wild Rabbits existed so you could never have a Bun as a Pet ?
 
It's a tricky one but, if the law remains as it is and the protection for rabbits continues to be so insufficient and outdated and it would prevent them being bred for meat then yes I would forego my pleasure for the sake of the species as a whole I think.
 
No, I wouldn't be at all happy, having known the love of a bunny.

......but it's a better option than having rabbits in such horrendous conditions. If I HAD to choose then I'd choose to have only wild rabbits, any day....but I wouldn't be happy about it.
 
If I'm being selfish, then no. If I'm looking at what's best for the bunnies, then probably yes.
 
Um....I love my bunnies....although I dont handle them too often, we chat and they recognise me and I have nose rubs etc,I would miss having a pet bunny, but I didnt have them 3 yrs ago, so Im newly bonded really....
I do wish they werent so readily poorly.......although Ive had pretty good fortune with my 4, I read stories on here and think Oh my Lordy....:shock:
 
despite having two rabbits and a gerbil, i think i'm becoming either anti pet or 'pet as privilege'. i think i'd be happy if there were only wild rabbits but i'd probably spend more time watching them.
 
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I've just come back from Spain and apparently over there you have to have a licence to keep horses and now dogs. They have to be vacc'd etc and I think microchipped. I would be quite happy if this country also had those sort of laws though I have no idea how they would manage to police it.
 
Yes I would be happy knowing there weren't all those bunnies out there being neglected, thats a bit more important than me missing out on being able to keep pets. I would actually prefer people not being allowed to keep any pets, not just rabbits
 
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For the sake of the buns i'd day yes but then I think, and this is just my oppinion ,that people would start taking wild rabbits and keeping them as pets and this would be quite cruel on the wildies, but then again thats just my opinion meybey they would live happily wild :)
 
No. They are all I have that is of any value in my life. On a recent thread about breeding (or it least it turned into a thread about breading ;)) a lot of people said they would be happy for there to be no domestic rabbits and I was shocked. Surely we don't all own rabbits for the sake of the rabbits - some of it is for our sakes too? Although I understand people's understanding changes their views as time goes on.

I'm not happy about the current situation and something does need to be done to stop people churning baby rabbits out and believing they are not adding to the problem when clearly they are.

A life without bunny companions though :shock: I don't want to contemplate it.
 
Yes, I'd be glad if there were no pet rabbits...because I would be able to fulfill my dream of running a sanctuary for wildies :love:
 
Bunny Buddy said:
No. They are all I have that is of any value in my life. On a recent thread about breeding (or it least it turned into a thread about breading ;)) a lot of people said they would be happy for there to be no domestic rabbits and I was shocked. Surely we don't all own rabbits for the sake of the rabbits - some of it is for our sakes too? Although I understand people's understanding changes their views as time goes on.

I'm not happy about the current situation and something does need to be done to stop people churning baby rabbits out and believing they are not adding to the problem when clearly they are.

A life without bunny companions though :shock: I don't want to contemplate it.
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My Rabbits are absolutely all I have and they are my life. HOWEVER, given that in order for my needs (for Pet Rabbits) to be met there will be a perpetuation of the suffering of many thousands of Rabbits. All those bred for the Pet trade who will be destined to a life of solitude confined to a tiny hutch for their entire life.

Just looking at ONE Freead site, there are over 1800 adverts for Rabbits For Sale. Each of those 1800 ad's is usually or more than one Rabbit, so you could at least double the total to 3600 Rabbits on one site alone. How many will end up in a good home?

During last week, my week from hell (but that's another story) I have given much thought to how I feel about what would be best for the Rabbits. I have come to the conclusion that, for them, not being domesticated would be a much better option.

My life wold be pointless without my Rabbits. But that is my problem, not the problem of the thousands of Rabbits in the Pet Trade who's lives would be much better if they were as nature intended, wild.

I think I will go back to not thinking now............... :?
 
Jack's-Jane said:
I think I will go back to not thinking now............... :?
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Purely on the question "would you be happy?" then no. But like everyone else, it seems, if giving up having rabbits of my own meant that there would be no large scale suffering for the rest of the rabbit population then of course I would be willing to make that sacrifice. However it's not a situation that's ever going to arise so sometimes the "what ifs" are just that.

I wish the rest of society would catch on but years of children keeping solitary bunnies in a box in the garden doesn't seem to have changed much :cry::cry::cry: How come people can get to grips with changes in computer technology etc but basic animal welfare passes them by? :cry::cry:
 
I suspect that that arguement could apply to dogs & cats too.
I see the large numbers of abandoned pets as a problem of irresponsible ownership, in MOST cases.
I've lived without an animal companion, when work prevented me from fullfilling it's needs. My life was the poorer though. Let's not forget the thousands of responsible owners, who give their animal companions wonderful lives.
 
Bunny Buddy said:
Purely on the question "would you be happy?" then no. But like everyone else, it seems, if giving up having rabbits of my own meant that there would be no large scale suffering for the rest of the rabbit population then of course I would be willing to make that sacrifice. However it's not a situation that's ever going to arise so sometimes the "what ifs" are just that.
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agreed. and not just rabbits. but all domesticated animals
 
maxxev said:
agreed. and not just rabbits. but all domesticated animals
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I think it's a fair point it's just that rabbits do seem to get a really bad deal, I know other species are abused or neglected but, cats and dogs are not bred for meat in this country and the protection they are afforded is higher - I cannot fathom why but, they are seemingly worthy of higher protection - it's got to be outdated idea's from the war when the rabbits were dished out to sustain people in times of hardship - I've always maintained that if it were necessary to sustain human life I could deal with it, what I can't deal with is the need to do it when we already have a vast source of meat / food in this country, my personal feeling is that the legislation has to change and if people are going to breed for whatever reason it has be strictly licensed, the status of the UK's 3rd most popular pet has to be elevated and I am frankly agog at the lack of support from vets on this considering how much income is generated by responsible ownership of 'pet' rabbits.:?
 
I'd happily go without rabbits if it meant there were none being poorly treated as pets.
To be honest I feel guilty enough about keeping them as it is. There are so many other animals which are more suited to being domesticated and kept as pets.
 
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