Special needs only rescue sanctuaries?

Unless I am doing a very poor job of searching (which would not surprise me at all!) there does not seem to be a sanctuary solely for very special needs bunnies? Im meaning severe/extreme special needs, like wheelchair bunnies for example, or severely maimed or completely blind. The closest Ive found is the wonderful Rainbow Bunnies sanctuary for the senior citizens of the bunny world, what a wonderful, superb thing to set up. Love it, love it, LOVE it!!!
Anyway, the reason for my raising this point is that I am now seeking to extend open arms and heart to another rescue bun, but I soooo want to provide sanctuary and forever love and care to a bunny with such extreme needs. Where do I look? Can anyone advise? There is a whole lot of love and room in this slightly ageing heart of mine just yearning to wrap itself around that little bun who stands alone

Anniebirdy said:

Unless I am doing a very poor job of searching (which would not surprise me at all!) there does not seem to be a sanctuary solely for very special needs bunnies? Im meaning severe/extreme special needs, like wheelchair bunnies for example, or severely maimed or completely blind. The closest Ive found is the wonderful Rainbow Bunnies sanctuary for the senior citizens of the bunny world, what a wonderful, superb thing to set up. Love it, love it, LOVE it!!!
Anyway, the reason for my raising this point is that I am now seeking to extend open arms and heart to another rescue bun, but I soooo want to provide sanctuary and forever love and care to a bunny with such extreme needs. Where do I look? Can anyone advise? There is a whole lot of love and room in this slightly ageing heart of mine just yearning to wrap itself around that little bun who stands alone

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As far as I know, the special needs bunnies who come up on RU often get taken in by a sanctuary and aren't rehomed - so they stay with the sanctuary.

Theo (Snowy) runs a sanctuary too and currently has bunnies who are missing several limbs, but again, they're not up for rehoming.

I think it's just a case of waiting until a special needs bunny comes up to be honest... The ones at the sanctuaries on RU always stay within the sanctuaries. Sometimes places are full though and a special needs bun slips through the net!

I currently have a bun with ongoing problems but he's not an extra special needs bun. Often though, rescues do get in buns who need ongoing treatment - normally dentals. Buns like this get looked over all the time because of their ongoing costs and the possibility of them going into stasis etc. when their teeth get bad.

I think it's wonderful that you want to take on a special needs bunny... Just from your posts I can see how wonderfully caring you are and that any bunny taken on by you would be so extremely lucky!

Good luck in searching for that special bun!

As Zahirre said, the sanctuaries won't usually rehome any severely disabled bunnies but the bunnies come to them from many different places - freeads, petshops, rescues.

Rainbow Rabbits is a sanctuary for elderly and/or disabled bunnies, so they have a mix of the two.

We take on and have special needs bunnies here at our sanctuary as permanent residents as well as the rescue and re-homing side of things.

Thankyou everybody Am glad they are loved and cherished and protected, I was starting to worry a bit because I couldn't find any, and wondering why... I know probably to many, they will be seen as 'damaged goods' :evil: but to me, they are designer specials unique and to be held with awe of their very own beauty

What a wonderful heart you have. There are physical needy bunnies and medically needy bunnies, but also rescues have really long term rabbits (like, I think there are a pair of harlequins at Kirky who have been in a rescue for four years), and other bunnies will more minor problems but still be exceptionally difficult to rehome (we have a dental bunny and friend who has been with us for coming up to two years and has spent all his life, bar the first 6-8 weeks in a rescue, and I believe Jill at honeybunnies has some dental bunnies too). I also feel that Becky86 at Walsall has a little chap called Pistachio who is desperate for a home and has a wide variety of needs too. So maybe you might want to consider looking at those bunnies who, for whatever reason, have been exceptionally hard to rehome and are desperate for their forever home. The middle ground ones are likely to be more desperate for a home than others who are more coomplex because the general public doesn't tend to be drawn to those with additional needs, yet they are not severe enough to warrant a sanctuary space. I also know of a couple of wildie X bunnies who are not coping with being in a rescue and desperately need a home who you might also want to consider.

Anniebirdy said:

Unless I am doing a very poor job of searching (which would not surprise me at all!) there does not seem to be a sanctuary solely for very special needs bunnies? Im meaning severe/extreme special needs, like wheelchair bunnies for example, or severely maimed or completely blind. The closest Ive found is the wonderful Rainbow Bunnies sanctuary for the senior citizens of the bunny world, what a wonderful, superb thing to set up. Love it, love it, LOVE it!!!
Anyway, the reason for my raising this point is that I am now seeking to extend open arms and heart to another rescue bun, but I soooo want to provide sanctuary and forever love and care to a bunny with such extreme needs. Where do I look? Can anyone advise? There is a whole lot of love and room in this slightly ageing heart of mine just yearning to wrap itself around that little bun who stands alone

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Thank you :wave: We do also have younger bunnies with disabilities too but as others have said we don't rehome our rabbits this is their forever home

Rescues often have rabbits that are overlooked because they are dental bunnies or have other issues, maybe not as extreme as the problems you are considering but still just as deserving of a special home

Most of our rabbits now come to us through our website or FB page because we advertise what we do that way so very few really special needs bunnies are advertised publicly as needing homes with an individual

If you enquire at rescues there are often special needs bunnys not advertised as we worry about finding a safe and secure home. I know we had a very special needs bunny but he may have found a forever home we also sometimes have bunnies available for perminant foster (meaning we still pay the bills and make medical choices but the rabbit lives the rest of his days with you) I can ask and see if we still have the two I'm thinking of. :wave:

You could also look at the long termers - there are many bunnies who have been in rescue for years who deserve a forever home as well.

Hugo's There said:

Thank you :wave: We do also have younger bunnies with disabilities too but as others have said we don't rehome our rabbits this is their forever home

Rescues often have rabbits that are overlooked because they are dental bunnies or have other issues, maybe not as extreme as the problems you are considering but still just as deserving of a special home

Most of our rabbits now come to us through our website or FB page because we advertise what we do that way so very few really special needs bunnies are advertised publicly as needing homes with an individual

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This - there's plenty of blind/deaf/aggressive/dental buns to be found in regular rescues

We at the moment is only taken in specail need bunnies in a way ....I will over a sanctury place to any what are very tempermental that other places have had problems to find a home for them ..These bunnies uselly hate all human contact and will box and bite the hand that feeds them. I feel for these bunnies and am willing to take time with them so they will learn to trust us a little ...this can take years to happen as it has with our first girl here Penny and she still likes to show she is boss ..These rabbits are not normally bonde with other rabbits also as they will attack even a other rabbit what goes near them .


we like to call it bunny boot camp

Oh my goodness, so very many, and so very very needy in so many differing ways. Poor, poor little victims of human greed, idleness, and fascination with the novelty factor. *Sigh* What hope do animals have in a world dominated by such factors
I am going to get Benjamin and Marge checked out at the vet, and check that Benjamin especially is strong enough (because of his ongoing brain damage problems) to cope with the stress that bringing other bunnies into the fold could present.
I have been very much caught up in the story of the two little bunnies that have been in a sanctuary for 4 years, and would love so very much to bring them home.
And, to my own great shame, I hadn't thought about the 'attack' or human hating bunnies! Of course they shouldn't be overlooked and ignored... Especially when it is no doubt OUR fault as humans that these creatures fear and hate us so much
The latter reminds me of a parrot I adopted many years ago, Cinders. Her owners adored her, but through health reasons, had to let her go. Cinders was an out and out attack bird, a large amazon who's greatest joy in life was vicious ripping a chunk out of anyone who tried to touch her. I will be honest, I had never met a more vicious, snarling parrot in all my years of rescue. However, within minutes of meeting her and receiving a bone crushing, bruising bite as a welcome, I was in love. I was very well warned by her genuinely adoring owners how dangerous she could be, and was, but I saw beyond that, and even admired her fiesty attack based persona.
This is what happened within a week or so of her moving in.... (Made her original mum actually weep with joy and disbelief)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97nkepCSH8Q&feature=g-upl&context=G206459fAUAAAAAAA2AA

Why this happened, I have no idea, I just loved and admired her beyond the attacks and bites. (She still continued to rip lumps out of anyone else who ignored my warnings about her though, so she never really changed, God love her ) HAHAHA, even my vets used to go pale when I took her in for check-ups :lol:
She made her final visit to the vets at the age of almost 77 years (genuine that, almost 77 years of age) and even on that day, managed to bite a hole in the newly covered waiting room seats, gurned, snarled and snapped one last time at anyone who came near 'the cuddly old parrot' then fell peacefully and gently asleep in my arms as she was given her then much needed release from the world she had ruled and dominated for so very many years

We (RSPCA Walsall) currently have 3 bunnies who aren't advertised for rehoming as we consider them to be 'special needs'. Sadly there are very few people like yourself who would be willing to take on a special needs bunny, and as Kirsty said above, we worry the bunnies will end up without the right care.

Sadly the 3 bunnies we have will probably never find their forever home, and will remain here the rest of their lives. Its so sad to think about

I think its amazing you are hoping to adopt a special bunny x

Just though I'd add that my dutch Mork was due to be pts because of his aggression before I rescued him. He used to lunge and try to bite chunks out of me. I had to wear about 5 layers just to feed him :shock: Now he's absolutely a joy to be around and I can't imagine my life with out him. He knows and trusts me and (even though he sometimes nibbles out of habit ) the bond we have is so special because he really made me work for it!

It's so lovely that you want to adopt a needy bun and I hope you find that special little someone!

Yes I like very much.:wave::wave::wave:

Thankyou everyone :wave: And I do appologise for the posts that I have missed!
I currently have two very special little buns stopping with me a while, both rescues from the Leeds35 group. When I am fully satisfied that they are well, have gained weight, and Minky especially has gained more trust in humans, they will then be up for adoption. Ive had Minky speyed, got to get Monkey nuetered yet, but before that, my little permanent special needs bun has got to have her teeth out, which is taking place tomorrow. My other wonderful special needs bun Benjamin may also have to have surgery before the nuetering of Monkey, Im going on an 'most urgent first' line over this, but all buns will get the treatment/surgery they need :thumb: I certainly wont release Minky and Monkey for adoption though until Monkeys doo-dahs have met Mr Scalpel, and then i want to bond them so they go hopefully as a pair. An unbreedable pair
My heart is falling deeper and deeper into this!