Such a hard post to write...

This is such a hard message to write, but I wanted to turn to the forum to ask for some advice.

I posted a few months ago under a different name to avoid identifying a rescue that I was unhappy with, however I wanted to come back to my usual user name to ask for some advice.

My gorgeous REW minilop Poppy passed away last month after never quite recovering from her third dental under GA. She left behind her partner Arthur, a rescue bunny who resembles a nethie cross. I rescued Arthur in April 2011 after Poppy's previous partner passed away. I was told he was a neutered male bunny who was approx. 2 years old.

When Poppy was at the vets for her last dental, I of course took Arthur along. As Arthur had begun to develop which I suspected was a dewlap, I asked the vet to sex him for me and they told me he was a girl and may be younger than what I thought.

I was and still am so disappointed that I potentially could have caused such stress to the rabbits by putting 2 females, 1 being assumedly un-neutuered, together in addition to the fact that I was the owner of an un-neutered female now at risk of uterine cancer etc.

I contacted the rescue asking for some financial assistance towards spaying Arthur (now named Martha) but did not get a response.

Now that Poppy is no longer with us, I am left in such a predicament. I cannot afford to have Martha spayed nor to add another rabbit to the family due to a change in my work circumstances. Martha whilst healthy seems so lonely without Poppy and has lost that spring in her step.

I'm at a loss what to do - I'm assuming that rescue's are still in the same position in that they are over-crowded, but I also can't bare Martha to live potentially a number of years alone. My ideal situation would be knowing somebody with a neutered male who was willing to neuter Martha and provide her with a home.

What would you do in my situation? I can't stress enough about how upset I am having to even ask the question and think about possibly giving Martha up, but I have to prioritise her needs over my feelings.

Many thanks

Karen

(Manchester based)

I am so sorry you are in this position. Can't help but good luck to you..

Thanks for your kind words Fee, I appreciate it. Hopefully somebody will be able to help.

i don't know what to say.

is martha indoors? you could be a little company for her.

rabbits are notoriously difficult to sex.

the only other thing you could do is offer martha for rehoming.

I'm sorry you lost Poppy, and also regarding your difficult situation. How long is it since you contacted the rescue? Perhaps you might still hear from them if they have been busy with rabbits and emails have backed up.

Won't the rescue help you to get your bunny spayed I would of thought they would have happily helped you if they sold you a supposedly neutered male :roll: is the bunny unspayed or don't you no

I think it was about a month ago I emailed, and previously when I was enquiring about rescuing etc I had very quick responses.

Theres no way she could be a house bunny, my landlord wouldn't allow it.

I'm in such a predicament.

Hugs what a sad situation x.

I Cant help but wonder re saying of vet would allow you to pay in installments? That is what i have done before on big bills.

Is there anyway you can go into the rescue?

It has been 'that' time of year, so maybe send another email or call,

'Some' buns can be hard to sex, but as the bun is from a rescue I assume that they are still the 'rightful' owners of the bun, the bun was adopted to you under the pretense of a neutered buck, this is not the case, So one would assume they would atleast help you with the cost, if not arrange for it to be done themselves,

Dont give up, dont keep yourself in a predicament due to somebody elses 'fault'

I'm sorry Poppy died.

Can I just clarify this please?

You have Arthur-now Martha an unspeyed female. She lives alone outside. You can't afford to spey her. You can't afford to take on another bunny to bond with Martha? Essentially you can't afford to have Martha anymore-could be dentals or other costly bills?

Had she not seen a vet in all the time she was with you? I'm amazed it took nigh on two years to discover she was female. They clearly were okay together so they can't have been really stressed. I wouldn't overly worry-they were together a long time and presumably no fighting? You say Martha's missing Poppy so they must have been friends.

Did you have an adoption agreement from the rescue? Usually you do and the rescue says they'll take the bun back if you want to rehome. Of course rescues are very busy and full generally. Cruelty cases/dumped animals take priority and to be honest you took Martha on only a year or so ago and she has a home, so she'll be seen as a low priority case I'd think. You're just going to have to try rescues, but you may need to be patient.

On this site at the bottom of the page is a link to Rabbit rehome. You could put the details for Martha on there.

Bit harsh considering

R.P.B.G.G said:

Bit harsh considering

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If you mean me I'm sorry but it's misinterpretation. I have been trying to rehome several stray cats for months. Rescues say they're being fed-by me, so not a desperate I'll/injured animal. It's horrendous.My local rescues have waiting lists for cats and buns. It's a nightmare. But just too many animals an not enough homes.

Money is tough. I'm on a low income and its a nightmare. I really do sympathise.

I do hope you sort things out-just wish I had the answer.

bunniesgalore said:

I'm sorry Poppy died.

Can I just clarify this please?

You have Arthur-now Martha an unspeyed female. She lives alone outside. You can't afford to spey her. You can't afford to take on another bunny to bond with Martha? Essentially you can't afford to have Martha anymore-could be dentals or other costly bills?

Had she not seen a vet in all the time she was with you? I'm amazed it took nigh on two years to discover she was female. They clearly were okay together so they can't have been really stressed. I wouldn't overly worry-they were together a long time and presumably no fighting? You say Martha's missing Poppy so they must have been friends.

Did you have an adoption agreement from the rescue? Usually you do and the rescue says they'll take the bun back if you want to rehome. Of course rescues are very busy and full generally. Cruelty cases/dumped animals take priority and to be honest you took Martha on only a year or so ago and she has a home, so she'll be seen as a low priority case I'd think. You're just going to have to try rescues, but you may need to be patient.

On this site at the bottom of the page is a link to Rabbit rehome. You could put the details for Martha on there.

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This is what frustrates me about this forum sometimes, people come on in genuine predicaments and receive unfair responses.

Poppy was at the vet all of the time, I have spent almost £1000 on her which I don't regret for a second but that should prove that I am far from not being willing to spend money where its needed however I know that Martha deserves more than 'good enough' care, she deserves a much better life than that. Spending so much on Poppy has left me in debt and I am not as financially stable as I was when I took on Martha due to a change in circumstances which can happen to anybody.

Martha was always checked over at the vets in terms of her weight, teeth etc when she went in with Poppy and she is in perfect health - they never had a need to check her genital area.

I did not have an agreement as I had adopted a rescue bunny from the same rescue before and used the rescue owner as a port of advice in the past so I felt I could trust him/her.

I can't believe I'm having to justify myself to somebody when I am genuinely wanting to offer Martha more than a lonely life in a hutch outside.

I hope that others can be more considerate in their responses and provide me with some helpful advice, I would be really grateful.

Thank you

I hope someone will have some wise words and / or practical help to offer you. However lonely you may feel Martha is, it sounds as if you've give both Poppy and Martha a loving home for the past few years and you are clearly trying to put Martha's needs first, not yours. I would phone or write (snail mail) the rescue to discuss - they may simply not have received your email or they may have meant to do something about it but it fell off the to do list.

Good luck and in the meantime, maybe you can just spend as much time with Martha as possible and play / find her some challenges that occupy her.

Good luck. Hope things improve soon.

Would it be worth asking your landlord for permission to have her indoors?

You could then buy an indoor set-up for her. It isn't ideal to keep her on her own but if you can't afford to get her a new companion, there aren't many options.

I would ask your vet if you could pay for her spay in instalments or, alternatively, pursue the Rescue for help with spaying costs.

I can sort of understand the mis-sexing of a young rabbit - I had a young doe who went in for spaying and came back a neutered buck - but for the rescue to tell you that he/she had been neutered was clearly wrong.

Sorry can't be more help.

As you know, you can pm Soad for help with posting a 'new home wanted' thread.

I'm really sorry, this must be awful for you a lot of rescues don't have much time to check emails, i would definitely ring them instead or even better, go in person. I'm sure they would help you if they realised the situation. I hope you can sort something out xxx

Oh wow what a hard situation

TBH I would be pretty upset if I adopted for a rescue and they had sexed wrong

I hope you can sort something out to make you and martha happy ((hugs)) xxx

My first thought would be keep contacting the "rescue" until you gety a response ...if they refuse to help then you can then look to rehome

but my second thought is ... The "rescue" cant be up to much if they rehomed a neutered male that turned out to be female . If said rescue vet checked and spayed/neutered before rehoming then it would have been impossible for this to happen .

unfortunatly many people set themselves up as rescues but dont do things correctly ... then when things go wrong they dont want to or are not in a position to help.

My question would be /...would it be in the best interest of the rabbit to go back to them ...I think not ... which then brings you back to rehoming yourself .
But i would certainly keep trying to contact them to let them know whats happening .

Its not your fault that this has happened ...and its not your fault circumstances have changed and you cant keep her ... but as others have said rescues (good and bad ) are overflowing ... so if you can rehome yourself its probably the best option

good luck .

Please don`t feel badly about your predicament, it is after all not your fault. Not all of us have an endless supply of money. If you can do as suggested have a word with your vet about paying via installments. She is fine with you until another home can be found, maybe you can post her on the rehome website I am sure someone out there could give her a loving home and put your mind at ease. At least she is warm, well fed and safe where she is.

You need to contact the rescue again, perhaps the message didnt get through. They need to be given the chance to put this right. Have you spoken to the manager?