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Well .... even after a homecheck unsuitable owners can slip through the net ...

bunnymadhouse

Wise Old Thumper
once upon a time we rehomed some bunnies

new hutch ,
run attached ,
nice family ,
Homechecked ,
All seemed fine ,...

buns went to their *forever home *
To cut a long story short ...buns are now back here ...

(and the hutch ... which has been altered and is filthy and rotting ...)

thankfully buns are healthy enough ....but not been handled in a while

and anyone thinking we should do followup checks from time to time ... please bear in mind we have rehomed going on 1,000 bunnies since starting with this charity ... its impossible to keep tabs on them all .. :? its hard enough fitting ih initial homechecks .

this has made me very very sad ... and made me question what we do and how we do it .. :(
when we rehome these little creatures we have to trust we are doing the right thing for them ... but sometimes despite checks and our best efforts we get it wrong ... :(
 
oh no sorry to hear they're back, but glad they're ok and have been returned (if that makes sense)

I adopted from rspca and had a follow up check, but I didn't have a home check.... I wouldn't mind them coming again now, 2 years on.. but I understand it could be awkward when you rehome so many....
 
Dont feel down about it, you have done all you could and at least the buns are back with you where they will be safe:love: I'm sorry it didnt work out for them:wave:
 
I'm so sorry. :( Hugs, I can understand why you feel dispirited.

Personally I don't think follow-up checks are the way to go, even if you had the resources. Owners might feel that the bunnies didn't really belong to them, and that could lead to more pet shops / breeder buys.

Bless you for being there for the buns when things go wrong, I hope this is a rare occurence.
 
You didn't get it wrong. Far from it. You rehomed based on what you saw and heard and it was right at the time. Unfortunately, people aren't always what they seem, which is perhaps what happened in this case. It's not your fault. Just be thankful that the bunnies are OK and in good health, if a little ignored.

Caroline at the Rabbit Residence, used to send out yearly questionnaires to her adoptees for an update on the bunnies they had taken on. Perhaps that's something you could think about? Although I realise time is a massive issue.
 
My shelter adopted out a lovely lop rabbit earlier this year, she was so sweet and when you went to pet her she'd just shove her nose in your face and start grooming you. A month ago she came back because the family got bored with her :shock: We don't do homechecks because of our small staff cout, but we are very careful when it comes to adopting out any animal especially rabbits. It feels horrible, but you judged them based on what you saw. At least you got your rabbits back and they're not in bad condition.
 
Someone I know rehomed 2 buns from the RSPCA. They had a big wendy house with attached 6'x6' roofed run. A very respectable family who said all the right things. They were homechecked and passed.

The buns were basically being ignored. Rarely allowed out in the run so spent all day every day in the dimness of the wendy house. They had plenty of room, but their nails were noticeably overgrown and were so spooked by anyone going in that they were unhandleable. The roof was rotting and let water in to the big sack of cheap food stored there- it was going mouldy and still being used. Vaccinations were never updated, etc. The basics were there, but it just wasn't good enough and they didn't notice.

After one bun died, the other was given away - so the rehoming agreement was broken again. It was all so sad.

Follow ups are a good idea - even if it's just a couple of phone calls to keep the new owners on their toes - although I fully appreciate that rescues will just not have time for it. I don't know what the answer is.
 
It's not your fault. You did what was right at the time. At least they have had the sense to give them back to you rather than give them away to anyone....

You can only make decisions based on the info presented at the time, and sadly, doing follow up checks etc is just not possible. Xxx
 
I agree you can only go on what you see at the time of homing and you just have to do the best you can. You do a brilliant job and have sent loads of rabbits off to happy homes. It'll never be perfect so please don't beat yourself up over it.
Could you get more volunteers to do follow up checks? I'd give up a few saturdays a year to come down and go visit a few in a day to see how they're doing and I'm sure there are others that would do the same. No idea how practical that is from BARCs perspective or whether people have to be formally checked CRB'd or whatever to go into people's homes on behalf of BARC.
 
that's such a shame. I suppose unless you turn up regularly at people's houses unannounced, you just don't know for certain and you couldn't do that for lots of reasons. I hope you don't feel too awful about it, am sure this is an isolated/very unusual instance, and I'm sure you are relieved that the buns have ended up back with you.
 
I also think that a lot of issues would be seen at an announced visit. Yes people would make sure they had mucked out etc. but you'd still be able to see the state of repair of the accomodation, check vaccs records and see what the rabbits were like. I think it's pretty obvious how much interaction they get by how they react to their owners. We can barely set foot out the back door without our two rushing out on the off chance of a sprig of parsley or and fenugreek crunchie, so it's fairly obvious they know us and get plenty of interaction.
 
not your fault in the slightest, you'd also would have had a good "feel" of the person too so they must have said, done, acted in the right way because it's obvious when people can't be bothered. You'd never have rehomed too them if you didn't think they were genuine :(
 
Please don`t feel bad it`s totally not your fault at all. You do such a brilliant job and think of all the lucky little buns who wouldn`t have the great lives they have now if they hadn`t crossed your path. At least buns are safely back with you. Chin up. ;)
 
you can't do follow ups, and you can't protect against people getting bored with the animals in their lives. it isn't within your power. what you do, is amazing, and the best anyone could do at the moment.

if i had a copy of my amazing, restrictive, plan for animal ownership, i'd print it again, because it made 'drop in' visits part of the deal.
 
You didn't get it wrong. Far from it. You rehomed based on what you saw and heard and it was right at the time. Unfortunately, people aren't always what they seem, which is perhaps what happened in this case. It's not your fault. Just be thankful that the bunnies are OK and in good health, if a little ignored.

Caroline at the Rabbit Residence, used to send out yearly questionnaires to her adoptees for an update on the bunnies they had taken on. Perhaps that's something you could think about? Although I realise time is a massive issue.

This! You can't possible predict how a family might treat the bunnies in the future - especially a few years down the line. You just have to do what you think is right at the time of the homecheck.

Plus, think of all the times you've got it right :thumb::thumb:

Muchu says hello and that you're welcome to visit him anytime you like :wave:
 
This! You can't possible predict how a family might treat the bunnies in the future - especially a few years down the line. You just have to do what you think is right at the time of the homecheck.

Plus, think of all the times you've got it right :thumb::thumb:

Muchu says hello and that you're welcome to visit him anytime you like :wave:

thank you :wave:
 
I agree you can only go on what you see at the time of homing and you just have to do the best you can. You do a brilliant job and have sent loads of rabbits off to happy homes. It'll never be perfect so please don't beat yourself up over it.
Could you get more volunteers to do follow up checks? I'd give up a few saturdays a year to come down and go visit a few in a day to see how they're doing and I'm sure there are others that would do the same. No idea how practical that is from BARCs perspective or whether people have to be formally checked CRB'd or whatever to go into people's homes on behalf of BARC.

thank you for the offer ... but these buns had been in their new home for nearly 2 yrs .. so follow up vist 6 months or so after adoption wouldnt have picked up on problems ... as im sure all would still have been well then ..
we rehome approx 100 rabbits a year ... its not practical to keep in touch with everyone for any length of time .

We always keep in touch by phone or e mail where ever possible for the first few months when its likeluy problems may occur ... sadly after that its impossible .

the only way to do it would bre to have someone soley in charge of repeated follow up visits ... but even then it wouldnt work as the numbers grew .
:(
 
*Ori* Hello Auntie Angie :wave: in case you was bundering, I's jus fine. I loves me wifey bun and me Mam and me Dad. They did switch me commodations though but for a bigger and betterer shed <binkies> I does binkies every day :D

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