The rabbits next door :(

I feel so sorry for these poor bunnies

I know there are 3 rabbits all in seperate hutches and I know they have at least one guinea pig. They very rarely come out of the hutches (her new fella has built them a run but I've never seen them in it) and it seems that only the little girl cleans them out - she must only be about 5 or 6.

You always hear the oldest boy saying they smell and my mum says she heard the kids saying there were maggots in the hutch a few weeks back - but we all know what kids are like so that might have been an exagerration.

They get fed on tesco value rabbit food, and today they've given at least one of them a whole corn cob... am I right in thinking that's not a good idea?

The mum isn't interested in them, to be honest she barely seems interested in her kids. She sends them down the end of the garden whenever the weather allows and just leaves them to it, to say they're noisy is an understatement - they can be out there from 7am to 7pm and when she's out there with them the noise is even worse cos all she does is scream at them You should hear some of the things she calls them!

It just makes you feel so bad when you know their lives could and should be so much better

tigerbabe said:

It just makes you feel so bad when you know their lives could and should be so much better

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The rabbits or the childrens?! Some people shoudn't be allowed either. :roll:

There's a rabbit near me that I can see from my bedroom window and it always seems to be in its hutch which looks fairly small (4' x 18") though its strange cause they bring the hutch in their house every night and put it outside again in the morning. I just hope they let it hop about the house each evening!

Can you make friends with the family - even if its just the kids? If they know you you may be able to offer advice, even if it is just gentle praise to the little girl to continue cleaning them out!

Around xmas time you could say you had been bought new toys/ water bottles and take them round your bunnies old ones, or say you have too much food or hay and take them round a bag of decent stuff?

And you can always offer to be their bunny sitter if they ever go away. This is all of course if you are brave enough as it doesnt sound like a very welcoming home!

My dad always speaks to the mum, she's a nice enough lady just not a very good mum :?

I'm not very good with people otherwise I might have popped round already and asked if I could have a cuddle with the buns because I miss having them myself.

you are obviously such a kind and caring person to worry about the bunnies. Ask your dad to drop it into the conversation that you would like to pop and see them, this might path the way to you seeing them. if she isnt that bothered about them she might welcome the support if you go round and help the little girl clean them out?

But please dont torment yourself about them - it is very hard to intervene when they are owned by someone else. Just because they dont have the life that we think they deserve doesnt mean they are actually in immediate harm.

I am obviously very worried about the mention of maggots.

I was worried about that too - I lost a rabbit to flystrike many years ago but I've been peeking through a tiny hole in the fence (I only do it when nobody's home) which has a great view of the hutches and they seem ok. It was a few weeks back now that my mum heard that so I think I'd be looking at a pretty sick bunny if it had been a maggot. The older kids are terrified of any kind of bug so I reckon they were just trying to scare each other.

Well keep peeking through that hole and keeping an eye on them - maybe you will progress and get to give them a cuddle over the next few months?