Absolutely Fuming!

[Theresaclaire]

I've just had an email from someone asking to buy rabbits, apparently, they spoke to me yesterday (although I dont recall this), but see what they've written. it's lucky for them I dont have an address - only an email address otherwise i'd be on the phone to the RSPCA right now! see for yourselves :

hi

As we talked earlier on sunday afternoon I am giving you the details requirement of the rabbit that I want to buy.
Sex: male
Color: Grey/Brown/Black
Age: 3-6 weeks

I want to buy the rabbit as early as possible. So can you please inform me whether it is possible for you to make this. Another thing is that i want to buy a very small size box ( 2 feet * 1 feet ) or a small cage for the rabbit to place it inside the rabbit because i want to keep it inside the room. So i prefer a smaller size.

Looking forward to hearing from you soon.

Kind regards

Habib

 

[bumble1]

I've just had an email from someone asking to buy rabbits, apparently, they spoke to me yesterday (although I dont recall this), but see what they've written. it's lucky for them I dont have an address - only an email address otherwise i'd be on the phone to the RSPCA right now! see for yourselves :

hi

As we talked earlier on sunday afternoon I am giving you the details requirement of the rabbit that I want to buy.
Sex: male
Color: Grey/Brown/Black
Age: 3-6 weeks

I want to buy the rabbit as early as possible. So can you please inform me whether it is possible for you to make this. Another thing is that i want to buy a very small size box ( 2 feet * 1 feet ) or a small cage for the rabbit to place it inside the rabbit because i want to keep it inside the room. So i prefer a smaller size.

Looking forward to hearing from you soon.

Kind regards

Habib

What an , why are people so derranged??!!

 

[angeleyes]

OMG I hope they never get one!

 

[Theresaclaire]

This was my response:

Hello,

I'm afraid we will not be selling you a rabbit under any circumstances, for a number of reasons, but particularly those outlined below:

Firstly, it's British Rabbit Council recommendations that rabbits are not sold / re-homed before they are a minimum of 8 weeks old, and do not leave thier mothers until they're at least 6-7 weeks, sometimes longer.

In addition to this, we do not sell "boxes" for rabbits, they must be kept in a suitable hutch / cage dependant on the size of the animal. a 3ft x 18 inches is the minimum size for a rabbit up to a netherland dwarf / minilop, but we dont keep any in hutches smaller than 4ft. for a medium breed, you need one which is 4ft - 5ft long and for giants, a minimum of 6ft is required with daily exercise available to them.

With all due respect, I'd ask that you do some serious research into rabbit welfare and care before you consider purchasing one from anywhere, this is available in basic terms on our website, or in more detail online. What you are suggesting is basic abuse, and is punishable by imprisonment in accordance with the new animal welfare act.

Theresa

 

[Kirsty&Lola]

i think your response is excellent! very well put.

 

[capel]

It looks like a wind-up to me as he's deliberately put the required max age to be less than even the minimum, and the bit about the box..well.... I hope you don't give him the satisfaction of a reply...

 

[kokaneeandkuhluha]

Yes, it almost sounds like he's delibertly trying to make you upset...Hopefully he isn't seriously getting a rabbit....hmmm.
Great response!

 

[Julia123]

Must admit i thought it was a wind up too, there are some VERY sick people out there... I think your reply was good though, just in case it was some derranged idiot thinking of getting a bun.

 

[AlisonA]

I hope someone is winding you up, but even so I'm afraid I completely disagree with the hutch sizes you are recommending - I probably feel as strongly about those sizes as you do about the selling of a 3 week old to live in a 2ft hutch.

Both the RSPCA and RWA now recommend 6*2*2 as a minimum hutch size and hopefully this will soon effectively become law with the guidance on the new Animal Welfare Act. My dwarves are just as active, maybe even more so than my bigger ones, I wouldn't dream of keeping them in a 3ft *18" hutch :shock: or a giant in anything less than a shed.

 

[RavinRabbit]

What's the domain of the email address? You could potentially trace it back that way to find the user's details, especially if it's a domain they registered themselves.

 

[janice]

This was my response:

Hello,

I'm afraid we will not be selling you a rabbit under any circumstances, for a number of reasons, but particularly those outlined below:

Firstly, it's British Rabbit Council recommendations that rabbits are not sold / re-homed before they are a minimum of 8 weeks old, and do not leave thier mothers until they're at least 6-7 weeks, sometimes longer.

In addition to this, we do not sell "boxes" for rabbits, they must be kept in a suitable hutch / cage dependant on the size of the animal. a 3ft x 18 inches is the minimum size for a rabbit up to a netherland dwarf / minilop, but we dont keep any in hutches smaller than 4ft. for a medium breed, you need one which is 4ft - 5ft long and for giants, a minimum of 6ft is required with daily exercise available to them.

With all due respect, I'd ask that you do some serious research into rabbit welfare and care before you consider purchasing one from anywhere, this is available in basic terms on our website, or in more detail online. What you are suggesting is basic abuse, and is punishable by imprisonment in accordance with the new animal welfare act.

Theresa

The basis of the letter is good, however I think the sizing which is recommended by the BRC is totally misguided. I personally would not put a single guinea pig in a 3 foot by 18 inch cage let alone a nethie or a mini lop.

 

[Leanne]

I hope someone is winding you up, but even so I'm afraid I completely disagree with the hutch sizes you are recommending - I probably feel as strongly about those sizes as you do about the selling of a 3 week old to live in a 2ft hutch.

Both the RSPCA and RWA now recommend 6*2*2 as a minimum hutch size and hopefully this will soon effectively become law with the guidance on the new Animal Welfare Act. My dwarves are just as active, maybe even more so than my bigger ones, I wouldn't dream of keeping them in a 3ft *18" hutch :shock: or a giant in anything less than a shed.

I agree :?

 

[Leanne]

The basis of the letter is good, however I think the sizing which is recommended by the BRC is totally misguided. I personally would not put a single guinea pig in a 3 foot by 18 inch cage let alone a nethie or a mini lop.

Ditto :?

 

[Theresaclaire]

I dont thin the guiding is BRC recommendations, just the ages, to be honest, I've not seen anything from the BRC about the hutch size thing, just the RWF, I think it's down to personal judgement, going on the various recommendations. the pet care trust has smaller recommendations than even those I suggested, but hey ho, we've already discussed thier inadequacies.

Perhaps is was a wind up, but was a horrible thing to think, let alone say.

Obviously, everyone's entitled to thier opinions, and views, guess I shouldn't have been suprised, was just upset - animals shouldn't be treated in this way.

 

[Theresaclaire]

I hope someone is winding you up, but even so I'm afraid I completely disagree with the hutch sizes you are recommending - I probably feel as strongly about those sizes as you do about the selling of a 3 week old to live in a 2ft hutch.

Both the RSPCA and RWA now recommend 6*2*2 as a minimum hutch size and hopefully this will soon effectively become law with the guidance on the new Animal Welfare Act. My dwarves are just as active, maybe even more so than my bigger ones, I wouldn't dream of keeping them in a 3ft *18" hutch :shock: or a giant in anything less than a shed.

okay, fair point, but it's down to personal preference. "technically" they're classed as large enough, though I agree I wouldn't personally use a 3ft hutch for anything other than a g.pig. min I have is 4ft, but they all get daily exercise out of thier hutches - that's another story though. My Giants are in 6ft x 3ft x 3ft hutches we built ourselves and still come out daily, but sure, totally agree, if the law's changed, then we'll get more sheds just for the giants / they'll come in as house bunnies - sorry to have offended you.

I hope they never manage to get themselves a rabbit if they were serious though!

 

[AlisonA]

I'm glad you've taken my post in the way it was intended - thanks!

I guess the thing is, 'technically' you could keep any creature in something that they physically fit in, but it doesn't mean that it's suitable for their needs. My personal preference might be to keep my cats in my bathroom, because 'technically' it's big enough for them to move around a bit and keeps the mess contained - but that doesn't mean that it's suitable or appropriate.

Personally I would take the RWA/RSPCA guidelines (i.e. 6ft as minimum) as the appropriate standard, especially if you are advising other people - as you would expect a responsible owner to take steps to secure the best accommodation for the welfare needs of their pet. It's not really possible to provide them with something too small, so you might as well suggest the guidelines which the most informed national animal/rabbit welfare charities recommend.