But noone would hate you for this, hate is such a strong emotion. xxx
I hate me for it, so the assumption is that others would too. Especially if they knew all that happened.
But noone would hate you for this, hate is such a strong emotion. xxx
Yes I can imagine that's much harder to find a competent, affordable bunny vet in the States than it is here in the UK
I don't know if you've seen this or how up to date the list is, but there's a list of 'bunny savvy' vets in the US here: http://www.rabbit.org/vets/vets.html
I think yes to some degree one purpose of life is to bring children into the world- to reproduce and create offspring. I think this should apply philosophically to a rabbit also- ( unless you thought they were a lower life form than yourself and not entitled to the same human rights). I do feel that humans play god in this respect with domesticated animals preventing offspring- in the same way a mother could get sterilized if she wanted to prevent children.
We've had one totally accidental litter. And it was an accident... Dexter was behind a safety gate whilst I cleaned out Pumpkin's indoor cage. I turned round and saw Dexter and her 'at it'. I pulled him off her and made an immediate appointment with the vets.
Saw the vets a few days later and Dexter was neutered. A few weeks later, saw the vets again so she could feel Pumpkin's tum. Vet didn't feel a thing so thought we'd gotten away with it. She was still slightly too little to be spayed so the vets and I thought it was best to wait till after Christmas to get her done.
Unfortunately, 3 days before Christmas, she had babies.
It was a terrifying experience! I panicked every day. Then, finding them homes was horrendous so 3 have ended up staying. There was no way that I would have let them go to a home that I wasn't 1000% happy with.
Watching some random person walk away with my babies would have made me feel sick and awful. Especially if I didn't know what kind of home they would give to my buns.
It's made me very wary of un-spayed buns now. I know even safety gates don't work now!!! Lol.
Ps. Tracey, don't be so hard on yourself! We all make mistakes and it's whether we learn from them that is the important thing! You did, so be kind to yourself for that xxx
I hate me for it, so the assumption is that others would too. Especially if they knew all that happened.
Hey by the way- sorry to hijack things here but flopsey and hermy are bonding- spent all night and today togther with no issues. I thought hermy would bite flopsey as she bit me when i was giving her veggies, but no they are perfect together so far. Was abit concerned, but now think it will be a successful bond Just thought i'd let you know- will post pics when i sort my camera out xxxx
I suspect that most litters from ordinary owners (as opposed to owners who consciously breed lots of litters) probably come about through similar circumstances.
I have done this, and its not something I ever intend to do again.
At the time, when we first bred Flash, it was just to have cute babies. :roll: They would all have been kept. This was before I knew about rabbit rescues, before I was involved in the RSPCA, before I knew anything.
The other litters were after Flash died and they were created and driven on by grief. It was stupid and selfish but I couldn't cope without him, so I tried to bring him back. I was well into a full on breakdown. I did many stupid, ignorant things, and both me and my bunnies paid for my stupidity. Not a day goes by where I don't feel guilt, or regret, or shame, and total self hatred for what I did.
The last litter was done far more responsibly than all the others, and it was my last. Again, still before I knew about rabbit rescues, still before my volunteering days, but I knew more and I had learnt about breeding- primarily because I had stuffed up before. That was my last litter and everything went right. All bunnies kept, all bunnies relatively healthy (although a rogue dental gene showed up). Those babies will be four at the start of June and I've not considered mating anyone since. It's now been just over three years since I got involved in the RSPCA and I have found another way to keep Flash with me, and alive. It doesn't have to be genetically. All my bunnies are spayed/neutered except Wish who is far too vulnerable.
I know I was stupid, and I know I deserve to be hated, so go ahead and do your worst because no one, not any one person could say anything or feel anything, that comes close to the hate I feel for myself.
This is how I ended up with fiver and Crunchie. Oddly though when I collected them there was also a slightly younger litter but I assume that was because dad already re-impregnated mum before anyone had chance to seperate them. Am I right in thinking this can happen?
Yep. Rabbits don't come into season like most other mammals, so she can get pregnant again as soon as she's given birth. I suspect that most owners probably don't even realise the rabbit is pregnant until babies appear, so mum is often already pregnant by the time dad is removed.
Would I do it now I know about all the different animals in rescues? Probably not. It doesn't make it wrong when we did though, and I certainly don't regret it.
So do we have anyone on the forum at the moment who has deliberately bred for pleasure (one off or otherwise) who would like to help us understand the urge to do this?
I understand how lovely it is to see tiny bunnies, but actually I have no desire whatsover to ever have any. I prefer mature rabbits whose personality is already formed.
I once had a volunteer at a rescue I helped at and where I took care of the school kids that came on a Sunday. We had one girl who told us all about how they were going to have baby rabbits. She said her mum wanted her to see what it was like.
We felt it only right to talk to the parents when they came to collect her and explain why it was contrary to everything we were trying to do at the rescue and all we got for our trouble was a mouth full of foul language. They just didn't understand the issues that made us passionately opposed to 'litters for fun'.