Dear The RSPCA,
I recently saw your current biggest animal rescue fundraising advert on ITV2 during the daytime.1 As much as I appreciate and support the work that the RSPCA does, I feel that the advert sends a stark message to the general public: only cats and dogs are important, only cats and dogs are capable of being abused. It should have included rabbits.
Rabbits are the third most popular domestic pet in the UK but the RSPCA and PDSA have identified them as the most neglected and cruelly treated of all pets. The RWAF2 have estimated that around 67,000 rabbits go through rescue centres in the UK each year. All of this you know about, which is why I am having to express my concern.
Having seen your advert, I am personally of the opinion that the absence of rabbits is more harmful to them (rabbits) than if there had been no advert at all. It appears that once again their welfare needs are not being taken seriously. From speaking to my friends about rabbits since I started fostering them, it has become alarmingly clear that the general public do not know anything about the rabbit welfare crisis, yet they know all about the neglect of cats and dogs. If I am honest, a year ago I didn't know either. It is only because I am, luckily, the sort of person to do lots of research before doing anything, that I didn't make the mistake of buying a rabbit when my circumstances were not right. For a long time my research suggested I should get a rabbit from a breeder, something I now know exacerbates the issues that rabbits face. It took a great deal of time and searching for me to realise that there were thousands of rescue bunnies out there.
As one of the most well known animal welfare charities in the UK, you have the power to change this. It would have been no more effort to include rabbits in your advert. And maybe people would begin to see that rabbits are not disposable pets.
I am a member of an online rabbit community, and they are much of the same opinion as I. Someone thought that maybe they were not shown as the public do not think them as cute as cats and dogs, but as the advert was focussed on showing abused/neglected animals, this should not be relevant. At current the public may not like them as much, but they NEED to be made aware that they are suffering and with your prominent status in the UK, YOU have the power and opportunity to do that and it is up to YOU to make it happen. You need to show people that they are not 'just a rabbit'. They are not disposable. With your current advert, you have missed out on this opportunity and failed rabbits.
If you have already paid for the campaign, why not make it in the interest of ALL of the animals you support? Is it also not misleading; people may think their donations are only going towards cats and dogs and may not be happy with helping animals they think less worthy (a sad thought I know but unfortunately one that crossed my mind).
The PDSA's 2013 animal wellbeing report3 mentions cats, dogs and rabbits in detail. Why can you not do this in your adverts?
If the biggest known animal charity in the UK is not appearing to take this seriously, how can we expect anything to change? Can we expect people to understand the welfare needs of rabbits? Do people even know that rabbit rescue centres exist? I have found that the answer to this last question is a NO almost 100% of the time.
Of course, there are many other small animal species also in need of protecting and there needs to be greater awareness of their perils too. With national campaigns you should be doing more for them.
I thank you for your time in reading this letter and for all of the great work you do in the UK.
Yours Sincerely,
Amy Woods
References
1. Video accessed from
http://www.rspca.org.uk/donate/currentappeals on 4th June 2014, seen on ITV2 at around 12:15pm on 3rd June 2014
2.
http://www.rabbitwelfare.co.uk/index.php
3.
https://www.pdsa.org.uk/pet-health-advice/pdsa-animal-wellbeing-report