Pets at Home Easter Bunny Offer... LET'S KEEP THE PRESSURE ON!

Foofy said:

I had the same email reply as everyone else from P@H just joined the FB group now up to 1,017 members

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woow! I've invited everyone today and had 13 sign ups so far!

RESULT!!!!

My friend Louise told me the offer isn't happening anymore!

Buuny_Friend said:

Don't relax here though, let's keep the pressure on. Tell everyone you know about the MMC campaign, put posters up wherever you are allowed and let's work together to get P@H to ban all sales of rabbits over Easter.

GREAT JOB!​

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:thumb:

I still don't trust P@H further than I can spit 'em. The progress we've made so far though shows that they DO listen to 'Joe public' - lets keep it up.

Did ANYONE mention the fb group in their email, maybe they could come to some agreement where if we get 2000 members they stop the deal or stop selling rabbits at Easter!!!!!! I just invited 21 more friends!!!

luvabun said:

Why? P@H hierarchy will have been reading this from the onset so why should it go underground now, that looks like we have something to hide, which we don't. We are just passionate bunny owners that spend a great deal of money on our furries and none of it will be going in P@H coffers in future - that is nothing to hide from them.

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Good point:thumb: As you rightly say it's all above board, genuine and valid concerns for the rabbits welfare nothing to hide

Just a thought - If PAH can be decent enough to send us all an individual reply, why don't we get them at there own game and all send an identical reply! By sending everyone of us the same reply they probably haven't really read/understood the concerns fully, just typed out one reply and sent to everyone concerned about the rabbits. I asked questions that were not answered in my first email, so was it really even read?

losing-the-plot said:

Just a thought - If PAH can be decent enough to send us all an individual reply, why don't we get them at there own game and all send an identical reply! By sending everyone of us the same reply they probably haven't really read/understood the concerns fully, just typed out one reply and sent to everyone concerned about the rabbits. I asked questions that were not answered in my first email, so was it really even read?

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I am already preparing an email to do the following:

• Ask why my first email was not responded to in an adequate manner and request specific answers to the specific questions.
• Point by point rebuttal of the contents of P@H's response - which is inadequate in numerous respects. It's full of warm words, platitudes and vague aspirations but no concrete answers and actions.

I would respectfully point out that, in my opinion, if P@H just get identical replies from customers to their email they can just seek to dismiss them. Asking P@H for the answers to the first email that people sent might be more effective.

I discovered this poem about Easter Bunnies. I appreciate that it's of US origin (hence the use of the word "pound").

I thought it just about summed up the likely future of most of the Easter Bunnies from pet shops, garden centres, etc. It's particularly relevant to those selling tiny cages as hutches.

Easter Bunny

by Mary Brandolino

In memory of all the bunnies we couldn't save.


I remember Easter Sunday
It was colorful and fun
The new life that I'd begun

In my new cage.


I was just a little thing
When they brought me from the store
And they put me on the floor

In my cage.


They would take me out to play
Love and pet me all the time
Then at day's end I would climb

In my cage.


But as days and weeks went by
I saw less of them it seemed
Of their loving touch I dreamed

In my cage.


In the night outside their house
I felt sad and so neglected
Often scared and unprotected

In my cage.


In the dry or rainy weather
Sometimes hotter sometimes colder
I just sat there growing older

In my cage.


The cat and dog raced by me
Playing with each other only
While I sat there feeling lonely

In my cage.


Upon the fresh green grass
Children skipped and laughed all day
I could only watch them play

From my cage.


They used to take me out
And let me scamper in the sun
I no longer get to run

In my cage.


Once a cute and cuddly bunny
Like a little ball of cotton
Now I'm grown up and forgotten

In my cage.


I don't know what went wrong
At the home I did inhabit
I just grew to be a rabbit

In my cage.


But they've brought me to the pound
I was once loved and enjoyed
Now I wait to be destroyed

In my cage.
​

Snouter said:

I discovered this poem about Easter Bunnies. I appreciate that it's of US origin (hence the use of the word "pound").

I thought it just about summed up the likely future of most of the Easter Bunnies from pet shops, garden centres, etc. It's particularly relevant to those selling tiny cages as hutches.

Easter Bunny

by Mary Brandolino

In memory of all the bunnies we couldn't save.


I remember Easter Sunday
It was colorful and fun
The new life that I'd begun

In my new cage.


I was just a little thing
When they brought me from the store
And they put me on the floor

In my cage.


They would take me out to play
Love and pet me all the time
Then at day's end I would climb

In my cage.


But as days and weeks went by
I saw less of them it seemed
Of their loving touch I dreamed

In my cage.


In the night outside their house
I felt sad and so neglected
Often scared and unprotected

In my cage.


In the dry or rainy weather
Sometimes hotter sometimes colder
I just sat there growing older

In my cage.


The cat and dog raced by me
Playing with each other only
While I sat there feeling lonely

In my cage.


Upon the fresh green grass
Children skipped and laughed all day
I could only watch them play

From my cage.


They used to take me out
And let me scamper in the sun
I no longer get to run

In my cage.


Once a cute and cuddly bunny
Like a little ball of cotton
Now I'm grown up and forgotten

In my cage.


I don't know what went wrong
At the home I did inhabit
I just grew to be a rabbit

In my cage.


But they've brought me to the pound
I was once loved and enjoyed
Now I wait to be destroyed

In my cage.
​

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Snouter said:

I discovered this poem about Easter Bunnies. I appreciate that it's of US origin (hence the use of the word "pound").

I thought it just about summed up the likely future of most of the Easter Bunnies from pet shops, garden centres, etc. It's particularly relevant to those selling tiny cages as hutches.

Easter Bunny

by Mary Brandolino

In memory of all the bunnies we couldn't save.


I remember Easter Sunday
It was colorful and fun
The new life that I'd begun

In my new cage.


I was just a little thing
When they brought me from the store
And they put me on the floor

In my cage.


They would take me out to play
Love and pet me all the time
Then at day's end I would climb

In my cage.


But as days and weeks went by
I saw less of them it seemed
Of their loving touch I dreamed

In my cage.


In the night outside their house
I felt sad and so neglected
Often scared and unprotected

In my cage.


In the dry or rainy weather
Sometimes hotter sometimes colder
I just sat there growing older

In my cage.


The cat and dog raced by me
Playing with each other only
While I sat there feeling lonely

In my cage.


Upon the fresh green grass
Children skipped and laughed all day
I could only watch them play

From my cage.


They used to take me out
And let me scamper in the sun
I no longer get to run

In my cage.


Once a cute and cuddly bunny
Like a little ball of cotton
Now I'm grown up and forgotten

In my cage.


I don't know what went wrong
At the home I did inhabit
I just grew to be a rabbit

In my cage.


But they've brought me to the pound
I was once loved and enjoyed
Now I wait to be destroyed

In my cage.
​

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So very true

Snouter said:

:wave:Might I respectfully offer this draft response to P@H for people's consideration.

I need to re-read my original email and check that each point is covered.

Any coments?:shock:



Dear Ms Jones,


Thank you for your email and for the detail in which you replied.

I have now had the opportunity to consider your email in more detail and in the context of my initial feedback. Whilst I note the comments and aspirations of Pets at Home (P@H) to which it alludes, these do not address the majority of the concerns set out in my email. I have, therefore, commented on each paragraph of your email where I considered it appropriate to do so. In accordance with the kind invitation in the final paragraph of your email regarding further help, I have also raised further issues resulting from your email. For convenience of reference, my comments are enumerated below in accordance with the layout of your response.


Paragraph #2

I note the references to P@H’s self-described attributes as “responsible” and “passionate” plus the fact that my comments have been passed to a vet and other departments. I trust that P@H will live up to these attributes in a practical sense and that the staff to which you refer will ensure that these are translated into practical implementation for the welfare of animals (particularly rabbits).

By employing a vet as P@H’s Head of Pets, one would assume that he/she possesses:

• Expertise in all of the animals that P@H supplies or, for those animals where he/she does not, direct contact with those with the relevant expertise.
• Regularly-updated knowledge of the best practice in their welfare for each type of animal.
• In the particular case of rabbits, knowledge of the best practice set out by, inter alia, the RWA and like organisations.

In addition, that the Head of Pets communicates his/her expertise and good practice via the training of P@H staff to which you refer elsewhere in your email,

Perhaps you would be kind enough to correct me if my assumptions are incorrect in any respect.


Paragraph #3

I note that P@H has now decided to remove the pet element and simply concentrate on the dry goods. In the context of P@H’s “passion for the pets in their care”, perhaps you could set out precisely what will happen to the rabbits that were presumably already in the supply chain for this offer in respect of the ‘live rabbit’ element that P@H has now removed? Presumably, as a “responsible” retailer, P@H’s “care” will extend back throughout its supply chain?

In respect of the new deals that have now been introduced in respect of accommodation for rabbits, perhaps you could confirm that these meet all of the best practice recommendations of the RWA, with whom P@H claims “close relations” on its website?

Would you also be kind enough to confirm that P@H has no intention of substituting the ‘rabbit inclusive’ offer originally proposed with a lower-cost ‘dry goods’ offer to which a rabbit might simply be added? I consider it unlikely that customers will simply purchase the ‘dry goods’ element with no associated animal.


Paragraph #4

The aspiration by P@H to “encourage customers to buy the right items when purchasing their new pet” is, of course, a pre-requisite at any time of the year and not just when “the weather is starting to get warmer”.

P@H’s advice to a customer that “when purchasing a rabbit with hutch to bear in mind that a larger hutch would be needed once the rabbit was fully grown and that a run is essential from the first purchase” is welcome but, in terms of the proposed offer, somewhat late. It is highly unlikely that a suitably informed owner would purchase such a small hutch knowing that, within weeks, the rabbit will have grown out of it and hence require larger accommodation. Surely an adequate hutch from the outset would represent a better choice for a “responsible” and “caring” retailer to recommend?

I am pleased to note P@H’s recognition of the needs of rabbits as set out in the ‘Five Freedoms’ but fail to see how these could ever be satisfied by the cage initially offered.

I note the additional obligations upon customers in respect of socialisation with single rabbits and trust that such “ensuring” by P@H would extend to refusing the sale if one of the “fully trained staff” to which you refer was not certain that this would be provided by a customer?


Paragraph #5

I am pleased to note the “interest” and “knowledge” in animals of your P@H colleagues to which you allude. Perhaps you could also set out in more detail the manner in which P@H translates into practice its “aim to ensure that we put pets before profit”.

In respect of the training of your P@H “colleagues” prior to granting them permission to sell a pet, it would be most informative to be afforded the opportunity to review a copy of the training notes that form the basis of such courses. Continuing with consideration of this aspect and in line with your assurance that “all the pets in our stores are treated with the care and respect that they deserve”; perhaps you would be kind enough to indicate how this assurance is ensured. If there are regular audits by qualified staff, what is their frequency and, for example, are audit documents prepared?


Paragraph #6

I was delighted to note that PH’s “policy in store is to ensure that we are looking out for the welfare of the animal at all times”. In respect of the customer questions to which you refer, perhaps you could indicate these in more detail and the precise basis upon which a decision not to sell a pet would be made?

I was particularly pleased to note the increase in age at which P@H will sell a pet. Of course, as a “responsible” pet retailer, P@H will be aware that a measure based only on age is a somewhat simplistic criterion. The correct metrics are an informed understanding of the precise nature and extent of the commitment involved, the ability to fulfil it and a willing commitment to do so for the rabbits’ lifetime.


Once again, I thank you for your earlier email and look forward to P@H’s response to the points raised above. I can then consider further my decisions regarding my future business and recommendations to others.

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Very well written. :thumb: I'd send it now if you haven't already.

Hoppit! said:

Very well written. :thumb: I'd send it now if you haven't already.

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Thank you for your comments.

It's now gone to P@H and I await their reply.


Perhaps those RU-ers that frequent P@H's stores (or who know people that do) would be able to verify that P@H's numerous claims in their email have actually been implemented (or not)?

If they have been implemented then there should be no examples whatsoever of uncared for rabbits in their stores and no overheard conversations between staff and customers containing erroneous rabbit information. The threads starting, "I saw this poor rabbit at P@H who's been there for months and looked so lonely and sad......." should be a thing of the past. I wonder?

Perhaps some RU-ers could become 'mystery shoppers' at P@H. Select one of the 'unsuitable' cages and ask a P@H staff member whether it's OK for a rabbit. See what the answer is. Or just refer to buying rabbits and ask, "What would P@H recommend"? The answers could be enlightening and demonstrate whether all of the training has actually been done.

Perhaps those RU-ers that are asked to take on the care of rabbits originally purchased from P@H would be able to check whether their owners were asked all of the questions that P@H claims it asks prospective rabbit purchasers.

Snouter said:

Perhaps those RU-ers that are asked to take on the care of rabbits originally purchased from P@H would be able to check whether their owners were asked all of the questions that P@H claims it asks prospective rabbit purchasers.

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No offence, but people who are giving up their pets/rabbits usually have a good excuse/lie in place as to why they're doing so. What makes you think they'll be honest about what they were originally told?

I'd be happy for you to come into my store and talk to me about purchasing a rabbit.

Lspacehopper said:

No offence, but people who are giving up their pets/rabbits usually have a good excuse/lie in place as to why they're doing so. What makes you think they'll be honest about what they were originally told?

I'd be happy for you to come into my store and talk to me about purchasing a rabbit.

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I apologise if I have caused any offence to you, or to anyone else, and recognise that people who want to give up (or dump) rabbits have a good excuse (or lie) in place. The "I can't give them the attention they deserve" appears to be a popular one. In some cases, this might be genuine.

I aso recognise that if they are seeking to use lies than they won't admit that they were fully informed before getting the rabbit. Just looks even worse and undermines the lies. However, it would certainly be good to know the facts if they can be obtained.

In respect of the purchasing of rabbits, I just thought that, with all of the effusive "caring" and "training" claims from P@H, it would be good to know that they're actually being done in practice.

Snouter said:

I apologise if I have caused any offence to you, or to anyone else, and recognise that people who want to give up (or dump) rabbits have a good excuse (or lie) in place. The "I can't give them the attention they deserve" appears to be a popular one. In some cases, this might be genuine.

I aso recognise that if they are seeking to use lies than they won't admit that they were fully informed before getting the rabbit. Just looks even worse and undermines the lies. However, it would certainly be good to know the facts if they can be obtained.

In respect of the purchasing of rabbits, I just thought that, with all of the effusive "caring" and "training" claims from P@H, it would be good to know that they're actually being done in practice.

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You haven't offended me

In my store we make people aware of all the facts about rabbits and also hand out many RWAF leaflets including diet, neutering, vaccinations, flystrike etc. It's obviously not perfect, but we do our damnedest. We also make people aware of our adoption scheme so that the buns can come back to us should things not work out.
We take the adoption scheme very seriously as well.

Lspacehopper said:

You haven't offended me

In my store we make people aware of all the facts about rabbits and also hand out many RWAF leaflets including diet, neutering, vaccinations, flystrike etc. It's obviously not perfect, but we do our damnedest. We also make people aware of our adoption scheme so that the buns can come back to us should things not work out.
We take the adoption scheme very seriously as well.

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Do you have any influence with the 'guys up top' at all?

Hoppit! said:

Do you have any influence with the 'guys up top' at all?

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When something comes into store such as a hutch or 'offer' that I don't agree with, I make my feelings known. To be fair they do take it on board, but obviously public opinion counts for a lot

Default Pets at Home offer
I carnt find the threaad that was already going about their offer of rabbit and cage but this is the reply i got when i complained about it.
Dear Mrs Taylor,



Many thanks for your emailing your feedback and allowing us to address your concerns further.



The starter deal that we planned to introduce in our stores pulls together all the items that we actually sell in store already. We are not including anything we don’t sell and the idea is to ensure that customers buy everything they need for the rabbit or guinea pig. Due to feedback we have now reconsidered the deal and decided to remove the pet element and to include the dry goods only in the offer. We have introduced to this deal a link save offer which allows a customer to purchase a run with an additional £10 off. We have also added an extra deal which offers an even better saving to include a larger two storey hutch from our range the Daisy Cottage, this is suitable for two rabbits and will include all the same essential items for keeping rabbits.



The offer detailed above is permanent and the reason we have introduced it now is to encourage customers to buy the right items when purchasing their new pet particularly as the weather is starting to get warmer. We would always advise a customer that when purchasing a rabbit with hutch to bear in mind that a larger hutch would be needed once the rabbit was fully grown and that a run is essential from the first purchase. We are very aware that a rabbit needs the space to stretch, stand, hop and sleep comfortably in their home and would not want any rabbit to be placed in unsuitable housing. We are aware that rabbits are sociable animals however circumstances can mean that 2 rabbits living together is not always possible, in these cases when selling a single rabbit we would ensure that the customer understands the extra responsibility of socialising with their rabbit on a regular basis.



Our policy in store is to ensure that we are looking out for the welfare of the animal at all times. Our colleagues ask various questions and make a decision as to whether to sell a pet or not based on the answers given. We are able to refuse any sale of pets if we are not happy with the environment they will live in or if we feel the circumstances are unsuitable. We have also in addition recently increased the age at which a customer can buy a pet to 18 this is higher than the government guideline of 16, to ensure that the customer purchasing a pet is aware of the responsibility involved.



I hope that I have somewhat eased your concerns however please do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of any further help.



Kind Regards,



Kate Jones

Customer and Culture Manager

Pets at Home Ltd
__________________
exibitor/rehomer of rabbits Greenwich rabbit rescue

Snouter said:

I discovered this poem about Easter Bunnies. I appreciate that it's of US origin (hence the use of the word "pound").

I thought it just about summed up the likely future of most of the Easter Bunnies from pet shops, garden centres, etc. It's particularly relevant to those selling tiny cages as hutches.

Easter Bunny

by Mary Brandolino

In memory of all the bunnies we couldn't save.


I remember Easter Sunday
It was colorful and fun
The new life that I'd begun

In my new cage.


I was just a little thing
When they brought me from the store
And they put me on the floor

In my cage.


They would take me out to play
Love and pet me all the time
Then at day's end I would climb

In my cage.


But as days and weeks went by
I saw less of them it seemed
Of their loving touch I dreamed

In my cage.


In the night outside their house
I felt sad and so neglected
Often scared and unprotected

In my cage.


In the dry or rainy weather
Sometimes hotter sometimes colder
I just sat there growing older

In my cage.


The cat and dog raced by me
Playing with each other only
While I sat there feeling lonely

In my cage.


Upon the fresh green grass
Children skipped and laughed all day
I could only watch them play

From my cage.


They used to take me out
And let me scamper in the sun
I no longer get to run

In my cage.


Once a cute and cuddly bunny
Like a little ball of cotton
Now I'm grown up and forgotten

In my cage.


I don't know what went wrong
At the home I did inhabit
I just grew to be a rabbit

In my cage.


But they've brought me to the pound
I was once loved and enjoyed
Now I wait to be destroyed

In my cage.
​

Click to expand...

Absolutely heart breaking.