Help Spread the Word: Rabbits & Easter Don't Mix!

Contrary to Eastertime hype, rabbits and small children are not a good
match. The natural exuberance, rambunctiousness and decibel-level of
even the gentlest toddler are stressful for the sensitive rabbit.

Please help NJHRS dispel the myth that Easter, kids and rabbits are
perfect together. Send a letter, well in advance of Easter (April
20), to the editor of your local paper to raise awareness of this
issue with those in your community. Write to the editor of your daily
newspaper as well as your local weekly one. NJHRS will also be
sending a letter to papers throughout New Jersey, but editors really
like to hear from those in their readership area. Additionally, if
they receive enough letters, the likelihood of one or more being
printed is greatly increased.

If you have never written a letter to the editor before, email Janine
at njrabbits@hotmail.com for assistance as well as the address for
your local papers.

For letter writing tips, visit www.rabbit.org. At the bottom of the
home page, do a search for 'Easter.' This will give you many articles
and fliers which you can use to craft your own letter. Your letter
might just be what's needed to enlighten a parent and save a rabbit
from the usual dismal fate of those bought as Easter gifts. Do it
today. Help make Easter a joyful time for our long-eared friends.

Forwarded message - for info, please visit
http://www.southjerseyrabbitrescue.org

Press of Atlantic City: Bunny often not wise choice for Easter

April 13, 2003

Bunny often not wise choice for Easter
By ELAINE ROSE Staff Writer, (609) 272-7215

A cute little bunny stares out of a cage at the pet store or garden
center, and the familiar refrain comes out of your offspring's mouth.

"I want one!"

The store charges only $5 or $10 for the adorable little critter, so
you reach for your wallet.

Before you head to the cash register, take a moment to think, animal
experts say. Better yet, take several moments.

Are you prepared to make an eight-year - or longer - commitment to
caring for the animal?

"The biggest problem with Easter is people will buy them for the
kids, thinking they want them ... and then the kids lose interest,"
said Laura Warner of Woodbury, who runs the South Jersey Rabbit
Rescue. "If you buy one for a 10-year-old (and take proper care of
it), when the kid's going off to college, you still have that rabbit."
"People get them on impulse because they're cute, and they can live
six to eight years," said Leslie Pulvino, co-manager of the Humane
Society of Ocean City. "The children get them, and they get tired of
them fast, because rabbits really don't do much."

Can't survive in the wild

Pulvino said she gets plenty of calls from people who bought bunnies
for their children on impulse, and now the children won't take care
of them. But the shelter doesn't take in rabbits, because it's almost
impossible to find them new homes.

"The saddest thing that happens is a lot of people set them free and
think they can live outside," Pulvino said. "Domestic rabbits cannot
survive outside like wild rabbits," as they do not know how to forage
for food and hide from predators.

Linda Catalano, president of the Cumberland County Society for the
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, sees the lucky ones.
"We get many rabbits that animal control picks up as strays,"
Catalano said. "We don't get calls from people who lost a rabbit, so
we know people just set them loose."

About 1 million bunnies are euthanized every year in the United
States. Many bought as Easter bunnies don't live to see their first
birthdays.

If you really want a rabbit, do some research first, Warner
suggested. There are several good books on rabbit care and the
Internet is full of useful information. Think about why you want a
rabbit instead of a cat or a dog.

Rabbits are easier to care for than dogs, Warner said. They require
about the same amount of care as a cat.

Warner said there are several things to consider before getting a
rabbit:
* Most rabbits don't like to be held, which will disappoint children
who want to cuddle them.
* The rabbit's cage should be at least 3 feet long, to give it plenty
of room.

* Rabbits need exercise. A minimum of two or three hours a day out of
the cage and hopping around the house are needed to keep them
healthy. You have to rabbit-proof your house, unless you want the
furniture, books and electric cords to get chomped on.

* Rabbits need toys for entertainment. They like to play with baby
keys, wooden hanging bird toys and to chase little balls. Unfinished
baskets and the cores of paper-towel rolls provide chewing pleasure.

* Rabbit pellets are OK as a supplement, but they need unlimited access
to timothy hay and access to green vegetables after they are 6 months
old. Younger rabbits get sick on vegetables.

* Spay or neuter your pet rabbit or they will breed. Females can have
up to 12 litters a year. Unspayed females have an 80 percent chance
of getting uterine cancer before they are 2 years old.

* They can be trained to use a litter box like a cat. Spayed and
neutered rabbits have an 80 to 90 percent chance of being litter
trained, while the odds are 50-50 for those who aren't "fixed."
Litter made of recycled newspapers is preferable to clay litter.

If you can't care for your rabbit, don't set it loose in the woods.
Bring it to a shelter or rescue group so it has another chance for a
good home. As an alternative, a stuffed bunny is almost as cute and
cuddly, and no one suffers when the youngster is ready to toss the
toy aside.

For more information on the care of rabbits, logon to
http://www.southjerseyrabbitrescue.org

To e-mail Elaine Rose at The Press: ERose@pressofac.com

Posted on SHARE Yahoo group Mar 23, 2003