Go for it!!! DH an i have raised rabbits in hutches and its a full time job to keep them fed and watered and rabbits get very cold in a wire hutch. did it at least have a box house to get out of the cold?
vickie

I might have knocked on the door to see if they were ok. Could be carbon monoxide poisoning.

:-)

I went through the same situation except this was our neighbor across the street. They had the bunny in a very small pen that sat on the ground under the oak tree. But this was in Aug. in Central Florida when the temp was in the 90's. For several days I noticed the water bottle being empty and no food. I filled the bottle several times a day and fed it the little carrots that I had at home. Then one day the water bottle was no where around. I found an old bottle we used for gerbils and used it. Just as I was putting it in for the third time (it drank 2 bottles (very small bottle)), the lady and her two daughters came home. I told them I had been feeding and watering the bunny for a while. The younger girl told her sister, "You know Daddy told you to feed it this morning."
The mother just yelled at the girl and told her, "I don't care if it dies, its your pet and if it does don't ask for another." I could have slapped the Mother. The girl who was supposed to be caring for it started bawling and ran inside the house and DDIDN'T EVEN COME BACK OUT TO CARE FOR THE BUNNY! This girl was in 4th or 5th grade. That weekend the bunny cage disappeared. I asked a while later and the girl said that it had got out and killed by a hawk. Possible??

They don't care for their other animals either. They have at least one bird, a couple of cats and two dogs. I think they have a different bunny now. They don't put the cage out front but I have seen them have it out in the yard on a leash.

Their last bunny disappeared because the hutch door does not close properly.

Did they fix the door when the got the new bunny? No.

I hope carbon monoxide takes them and they spare future bunnies misery. Sorry to be so mean.
The hutch is raised and has a shelter, but if you are a cold, thin animal with little body fat, what good is it?

Those hutches are supposed to have some kind of a heater to keep the bunny warm.
My bunny book says that anything under 40 degrees can make a bunny seriously ill. They are also supposed to be provided with hay to nibble all day long,even when they dont have food.

I feed my bunny 1 cup of fresh veggies a day,keep his bowl filled with pellet food,and provide plenty of timothy hay for him to chew.

I do not think this bunny has a fine life at all.I think you're doing the right thing by calling animal control on them. If it were me,I'd probably take the bunny...wrong as it may be.

Its my understanding that buns, as long as they have a shelter from the wind (like a box with some straw) they do okay in very cold weather. However they would certainly need food and water!

In our area, its usually the hot weather that is bad for the buns in cages. My friends keep buns and they keep frozen 2-liter bottles in their pens when it gets hot out. In the winter time they get a windbreak, extra straw, more food and a heated water dish.

I hope the buns get the attention they need!

I probably would have considered taking the bunny and they would not have known where it went as i know a lot of caring people who would have taken it in.

Let us know how things go.
vickie

Today it was 10 degress. The bunny hutch was covered with a blanket at 8am when I left for work. No water. A little food. Bunny won't eat in the dark (duh). And it's too darn cold.

So I called animal control, who checked the bunny at 10am. No one was home and the hutch was still covered. Animal control told me to call the ASPCA, who handles abuse and neglect. Within an hour they had an officer at the house.

He confiscated the bunny.

It was about 14 degrees.

End of bunny story, I think.

Aw~well at least you got the bunny out of the cold! I know where I live,right now it is so freezing cold that no bunny should outside in it.

Most people should not have a rabbit for a pet.

Like any animal they need water daily and it should be always available. As for cold weather they do very well without heat. They can't take wind or wet. Hot weather is more of a problem then cold.

Corn is not real good for rabbits. They don't digest it well and the feces will stick to the bottom of even a wire cage. Carrots make a nice treat but are not food. Best thing is regular rabbit pellets and fresh hay if you have it. Lettuce never! Thousands of rabbits have ate corn, carrots, and lettuce without dying but why push luck?

Nice to know someone is willing to speak up for that poor bunny. They are smart and affectionate animals when given proper care.

elly, bless you for caring and for helping the bunny.

I thought you could give a rabbit lettuce as long as it wasnt iceburg lettuce. My bunny book says it's ok to give ROMAINE lettuce and other greens.My bunny loves the ROMAINE lettuce.

Not the end of the bunny story.

SPCA did remove the bunny and issue a summons. The idiot owners have to go to court on neglect charges. BUT they got their bunny back. Go figure.

In the meantime, instead of calling me (remember, I left my name and number), they complained to my friends (in whose basement I live) about trespassing, and they put up a "No trespassing, Violaters will be prosecuted by the law" sign.

My friend told me that "if I have any problems" with the neighbor, to let her know, or go through animal control (Duh, that's what I did. I told her about the bunny and then I went to animal control. Somebody slap me.)

Sanctimonius morons. My gumby friends never broached the subject as to why their moronic neighbors 1) Did not feed or water their bunny 2) Left it out in 10 degrees.

This silliness communicated to me on the day I found out my mother's cancer has metasticized to her brain. Nice to know people have things in perspective.

Remind me never to bother. In the end, the animal stays with the morons that own it and I get headaches from all ends.

Elly, my heart goes out to you and your mother.

You tried. It's bizarre that they let them have the bunny back. Who knows, maybe they'll change their ways. Probably not, but we can always hope.

Take care,

Sally

You keep mentioning the cold weather and several people has stated that its a non-issue. 10 degrees is not a problem for a bunny... it may be hard to believe but if a bun has proper shelter and is dry, bunnies do just fine in the freezing cold. THey have a thick fur coat and a circulation system that is meant for cold weather.

Just last week, when it was 10 below zero, I saw a wild bunny hopping around my front yard, looking pleased as punch because he found the veggie scraps that I had put out for the birds.

The number one complaint about the lack food and water is valid, the number two complaint about cold weather is a non-issue. When we mix a valid complaint with an uninformed complaint, it tends to trivialize the entire complaint.

Hi JPW,

Eastern cottontails, the native wild bunnies of the middle eastern states, are very sensitive to cold temperatures, and many die in the winter. Thats why thay make so many in the summer! : )

We are talking about domestic bunnies, not bred for nature. You would not keep a dog or cat outside, unprotected.

Anyway, that's all I have to say.

Wild buns freeze in the winter because they don't have humans providing them with a wind proof, dry shelter, food and thawed water.

OK. Many wild animals die in the winter, but many hardy ones survive. Cottontails surely do.

From eNature,com:

If no young were lost, a single pair, together with their offspring, could produce 350,000 rabbits in five years. However, this rabbitÂs death rate vies with its birth rate; few individuals live longer than one year.

Hmm,well the book I have called Bunnies for Dummies says that anything under 40 degrees for a bunny is a HEALTH RISK. If you dont believe me,look it up. The question is,where all of us are getting our info from,which one is the most reputable.

Elly please do not stop caring. In the end the morons do not always get to keep their pets - we have shelters full of animals removed from morons. In this case you have to trust the SPCA did what they were allowed to do by law.

The goal in most cases is to educate the owners and now they know that you are watching them and that the SPCA has them on file. I would hope they would do a follow-up to insure the bunny is being properly cared for.

You did the right thing and hopefully the bunny will get better care than he was getting.

So sorry to hear about your mother.

Sher

{{!gwi}}

"You would not keep a dog or cat outside, unprotected."

Clearly, you haven't met my neighbors. In my neighborhood, dogs and cats spend 24/7 outside, no matter how cold it gets.

I sure wish this forum had a conversations page. Elly, how is your mother? Keep us posted.

Sally

Elly-nj, I am sending my best wishes to you and your mother. I hope your neighbors learned something about bunny care and that they get a super large fine when they go to court. Mebbe they will become good bunny caregivers.

Thanks for your good wishes. Things are not going well. That is for another forum, I guess.

Elly,
All my instincts lead me to believe you are truly a beautiful caring person. Please don't let this incident prevent you from trying to help other defenseless animals.
So sorry to hear about your mom. I hate that C word. Not to hi-jack this thread but I lost 3 dear friends, at a young age, to the awful "C" in 2006.