Meet The Residents 1

The Outdoor Rainbow Rabbits

Genevieve

Genevieve arrived here with her sister Gabrielle in September 2011 as emergencies when a rabbit rescue got into difficulties and needed to close straight away. When they arrived we were shocked at the size of them. Although they were 12 weeks old, they looked just 6 weeks of age. A vet check confirmed they were severely underdeveloped and malnourished. Their skulls were so small their eyes didn’t fit and were bulging out of their heads. Sadly their mother and siblings had already passed away; Genevieve and Gabrielle were all that were left of their family. Both girls were given extra meals and seemed very happy to be inside with clean warm bedding. Given the right care Genna and Gabby came on quite literally in leaps and bounds. We were worried how well they would thrive as being so underfed as babies could have caused irreparable damage to their major organs, so we were delighted when their weight gradually increased. We thought all was well for this pair and that there would be no need for them to stay at Rainbow Rabbits - they would be able to go to a normal family home. So we were gutted when we found a growth on Genevieve’s stomach. A vet trip showed it was infected and needed removing urgently. After a course of antibiotics Genna was booked in for the growth removal and it was sent off for analysis. Give her age we were shocked to find that it was in fact a type of skin cancer. The good news is that it is a type of tumour that is unlikely to have spread which means the out look is positive, but we still feel that Genna needs to stay with us now so we can keep a very careful eye on her. Thankfully she has recovered really well now and has been able to be fully vaccinated and both her and Gabby will be neutered in the new year. This is something we really want to get done asap as obviously if they are prone to cancer this is where there could be problems. Hopefully they will both go on to have long fulfilled lives with us, but what ever the future holds for them they are certainly enjoying life to the full at the moment.

Gabrielle

Tami

Tami is a beautiful old bunny. She was rescued by the RSPCA after being used as a breeding machine. Her exact age is uncertain, but we think she is a very elderly bunny. Unfortunately Tami suffers from tooth root problems. They are growing through her upper jaw and causing problems with her eyes, which makes it all the more shocking that she was being bred from. Tami will remain on pain relief for the rest of her life and also needs treatment for recurrent eye infections. At the moment she is still able to eat solid food which is great, but a time will come when she will need her veg grated and pellets soaked in water as it will be too difficult for her to chew.

Despite her problems and history Tami is a wonderful, friendly and trusting bunny. When she is out in the garden she will run over for head rubs and cuddles. If you sit down and ignore her she will put her front feet on your back and demand attention! Because Tami is so laid back we thought it would be easy to introduce her to a bunny friend but we were very wrong. Although she loves human companionship she is not so keen on the other rabbits. The first attempt at introductions she went straight for the face of the other rabbit, no questions asked. Given that the only time Tami has ever been in close proximity to another rabbit in her previous life was to produce babies, I guess it is easy to understand her reluctance to accept a bunny companion. We are hoping in time she may learn to trust other rabbits, but for now she is happy with her freedom, a sun spot to lie in, good food and lots of human love.

BIC & BIRO

Bic and Biro are such special bunnies that they will be getting their own page very shortly.

TIFFANY

Tiffany had a terrible start in life. She was abandoned in a tiny hutch along with her Mum and 7 other litter mates. The filthy hutch was dumped in a park and was luckily found by a member of the public who took it to the local rescue centre. Unfortunately for Tiffany she had got her back leg caught in the mesh of the hutch. It was badly broken, so at the age of around 5 weeks she had her leg amputated. Tiffany was lucky to survive such a big operation at that age, but she has made a full recovery. She is just over 4 years old now but has not grown to the size she should be. She is very small weighing only 1kg, about half the size she should be.

Tiffany has a few minor dental problems and is now developing problems with the muscles in her legs. Even though she weighs very little her remaining three legs are struggling to hold her up. In the future she will get to a point where she will loose all mobility, but for now she is still managing to get about very well. Tiffany was really struggling to walk indoors, she could get no grip on carpet and towels, so we moved her and her brother Elvis outside to see if it would help and it did. On thick hay and also concrete Tiffany can go a good speed, she still manages to give me the run around when I want to catch her, the little monkey!!

ELVIS

Elvis is Tiffany’s brother, so he has also had a very bad start in life. Elvis was the runt of the litter and took a long time to develop. We were not able to get him castrated until he was 8 months old. Even at 4 years old he still only half the size he should be, probably due to the bad conditions he was kept in as a baby. Despite being found at just a few weeks old Elvis is not a cuddly bunny. He will growl and launch at you when you go into his pen even with food. This just shows what effect a bad start in life can have on the future development of such wonderful creatures.

ROXANNE

Where to start with Roxanne! Roxy is an extremely stunning 18 month old chinchilla rex and to look at her you would have no idea that she has so many problems. When she arrived at the rabbit rescue she had a respiratory infection and dental problems. Not long after she suffered a major seizure which caused her to slip a disc in her back. Once she had made some progress we were asked if we could give Roxy a place at our sanctuary as it was clear she would have on going problems. Roxy continues to suffer for seizures and now also has arthritis in her hips and spine. this means she will need to be on pain relief for the rest of her life. She has also suffered from a number of intestinal problems since arriving here, including a bout of intestinal coccidiosis, which means she had to be quarantined to stop it spreading through the rest of the rabbits here. Roxanne is a lovely bunny but understandably can be temperamental at times. She can become very aggressive in the days leading up to a seizure and she also has episodes of tummy pain that can make her cry out during handling. However on good days Roxy likes nothing better than digging holes in the garden and like all rexes always loves her food.

GEOFF

We were asked to take in Geoff along with his partner Marion as he needed to be rescued from a “rescue”. He is a beautiful but very nervous chinchilla coloured bunny. As soon as he arrived we could see that he had a badly infected eye probably caused from the appalling conditions he was kept in. We did have dental x-rays taken to rule out tooth root problems and thankfully his teeth are great, so a course of antibiotics was all that was needed. Marion shortly died a few weeks after arrival, leaving Geoff alone. Over the next 18 months we tried to bond him to a number of female bunnies but none of them liked him. Geoff did nothing wrong, the females turned on him every time. We have no idea why as he is such a gentle boy. Finally in Autumn 2010 he met Babs, an unneuterd female, yet they settled down together straight away. It is so lovely to see these two cuddled up next to each other, usually in their litter tray! We have no idea how old Geoff is but he is certainly an old man now. However he still sits out in his run in all weathers, even last winter when the nights were -10. To us it seems he thinks that if he leaves his run it will be taken away from him as he lived in such cramped conditions for so many years. We have tried everything to entice him in to his warm hutch in bad weather but Geoff is happy sat out in the cold, so we have to respect his wishes and let him do what he chooses given that he spent so much of his life with no choices.

BABS

Babs arrived here as part of a large rescue of over 60 rabbits from appalling conditions. The rabbits were being bred for the pet shop trade, but all were kept in dark broken tiny filthy hutches. Many of them were unwell and since the rescue in August 2010 many of them have lost their fight for life., including our Sinbad and Berol. Babs was terrified and very over weight when she arrived having been kept in such tiny accommodation with no chance of exercise. She also suffers from some hind leg weakness, no surprise given the conditions she was living in. We estimated her to be 5 years old when she arrived, to think she lived in these for so many years is just heartbreaking. Babs had a pasturella infection which we were able to treat the symptoms of fairly successfully. She also has slight dental problems and abnormalities have shown in her liver. Although over weight on arrival Babs started to loose weight quite rapidly and now enjoys a bowl of porridge each morning to help her maintain her body weight. Babs isn't neutered due to health reasons but is loving the company or her partner Geoff.

BETSEY

Betsey is a pretty little bunny who was originally taken into rescue after a relationship break down. She is a nervous girl which is hardly surprising given that she was mistakenly bred with a French lop! Only one baby survived and in all honesty it is a miracle that Betsey survived given that she is a tiny netherland dwarf/ dutch cross. Unfortunately after her baby found a new home she passed away due to E cuniculi, so it is 99% certain that Betsey has also been exposed to this deadly parasite. At the moment Betsey is bright and healthy and definitely has a good appetite, but we do need to watch her carefully for the start of any possible symptoms. Betsey has recently need a dental.

Betsey is currently bonded to Dexter, however Dexter may have a few problems keeping up with her as she likes nothing better than to tear around the large garden run at top speeds!

SPUD-GUN

HEDGEHOG

We noticed Hedgehog and Spud-gun being advertised on some local online free ads before Christmas. They were being sold for £45 with their cage. As time passed the price dropped and dropped, but my main concern was that they were getting older and were still together despite not being castrated. When we found they had been reduced to £5 we decided to get them thinking we would get them castrated and rehome them, even though it’s not what we normally do. When they arrived we got quite a shock. They were long coated and at the age of only 14 weeks they were matted solid. Not only that, they were skin and bone underneath. We couldn’t even tell if they were ready to be neutered as they were so matted it was preventing their testicles from dropping! It took a few weeks to completely de-mat Hedgehog as he was very difficult to handle and hated being brushed, to the point that he would bite. Over the weeks we observed Hedgehog closely, as it became apparent quite quickly that he had some neurological issues. He is often “abscent” and displays some quite bizarre behaviours. These were made much worse by his high hormone levels. We took him to the vets a few times to try to get him castrated but they were concerned about his failure to thrive and thought it best to leave him longer. As time progressed Hedgehog became more hyper active and hormonal to the point where he couldn’t concentrate to eat or sleep. We became very concerned that he would end up so under weight we would loose him. After discussions with our vet we all decided we had to risk a castration despite his low weight. Thankfully Hedgehog came through it well. He has now settled a bit more and will flop out to sleep and also gets stuck in at eating time. However he still has behavioural problems and also likes to nip especially at grooming time. Hedgehog is definitely a strange little bunny, but we love him all the more because of that

JOJO

Jojo is a lovely lop eared bunny. She was born in March 2009 and is already a big girl despite being the runt of the litter. She and her litter mates were handed into a rescue and as they grew Jojo had to be separated as she started to attack her brothers and sisters. The vet diagnosed sight problems for the reason behind her behavioural problems. We were asked to take her in by the rescue as she would need a special home with plenty of understanding. Since she arrived it is obvious that Jojo is terrified of movement. If either us or any cats or rabbits move she launches at them. Jojo started off as a house rabbit with us in the hopes that we would be able to improve her behaviour, but unfortunately she just could not cope with the movement of us and the other animals in the house. Jojo moved outside to a large hutch in our main shed where is it much more peaceful for her. She gets daily exercise time in one of our 3 garden runs, but it is quite a task to move her from one place to another. we have tried many different tactics with little success, but the best we have come up with so far is to wrap her in a fleece blanket whilst carrying her. She does settle in it quite well which gives us the opportunity to give her a head stroke and health check. We do constantly worry about Jojo's quality of life but hopefully we are giving her the best we can given the seriousness of her problems.

DEXTER

Dexter is a very handsome 7 year old bunny that arrived here with his companion Hester. He was urgently looking for a new home after being given only 5 days to find a place to live after a marriage break – up. He has a problem to his shoulders that affects his muscles and nerves. Although he is still a lively boy it has affected his personality. Dexter is a very nervous boy who shies away from any sort of handling. But so far we have discovered that he is a very accomplished digger!

Unfortunately Hester died shortly after arrival during her neuter so Dexter is happily bonded to Betsey. Last year Dexter had some kind of neurological incident. We found him stiff and unconscious in his run and honestly thought we would loose him there and then. He slowly came round but sadly the whole thing left him temporarily blind. Dexter is made of strong stuff and continued to make a full recovery, only for his to be hit with a heart condition during the summer. He had a build up of fluid on his lungs and again we thought we might loose him. But once again Dexter showed us that he was not ready to give up yet! He responded well to his meds and after a week of treatment the fluid cleared and Dexter was able to run around again. Dexter is a obviously a bunny full of determination and a zest for life.

PRUDENCE

Prudence is a 6 year old dwarf lop. She came to us via a local rabbit rescue as a baby, and was handed to them as she was born with her front teeth misaligned. She had her front teeth removed and can now eat perfectly well as long as her veg is cut up into pieces. In 2008 Prudence developed a cyst in her neck. It was successfully removed but was thought to be attached to her lymph nodes. She has always been a bunny that we have struggled to keep in good condition so we wonder if there is more going on with her than we have so far discovered. During the summer Prudence developed some hind leg weakness. A vet check showed that she is now suffering from arthritis. Despite this, with her medication, Prudence is a lively bunny who loves her partner Bruce and food even more!

BRUCE

Bruce is a 8 year old Dutch cross. Before he came us he had been in a local rescue for a year, along with his brother Wilbert. This is because Bruce has a tendency to bite. He is not an aggressive bunny, he doesn’t growl or launch at you, just likes to give you a good nip when he says hello. Despite this Bruce is a happy and relaxed rabbit who loves sunbathing with Prudence on top of his activity cube. Bruce does have a runny eye, which means he needs regular eye drops and his tear ducts need draining. In 2008 Bruce managed to dislocate his hip and was confined to cage rest for 6 weeks, thankfully he made a full recovery. Despite his age Bruce is in excellent health and loves nothing better than finding a sun spot to flop out in!

TIGER LILY

Tiger-Lily was picked up by the RSPCA as a stray a long with Heather in 2004; therefore we have no background information on them. We guess that they are at least 9 years old now. Tiger-Lily is blind, however she manages to get around ok but does startle very easily. She also has a few problems with her molars so needs the occasional dental.

During the past year Lily has become increasing frail, we have never seen such an old looking bunny. She weighs half the weigh she did in her prime even with extra meals and treat of porridge for breakfast. She is on pain relief for any aches and pains but both us and the vet agree that while she is eating well and happy pottering about we will leave her to enjoy her remaining time.

HEATHER

Heather was picked up by the RSPCA as a stray a long with Tiger-Lily in 2004. We guess she is at least 9 years old. Heather is a happy healthy rabbit, but hates being handled. She is a great companion to Lily who is blind.

ROBIN

Robin and his brother Reubin came to us after spending months at a rabbit rescue due to their behavioural problems. They had come into the rescue as babies after being kept in such filthy conditions their mother had become stressed and gradually chewed off their ears. Robin is extremely nervous and is nearly impossible to handle. He does however like to be hand fed treats. Robin originally lived outside with Sienna, Gracie and Reubin, however Reubin sadly passed away at the beginning of the year from a genetic problem and Gracie in the summer. We do feel that Robin misses his brother a lot. Although he is definitely not a cuddly bunny he is very entertaining to watch running and skipping at high speeds around their run.

SIENNA

Sienna is a 3 year old beautiful rex rabbit. Unfortunately she was for sale at a garden centre when she started to experience fits. Her brother also had fits and sadly died. Sienna was therefore unable to be sold and her future became uncertain. She is now happily living with Robin. She loves all the space and makes great use of it, constantly running and skipping around, she is a joy to watch. So far Sienna has not experience any more fits since her arrival, but we always keep a close eye on her just in case.

BUNNY BUNDY

Bunny Bundy despite being an uncastrated male, arrived here already living with Bessie. He too was part of the large rescue of 61 rabbits from a single garden, living in appalling conditions. He is a gorgeous little boy, renamed Bunny Bundy as the name Bundy means freedom, which seemed very appropriate given his story. He seems a remarkably healthy little boy who was neutered straight away so he was able to remain bonded to Bessie without bothering her too much. Although he was extremely nervous on arrival he settled down very quickly, enjoying his new life living in a clean warm hutch and getting plenty of good food and exercise.

Sadly Bessie passed away a few weeks after her arrival, so Bundy found a new friend in Imogen. They lived together happily for 18 months before Imogen also passed away. The good news is Bunny Bundy has found himself two new friends in Bic and Biro and all three can often be found flopped out together on top of their run shelter.

ONSLOW

Onslow is a lovely lop bunny which was handed into a rescue with his brother Otto when his owners decided they no longer wanted them and got a dog instead. Onslow needed a dental when he was first handed in but we are hoping that with an improved diet his teeth will not need too much treatment in the future. Sadly Otto was a very sick bunny when he arrived and despite our determined efforts he could not be saved. Onslow went on to live with Nutmeg for around 18 months but in recent weeks they have unfortunately had to be separated. Onslow started to attack her, the only reason we can think of for this is that he didn't like the fact that Nutmeg's health has deteriorated. So for now Onslow is living alone. He seems quite content on his own and can still 'chat' to Bruce and Prudence through the mesh.

Meet the Indoor Rainbow Rabbits

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