Attacked by dogs......

Darla and another bunny ended up at a municipal shelter after the owner.....apparently deciding to forgo the expense of veterinary treatment.....relinquished them to the shelter. Apparently the two rabbits had escaped from their enclosure and encountered one or more dogs. Darla recovered from her wounds (the other bunny died) and room was found for her at Heartland Rabbit Rescue....otherwise she was going to be killed.

Darla right after arriving at Heartland Rabbit Rescue

Notice the "double" chin, or pouch of skin hanging from her neck. This is often indicative of a bunny having given birth to multiple litters of babies. In other words Darla most likely came from a "breeder"....someone contributing to the overpopulation of domesticated rabbits so they can make money. No matter that thousands upon thousands of unwanted rabbits are killed at animal shelters each year, these folks want money, rabbit animals are considered to be property and we human animals can do (with impunity) pretty much anything we want to do with them.

This next photo shows the tattoo that was found in her left ear...another telltale sign that Darla was in the control of a "breeder".

Darla...left ear tattoo

Darla is a member of the "breed" of rabbits called Rex, the principal characteristic associated with a bunny like her is the texture of her fur. It is very short and astonishingly soft...feeling a lot like air filled velvet.

Rexes are very much the "velveteen rabbits" of the bunny folk.

Darla is equipped with a major pair of ears, she almost looks like a Jack Rabbit, they are so large.

She was a bit skittish when she first arrived but seems to be settling into her new home quite well. She has become very friendly and almost always asks for attention whenever a human animal is near.

She is not shy about asking to be petted and will push quite hard with her head in my hand to get some stroking and caressing. Her fur coat has one of the most wonderful textures I have ever felt and it is a very soothing experience to softly rub her head and back. Fun both for her and for me....reciprocal pleasure is hard to beat.

I did a little web-surfing to look into "breeders" and found that we human animals begin early to learn that living beings are property.

May 22, 2008-Tattoed 9 bunn-bunns.

May 26, 2008 Re-tattoed buns, this time we rubbed extra ink in really good over the tattoo punctures. Hopefully we got it deep enough this time.....

I copied the above writing from a website apparently maintained by a little girl who is in 4-H and appears to be anywhere from 9 to 12 years old.  She also writes on her website:

Think small fuzzy bunnies!
This is the home of Annie's 4-H rabbit project.
The historic chicken house on our
Oklahoma Centennial Farm has been converted into Annie's Rabbitry.

My Goal: To raise lovable, quality show rabbits.

All sounds terrific, great and wonderful right? Teaching children, encouraging children...yadda, yadda, yadda. What they are being taught is that rabbit people are property, you can mutilate them (cut their ears with no anesthesia, then rub ink in the cuts...tattooing), breed them, sell them and/or their babies...they are yours to do with what you want. For instance the little girl later writes:

Sept. 18, 2008- K.K. got 1st runner up at State! Justice died of wool block, and I am so sad. <:( I sold all my for sale bunnys this week right after I put up new photos.

She is sad about Justice dying, but sells other rabbits. When I read stuff like this, I substitute the year (think 1808 instead of 2008) and the living being, think human slave instead of rabbit slave. Instead of rabbit animals for her 4-H project, she is raising human animals....they are property and she can do what she wants to with them. Tattoo them, breed them, sell them and/or their children. 

She is doing this in conjunction with a national organization called 4-H, this group tell us on their website:

4-H is a positive youth development organization that empowers young people to reach their full potential......

 The indoctrination that all animals except human animals are property (and you only have to step back 7 or 8 generations to discover that human animals are property too) starts early, is pervasive and thorough and children are rapidly socialized out of notions that any animal has a right to their own life.

Children are taught to ignore the pain (tattooing is extremely painful for the rabbit...as it would be for anyone else) of living beings, taught that living beings are objects to be manipulated, controlled, "bred", sold, bought, locked up, exploited.....and on and on.........so young people can reach their "full potential".

Tips for "breeders" abound on the internet. For instance at this website the activity of "culling" is addressed:

As you produce rabbits, your goal will be to select the quality rabbits from your litters and cull the rest.  There is that dreaded word 'cull', which so many think means 'kill'.  Culling means removing rabbits from your herd, often by way of sales or other means.....

Ah, the gift of language. This writer obviously is squeamish about acknowledging what "cull" means when they write about it....the squeamishness doesn't change what they do, just what they say about it. Remember, "other means" covers a multitude of options.

Another "breeder" is a little less afflicted with euphemism-itis, they write:

As a breeder of show rabbits, I cannot keep every single rabbit that is born in my barn.  I keep only the ones that are show quality.  I try to pet out as many as I can (will talk about that later) but there are so many people selling pet bunnies, it’s not possible to sell all your non-show quality rabbits as pets.  Luckily we have a place here that actually raises snakes, all kinds and sizes from the tiniest ones to the huge Boa Constrictors!  We raise rabbits, they raise snakes!  The larger snakes can eat a very large rabbit!   We take our rabbits that we don’t want to keep and can’t sell as pets to this place.  We get paid for them!  I don’t know how they feed the snakes and I don’t want to know......

Just as long as he gets paid, he doesn't want to know.......good isn't it that he is "sensitive".

I am told some folks take a baby rabbit that doesn't look quite right (wrong coloring, etc) and simply smash their heads up against a wall or some other method of killing...that is what "cull" often means. At Lagomorphs.com they write:

Culling is a euphemism for killing the babies who did not turn out as desired. Breeders usually cull any rabbit who is actually physically deformed. Many also cull those with treatable problems like malocclusion or those who are the weakest. Some breeders cull a rabbit just because he has “imperfect” markings for the breed!

Ah, youth of America, if he isn't marked right....kill him (or her).

Well, Darla made it through the cull, survived to adulthood, had babies, escaped, was attacked and injured by a dog, ended up in a shelter that was preparing to kill her and now she is at Heartland.

She is a reminder of the costs involved in young people reaching their "full potential", costs that Darla and her babies paid....not the parents of the youth or the youth themselves. She is a reminder that lives are considered to be property by most human animals....and what a horror that is for the "property".

She is a reminder that sometimes, just sometimes, our victims get lucky and end up in a place where she....if she doesn't find a forever home...can live out her life with as much comfort and care and love as the folks out at HRR can provide.

Breeder....is a euphemism....for someone that is practicing disgusting activities for their own profit....at the expense of innocent lives. Darla thinks breeders suck........I concur.

Never, ever, ever, ever support in any way, shape or form the activities of "breeders", no matter what kind of life they are "breeding"....bunny, dog, cat, chicken, cow, sheep, etc...... Breeders are parasites that steal the lives of others for their own profit.

I have no words to adequately express my repugnance concerning these behaviors. Neither does Darla.


 

Babies grow..............

Time for an update on the babies that were born at Heartland Rabbit Rescue at the end of June of this year. 

Babies at 12 days old.

As you can see, they could be listed in the dictionary under the definition "cute".

At the greens party on September 5th they were introduced to grass for the first time.....as you can see a span of 55 or so days makes quite a difference in appearance.

Not quite a "baby" at 67 days old (Fast Eddie?).

The coloring on their fur is blackish on the body with a nice patch of butterscotch behind the ears and some white highlights on the face, chest and a brilliant bright white tail.

As can best be determined, both are boys and are so far very social and friendly except when they are doing baby bunny things and do not want to be interrupted.  Names are possibly not yet permanent although Fast Eddie is a strong contender as a name for one of the handsome lads.  Mom can be seen behind "Fast Eddie".  She still takes good care of them although when she gets a chance to cruise around the warren she seems to prefer visiting the other bunnies alone.

Baby #2 with butterscotch patch showing.

One may be just a bit larger than the other but in all aspects of external appearance they are virtually twins. Their coloring is unique and makes them both really appealing "eye candy".

Youngsters, no matter the species, are usually quite a treat to be around and these two unexpected additions are no exception.

As noted in my previous post however, a forever home is what these guys need, with their very own human family that is devoted to providing for their shelter, food, playground, toys, and emotional and medical needs.

This is no small commitment, their lifespan is usually given as from 9 to 12 years but some live even longer.  And, like all of us mammals, their physical abilities and functioning decline as they age.  Medical needs increase (often) with aging and just like human animals, cantankerousness may blossom as the years add their toll.

Choosing to live with a companion animal means entering into an unequal relationship.  The non-human animal will always be dependent on the human animal.  This inequality means great responsibility on the part of the one holding the power.

There will not come a day when you can send the companion animal off to live on their own.  This is one of the reasons many animal rights folks argue for an end to the "domestication" of any animal.  It is a forced and human created dependency situation....one that the dependent animal had no choice in creating and has virtually no possibility of ending. They rely on the "mercy" of human animals......and that is one hell of a precarious position for them.

Here is how gross all this stuff is.  Ignoring (for now) the "farmed" animals, domesticated cats, dogs and bunnies (and birds and lizards and etc.) are killed in "shelters" across the U.S. at the rate of about 4 million per year.....killed because no human (and humans created this domesticated status) wants to take on the responsibility of caring for them or has gotten tired of them and turned them over to a "shelter" or has taken them somewhere and "dumped" them.  4 million living, sentient beings murdered because humans can't be bothered with dealing with the consequences of "domesticated" non-human animals.  Some small percentage are euthanized (that means they are sick or injured and suffering with no chance of recovery) but the vast majority that are killed are healthy and active and have years of life left.

This is why it is unconscionable for any human to allow any "domesticated" animal to breed.  For as long as there is a single homeless one of these unfortunate victims of human folly, allowing more dogs or cats or bunnies to be born is simply outrageous and disgusting.

"Breeders", people who encourage or pursue the birth of more baby bunnies or puppies or kittens to be brought into this obscene situation we have created are simply contemptible.  There is no excuse. None. We are all culpable and we are all failing these beautiful bunnies and puppies and kittens....failing them miserably.  Not because we have to fail them, but because we are too lazy or greedy or goofy or mean. So quit it.  And help.

Never, never, never ever purchase or buy a bunny or kitten or puppy....go to a shelter or rescue organization or foster organization and adopt.

If you can't adopt, foster...if you can't foster.....volunteer, and if you can't volunteer.....donate.  Do all of them if you can.  The animal people shouldn't have to pay for our shortcomings.

That's the end of my rant.....whew....and the baby bunnies (like all the bunnies) are exquisite.