Daughter's friend lost our bunny

[Anonymous]

We boarded our bunny at a cat boarding facility. Call around and see which facility accepts rabbits.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Bunny's probably dead by now. Get your DC ready for that possibility.

Bunny is probably NOT dead. Humans think that animals can't live without their care because they keep them in cages and assume they can't survive without them but most continue to have their instincts intact.

We took in a bunny who had lived on a farm in a small cage all of her life - 4 years. When she got out she immediately escaped and was running all over the yard. It took 5 people to corner her and round her up. After that we shored up an area of the lawn and put a hutch in there for her for her to go into. We took her in at night at first but she loved the outdoors so much we eventually let her sleep out there - she dug giant rabbit holes all over our lawn and just had a good old time. She wintered running around our basement when it got really cold (it was 9 degrees) but the cold did not phase her at all.

After leaving her farm cage she refused to eat anymore 'rabbit nuggets' . Ever. Most of what she ate was greens - if there's green stuff outside she'll have stuff to eat.

What color is she? Would the neighbors realize that she's a pet rabbit?

She might be gone but I doubt she's dead. Odds are she's living a rabbits life which is not an awful thing for a rabbit.

And by 'rabbit holes' I mean giant cavernous underground living rooms - they were really spectacular and she could dig them
in one night (with glee). They were so big I couldn't even feel the whole thing with all of my arm stretched down there - they were long tunnels with living rooms at the end.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, your animal was not a toy. You were responsible for making a much more careful choice. You probably should;t adopt another.

Omg yes because there really aren't enough pet rabbits to go around
We should make sure to have enough 'rabbit police' for each city to make sure that no one gets a rabbit unless you think they should

[Anonymous]

Call shelters - there are tons available and in need.

[Anonymous]

I am so sorry OP This is really terrible. Definitely try the local shelters and ask your friends to be on the look out. Did they make any attempts to find your bun?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Did you pay for the pet-sitting services?

Well, last time we gave $50/day. Mom already told me they obviously wouldn't expect money this time around.

You PAID $50 a DAY for someone to watch a RABBIT? This is a joke - right?

[Anonymous]

If you usually pay them, they owe you an apology and the amount of money you would have paid to go toward rabbit replacement.

If they were just doing this as a favor (with no money), then an apology from kid to kid would be sufficient.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People. It's a rabbit. Say it with me. Rabbit. You're not 3.

It may just be a rabbit, but it was a family pet that my children really loved and had grown quite attached to in the 4 years we've had him.

And *I* might not be 3, but my kids are 10 and 6. This isn't about me - it's about the kids.

OP, one of the reasons that people keep animals as pets is to give children a more gentle introduction to loss. They have lost their pet bunny, which is an experience that will prepare them for a larger loss in the future.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Bunny's probably dead by now. Get your DC ready for that possibility.

Bunny is probably NOT dead. Humans think that animals can't live without their care because they keep them in cages and assume they can't survive without them but most continue to have their instincts intact.

We took in a bunny who had lived on a farm in a small cage all of her life - 4 years. When she got out she immediately escaped and was running all over the yard. It took 5 people to corner her and round her up. After that we shored up an area of the lawn and put a hutch in there for her for her to go into. We took her in at night at first but she loved the outdoors so much we eventually let her sleep out there - she dug giant rabbit holes all over our lawn and just had a good old time. She wintered running around our basement when it got really cold (it was 9 degrees) but the cold did not phase her at all.

After leaving her farm cage she refused to eat anymore 'rabbit nuggets' . Ever. Most of what she ate was greens - if there's green stuff outside she'll have stuff to eat.

What color is she? Would the neighbors realize that she's a pet rabbit?

She might be gone but I doubt she's dead. Odds are she's living a rabbits life which is not an awful thing for a rabbit.

Love and second this post.

[Anonymous]

Wow, I would be really upset: who goes to the bathroom when supervising an untrained animal outside?

I lost a chick out of a brood of 9 one day. They were outside, I lifted the coop off the grass, they started to mill around freely, I turned my back for one second to grab their water, and when I turned back one chick was missing. To this day I do not know how that could have happened. The chicks showed up well on the grass, and we were pretty far from any bushes or hiding places. However, all I can surmise is that this was a Speedy Gonzalez chick who raced for cover.

[Anonymous]

A 10 year old SHOULD know better, but is still definitely young enough to have moments of bad judgment. This was an accident and the mother handled it appropriately. I would not end the friendship over this, but certainly wouldn't ask them to pet sit again.

Sorry this happened, OP.

[Anonymous]

OP, do you have an update? How did the kids take it?

I was the PP that asked how explicit you were with your instructions. I asked because I was trying to gauge where this fell on the spectrum between true accident and negligence. It seems more like negligence on the friend's part (and therefore the mom.)

However, it doesn't really matter. It's an unfortunate and very situation regardless of who is to blame. I hope your kids are okay. I think that going the "search and rescue" route for a few days will help ease them into the loss.

I do also wonder about what another PP mentioned. Is it possible that something more gruesome happened to the bunny, and this is what they decided to tell you? Not that it changes anything.

Sorry for your family's loss.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A 10 year old SHOULD know better, but is still definitely young enough to have moments of bad judgment. This was an accident and the mother handled it appropriately. I would not end the friendship over this, but certainly wouldn't ask them to pet sit again.

Sorry this happened, OP.

We don't know if the mother handled it appropriately. If my child lost a friend's pet because she disobeyed explicit (and common sense) instructions, she would be disciplined. This isn't a victimless mistake - the bunny is likely dead and OP's children have lost their beloved pet. Also, it does not appear that the mother has offered to help find the bunny or make any sort of good faith reparations to OP's kids. I also wonder if they are telling the truth about what happened, as it's hard to believe a 10yo could be so stupid. I pet sat for the neighbors without mishap at 7, and babysat the neighbors' KIDS at 12 (I'm 33 now, for reference).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Did you pay for the pet-sitting services?

Well, last time we gave $50/day. Mom already told me they obviously wouldn't expect money this time around.

You PAID $50 a DAY for someone to watch a RABBIT? This is a joke - right?

That is what you would pay for a professional veterinary boarding facility that monitored food intake, weight, could administer meds, had insurance. You are really overpaying.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Accidents happen. Talk to dd, buy a new bunny, don't entrust it to those friends again

This wasn't an accident. They intentionally left an animal outside unsupervised.

This is a case for APS-- animal protective services.