A Rash of Rabbit Dumpings

"The more things change, the more they stay the same."

This newsletter, as alert readers may have noticed, is coming out six weeks later than usual. The reason has to do with a recurring problem: the abandonment of domestic rabbits and the burden this creates for rescue organizations such as the Oregon House Rabbit Society.

Glendoveer Golf Course, a 22-acre public park, had become a dumping ground for "Easter pets" that were no longer wanted.

Our state's HRS chapter was formed back in 1992 in response to just such a situation. Glendoveer Golf Course, a 22-acre public park, had become a dumping ground for "Easter pets" that were no longer wanted. In the Fall of 1989, nearly two hundred diseased and starving rabbits were struggling for survival on the golf course. A group of concerned citizens joined with County officials and local animal welfare agencies to round up the rabbits, provide them with needed medical attention, spay/neuter them, and adopt them out to safe, loving homes. It took two-and-a-half years and many thousands of dollars, but ultimately we succeeded in removing the last domestic rabbit in April of 1992. At that time, the total number of rabbits removed by our group of volunteers and treated by Dr. Greg Harris at Gresham Veterinary Hospital exceeded six hundred and fifty. The very next month, we were called upon by shelter operators at Salem Humane Society to deal with another rabbit dumping problem, and more than fifty rabbits came into our sanctuary, this time the result of a single individual.

Recently, there have been many more examples of this sort of problem around the country. Just over a year ago, our sister organization to the North, the Washington House Rabbit Society, was faced with a dumping situation involving more than six hundred domestic rabbits in Redmond, Washington. (The Oregon HRS was happy to provide public testimony in Summer 1998 to the Redmond City Council that yes, it is possible to rescue such a large number of domestic rabbits, and we have the experience to prove it!) It was a mighty struggle with a great many pitfalls, but the Washington HRS was successful in rescuing these rabbits and continues to monitor the property for "new dumps". This last Spring, the Sacramento chapter of HRS struggled to find homes for the many hundreds of domestic rabbits that resulted when an owner allowed his pet rabbits to breed at will in his backyard. The volunteers gave a monumental effort in record-breaking heat to care for and find homes for as many rabbits as possible. This past Summer, HRS volunteers in Canada struggled to deal with an abandonment issue at a hospital in Victoria. Hospital staff had already hired riflemen to shoot the hundreds of abandoned domestic rabbits that were on the hospital grounds. The HRS volunteers persuaded them to try another way (rounding up the rabbits, providing medical care, and adopting them out). At the time of this writing, an alternative solution was being considered.

Then, in July, the problem arose locally again. Not at Glendoveer, I'm pleased to say -- Oregon HRS volunteers monitor that site continuously, and the few "new dumps" have quickly been rescued. No, this new example of this old problem occurred even closer to home: at a farm property in Beaverton. Once again, Oregon HRS was asked to come to the rescue.

This farm property in Beaverton was well known to Oregon HRS, as we had fielded complaints about it for years. Apparently, the owner of the property had let domestic rabbits loose on his land. Many of these would end up hit by cars in the busy intersection nearby; others would shiver in the cold wet winter weather and catch the attention and sympathy of passersby. These people would call Oregon HRS and ask us to "do something about it". However, since it was private property, all we could do was urge people to call local animal control agencies and report the situation as animal abuse.

The underlying issue in all of these situations is the same: people buy rabbits as pets without understanding what is involved in their care, then these same people abandon the rabbits into a park, golf course, or other outdoor setting when they no longer are willing to care for them.

Eventually, the owner passed away, and the property was sold to a developer. This Summer, Oregon HRS began receiving a great many more calls about the rabbits (estimated at around one hundred in number) who were living on property slated for bulldozing and who were no longer being provided any care at all. At the urging of Oregon Humane Society officials, we agreed to conduct a public meeting about the issue, to coordinate a rescue effort, and to provide technical assistance to that effort. The meeting was held in July and attended by perhaps fifty people who were interested in helping the rabbits. We put in place a program whereby we remove rabbits as we find homes for them. Then, the rabbits are spayed/neutered, treated for medical conditions, and adopted into their new homes. (This approach is in contrast to Glendoveer, where we took in the rabbits first and looked for homes later. We still are caring for about one hundred of those animals, many of whom are now 10 or more years old!) At the time of this writing, Oregon HRS has removed, treated, and found homes for twelve rabbits from the Beaverton farm property. Many thanks to Jim and Laura Denman, Gail Sears, Mary Foster, Sheri Smith and others who helped in the round-up, fostering, and adoption! Veterinary services have graciously been provided by veterinarians at East Portland Veterinary Hospital and by Dr. Scott Davis at Vista Pet Hospital. Volunteers from the Oregon Humane Society, with whom we are partnering in this effort, have also removed and treated several rabbits.

The underlying issue in all of these situations is the same: people buy rabbits as pets without understanding what is involved in their care, then these same people abandon the rabbits into a park, golf course, or other outdoor setting when they no longer are willing to care for them. That is the problem. The solution? I can think of several. Ban the breeding of rabbits until the shelters are empty. Educate people about what is involved in caring for a rabbit, so that they don't make poor decisions. Enforce the existing laws against abandoning domestic animals. Begin to see animals as something more than temporary, disposable human property.

Perhaps as we move into a new millenium, we will begin to have a new attitude towards the other species with whom we share this planet. Despite all of the suffering, cruelty, and neglect I have seen over the past decade, I still have hope.

-- Jim Hartmann

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Contact Information:

The Oregon House Rabbit Society
12700 SW Dakota
Suite 180 PMB #125
Tigard, OR 97223