Easter is on the way, but buying a bunny is serious business according to the Kelowna Rabbit Advocacy Society.
Bob and Marie Sherman have helped re-home hundreds of bunnies since starting the society in 2011. Now partnered with the SPCA, the couple host Bunny 101 seminars to inform potential bunny parents about the major commitment they are taking on.
“Things are getting better, people aren’t dumping them like they used to,” said Bob. “If they can’t care for them they are being taken to the SPCA now.
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The Kelowna Rabbit Advocacy Society works to educate the public about the right ways to care for rabbits. Including the fact that they cannot have carrots because they are too high in sugar.
“People don’t know that they are such a fun pet to have, I still find people that don’t realize they are family pets now. They are used to thinking of them as outdoor pets or raising them for meat,” said Marie.
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The World Animal Foundation estimates that 80 per cent of bunnies that end up in shelters were likely given as Easter gifts. Rabbits are the third most popular pet in North America and they can live to be in between eight-years-old and 14 years-old.
Lucky, an eight-year-old rabbit pet of the Sherman’s was the centre of a demonstration to teach the audience about how to properly hold a rabbit.
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“You can’t hold them on their back, their hearts are weaker so the blood will pool and they can die,” said Sherman.
He also said that bunnies can die very easily, they can be scared to death if left in an outdoor pen, they can also choose to die if they are not given enough love from their family.
Rabbits have 18 toes, three eyelids, they can run between 25 and 45 miles per hour, they have 28 teeth that never stop growing and they take lots of naps.
The Shermans said that rabbits are not for everybody, but if they are properly cared for they make fantastic pets.
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