Mission Viejo Animal Services reminding community rabbits are not Easter presents

Mission Viejo Animal Services is reminding the community that rabbits need lots of love and care and are not Easter presents for kids.

It may seem like a great idea to surprise your child with a real “Easter Bunny,” but the reality is, a week after Easter, the baskets and candy will be forgotten, and sadly, so will the rabbit.  When a rabbit is new to the home it may be nervous and will not like to be handled right away, so children can lose interest quickly. Parents are busy and do not have the time or patience to acclimate the rabbit into the home, so they drop the rabbit off at a shelter or, even worse, they set it free in a local park.  Domesticated rabbits cannot survive in the wild, so they should never be released as they will surely die. 

Animal shelters see an increase in rabbit impounds in the month after Easter because people don’t realize they are a unique pet who needs special care. Rabbits can live 10 to 12 years and need love and attention all year long, not just at Easter.  They make fantastic, loving, and loyal companions if cared for properly, which includes daily cleaning of their enclosure, special hay and greens, clean water, lots of room to hop around, and supervision. 

If you have researched what it takes to have a bunny as a pet, it will be an amazing experience, but wait until Easter is over to focus solely on your new pet.

For more information, contact 949-470-3045.