New neighbour rabbit

[Katheclepto]

So, we have new neighbors… nice enough. Our 10 year old boys go to the same school so they play occasionally. However, they have a rabbit. They clearly don’t like the rabbit or play with it. It’s kept in a hutch outside and is filthy. Dad admitted to me the other day they rarely clean it out as they forget. We went there the other day for dinner and I noticed the rabbit had no water! The bottle was empty so when no one was looking I took it upon myself to fill it up!

I can see it never has anything fresh and is sometimes given dry food. I look over the fence often and see its baron cage with no hay, no fresh food and it just looks miserable. I want to cry!

I don’t know what to say! I want to say ‘please let me have your rabbit, I will look after it’ but how without offense?! I don’t want a rabbit but I also can’t bear seeing it suffer… sometimes its cage is covered with a thick woolen blanket… in the day.. in this heat!

Please offer to take the rabbit or report it
This is so cruel 😥

Report it!

If neighbour has already said that they forget to clean it out, you could use that as a way in? “If you like, I’ll take it off your hands”, sort of thing?

I'd offer to take the rabbit. I wouldn't care about causing offence. They will probably be relieved

Rabbits are treated so badly. They're more like a cat or a dog, not suited for a hutch.

I'd definitely try and say something that doesn't cause them to kick off.

You MUST do something. This is animal cruelty.

Report it.
Could you suggest your DS looks after it for a few days? Suggest maybe he wants to work with animals in the future and it would be good practice if he could "rabbit sit" for a few days until someone can come and collect it?

You could ask for advice as you're 'thinking of rehoming a rabbit as there's is so sweet it's made you want one'. Bet he'd offer it

This is better than my idea!

Just start asking about how the rabbit is getting on every time you see them and then slip it in that you're thinking about getting a rabbit and then see if they offer you theirs. You can't just take their rabbit off their hands though if they don't want to part with it, unfortunately. I say this having lived next door to someone who didn't treat their rabbits much better than that 15 years ago. Also, the RSPCA weren't interested. It's heartbreaking.

Ah X-post with @WombatStewForTea

You could ask where they got their rabbit from? Did they adopt it or buy it. Then emphasis you personally would much rather rehome a rabbit...

I'd say - I am looking to adopt a rabbit, you wouldn't fancy offloading yours would you?

My DH keeps saying we don’t want a rabbit and do you want the responsibility which I don’t but I also can’t just let it be mistreated! I think I’ll start with the ‘my son wants a rabbit, maybe we can look after yours if you go away?’ As I think they have a holiday soon…

Bloody hell this is awful
Bunny is going to die of heat stroke and not being looked after properly
They obviously don't care if they forget
Please offer to have the bunny or report

Yea I'd go with your son wants a rabbit, then that gives them the chance to sort of do you a favour! Rabbits need a lot more than people think, that why I wouldn't have one now, they need more than just a hutch

You could also next time your chopping up fresh veg, save the peelings and ask their boys if they would like to give it to their rabbit? See if you could gee them up a bit, ask if they ever let it out etc. if they are 10 theres still a chance they are interested. If your kids go over ask them to ask to get it out for a bit in the garden

Please report this. The poor rabbit.

You sound lovely and kind OP, please offer to take the rabbit, it deserves to live its life with someone who will actually care. Rabbits are gentle little beings, it’s breaks my heart to think of it suffering 💔

Rabbits are often treated like this. It’s why many of them don’t live very long.

We have always had a house rabbit, they don’t have the run of the house all day, but live in a dog crate and the door is left open when we are at home (mostly all day) so they can come and go. We’ve always littler trained them. Nice weather she has a run for the garden.

Current rabbit is 11 years old, slowing down now and doesn’t come out to hop about so often, but still going strong. She’s in the kitchen so isn’t lonely, has us all coming and going all day.Everyone is suprised she’s so old, but so many die after 4/5 years as they are shoved in a hutch and neglected.

Diet also helps. She has dry food for her teeth but had fruit and veg everyday too.

What sort of life has this poor creature got ? It’s just sat in a box .

This makes me want to cry. We have two guinea pigs and they're treated like absolute Queens! They eat better than me!

Report report report!

This is very upsetting. Could you offer to take the rabbit and look after it, and they can visit it whenever they want? (They won't bother).

Rabbits are not for the faint hearted though. They need a companion and loads of space.

Report them to the RSPCA.

That won’t only help the rabbit but will hopefully also give them pause before getting another animal in future.

Take the rabbit. Leave the hutch open.
See how long until they even notice..
They are absolute cunts of the worst kind..
Our rabbits had a 30 foot run and a 2 storey home!!