what to do with Rabbit

[alwaystryingtobeafriend]

Before i met my dp he had bought his daughter a rabbit.

In the past 3 years since i have been with him i notice the rabbit never really gets much attention. Sure she gets fed/ water but not anywhere near regularly enough.
more often than not i notice she has no food or water or she goes days with a top up. I am allergic to her and she is a really nippy rabbit ( most likely because of her poor quality of life.) I feel really bad for the rabbit and dp has tried talking to his daughter (10) to see if she would be willing to get rid of the rabbit but she refuses.

I dont know what to do i think we need to either give her away or have her put to sleep. Its not fair on the rabbit any suggestions what we can do? Xx

Oh this makes me so very sad and angry to read this. I get so cross when I hear that parents have given their child a rabbit and not taken responsibility themselves for the poor thing.
A rabbit can live for many years, they need vaccinations every year, teeth checked, nails clipped, a large hutch and run, fresh water every day and plenty of food, hay and veg. AND COMPANY!
The poor creature is lonely and by the sound of it badly cared for. Your DSD is 10 and old enough to be told to care for it properly. Clean the hutch out at least twice a week and feed it every morning and night..its a good lesson for her to learn. I understand you are allergic but you perhaps could stand near by and monitor her while she see to the bunny. Its a living creature and can't just be discarded and PUT TO SLEEP because you can't be bothered with it!
Teach the child a lesson on caring and try to give the rabbit a decent quality of life...re-homing centres are full of unwanted pets tell her father that he is responsible..he gave it to his DD therefore he and she both need to take responsibility.

Rabbits are not ideal oets for children. They should never be kept on their own and they should always have food, water and hay.

Rabbits need to constantly graze to survive. If the rabbit has no food inside them they will just die.

Never mind what the child says. This is a living thing that has a right to live just like any other living thing.

If you're near Chester I will take it myself.

Im mad because i wish i had met dp before he bought it. I was always advised to get rabbits in pairs. so believe me in sad and angry at the situation. She has promised to take better care but i have told dp he needs to step up when kids are not here. I so wish the rabbit got more love and attention. Id give her it if i could go near without swelling up like a balloon.

We have a dog too so it makes it harder to bring rabbit in at night and play with her although it might be worth bringing in rabbit and keeping dog upstair for a wee bit.

I dont want to put down the rabbit its not fair on her. Is it too late to introduce another rabbit? I was thining having 2 cages and a shared run. but not sure if tgis woukd work or not. Xx

I so wish the rabbit got more love and attention.

From the sound of it she's in dire need of the most basic care, never mind the love an attention for now.

Rabbits need a lot more looking after than most people think, hence why they're one of (if not the) most commonly neglected pet in the UK. Have a read of the information this site. It'll give you an idea of the sort of care the rabbit should be getting.

Please don't try and introduce another rabbit to her. Aside from the fact it may well be difficult if she's been alone and neglected for so long unless things change drastically you'll just have two neglected rabbits instead of one.

If your DP is prepared to pick up the slack (he bought the rabbit after all, he can't wash his hands of it just because his DD has lost interest) and things improve then some rabbit specific rescues offer bonding services.

If things aren't going to improve then you can't remain complicit in the neglect of an animal just to appease your DSD and it would be better for the rabbit if you could find her a place in a rabbit rescue. You can find your closest rescues here.

Well today has seen the rabbit get cleaned, fed , watered out in her run and she had been brushed and is being played with. Spoke to dp and getting rabbit a bigger cage with an attached run. I have promised to change her water and food when kids arent here and to remind kids to do it when they are. Kids are here every 2nd weekend and a few days through the week. I refuse to clean the cage due to alleegies but ill need to get dp to do it the weekends we have no kids. But kids will be reminded to do it more regularly.

Ive never had or wanted a rabbit so no idea where to start looking after one. so the advice is appreciated. Shes a cute wee thing and its not her fault the way things have turned out. Xx

I'm so pleased to read this update op. You're right it isn't the poor rabbits fault and what you will see the more you interact chat and play with her is that they are fabulous little animals full of character.
I'm so glad you will be getting a bigger hutch/run they need lots of space. Make sure if she is to be an outdoor bunny that she has lots of hay (they should eat plenty of hay as well) and possibly a "snuggle pad" to keep her warm. I'm getting a couple for my indoor guinea pigs and bunny...they feel the cold and can get poorly if they get chilled.
We now have a lone elderly bunny by the way. He's a house rabbit so gets lots of attention and although it isn't ideal they can have a good quality of life if you pay them lots of attention. I am so glad you have finally got things sorted....perhaps a trip to the vets for a bunny healthy check when you DSD is next with you might be a good idea too.