If your bunnies are chewing your skirting boards or carpet edges this clever Reject Shop ‘hack’ will stop them in their tracks! Turn sound on! Enjoy this bunny hack!
Sunday, July 19, 2020
Thursday, July 16, 2020
Watch our YouTube "How to" Series of Rabbit Care Videos
The Rabbit Sanctuary has a YouTube Channel!
Watch our "How to" series of rabbit care videos
on topics you want to learn about such as:
- How to trim a rabbit's nails
- How to groom a long haired rabbit
- How to pick up a rabbit
- How to bond two rabbits
- How to give a rabbit an injection
Please feel welcome to request a "How To Video" on a bunny topic you would like to learn about. You can send us a message on The Rabbit Sanctuary site. Hop on over and take a look at our great website!
Thursday, July 2, 2020
Wednesday, July 1, 2020
Saturday, May 16, 2020
A Natural Rabbit Diet
We hear so often from pet rabbit owners that their bunny has gut stasis and a big vet bill. Sadly some lose their bunny to this condition which is sad because it can be avoided with a natural diet.
Kim Cooney, founder and bunny slave at The Rabbit Sanctuary has worked with thousands of rabbits over the years and has pretty much tried most ways of feeding rabbits. She recommends the following rabbit diet to keep gut stasis away:
Oaten Hay
Timothy Hay or Oxbow Blend
Fresh lawn grass (cut with scissors)
1 Oxbow Treat per day
Oxbow Pellets
NB. The diet for a nursing mother rabbit and for baby rabbits or a sick or thin rabbit would include Lucerne Hay and Oxbow Baby Rabbit Pellets.
Read Kim’s article on why a natural rabbit diet is best.
Https://rabbitsanctuary.com.au/f/grass-or-greens
Friday, May 15, 2020
Rabbits for Adoption in Lismore
Lismore Rabbits for Adoption
The Rabbit Sanctuary rescues, rehabilitates and rehomed rabbits in Lismore, NSW. We take in abandoned, stray and injured rabbits all along the north coast of NSW.When a rabbit is rescued in the Lismore area we firstly take him or her to the vet for a health check. Our vet attends to any injuries or illnesses. Once the bunny is stable our vet vaccinated, microchips, desexes and parasite treats the bunny.
When the rescue rabbit is eating well and in good condition he or she is available for adoption.
We only rehome our rescue bunnies to indoor homes where they can be part of a family.
Tweed Heads Rabbit Rescue
The Rabbit Sanctuary rescues abandoned pet rabbits in Tweed Heads NSW. We collect from the Tweed Shire Council Pound and from local Tweed vets who have strays handed in. This provides the pound and the vets with a humane option for the poor abandoned bunnies.
Currently in May 2020 we only have two available bunnies for adoption. Enya and Bono. They are a gorgeous pair of bunnies. You will see them advertised on our site at Rabbits for Adoption Tweed Heads
Sunday, March 22, 2020
Bunny Runs Continue
Our wonderful volunteer Bunny Runners continue to move rescue rabbits around from place to place despite the current Coronavirus pandemic. Little rescue rabbit Shugo left today with Bunny Runner Leigh heading from The Rabbit Sanctuary in Grafton NSW to his new owner in Sydney.
Leigh also took one of our amazing Bunny Castles along for the ride to deliver to its sponsor in Central Coast.
For the safety of all concerned social distancing was practiced.
Leigh also took one of our amazing Bunny Castles along for the ride to deliver to its sponsor in Central Coast. For the safety of all concerned social distancing was practiced.
Tuesday, July 23, 2019
Rabbit Stress
Stress in Rabbits can be quite dangerous to their health. Here is a chart to show some signs of stress in your pet rabbit and what to do to calm them.
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Biting or scratching
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Adjust handling method
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Running away
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Train to come for treat
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Not eating
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Try fresh herbs, fresh grass, lucerne hay, Oxbow Critical Care
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Not drinking
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Provide water bowl instead of bottle, offer wet kale or grass
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Hiding
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Leave to hide in a box or hutch, surround pen with a sheet
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Urinating outside tray
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Larger tray, change litter type, remove fabrics from pen
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Hair pulling
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Possibly starting labour, provide nest box, health check at vet
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Excessive scratching
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Vet check for fur mites, check skin, apply Revolution, vet check
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Monday, July 22, 2019
Calicivirus RHDV2 vaccine development
Summary of RHDV2 vaccine development – December 2018 Extract from Centre for Invasive Species Solutions
Along with three strains of RHDV1, an exotic RHD virus called RHDV2 is also circulating in Australian rabbit populations, after being first detected in wild rabbits in May 2015.
We now know this virus has spread throughout most of Australia and is currently the dominant
circulating RHD virus strain at a national scale.
In collaboration with its Members and Partners, the Centre for Invasive Species Solutions has begun
two projects to further assess the biological properties and distribution of RHDV2 in the Australian
landscape and its potential as a future additional registered product.
Along with this work, the Centre has also provided some funding that contributes to the development
of a vaccine specific for RHDV2, being led by NSW DPI.
There has been excellent progress to date, and documentation is being prepared for submission to
APVMA for a pilot "standalone" RHDV2 vaccine.
Once submitted, the proposal will be assessed by the APVMA. Once all regulatory requirements are
met, the commercial vaccine manufacturer will be able to commence production of a pilot batch.
As it is unknown how long these processes will take, it is currently not possible to provide an estimate of when this vaccine will be available to the public.
Research to develop a multi-valent vaccine that would provide protection against both RHDV1 and
RHDV2 strains, is ongoing.
It is still recommended by veterinarians that all pet rabbits are vaccinated with Cylap® to protect
against RHDV.
While this vaccine is not fully effective against RHDV2, it will protect rabbits from any circulating
RHDV1 K5 strain released in the vicinity for rabbit control, as well as any other naturally circulating
RHDV1 strains.
Along with three strains of RHDV1, an exotic RHD virus called RHDV2 is also circulating in Australian rabbit populations, after being first detected in wild rabbits in May 2015.
We now know this virus has spread throughout most of Australia and is currently the dominant
circulating RHD virus strain at a national scale.
In collaboration with its Members and Partners, the Centre for Invasive Species Solutions has begun
two projects to further assess the biological properties and distribution of RHDV2 in the Australian
landscape and its potential as a future additional registered product.
Along with this work, the Centre has also provided some funding that contributes to the development
of a vaccine specific for RHDV2, being led by NSW DPI.
There has been excellent progress to date, and documentation is being prepared for submission to
APVMA for a pilot "standalone" RHDV2 vaccine.
Once submitted, the proposal will be assessed by the APVMA. Once all regulatory requirements are
met, the commercial vaccine manufacturer will be able to commence production of a pilot batch.
As it is unknown how long these processes will take, it is currently not possible to provide an estimate of when this vaccine will be available to the public.
Research to develop a multi-valent vaccine that would provide protection against both RHDV1 and
RHDV2 strains, is ongoing.
It is still recommended by veterinarians that all pet rabbits are vaccinated with Cylap® to protect
against RHDV.
While this vaccine is not fully effective against RHDV2, it will protect rabbits from any circulating
RHDV1 K5 strain released in the vicinity for rabbit control, as well as any other naturally circulating
RHDV1 strains.
Saturday, July 6, 2019
Around The Rabbit Sanctuary
There has been a lot happening at The Rabbit Sanctuary with visiting volunteers dropping in and lending a hand. Here are some photos for you to enjoy...
Monica Lorkin flew up from Victoria to stay a week and worked very enthusiastically and very hard on quite a few projects. She donated lots of great things for the bunnies such as dustpans, brooms, toys and tunnels and more.
Paul and Marshall Mann drove down from Tweed Heads and painted fences, pressure cleaned the Bunny Barn exterior and cement areas as well as doing many other helpful jobs for the rescue rabbits benefit.
Heather comes each week from our local disability service with one of her carers and hand feeds the bunnies and other animals.
Andrew comes each week to maintain and develop gardens and grow herbs for the rescue rabbits.
Fred the ‘Bunny Santa’ makes bunny castles and accessories for the rescue rabbits each day in his workshop at The Rabbit Sanctuary.
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| Monica with Bun |
Paul and Marshall Mann drove down from Tweed Heads and painted fences, pressure cleaned the Bunny Barn exterior and cement areas as well as doing many other helpful jobs for the rescue rabbits benefit.
Heather comes each week from our local disability service with one of her carers and hand feeds the bunnies and other animals.
Andrew comes each week to maintain and develop gardens and grow herbs for the rescue rabbits.
Fred the ‘Bunny Santa’ makes bunny castles and accessories for the rescue rabbits each day in his workshop at The Rabbit Sanctuary.
Saturday, June 29, 2019
Last chance to donate before EOFY for your tax deduction
Please consider a donation large or small to help us continue rescuing rabbits in the upcoming financial year. Donate via bank, Paypal, or Credit Card on our site at www.rabbitsanctuary.com.au
Save on tax and save rabbits! End of financial year donations
The Rabbit Sanctuary needs your help to be able to rescue rabbits. Please DONATE!
Tax time is near so we are asking for donations. Our vet bills are high as are our feed bills.
Our charity is Animal Rescue and Rehabilitation Ltd.
It is DGR registered so you can get a tax deduction for amounts over $2.
Please help us to help the bunnies.
Tuesday, February 19, 2019
Burgess Australia Donation
Burgess Australia has made a generous donation of their rabbit pellets "Excel Nuggest with Mind" which the rescue rabbits LOVE! See our facebook post showing a photo of rescue rabbit Petal trying to sit on her bunny castle amongst the many bags of Burgess Rabbit Pellets! Thank you to Burgess Australia for their generosity and support of our rabbit rescue.
Myxomatosis rabbit immunity
There has been a study on rabbit immunity to the rabbit virus, Myxomatosis with results published in "Science". The Natural History Museum in the UK has published an article about the way rabbit genes have evolved since the time of Charles Darwin who studied this in his own rabbit.
'Often evolution works through big changes in single genes,' explains Joel, 'but our findings show that resistance to myxomatosis likely evolved through lots of small effects spread across the genome.'
Symptoms of Myxomatosis are: reddening of both eyes, a pinkness and swelling of nose, ears and anus. The rabbit's ears will be hot. Gradually lesions appear. Finally the eyes will swell shut, the swelling in the rabbit's mouth will stop eating and drinking.
If a rabbit is found with Myxomatosis, it should be taken to a vet for humane euthanasia as there is no treatment and no cure.
'Often evolution works through big changes in single genes,' explains Joel, 'but our findings show that resistance to myxomatosis likely evolved through lots of small effects spread across the genome.'
Crucially, these all occurred in the same genes relating to immunity.
Hopefully, for our pet rabbits in Australia, the genes will continue to evolve until there is complete immunity to the dreaded, incurable rabbit Myxomatosis virus. Symptoms of Myxomatosis are: reddening of both eyes, a pinkness and swelling of nose, ears and anus. The rabbit's ears will be hot. Gradually lesions appear. Finally the eyes will swell shut, the swelling in the rabbit's mouth will stop eating and drinking.
If a rabbit is found with Myxomatosis, it should be taken to a vet for humane euthanasia as there is no treatment and no cure.
Should a Rabbit be Caged?
Show a rabbit in a small cage over and over again and that is what becomes normal.
There is nothing more natural about a rabbit in a cage, than a woman in a kitchen.
Pet shops continue to show rabbits in cages. They sell small cages that they call "Rabbit Cages" which are cruel homes for pet rabbits because of their small size and the bunnies can't hop around freely and in some cages they can't even stand up.
People think that caging a rabbit is ok because that is the way the pet shops market them, as caged rabbits rather than as needing space to hop around in an enriched playpen or room in the house.
Pet shops continue to show rabbits in cages. They sell small cages that they call "Rabbit Cages" which are cruel homes for pet rabbits because of their small size and the bunnies can't hop around freely and in some cages they can't even stand up.
People think that caging a rabbit is ok because that is the way the pet shops market them, as caged rabbits rather than as needing space to hop around in an enriched playpen or room in the house.
Wednesday, December 19, 2018
Adopting a baby rabbit or adult rabbit
How about a cuddly baby rabbit? People often ask, “Should I adopt a baby rabbit or an adult rabbit”? Well, the answer is that there is little difference but these are points to consider:
A baby rabbit will only remain tame and friendly if handled gently on a very regular basis. Many people are scared to pick up a rabbit because when they try, the rabbit jumps out of their grasp and runs away. This often means that they just pat the rabbit, which is fine, but the problem there is that the baby bunny is never groomed, checked or has his or her nails clipped. This creates a health problem for the bunny as they do need daily checking and grooming with regular nail trims.
Selecting an adult rabbit that is people friendly (having been gently and well handled as a baby) can easily be groomed and handled using the correct methods of picking up the rabbit and handling on the grooming table.
For the house proud, a baby rabbit may still be learning to use the litter tray while an adult rabbit will already be accustomed to going straight to the tray which means a cleaner rabbit playpen and less tidying up each day.
Some think that adopting a baby rabbit will mean a stronger bond between rabbit and bunny parent. Depending on how the baby is handled this may be true but an adult rescue rabbit will quickly grow to love his or her new owners if they are kind and interact often and well with the bunny.
The Rabbit Sanctuary has both adult and baby rescue rabbits in care. Adoptable rabbits are listed on our site and our rabbit Foster Carers also add photos and information about the bunnies in their care to our Facebook group Adopt a Rabbit which you might like to visit and join.
Wednesday, December 5, 2018
Hand Rearing a Baby Hare Leveret
People sometimes come across baby hares, known as leverets who have been somehow moved from their mother's nest or carried away by cats, birds or dogs or other predators. The Rabbit Sanctuary has set up an educational help group for people wanting to raise baby hairs, leverets. Here is a link to join our Hare Raisers facebook support group...
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Making hand-made hay bales with a box baler
Rabbit owners may like to make their own hay for their pet bunny. If you have a paddock of grass or if you can plant some ground with oats or other grass seed then harvest it with a scythe you can then either stack it into a haystack or make it into a bale of hay with a homemade box hay baler. Watch the video...
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