The AWL/Chicago Ridge Megathread

[BlueFrog]

Hi guys,

Another week, another crop of rabbits at AWL. Decided to make one megathread, as was done in the past, to keep these bunnies in everyone's thoughts without cluttering the board with lots of threads.

I do have - drumroll please! - permission to take pictures! Huzzah! Huzzah! At the moment my personal computer is still imitating a doorstop so I have no FTP access, but anyone interesting in these buns is welcome to PM me and I'll mail what I have. They're not great photos but they're better than nothing. I'll be posting some on Craigslist and probably Kijiji too in the hopes of spreading the word more effectively.

• Purebred Palomino buck, super loving. Owner cried like a baby during surrender but lost her job and couldn't afford to feed him. This guy is clearly accustomed to lots of attention and really makes me wish I could sandwich a second bun somewhere in this house.
  
• Purebred Lionhead doe, palomino in color, less than six months old! AWL says she has an exceptionally good temperament but she is cage territorial.
  
• Purebred Netherland Dwarf, Californian (Himalayan) color
  
• Purebred Netherland Dwarf, also Californian colored, special needs (blind)
  
• Lionhead mix, super flashy white with black spots
  
• Dwarf Hotot mix, beautiful white with black spots
  
• Dutch mix, blue with white collar
  
• Lionhead mix, white with black spots, super flashy

For pictures of a few, check out my current Craigslist posting. (Better yet, check Chicago CL as the flaggers apparently have nothing better to do than remove legitimate posts).As always, I will do what I can to assist in pulling and transporting these guys. The additional good news is that the surgical department is pretty well caught up so we can get speuters done in a reasonable timeframe again.

 

[tonyshuman]

YAY you get to take pics!! Remember you have transport friends around too, if any need to go this-a-ways!

 

[TreasuredFriend]

You're doing something to help those innocent lives, bluefrog.

You are an angel to speak out on their behalf, for their silent voices. I hope updates will follow.

 

[BlueFrog]

They say: "She's nearly blind. All she can see is light and shadow."

I say: "Her vision isn't great, but doesn't seem any worse than any other red-eyed rabbit to me."

They say: "Her poor vision is the reason she strikes out at hands in her cage."

I say: "She's a cage-territorial unspayed doe."

They say: "Either you take her or she goes to the back room."

I say: ...ulp.

She(*) is a Californian colored Netherland Dwarf, or, for you purists, something incredibly similar. Her history as related to me was a bit sketchy, but either she was found abandoned outside this summer or at least caged outside in the summer.They think sun exposure is the culprit behind her poor vision.

I asked for an extension to reach out to those who take in special needs buns. So far, no takers. If anyone's interested, please, drop me an email or reply to this thread. I can probably - probably - have her spayed before she leaves the shelter. For a picture, check out the upper right corner photo in the CL posting linked to in my first message.

(*) I assume the Nethie is "she" due to the dewlap but have not confirmed gender.

[line]

In other news, new arrivals:

• Black Dutch, very small and cute
• Bright orange spotted mini rex, patterned very much like an English Spot, super eye-catching
• Generic bunny with Hotot markings but more common conformation, caged with a small REW something

Adopted!

• Palomino lionhead

 

[gentle giants]

Does she act like she can't see, i.e. bumping into things? I would agree with you that the striking at hands is a territory thing. This eats at me.... I have a soft spot for the "special" ones. If you can't find anywhere else for her to go....get ahold of me.

 

[Jenk]

gentle giants wrote:

If you can't find anywhere else for her to go....get ahold of me.

I'd take in a fourth bun if I felt that I could handle the cost and stress of it all; but I can't. (I've hit my limitation point and dare not go any further.)

Of course, I'll still cheer on those who can handle that extra bun in need of a home. :thumbup And in the case of this REW doe, it does sound like she's cage-territorial.

My positive thoughts/prayers go out to those buns in need. :hearts:

Jenk

 

[TreasuredFriend]

Oh my gosh, she is incredibly sweet-looking and just misunderstood. She's absolutely beautiful and dwarfer small-ish.

I applaud all persons who are up for rescueing from shelters and providing a home to unwanted rabbits. It literally grabs at your neck to know shelters are never cell-block empty all the time ... so many innocent drop-offs.

The more I hear it seems the majority of shelter staff is unaware of rabbit behavior and personality.

~ Lucky that she's got you BlueFrog Advocate giving her one last chance before shelter takes her to the back room. So true, overpopulation and certain situations will cause shelters to euthanize all the time. Everybody who pitches in (responsibly, to know how many they can handle and help) has a heart of gold.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You won't change the world by saving one rabbit ... but how the world WILL change for that one bunny. Young ... or increpidly old ... and slightly imperfect. :sunshine:




I hope your extension is granted.

 

[BlueFrog]

Thanks for all the support, assistance,and well wishes. There are a lot of rabbits alive today because of the generosity of forum members.

To answer your question, gentle giants, she is not bumping into things and she can follow a hand being waved from side to side in her cage. (Actually, she's quite good at it!) Based on the demo the shelter staff member performed with her, I wouldn't be shocked if her vision is slightly impaired on the left side, but overall, I just don't believe this rabbit is blind or even significantly limited.

 

[Leaf]

BlueFrog wrote

• Purebred Palomino buck, super loving. Owner cried like a baby during surrender but lost her job and couldn't afford to feed him.

Things like this just tear me up.

I was at the HS the other day doing paperwork and work in the back when I came across intake papers on a "generic" black and white dog.

Owner surrender fill-out stated "lost my job, lost my house, lost everything". I teared up seeing the hand written notation - some things just aren't fair.

 

[Jenk]

Leaf wrote:

I was at the HS the other day doing paperwork and work in the back when I came across intake papers on a "generic" black and white dog.

Owner surrender fill-out stated "lost my job, lost my house, lost everything". I teared up seeing the hand written notation - some things just aren't fair.

The story about the sweet Palomino made me tear up, too. But this particular hand-written note has tears streaming down my cheeks.

I think that what makes me most sad is the fact that the dog and its human companion have lost one another, when they need each other the most. It's beyond unfair....:cry4:

 

[BlueFrog]

Leaf wrote:

Owner surrender fill-out stated "lost my job, lost my house, lost everything". I teared up seeing the hand written notation - some things just aren't fair.

Now I'm all teary-eyed, and you'd think by now I'd be hardened to this kind of thing. Then again, I have a one-page hand-written note of surrender for two rats that I read whenever I start to feel cynical about the people who turn their pets over to shelters. Makes me cry every time. (And yes, I kept those two, and would have even if one hadn't shown signs of CHF).

Leaf, do I even want to know what the adoption odds are for a generic black and white dog at that particular humane society?

Jenk, you're right: it's especially unfair when people and their pets get separated when they need each other most.

 

[Jenk]

BlueFrog wrote:

Leaf, do I even want to know what the adoption odds are for a generic black and white dog at that particular humane society?

What's even more sad (for me) is that I'dhave zero qualms about adopting a "generic" black-and-white dog. Sadly, I can't handle anymore animals--neither financially nor emotionally. I've not worked steadily in 11 months and don't dare add anymore stress to my home life than I've already managed to do. If conditions were togo horribly wrong, I could find myself in the position of surrending my animals, too; I must remain content with the status-quo.

 

[Leaf]

BlueFrog wrote:

Leaf, do I even want to know what the adoption odds are for a generic black and white dog at that particular humane society?

Probably not, but the dog got a reprieve as it was when I saw his intake paperwork. If it hadn't been for that...

Sunday the HS is doing a bell ringing fundraiser in front of Wal Mart. Casey, the "mascot" (adopted) Aussie was killed seven weeks ago when someone left antifreeze on her owners' front porch so her appearance will be sorely missed at the event.

However, I was able to convince some others to use the "generic" dog but it wasn't easy to do since he is technically a shelter dog, and not owned so the liability will be on the HS if anything happens.

Since it's my idea I unwhittingly volunteered myself to be a 2 hour bell ringer next weekend.

Hopefully, though, his story and exposure will be enough to save his life - but he's just one of many in this area right now, booted out for the same reason.

 

[BlueFrog]

So many rabbits, so few safe havens. Euthanasia day today. Had to say goodbye to the little Nethie girl. Everything I tried fell through. No one's fault, just the way things worked out. Lots of new intakes,only one adoption from the previous list (palomino lionhead, who was immediately replaced by a ... palomino lionhead). I have pictures, but no FTP access. If anyone has space and willingness to post them, drop me an email and I'll send them your way.

• Black Dutch, super friendly.
• Californian? doe. If she were a cat, we'd call her a lilac point. Super extra slobberingly friendly.
• Palomino spotted mini rex (this is one from before, but I have pictures now)
• Palomino lionhead
• Yet another Hotot-ish looking black eyering bunny
• ?English spot mixed with something smaller? Very flashy.
• Generic small black bunny, great at posing for the camera as if he knows he has to work extra hard to catch people's attention.

Would someone adopt my Palomino buddy? PLEASE!!!

 

[gentle giants]

Oh no! The nethie that you talked to me about...? I'm so sorry, I wish I could have taken her. This is going to eat at me fora while.

:sad:

 

[BlueFrog]

gentle giants, PLEASE don't beat yourself up. We can't save them all, and I think it's safe to say we both agree you couldn't possibly have taken her under the circumstances. This loss is not your fault,my fault, AWL's fault,or the fault of any of the others who tried their darndest to help this rabbit. To the contrary, I remain humbled and awed by how hard the rabbit community tries to save its own, even the troubled ones like the Nethie girl.

She's not the first one I've lost to the back room, but I think she's the first I've specifically targeted and pulled out all the stops for and still lost. Maybe that's why her loss cuts deeper than many of the others. They even told me her behavior improved when she was placed in a larger cage. At the same time, they have so many rabbits in perfect health with no behavior problems who may well wind up just as dead because of lack of resources. In their position, she would have been my first pick to go too. I'm just really, really glad that although they often ask my input before a euthanasia call, I don't bear the responsibility for making the final decision.

Besides, rescuers who beat themselves up aren't in a position to take care of the fortunate ones already in their care, or any new ones who may present themselves. Or any, like, say, a certain Palomino still sitting on death row waiting for the next cull.

 

[Haley]

Heres the pics BlueFrog sent me:



[*]Black Dutch, super friendly.

[*]Californian? doe. If she were a cat, we'd call her a lilac point. Super extra slobberingly friendly.

[*]Palomino spotted mini rex (this is one from before, but I have pictures now)

[*]Palomino lionhead

[*]Yet another Hotot-ish looking black eyering bunny

[*]English spot mixed with something smaller? Very flashy.

[*]Generic small black bunny, great at posing for the camera as if he knows he has to work extra hard to catch people's attention.

This is the beautiful one who was recently pts. Rest in peace little one. Im sorry we couldnt save you.

Anyone? Any one of these would make an awesome Christmas present. Beg your husband/boyfriend/roommate and please try to save somebun's life!

 

[BlueFrog]

Haley, thanks so much for posting the pictures. What appears to be aREW is actually the pale ?Californian with the ?lilac points. The Californian-colored dwarf napping is the one we lost to the back room.

 

[Haley]

Geeze, how awful. I edited the thread for you

 

[naturestee]

Best of luck. If anyone wants one of these guys, I'm up for transport duty.

Unfortunately the Sheboygan shelter has had essentially NO rabbit adoptions for the last several months. Most of my babies are still there, as are the two beautiful, lovey-dovey rabbits you sent up to us.

Recessions suck.