Jefferson SPCA - Small Animal Adoption Program

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Welcome to Animal Posse, the podcast dedicated to the

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people and rescues making a

difference in the lives of animals.

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Today's guest is Hannah Lorio Falgout,

and she is the small animal adoption

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coordinator at the Jefferson SPCA.

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Hi Hannah.

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How are you?

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Hannah: I'm good, how are you?

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Dixie: I'm great.

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Can you tell us about yourself and how you

became involved in small animal rescue?

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Hannah: Yeah, so I I got involved

volunteering, funnily enough.

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Rachel, who is my boss she

had posted a picture 'cause I

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had adopted my cats from there

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but she had posted a picture and we were

friends on Facebook of a new bunny set up.

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Asking basically if anybody

wanted to volunteer to play

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with rabbits and whatnot.

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And I was like I'll volunteer.

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Like I've always had rabbits pretty

much my whole entire life actually.

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Because when I was in fifth grade, I

actually went to Jefferson Feed, which

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is where our adoptables are Jefferson.

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SPCA is inside of there.

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And.

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My first bunny was from there.

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I actually adopted him.

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His name was Frosty, and he

started my whole journey.

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So I really started

researching and all of that.

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And just got like super into rabbits.

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So then I started, watching YouTube

and advocating for bunnies and

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stuff so that's how I got involved.

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I was in another job at the time and I

was telling her how I was ready, to move

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on with my life, get a new job, and she

mentioned that she needed an assistant.

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So I got hired with them.

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So now I'm like the program's

director's assistant and the

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small animal adoption coordinator.

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So that's how I got to where I am now.

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Dixie: Now you said that you

had first found out about

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them through adopting cats.

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Do you still currently have cats as well?

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Hannah: Yes, I do.

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I have four cats.

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Two of my cats I adopted 2020 I believe.

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And they are older cats.

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I didn't want kittens.

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I love kittens, but.

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I wanted older cats 'cause I just

freak out with little things.

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So yeah, so we have two cats that came

from there and then a couple years later

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I always wanted a black cat, so I ended

up adopting another cat at that time.

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And then recently, like in

the past year, I trapped a cat

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that was unfixed fairly easily.

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Like I literally just picked him up.

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And I took him home 'cause

I was like texted Rachel.

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I was like, Hey, like I

need to get this cat fixed.

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And I was in the bathroom

with him 'cause that's where

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I was keeping him at the time.

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And he just crawled in my

lap and just sat there.

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And I was like, you don't

wanna be a street cat.

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So I ended up with a

fourth one because of that.

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Dixie: That's good And I'm glad to

hear too that you adopted adult cats.

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And also a black cat because those are the

ones that are the hardest to get adopted.

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Everybody wants kittens.

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I like kittens, don't get me wrong,

but getting a cat, it's so much easier.

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You know what you're getting into already

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Hannah: right?

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Kittens are so cute.

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Anything, any baby.

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Animal is cute.

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But I just, I, my heart goes

out to older animals in general.

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I always adopt even with rabbits,

like all of mine were like moms.

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I never adopted, the babies if

they were found with babies.

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I always adopted the mom rabbits

'cause I always fell in love with them.

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Always drawn to that for some reason.

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Dixie: So do you allow the cats

to interact with the rabbits

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or do you keep 'em separated?

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Hannah: I do and don't.

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So one, I have a bunny room

where five of my bunnies free ro.

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So I actually have seven rabbits

and two free ro in my bedroom.

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I keep my bedroom door closed only

because one of them will run into the

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other bunny room and start fights.

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So I have to keep them separated.

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But I do leave the bunny room door open

most of the time because they don't.

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Venture out of their room really.

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And my cats will go in there and hang

out with them and it's funny, but one

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of my bunnies really loves the cat that

I recently rescued from the street.

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They will literally share

like vegetables together.

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Like they will sit on the rug and

both eat their veggies together.

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And it's so cute.

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Dixie: Yeah.

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I'm glad to hear too that, 'cause

I, I think there's a lot of

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people that don't realize that

cats and bunnies can get along.

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Hannah: They're, they can

be dangerous in a sense.

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Like recently we did rescue a bunny at the

World War II Museum and it had abscesses

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all over, and we recently found out

that the bacteria was from cat saliva.

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But that's usually not

really common for it to happen

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But yeah, that's a very

slim case most of the time.

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Like I think domesticated indoor cats

can get along with rabbits fairly well.

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Dixie: So now, what types of small animals

does your organization primarily rescue?

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Hannah: We rescue all kinds,

mostly rabbits and Guinea pigs.

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But recently we took in two chinchillas

from L-A-S-P-C-A and two gerbils

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from J Paws, which is the shelter.

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So we just take whatever they have.

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I don't think we would ever do like

snakes or anything like that, but

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I've, they have never gotten that.

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'cause I don't know anything about

them and I don't really do reptiles.

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Dixie: So Do most of the animals

typically come from the shelter?

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Hannah: Yes, most of 'em do.

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More recently, like within the year since

I've been working there, I was rescuing

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a lot from parks around Jefferson area.

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Like Lafreniere Park is one big

one that a lot of people in our

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area know about, where there was

just a surge of white bunnies.

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White bunnies are actually the

least adopted bunnies because their

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eyes are red, reddish blue, really

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and people don't like that for

some reason, which I get, but I

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actually find them the sweetest.

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But yeah, they are the

hardest to adopt out.

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But there was so many living there,

they just kept breeding and breeding.

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And so us and two other bunny

rescues, Lola Bunny and Friends and

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Bun Again Rabbit Rescue, they had

helped us clear out that park.

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And then we also recently.

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Cleared out Kenner Park, which was

another big one that was took forever.

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And all the bunnies there were very

sick with parasites and just all kinds

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of injuries from just living the rough

life, but yeah, mostly now we take

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from the shelter but it just depends.

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Dixie: What are some of the

biggest misconceptions people

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have about small animal rescue?

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Hannah: I think people

just don't know it exists.

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That's the thing I think when people think

of rabbits, they think of baby bunnies.

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They don't think that people rehome

them or that, if people have a bunny

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and they decide they don't want

it, that it can just live outside.

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Because wild bunnies live outside.

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And the truth is domesticated rabbits,

they have some instincts of a wild rabbit.

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Their brain has actually decreased

since we've domesticated them.

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So they don't have the ins as

much of the instinct as a wild

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bunny and they don't survive.

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I think it's also just like another

thing, like we recently did a bunny

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bunko, 'cause we've been raising money to.

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Build the rabbits at the rescue, new

enclosures that are more standard size

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for what they should be living in, if

they're going to live in a cage, which

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I always advocate for free roaming.

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If somebody feels they need to

have a rabbit live in some type of

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enclosure, I'm totally okay with that.

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But I think there's a total

misconception of spaying and neutering.

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Like at the bunny bunko, this

lady argued with my boss.

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And was like, you can't

spay and neuter bunnies.

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And she just kept arguing with her

and my boss was like, yes, you can.

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Like we do it all the time.

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So there's a lot of misconceptions

where people just don't think that vets,

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exist for small animals, but they do.

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Dixie: Yeah, when I had Lola and friends

on, we were talking about the bunny

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reproduction and how every 28 days,

and I knew Bunnies had a lot, but I

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had no idea it was that close together

and and the fact that people just

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go dump 'em and don't spay a neuter

him, it causes a really big problem.

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Hannah: It does, and it's a huge

problem, especially like during Easter.

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We even have people granted that we are

in a store that people think, oh, you

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can just go buy an animal from the store

that we're located in, and people will

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come during Easter time, which I actually

stop adoptions a few weeks before Easter,

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and then a couple weeks after as well to

prevent people, just bunnies getting in.

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People that don't have the right.

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Intentions.

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But yeah, people will walk in

all the time and just be like,

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so we can't buy a bunny today.

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And I'm like, no.

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Like we, we do this because

we're trying to save them.

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We're trying to give them their second

chance, and a lot of the times, the

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rabbits that are bought at Easter

end up on the street a couple months

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later and people just don't realize.

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There's way more care

that goes into rabbits.

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So you think most people think you

can stick 'em in a hutch outside and

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they're gonna be fine and thrive, but

they can't thrive in that environment.

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I think also the misconceptions

is that they're boring animals,

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which they really aren't.

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If people would just actually research

and set up the right environment for them

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in their home, they could see just how

much personality a rabbit could have.

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Dixie: Yeah.

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I've seen videos on YouTube where

they have bunnies that are jumping

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all over the bed and running

around just like a cat would.

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Hannah: Yeah.

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They're crazy little things,

but they're so funny.

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They make me laugh.

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And today I, we just put a new enclosure

up actually today, and one of the bunnies

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had been looking just really depressed.

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'cause we have adoption tanks that

we're trying to get rid of so we can sh.

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Educate people more on what

they should be living in.

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And so it's like a glass tank and

it's almost like a fish tank, really.

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And I, when I started working there

I knew that was something I wanted

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to change, I just knew that wasn't a

good environment and people couldn't

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see the bunny's true personalities.

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And then again, the normal looking

bunnies were not getting adopted.

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You get a lopp or a fuzzy

lion head or whatever.

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Those go quick because

people want cuteness.

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And I always tell people like,

come and meet the bunnies.

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Don't just go off looks, come

and meet the personality.

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They all have different personalities.

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But yeah, that was just something I

wanted to do to help educate people on.

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What they should be living in.

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But anyway, it's funny we put him

in the enclosure and his little

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butt was wiggling his, so like when

they get excited, like their little

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tail wags almost and it's so cute.

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Dixie: Uhhuh.

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That's cute.

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Now, how do you assess the temperament

or personality of each of them?

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Or how would you tell people who

are prospective adopters that they

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should spend time with the Bunny

to learn the Bunny's personality?

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Hannah: So most of the time I tell people

to set up a meet and greet, and then

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I ask them what they're looking for.

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Now, a lot of our, my emails actually come

from Petfinder, which it's really hard.

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For people to really know a

personality through a picture online.

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So a lot of our bunnies, like

the one right now that we have

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is like an Angora lionhead mix.

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Her name's Twix and I've gotten a bunch

of emails on her and I'm like, I know

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she's beautiful, but she's also really

shy and because she came from an abusive

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case so she's really shy and it takes

a while for her to warm up to people.

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So I always tell people I'm like you

wanna make sure that's what you're

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really looking for, and sometimes

people do change their mind on

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rabbits and they're like, I really

like this personality and this bunny.

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And I'm like, that's what I want.

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I want people to meet the

animal before they take it home

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most rabbits, they do take time

to get used to their owner.

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They're not like gonna be totally your

best friend the day you bring them home.

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And I think that's for any animal really.

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It's just because they're prey

animals, I think it takes a lot longer.

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But once you earn a bunny's trust,

and I always tell my husband this,

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I'm like, once you earn a bunny's

trust, it's like the most rewarding

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thing because they are prey animals.

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And something about that just

feels good that I could earn

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that trust of that bunny,

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Dixie: Do you have fosters too?

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Hannah: I do somewhat.

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There's a few groups, a few people that

I like, really trust to foster, but a

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lot of times people don't ask to foster.

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I would be more willing to let

some, like right now I'm fostering

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one the one from the World War

II Museum with the abscesses.

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And she's doing really well now.

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But yeah, I usually keep my small

circle of people that I know because

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I don't really have a lot of people

that I know that wanna foster rabbits.

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It's an overlooked animal

in the foster system.

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But I would like to grow it at some point,

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Dixie: yeah.

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It's hard to find fosters for dog and

cats too, and so I can imagine it's

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difficult to find it for bunnies as well.

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Hannah: And you don't want

them just going anywhere.

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Most people know the

education on dogs and cats.

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I say that there's still a

lot of people that don't.

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It's, it, there's a whole thing.

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'cause rabbits just have so much

education that's a little behind.

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I say rabbit tears advanced a lot,

even in the last 10, 15 years.

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So much has changed, even from

when I started having rabbits to

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now I've changed like a lot of the

stuff I do to take care of them,

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Dixie: What are the, some of

the common health issues that

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you could see in rabbits?

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Hannah: Mostly we see parasites.

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That's probably the number one GI

stasis, which I called a silent killer.

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Parasites are fairly treatable, but

most of the time the rabbits that

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have 'em are just from outside.

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But most of the bunnies that have

come outside from outside that we've

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rescued have had some type of parasite.

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So that's the one thing I see

the most in rescue as far as like

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owning rabbits and having rabbits.

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As well as in rescue, GI stasis

is a pretty serious thing.

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It can be caused by another illness or

it can just be from inadequate diet.

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Sometimes they just eat

something they shouldn't.

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And sometimes just random

things will cause it.

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Like teeth issues, that's another illness.

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Teeth issues.

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But.

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So it's basically when they

stop eating and rabbit's,

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guts need to constantly move.

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So if they stop eating,

they can't throw up.

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If they ate something they weren't

supposed to eat, so basically

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get stuck in their digestive

tract and they can't get it out.

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So sometimes you have to do

like an emergency surgery.

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You usually have a 12 to 24

hour window for GI stasis.

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And the signs of it are

usually like hunched over.

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They look really depressed almost.

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And they're not eating, and they're

not eating their favorite things.

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That's the biggest one.

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But a lot of times it is

caused from teeth issues.

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Like recently, one of my bunnies

started not eating and I took him

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to the vet and they were like, oh,

he has some spikes on his teeth

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because their teeth, they eat hay.

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To grind their teeth down.

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But sometimes genetics play a role in

their teeth issues, so they'll have to

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shave the little spikes off their teeth.

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'cause it'll hurt them

when they're eating.

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Dixie: And that's just on the teeth.

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Is it like a gum thing?

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'cause I know in cats get the stomatitis,

which is like a inflammation of the gums

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that causes a whole bunch of issues.

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And cats don't eat.

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Hannah: So it, it's literally

just like on the teeth.

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It's like a growth on the tooth basically.

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And they'll just shave 'em off

and then it fixes pretty much

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most of the time fixes it.

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But yeah, the hay is just is so important.

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And actually a lot of people think

that rabbits should be eating

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pellets, but pellets actually make

rabbits fat, basically, I call it.

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The meat rabbit logic because if you're

RA people see that and people think, oh,

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rabbits are supposed to have pellets,

but like people gave rabbits back in the

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day, pellets to gain weight to make them

better, to eat, if that makes any sense.

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As much as that's morbid.

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But.

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Yeah, so I always, I do give

my rabbits pellets sometimes,

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usually as a little treat.

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But they have access to hay 24 7 and

they get veggies twice a day, which

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is about a cup for each of them.

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Dixie: For a new adopter, a

person new to bunnies, what should

305

: 00:17:29

they be Feeding the bunnies?

306

: 00:17:32

Hannah: Depends on the age of the

bunny under four to six months, they

307

: 00:17:38

usually eat alfalfa hay because it's

rich and calcium and it's fatty.

308

: 00:17:45

So it'll help them, gain weight and grow.

309

: 00:17:48

And they'll also have junior pellets.

310

: 00:17:52

Which they can eat pellets at a

very young age and really should.

311

: 00:17:56

Same goes for a nursing mother.

312

: 00:17:58

They should have access to pellets

as well because it helps them

313

: 00:18:04

to produce milk for the kits.

314

: 00:18:05

I'm saying that because we've had

rabbits that gave birth in our

315

: 00:18:09

rescue and I had to learn that.

316

: 00:18:12

And then for older adult.

317

: 00:18:16

Bunnies, they should

be eating Timothy hay.

318

: 00:18:20

And a little bit of pellets.

319

: 00:18:22

About a tablespoon to a fourth.

320

: 00:18:24

A cup of pellets is a day.

321

: 00:18:25

A day is okay.

322

: 00:18:27

And then baby bunnies should

never have access to vegetables

323

: 00:18:31

until about four months.

324

: 00:18:34

Adults can have it really anytime.

325

: 00:18:37

Dixie: Are there certain vegetables

that are better than others?

326

: 00:18:41

Hannah: The one vegetable.

327

: 00:18:43

I always tell people, 'cause

they're surprised when I tell

328

: 00:18:45

them that bunny should not have

is actually iceberg lettuce.

329

: 00:18:49

It is poisonous to rabbits.

330

: 00:18:51

And a lot of people don't know that

'cause they think of, that the bunnies

331

: 00:18:54

can eat all kinds of vegetables.

332

: 00:18:56

But yeah, no carrots also sugary.

333

: 00:18:59

So if you give a carrot to a bunny.

334

: 00:19:02

The misconception of Bugs Bunny,

you should really only give

335

: 00:19:06

them like a pea-sized amount.

336

: 00:19:09

Same goes for fruit and stuff.

337

: 00:19:10

It really should be small

amounts 'cause it's so sugary.

338

: 00:19:13

But they can eat things like my bunny's

really like cilantro and parsley.

339

: 00:19:18

They also like dill and I give mine

a lot of romaine lettuce as well.

340

: 00:19:25

Dixie: So romaine lettuce is

341

: 00:19:26

okay, just not

342

: 00:19:27

iceberg.

343

: 00:19:29

Hannah: So romaine lettuce is okay.

344

: 00:19:31

I guess iceberg is not good

because of the high water content.

345

: 00:19:35

It really has no nutrients.

346

: 00:19:37

I don't know exactly what makes

it poisonous, but I just know

347

: 00:19:40

people that have fed their rabbits

before they knew iceberg lettuce

348

: 00:19:45

and the rabbit would just die.

349

: 00:19:47

And I'm like, what?

350

: 00:19:49

I didn't know that either.

351

: 00:19:50

And I did a lot of research,

when I, every vegetable I fed

352

: 00:19:54

my rabbits when I first started

353

: 00:19:55

. Dixie: Yeah.

354

: 00:19:55

I didn't know that, that's,

I would've thought that they

355

: 00:19:58

could have could've eaten that.

356

: 00:19:59

I did not know that at all.

357

: 00:20:00

Hannah: Yeah, I mean I've gone to like

the park before we rescued the rabbits

358

: 00:20:04

and there would just be carrot sticks and

iceberg lettuce one time and broccoli.

359

: 00:20:09

And I'm like, oh my gosh.

360

: 00:20:10

All those broccoli causes like

gas build up in bunnies, which

361

: 00:20:14

can also lead to GI stasis.

362

: 00:20:16

So I'm like, all the improper

veggies were on the ground and those

363

: 00:20:20

bunnies were like, they survived.

364

: 00:20:22

And it's crazy to me because I

guess they were so used to eating.

365

: 00:20:26

Such random food that their gut just

tolerated at much more than a rabbit that

366

: 00:20:32

lives in your home, if that makes sense.

367

: 00:20:34

Dixie: Yeah, definitely.

368

: 00:20:36

So now when you adopt the rabbits out,

of course you're gonna spay a neuter.

369

: 00:20:40

What other kind of

vetting do they have done?

370

: 00:20:43

Hannah: Regular, normal checkups.

371

: 00:20:45

They should be getting yearly exams

just because rabbit hide illness.

372

: 00:20:50

And we also have been

vaccinating for RHDV2.

373

: 00:20:55

It's just like this thing that erupted

like in the eighties, I believe.

374

: 00:21:00

And it's finally made its way

to the United States, but it's

375

: 00:21:04

basically contracted from deceased

animals, but can be carried on human

376

: 00:21:09

clothing, human shoes into your home.

377

: 00:21:12

And it's, doesn't go away

just by washing your clothes.

378

: 00:21:16

And it lasts about, like

the germs will last 40 days.

379

: 00:21:22

On your items.

380

: 00:21:24

And basically if a rabbit contracts it.

381

: 00:21:27

There's no warning signs, they just die.

382

: 00:21:30

So I recommend it, people

get them vaccinated.

383

: 00:21:33

We haven't had too many

cases in Louisiana.

384

: 00:21:36

I think there's maybe been like one

but somebody recently told me that it's

385

: 00:21:41

starting to move into our area more so

I'm like kinda recommending it way more.

386

: 00:21:46

But yeah, so I do recommend

that I get mine vaccinated.

387

: 00:21:50

Because I work around other

rabbits and you just never know.

388

: 00:21:53

But I do

389

: 00:21:55

Dixie: What kind of post-adoption

support do you offer to adopters?

390

: 00:22:01

. Hannah: I always give my adopters for

rabbits, at least my phone number,

391

: 00:22:05

because I want them to be able to text me.

392

: 00:22:08

If they have a question or a concern,

because I wish there was that support

393

: 00:22:11

for me when I adopted my bunny.

394

: 00:22:14

And I know it's helpful because, for dogs

and cats, obviously you can totally reach

395

: 00:22:22

out to the rescues and ask questions.

396

: 00:22:25

Rabbits are a little bit

more on a time basis.

397

: 00:22:27

Like for example, a GI stasis.

398

: 00:22:29

It's such a timely, area where you

need to get the bunny to a vet.

399

: 00:22:34

You wanna make sure.

400

: 00:22:35

Things.

401

: 00:22:36

I also don't have a lot of adopters

that are first time rabbit owners

402

: 00:22:40

and have never owned a small animal.

403

: 00:22:43

And I want them obviously I educate

all my adopters before they adopt.

404

: 00:22:47

We always have a meet and greet.

405

: 00:22:48

We talk about the care, we

talk about, common illnesses

406

: 00:22:52

how rabbits should be living.

407

: 00:22:55

I want them to be able to, because

that's a lot of information at once.

408

: 00:22:58

I want them to be able to ask

me for advice or whatever.

409

: 00:23:02

So I do provide that for them.

410

: 00:23:05

Dixie: And if it doesn't work

out, do you take the bunnies back?

411

: 00:23:08

Hannah: I do.

412

: 00:23:09

My one thing is I, it sounds terrible,

but I tell every adopter this, I'm

413

: 00:23:14

like, please do not dump the animal.

414

: 00:23:17

I'm like, please do not dump the bunny.

415

: 00:23:19

I was like, it takes a lot to catch them,

and they really don't survive outside.

416

: 00:23:25

I was like, I don't think you're

gonna do it, but I have to warn you,

417

: 00:23:28

I want you to bring it back to me.

418

: 00:23:29

If things aren't working

out, bring it back to me.

419

: 00:23:31

I don't want you to

bring it to the shelter.

420

: 00:23:33

I want to come back to my rescue.

421

: 00:23:35

'cause I know them and I know I can get

them to adopt it out again eventually,

422

: 00:23:39

because I know their personality,

423

: 00:23:41

Dixie: and that's the good thing

with adopting from a rescue.

424

: 00:23:43

'cause I know on social media.

425

: 00:23:45

I recently just saw a story about

somebody giving away a rabbit with their

426

: 00:23:49

hutch because their child lost interest.

427

: 00:23:53

Yeah.

428

: 00:23:53

And that's just so upsetting.

429

: 00:23:55

So it's a good thing that rescues do take

their animals back if it doesn't work out.

430

: 00:24:02

Hannah: And it's a super common

thing too, that people get rabbits

431

: 00:24:07

thinking they're starter pets.

432

: 00:24:08

It's and I always tell people, I'm

like, you'd be do better getting your

433

: 00:24:12

child a fish than any other animal.

434

: 00:24:15

Not even a hamster.

435

: 00:24:16

Like they even require

a good amount of care.

436

: 00:24:19

I always tell people, like they

come in and they'll be like, Hey

437

: 00:24:22

does this, do you think a rabbit's

a good pet for a three-year-old?

438

: 00:24:26

And I'm like, absolutely not.

439

: 00:24:27

If your kid wants a pet, and I

really don't think you should get

440

: 00:24:30

your kid a pet in general because

they're going to lose interest.

441

: 00:24:33

That's just how kids are.

442

: 00:24:35

Get them a fish.

443

: 00:24:36

It doesn't live as long.

444

: 00:24:37

They can live a long life,

but they don't live as long.

445

: 00:24:40

They're pretty easy,

low maintenance animals.

446

: 00:24:43

You gotta clean their tank and feed

them, but they're pretty low maintenance,

447

: 00:24:46

so I always tell people, I'm like,

not a rabbit, not any small animal.

448

: 00:24:50

And they're just so fragile,

like Guinea pigs and rabbits can

449

: 00:24:53

break their backs just so easily.

450

: 00:24:55

And kids love to pick up animals

and hold them very close.

451

: 00:24:59

And small animals are just not into that.

452

: 00:25:02

Dixie: Because they're prey animals.

453

: 00:25:05

Hannah: Like I get scratched even.

454

: 00:25:07

I'm used to carrying bunnies,

but even I will get scratched

455

: 00:25:10

by their back feet sometimes.

456

: 00:25:12

And it hurts.

457

: 00:25:13

I'm not gonna drop them, but a kid holding

a bunny may drop an animal if it starts

458

: 00:25:18

to scratch at them, because that hurts,

459

: 00:25:20

Dixie: definitely.

460

: 00:25:23

Now you've gone over, the challenges with

people like dumping bunnies, of course.

461

: 00:25:27

So do you have any heartwarming

stories about people adopting bunnies

462

: 00:25:31

and getting, before and afters?

463

: 00:25:35

Hannah: There's one, one of my

good fosters and adopters, she

464

: 00:25:41

loves red-eyed white bunnies.

465

: 00:25:43

And so she's adopted a lot of the ones

that have been harder to adopt out.

466

: 00:25:48

One of them was a big giant,

like 11 pound red-eyed white.

467

: 00:25:53

Oh, wow.

468

: 00:25:53

Funny.

469

: 00:25:55

Before my boss or I even

worked with the J-S-P-C-A.

470

: 00:26:00

Was adopted out from us.

471

: 00:26:01

So it was microchip to us.

472

: 00:26:03

One day somebody texted me,

they're like, there's a big

473

: 00:26:05

white bunny and LA near park.

474

: 00:26:07

Can you go out and see?

475

: 00:26:09

So I went out and saw, and somebody had

dumped the bunny in the pouring rain

476

: 00:26:13

because nobody was in the park, obviously.

477

: 00:26:16

So I went out in the pouring

rain and I, it took me five

478

: 00:26:19

minutes to catch this bunny.

479

: 00:26:21

I noticed so she was a big white rabbit.

480

: 00:26:24

She had some, I believe,

neurological issues, which

481

: 00:26:28

were undiagnosed at the time.

482

: 00:26:30

But had a little bit of

trouble walking and didn't like

483

: 00:26:34

getting off of rugs and stuff.

484

: 00:26:36

But she was also dyed pink and she was

overweight and had sore hocks, which

485

: 00:26:42

are basically from improper flooring.

486

: 00:26:45

The hocks of a rabbit will get sore.

487

: 00:26:48

So they need a lot of cushion.

488

: 00:26:49

But anyway, so we checked for a

microchip and she was registered

489

: 00:26:54

to us and she was about five years

old and I just couldn't believe it.

490

: 00:26:58

Like somebody, somebody had an

attention to adopt a rabbit and then

491

: 00:27:04

proceeded to give it all the wrong

things and then eventually dump it.

492

: 00:27:08

But she took, Lacey took the bunny from

me because she knew it would be a hard

493

: 00:27:14

adoption for me to have, and so she

adopts all of the red eye white bunnies.

494

: 00:27:20

She just loves them and I love that

because there's not many people that do.

495

: 00:27:25

We have four red eye white bunnies

right now that are sitting in.

496

: 00:27:31

Our enclosures that were born in our

rescue back in December of: 2023

497

: 00:27:37

we rescued their mom, she gave birth.

498

: 00:27:39

So they're very much overlooked.

499

: 00:27:42

And then recently that, that bunny

unfortunately did pass away the one

500

: 00:27:46

that we rescued from Lafreniere Park

because of neurological issues, I think.

501

: 00:27:50

She recently also took in another

white bunny that has tumors all over.

502

: 00:27:56

And she's fostering that one

basically until he crosses over Uhhuh.

503

: 00:28:02

So sweet.

504

: 00:28:04

She's like falling in love with

him and it makes me so happy

505

: 00:28:07

that she can give him that love,

506

: 00:28:09

Dixie: I hate to see the ones

that are overlooked like that

507

: 00:28:11

just because of the way they look.

508

: 00:28:14

Hannah: Yeah, so she's my best foster

slash adopter probably because she just,

509

: 00:28:20

she does so much for, the ones that

get overlooked and she really cares.

510

: 00:28:26

And I love that about her.

511

: 00:28:28

Dixie: So what are your

most pressing needs?

512

: 00:28:31

Hannah: Probably my pressing

needs would be volunteers.

513

: 00:28:35

I really need more volunteers.

514

: 00:28:39

The bunnies don't get a lot of

socialization in rescue and it's

515

: 00:28:43

hard for me to provide that for them.

516

: 00:28:46

And I do have a couple of volunteers,

don't get me wrong, but a lot of the

517

: 00:28:49

times I need help with other things.

518

: 00:28:51

Organizing things, cleaning

rabbits just things like that.

519

: 00:28:55

Giving meds, clipping nails, whatever.

520

: 00:28:57

Just upkeep, right?

521

: 00:28:59

But yeah, I really need, more

volunteers to help socialize them and

522

: 00:29:05

make them more comfortable with humans.

523

: 00:29:06

Because a lot of the times they do come

from a bad environment where they didn't

524

: 00:29:11

get much socialization or interaction.

525

: 00:29:15

And so they need to learn

love and interaction with

526

: 00:29:19

humans and that it's okay,

527

: 00:29:21

Dixie: now, would that be at the store?

528

: 00:29:23

Is that where people would

volunteer to help with that?

529

: 00:29:26

Hannah: Yes.

530

: 00:29:27

So all of our adoptables are inside the

store, so it'd be mostly inside the store.

531

: 00:29:32

We recently moved the bunnies upstairs,

so it's a little more quiet now.

532

: 00:29:37

Like people with carts and stuff

would often scare the bunnies when

533

: 00:29:41

they were downstairs 'cause it's

loud, it's like a warehouse building.

534

: 00:29:44

Being upstairs, I do find it's quieter and

the bunnies can more relax, which is good.

535

: 00:29:50

And I feel like they can interact more

with a human if we had more volunteers.

536

: 00:29:56

But like I said, I do have a few I.

537

: 00:29:59

And two of them are older.

538

: 00:30:01

And I do have one that's still in school,

and she does help on Fridays and she'll

539

: 00:30:05

groom them and do that kind of stuff.

540

: 00:30:08

Dixie: And do they get

volunteer credit for that?

541

: 00:30:10

For school?

542

: 00:30:12

Hannah: They do, yes.

543

: 00:30:13

The only thing with volunteers is I

do have to , be with them at first,

544

: 00:30:16

especially if they're on the younger side.

545

: 00:30:18

Just so a lot of people, again, they don't

know about rabbits, so it's just, it's

546

: 00:30:23

good to have the hands-on experience.

547

: 00:30:25

I usually will sit with them and show

them everything and you know how to handle

548

: 00:30:29

the bunnies, and then I'll show them

other things so they can help in other

549

: 00:30:33

areas, such as helping with the cats or

washing dishes and doing laundry, which

550

: 00:30:38

kind of contributes from all the animals,

551

: 00:30:40

Dixie: Where can listeners learn more

about the bunnies that are up for adoption

552

: 00:30:46

before they would set up a meet and greet?

553

: 00:30:49

Hannah: So most of our

buns are on petfinder.

554

: 00:30:52

You can also sometimes find them

on Facebook if we post them, but

555

: 00:30:56

most of them are on Petfinder.

556

: 00:30:59

You can also just come to the

Jefferson Feed store that's on

557

: 00:31:03

Jefferson Highway in Jefferson.

558

: 00:31:06

Mostly we just post on Petfinder, but

you can always email me too as well.

559

: 00:31:11

And then we'd also have a website

for the Jefferson SPCA that I

560

: 00:31:16

think links to the Petfinder.

561

: 00:31:18

Dixie: And what is that website?

562

: 00:31:20

Hannah: It's jefferson spca.org.

563

: 00:31:22

Dixie: Okay.

564

: 00:31:23

I can include a link to that too in the

description and I'll go see if I can

565

: 00:31:27

pull up the Petfinder and put that in

the description as well, so that way

566

: 00:31:30

people will be able to easily find it.

567

: 00:31:34

In Jefferson Parish we have

some really good programs to

568

: 00:31:37

spay and neuter at low cost.

569

: 00:31:40

So is there a specific program for

the rabbits in Jefferson Parish?

570

: 00:31:45

Hannah: There is, and also

for the male Guinea pigs.

571

: 00:31:48

Most of our rabbits do get

fixed at avian and exotic.

572

: 00:31:51

I know there's other vets that also fix,.

573

: 00:31:53

Two clinics are on our program and

only one of them fixes both males

574

: 00:31:57

and females, and that's avian.

575

: 00:31:59

I want to, in the future, get more

clinics to help us because there is a

576

: 00:32:05

lot of rabbits, and I know Avian has.

577

: 00:32:09

A lot of patients and I'm sure

it would be nice to have some

578

: 00:32:12

more clinics to help out as well.

579

: 00:32:14

But for male rabbits, it's $40 if you live

in Jefferson Parish to fix a male rabbit.

580

: 00:32:22

And then for females, it's.

581

: 00:32:24

60 And then for the male Guinea pigs, I

don't remember the price exactly 'cause

582

: 00:32:30

we don't really get that many fixed.

583

: 00:32:32

Recently we just had a lot of girls.

584

: 00:32:34

I think it's also $40

to fix male Guinea pigs.

585

: 00:32:38

I'll have to double check on that.

586

: 00:32:39

But yeah, so we do the male Guinea

pigs and then male and female rabbits.

587

: 00:32:44

The reason we don't do the low

cost for female Guinea pigs is it's

588

: 00:32:49

very invasive surgery and they're

so much smaller than rabbits.

589

: 00:32:53

And it costs a lot more to

spay a female Guinea pig.

590

: 00:32:57

We have done it simply

because they can get cancer

591

: 00:33:01

.

Dixie: So if you get Guinea pigs, then don't get a male and female

592

: 00:33:05

Guinea pig and put 'em together

unless you neuter the boy first.

593

: 00:33:09

Hannah: Correct.

594

: 00:33:10

Yeah.

595

: 00:33:12

Yes.

596

: 00:33:13

And it's also just easier, to bond.

597

: 00:33:16

Small animals are vicious, not gonna lie.

598

: 00:33:18

That sounds crazy, but rabbits do

well in pairs and they're, they

599

: 00:33:21

really should be in pairs, but.

600

: 00:33:24

They will not want to accept that at

first sometimes and will fight, but I

601

: 00:33:29

always tell people it's like humans.

602

: 00:33:31

Like we, we're not gonna every

single person we meet, you just

603

: 00:33:34

gotta find that right person.

604

: 00:33:36

It's the same for the small animals too.

605

: 00:33:38

Like I just think rabbits

need to find their companion.

606

: 00:33:41

Like you can't choose it for them.

607

: 00:33:42

They have to choose,

608

: 00:33:43

Dixie: so is there a way to acclimate 'em?

609

: 00:33:45

If you already have a rabbit and you're

thinking of getting a second rabbit.

610

: 00:33:48

I know like with cats, what we do is we'll

keep 'em in separate rooms and they smell

611

: 00:33:52

each other through the door, and then

after a while you bring them in one in

612

: 00:33:56

a carrier and let 'em sniff each other

through the carrier and stuff like that.

613

: 00:34:00

So how do you acclimate rabbits?

614

: 00:34:03

Hannah: So it's different.

615

: 00:34:04

So I always say spay and neuter

is the most important thing.

616

: 00:34:07

If you're gonna start trying to introduce

rabbits, you need to have them both fixed.

617

: 00:34:11

Obviously if it's a male and

a female and they're unfixed,

618

: 00:34:14

they're going to wanna be together.

619

: 00:34:16

But because we don't want any more babies,

I always tell people to spay a neuter

620

: 00:34:22

'cause we don't need anymore babies.

621

: 00:34:23

That's right.

622

: 00:34:24

Yeah I usually just set up meet and greet.

623

: 00:34:26

So if people have a bunny,

I'll set up a meet and greet.

624

: 00:34:29

They can bring their bunny and

we'll do what I call speed dating.

625

: 00:34:33

So we'll just pull out, some, so usually

I always recommend male female bond.

626

: 00:34:38

Sometimes a female and a

female can work in even a male.

627

: 00:34:41

And a male.

628

: 00:34:41

It really just depends.

629

: 00:34:43

But I usually always start with a male

and a female because that's usually

630

: 00:34:46

the easiest way to go about it.

631

: 00:34:48

And we'll speed date.

632

: 00:34:49

So if it's a female that comes in, then

we'll do all the eligible males and see

633

: 00:34:54

which one, matches the best which one's

the most interested, that kind of thing.

634

: 00:34:59

And then there is a bonding process.

635

: 00:35:01

Sometimes you're lucky and they're

gonna love each other right off

636

: 00:35:04

the bat, and that's gonna be it.

637

: 00:35:05

You don't even have to do anything, but

other times you have to work on them

638

: 00:35:10

to make them want to be friends and.

639

: 00:35:14

For example, some of mine

I had to work months.

640

: 00:35:17

I have two males that are bonded

together and it took me nine

641

: 00:35:21

months to bond them together.

642

: 00:35:23

Oh, wow.

643

: 00:35:24

Yeah.

644

: 00:35:25

So it's a lot of sitting watching them.

645

: 00:35:28

Seeing how they interact because they will

bite each other and scratch at each other.

646

: 00:35:34

Another thing they do is

hump to show dominance.

647

: 00:35:37

So you just want them to , learn

to trust each other basically.

648

: 00:35:40

Right now, yeah.

649

: 00:35:41

So that process it really depends.

650

: 00:35:43

What I recommend is starting in a small

space such as a small X pen just to see.

651

: 00:35:50

Okay.

652

: 00:35:50

Are they doing okay?

653

: 00:35:51

And then gradually making it bigger

until they can fully get along.

654

: 00:35:56

Dixie: Yeah, that, that's a lot

different from acclimating cats together.

655

: 00:36:00

Something that I didn't know.

656

: 00:36:01

So tough.

657

: 00:36:03

Hannah: It's a lot of work.

658

: 00:36:05

Dixie: So now before we end the call, is

there anything else you would like to add?

659

: 00:36:10

Hannah: I think the one thing I

wanna say is adopt, don't shop

660

: 00:36:13

and spay and neuter your pets.

661

: 00:36:15

That's like the biggest thing

we just don't need anymore.

662

: 00:36:18

It just feels many of the

animals we get off of the street

663

: 00:36:21

are always in heat or pregnant

664

: 00:36:24

Definitely.

665

: 00:36:24

Get your animals fixed.

666

: 00:36:25

Dixie: Absolutely.

667

: 00:36:26

I agree with that a hundred percent.

668

: 00:36:27

Thank you so much for joining me today.

669

: 00:36:30

I learned a lot, . I appreciate it,

670

: 00:36:33

Hannah: and thank you.

671

: 00:36:34

I appreciate you talking with me.

672

: 00:36:36

Dixie: All right.

673

: 00:36:37

Bye.

674

: 00:36:37

Hannah: All right, bye.

675

: 00:36:40

Dixie: And that's all the time

we have for today's episode.

676

: 00:36:43

If you are in animal rescue, or if

you know someone that has a story that

677

: 00:36:47

should be told, please contact us.

678

: 00:36:49

We would love to have

you or them on the show

679

: 00:36:52

.

Thanks for listening, and please join us next week as we continue to

680

: 00:36:56

explore the world of animal rescue.