Bunnies Being Cared For

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Created on Friday, 29 March 2013 14:35

Written by Catherine Vitale

According to the ASPCA there are many warning signs of possible abuse aside from witnessing physical violence. Some of the physical signs include:

à Collar so tight it has caused neck wounds

 à Open wounds or signs of multiple healed wounds

 à Untreated skin conditions that have caused loss of hair, bumps or rashes

 à Skin infested with fleas, ticks or other parasites

 à Signs of inadequate grooming; matted fur, overgrown nails, dirty coat

 à Weakness, inability to stand or walk normally

 à Extreme Thinness or emaciation

 à Heavy discharge from the nose or eyes

 The ASPCA also gives “environmental” warning signs for abuse when looking at a pet’s living space. These environmental signs include:

 à Being tied up alone for long periods of time with little or no food or water

 à Pets kept outside in inclement weather with no access to shelter

 à Being kept in an area that is littered with feces, garbage, broken glass, or anything that could harm them

 à Animals housed in cages that are too small for them to make normal movements, or housed with too many other animals

For animals that have been abused, Eaton believes shelters are their voice. Pet-Abuse.com shows one hundred fifteen mappable animal abuses cases in Vermont, not even close to a full count of how many animals have been abused statewide. With animals having no voice of their own, it’s up to those who spot signs of abuse to possibly save a life.

“It’s our job to speak for them,” Eaton said, “and the laws are not great regarding the convictions of animal cruelty. It’s very hard to get convictions, it’s hard to get court time and it’s very expensive.”

Eaton has served as a voice for the rabbits and bunnies, calling around to various rabbit rescues and finding families to adopt them. Some of the bunnies have already been spoken for, the others will be sent to rabbit rescues in a further attempt to find them a permanent home.

To report possible signs of abuse, you can visit Report Animal Cruelty’s website.