Where Are the Hug-a-Bunnies?

There is a big difference between a rescue and a shelter. Many people do not know the difference between the two. I can't tell you how many emails Frannie and I get from people asking us what our address and hours of operation are. This posting will hopefully clear up the difference between the two and will let you know where all of the Hug-a-Bunnies are!

A shelter is a bigger operation (usually city-run) where homeless animals live while they are waiting for a home. Most (not all) are kill-shelters, meaning they euthanize animals based on time at the shelter, space (or lack thereof), or for medical reasons. Shelters have many animals and it's a place where people can come to look at animals and adopt. Shelters are typically set up in stacks or rows of cages to maximize space. Animals typically have little time out or individualized attention, since there are so many animals at one location.

A rescue is a group of people (typically volunteers) who have dedicated themselves to making sure that EVERY animal has a fighting chance. Sometimes rescue groups have a physical location where the animals live, and where people can come to look at the animals, but many rescue groups exist within a network of foster homes. Most rescue groups are no-kill and they typically believe that all animals deserve a chance to live. Unlike a shelter, rescue groups take less adoptable animals that would have otherwise been put down, and help them find a home.

At Hug-a-Bunny Rabbit Rescue (notice the word RESCUE) we truly believe that every animal deserves the chance to live a full, complete, happy life. This includes animals of all species. For rabbits specifically, we believe that every rabbit deserves to receive the very best medical attention and to be safe and loved. We treat all of our Hug-a-Bunnies with the very best care, as we would our own rabbits. Each rabbit gets their own unique cage or enclosure setup- whatever works for them. Our rabbits are truly spoiled with the best nutrition and medical care.

When we rescue a new rabbit from a shelter, off the streets, or from a family who no longer wants them, we intake the rabbit with health checks and temperament testing. Then, the rabbit moves on to live in one of our amazing foster homes. At any given moment, we have 8-12 amazing foster homes (which currently includes me, Frannie, Lisa, Tammie, Lorin, Judy, Loren, Denise, Maki, and Westwood Pets) who take care of our Hug-a-Bunnies like their own. These foster homes are our secret to success. No matter how many adorable and amazing rabbits we have, we can't do anything without our foster homes to make it all happen. Since we don't have a physical location, these foster homes are the difference between life or death in some cases, as we pull out rabbits only when we have room open in a foster home! We depend on our foster homes to do all of the daily care of our rabbits. They are the backbone behind this rescue! Each of these foster homes takes care of the rabbit until the day they are adopted. This way, the rabbits are safe and happy and learn how to become a member of a family. All of our rabbits are litterbox trained in their foster homes as well. Many of our foster homes take another Hug-a-Bunny as soon as their rabbit is adopted.

Since all of our rabbits live in foster homes, we DO NOT have a physical location. There is nowhere for people to come to meet our adoptable rabbits, which is by design. We exist only in our foster homes. For some people, they feel the need to go to a shelter to meet and greet all of the adoptable animals. With a rescue, you are adopting from a tight-knit family where we know our rabbits so well. We have been able to make over 170 successful matches, all without having a physical location to meet up! Most of the time, adopters meet their rabbit on the day of adoption, but this is after weeks of working together and them learning every little thing about the potential home and adoptable rabbit beforehand. Again, remember the rabbits live in a home with a loving foster mom, so the foster mom knows the rabbit as if it were her own! This has worked for us very well, and we plan to continue this the way it is.

So, what are our hours of operation? We don't have them! Where are we located? We don't have a location! All of our Hug-a-Bunnies are safe in their foster homes waiting for their permanent homes to come along. Shout out to the Hug-a-Bunny foster moms out there!