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!

Welcome Back, Rock!

Hi there, Rock here! You can also call me Butters, which has been my name for the past 3 years. If you’ve been following Hug-a-Bunny from the beginning, you may recognize me from a while back. I started out as a Hug-a-Bunny named Rock back in 2006 after I was found on the streets. I ended up at a local shelter in August of 2006 where I was very unhappy being kept in a cage. Finally, I was pulled out by Hug-a-Bunny and was living in a bigger area with tons of room. After a little while, I was adopted out to a really nice guy, who named me Butters, and I lived with him in the Bronx for 3 great years. I was only Hug-a-Bunny’s 8th adoption, now 174 Hug-a-Bunnies have found homes!


Unfortunately, due to a new job, my person had to give me up. In Hug-a-Bunny’s adoption contract, it states that all adopted rabbits must be returned to the rescue if they can no longer be kept. This gave me a safe place to come where I knew I would be taken care of and loved. My foster mom (who is the original person that rescued me) says I look exactly how she remembered me 3 long years ago! Even though it was sad to leave my home, I'm happy to be in a place where people were excited to see me!



Some things for me have changed recently, but others haven’t. I am still a medium to large-sized male lop rabbit. I was neutered way back in 2006, and I'm very healthy. I'm about 3 1/2 years old now, so I have tons of time left! I'm also still a very independent guy and I love to explore. I have a crate where my litterbox is kept, but the door has never been closed. I absolutely loved being a free-roam bunny and enjoyed every minute of it in my home. My favorite place to hang out was under the bed and I was often found snoozing around the apartment! Other times, I would race through my home doing "Bunny 500's!" Occasionally, my person would let me run around his securely fenced yard (not recommended by Hug-a-Bunny for safety reasons) and I enjoyed being near the green grass. Overall, I led a laid back life over the past 3 years.


All of these changes have thrown me for a loop. It's going to take me a while to adjust to living in a foster home again, and I'm hopeful that my permanent, loving home will come along soon. I'm looking for a place where I can be myself and where I don't have too many pressures put on me. While I'm a very sweet guy, I'm not the cuddly type and really dislike being held (like most rabbits). However, I don't mind be petted, on my terms of course, and will keep you laughing for hours with my spunky personality! I'm even on the search for a foster home where I can have more room to stretch my legs! Consider opening up your home and heart to me! I promise to "rock" your world!

Sponsor a Hug-a-Bunny

Would you like to make a difference in the lives of rescued rabbits, but can't commit to adopting one? We've got the perfect option for you...sponsor a Hug-a-Bunny! To sponsor a Hug-a-Bunny, all you have to do is make a $25 donation. Your donation goes directly towards the care of that rabbit, which will be used for medical needs, daily care, or even a special treat for that rabbit. Once you sponsor a rabbit, we will send you a gift from your new furry friend and we'll keep you updated on his or her progress. Here's a cute story about one of our sponsors! Beth, a sweet lady from NYC, fell in love with and sponsored our sweet Sundance. Sundance was the victim of a horrible hoarding situation (also where Echo, Forest, and Bryce came from) and had a long road of rehabilitation. After months of recieving updates from us, Beth decided that she simply couldn't live without Sundance and put in an application to adopt him! Sundance (now Pickle) is living a happy life with his best friend (pug Emma) and his new mom!


While we know not all sponsorships will end as magically as Sundance's, your donation will go directly towards making the life of the sponsored rabbit just a little sweeter while they are waiting for their permanent, loving home to arrive! Sunflower (picture below) is an example of one of our rabbits who is looking for a home and could use a sponsor. Please consider sponsoring a Hug-a-Bunny!

To sponsor a rabbit right now, check out our petfinder site to pick the rabbit you want to sponsor. Then, go to our paypal site to make a quick donation! You do not have to sign up for a Paypal account to donate. If you'd like to do it the old fashioned way, send a $25 check (made out to Hug-a-Bunny Rabbit Rescue) to P.O. Box 223, Rutherford, NJ 07070. Make sure to specify who you want to sponsor!

Thank you from all of the Hug-a-Bunnies!

Attention Past Adopters!

If you would like to feature your adopted Hug-a-Bunny in our new section titled "Adoption Updates," feel free to send a picture of your furry friend in their home! Give us some new tidbits about what the rabbit has been up to since leaving the rescue and what you love most about him or her! We can't wait to show people how our Hug-a-Bunnies are "living it up" in their homes!

Even though we keep in touch with most of our adopters and know our rabbits are doing well, we hope to do an adoption update on all of our rescued rabbits since we know everyone will love reading them! Make sure to email the updates to us at hugabunny@gmail.com with a few recent pictures. We can't wait to start posting them!

On another note, we will also be starting a memorial section for Hug-a-Bunnies who have crossed over. Feel free to send us a note about their life and we would be happy to honor them. Again, please send this information (with a picture if possible) to hugabunny@gmail.com.

Thank you!

Welcome Daphne!

We want to welcome a beautiful rabbit into our rescue. Just yesterday, Daphne joined our Hug-a-Bunny family. We rescued her last-minute from a bad situation. After living with a family for several years, Daphne was dumped at a local shelter when they no longer wanted her. She arrived with some health concerns that needed to be taken care of. After recovering and settling in there, it seemed like no one was interested in an older rabbit! Months would pass and people would adopt other rabbits, but not Daphne. She was always shy, but polite, but people would continue to overlook her.

Finally, after 5 months of living in a small cage with no time out to explore, Daphne lunged at a volunteer who was moving things around in her cage. It's not surprising that she was upset after all she'd been through! Since she was not spayed at the time and was frustrated from being abandoned and kept in a small space, it's not surprising to hear that Daphne felt the need to protect herself. While this cage aggression was an isolated incident (it never happened before or again), we knew her time there was over. Rumors began to spread that Daphne, who had a different name at the time, was on borrowed time. We had only a few days to make something work. Scrambling, we made some emergency room in a foster home so that she could be safe. Luckily, Daphne will never be in harm's way again. While she's much happier now, Daphne is still on the lookout for a more comfy foster home where she'll have more room to stretch her legs.

Daphne is now safe and resting quietly in her foster home. She's a stunning black and white female French Lop and she's about 4 1/2- 5 years old. She was recently spayed, which is so important for both her health and behavior. She has been a perfect lady in foster care and already uses her litterbox to go to the bathroom! Not only that, but she's very affectionate! Daphne loves to lay down close to people to have her head petted and kissed. She's eating well (she's a bit on the skinny side) and is making up for lost time. After all she's been through, we want to make sure that Daphne is safe and happy forever. We've told Daphne that she never has to worry again! Take one look at this stunning face and you can't help but fall in love! Stay updated for more information about Daphne as she settles into the rescue!

Welcome Daphne! We hope your forever, loving home comes along quickly!

Rabbit Health: Diet

Our new section titled "Rabbit Health" will address questions that we're commonly asked about rabbits. While we are pretty knowledgeable, neither Frannie or myself are vets. If you have a serious medical concern, please contact your vet immediately. Some of what we write is also our opinion, which we have arrived at after caring for hundreds of rabbits. We simply want to impart some of our information to bunny lovers everywhere! Each "Rabbit Health" entry will focus on a different topic...today's is diet!

In the past, rabbits lived outdoors in hutches and were not considered part of the family. Vets were not well-versed in rabbit medicine and therefore many rabbit issues went unnoticed. However, as rabbits have become more popular (they're the 3rd most common house pet!), many vets have emerged who treat rabbits. Due to this, we've learned more about rabbits in the past decade than ever known before! It's a common misconception that rabbits should eat only carrots...Bugs Bunny loved them, but there's much more to a complete diet than just that.


HAY: The most important thing for a rabbit to eat is HAY! Adult rabbits eat timothy hay (or other blends) which comprises most of their diet. All rabbits should have constant access to soft, green, timothy hay. There are other blends out there (orchard grass, meadow hay, etc.) but timothy is by far the most important and the favorite among many. It's so important for their digestive system and is great for their teeth! Alfalfa hay should not be fed to rabbits over the age of 6 months, since it's too high in protein and calcium for them. Alfalfa is good for rabbits who are growing, but not for adults.



Here's Clover Lop (who is on the lookout for a permanent home) playing in her hay. While some rabbits like hay in their litterbox, others like it in a hay hopper or stuffed in an old tissue box or toilet paper roll!


PELLETS: In addition to timothy hay, rabbits also should eat a timothy-based pellet. Pellets were invented by breeders who wanted a quicker and easier way to feed and fatten their rabbits. The pellets that are appropriate for an adult rabbit are made solely from timothy hay, and should have no alfalfa in them since they're too high in calcium for adult rabbits and can cause health issues like bladder sludge. Pellets can be free fed, but most often are measured according to the size of the rabbit and fed twice a day. Some pellets are sold with colorful pieces in them. Most of these pellets are made from alfalfa meal, and aren't appropriate for adult rabbits. Alfalfa hay is too high in protein and calcium for adult rabbits. We use (and LOVE) Oxbow Bunny Basics T pellets, which is fantastic! You can go on their website (oxbow.com) to find carriers in your area. Most pet stores carry other timothy-based pellet options as well. The House Rabbit Society (rabbit.org) came up with approximate measurements for a healthy rabbit. They suggest,

"5-7 lb of body wt. 1/4 cup daily, 8-10 lb body wt. 1/2 cup daily, 11-15 lb of body wt. 3/4 cup daily"

According to the HRS, a rabbit less that 5 pounds may have digestive troubles if their diet is restricted too much. At Hug-a-Bunny, we do limit the pellets our rabbits get, but not this strictly. If pellets are being measured, it's even more important to make sure fresh hay is accessible at all times and that the rabbit is given more greens.

GREENS/VEGGIES: Rabbits need to eat dark, leafy, greens every day. While everyone gives a different amount, we have fed our foster and adopted rabbits approximately 2 cups of greens per day. Of course, this depends on the size of the rabbit, but we make sure to have plenty of dark, leafy greens on hand! We also try to give 2-3 different types of greens per day (or per week at the least) to make sure that the rabbits have a varied and healthy diet. Some of the many greens that our rabbits love are romaine, escarole, parsley, kale (careful, high in calcium!), cilantro, and basil. For a complete list of greens, check out the House Rabbit Society website's approved veggies list!

HRS List of Approved Veggies

FRUITS/TREATS: While many people love to give their rabbits treats, we feel that many of the marketed treats aren't good for rabbits. They may be tasty, but often have no nutritional value and may be harmful to your rabbit's health. Instead of giving our rabbits the factory-made treats (with the exception of Oxbow's papaya tablets, which we love), we use fruit as an occasional treat! Whether fresh or dried, rabbits love the sweet taste of some yummy fruit. Check out the House Rabbit Society's list of approved fruits to share with your furry friend! Remember, rabbits have sensitive systems and can't handle too much sweet stuff at once. If you're eating an apple or banana, share a bite with your furry friend- but don't go overboard! Too much of a good thing will cause your companion to have excess cecotrophes or diarhea!

HRS List of Approved Fruits

WATER: Make sure your rabbit has constant access to fresh, clean water. We put a water bottle in each cage, but we also put in a ceramic crock to give our rabbits the option of how they prefer to drink their water. We find that most of our rabbits love to drink water out of a bowl. Water is so important to keep a rabbit's gut active and their bladder flushed. Due to the natural vitamins in your rabbit's food, you do NOT need to add vitamins into your rabbit's water.

We hope to have shared some useful information with the rabbit lovers out there! Now, go hug your bunny!

Dress to Impress

Do you want to look fashionable while supporting a great cause? If so, visit our CafePress store where you can purchase custom designed apparel and goods! Stock up on Hug-a-Bunny t-shirts and tank tops...our favorite is the Jr. Ringer Tee! We also carry mugs, stickers, magnets, greeting cards, and many more items that show off our cause. Check out the ceramic crocks so your own Hug-a-Bunny can drink from a Hug-a-Bunny bowl!

Our Cafe Press Store

Make sure to check out the 2010 calendar that we have, featuring adoptable or already adopted Hug-a-Bunnies! No one will be able to resist these faces...they will bring a smile to anyone! Think about your holiday shopping early and stock up on 2010 calendars!




Remember, each purchase you make donates a little bit to our cause. So, not only will you be walking around looking fashionable or owning really cool personalized items, but you'll be supporting a great cause and joining in our mission to save lives! Happy shopping!

Hug-a-Bunny's Logo

Whether you've seen our logo before or are seeing it for the first time, here's a little history behind it!

If you've read our post called "The Birth of Hug-a-Bunny," you read about how when we met, Frannie and I both had rabbits whose names began with the letter "B." Our friendship was sparked by talking about our rabbits, and they were one of the main inspirations behind Hug-a-Bunny. We felt that it was only fitting to have a logo that paid a tribute to our most important ladies, so I drew a logo that centered our amazing rabbits, Bella and Bumbalina!

Bella (Jamie's rabbit) is the rabbit on the left. She's a stunning brown French Lop. When I met Bella in 2002, she was in horrible condition and was going to be fed to a snake. I took her out of the situation immediately and took her home. From that day on, she has been a constant companion to me and is without a doubt one of the most amazing things to ever happen in my life. Bella has moved with me to many different places and has seen Hug-a-Bunny from a vision to a reality. Bella was diagnosed with uterine and ovarian cancer when she first came to me, which was a result of over-breeding and not being spayed. Miraculously, Bella survived them both. Bella bonded with another lop (Bumper) who she is still in love with. Years after her first battle with cancer, Bella had another health scare with suspected cancer. Luckily, it turned out to be nothing serious. Right after that health scare, Bella developed an amazing heart-shaped marking in her fur, as seen in both the logo and the picture below.


Now 7 years after being rescued, Bella is still doing well. She has the sweetest personality and despite her blindness and arthritis, she's always happy to see me and greets me by licking my hand! Although Bella has definitely slowed down, she never fails to spread joy wherever she goes!

**Sadly, Bella passed away in March of 2010. She was the sweetest rabbit and was such an inspiration. Bella will always be remembered and deeply missed. 

Bumbalina (Frannie's rabbit) was found outdoors after someone had released her in a park. She was being chased by many predators and wouldn't have survived long if she hadn't been caught and brought inside. Like Bella, Bumbalina was Frannie's constant companion. She followed Frannie around the house and got along with all of Frannie's animals. Bumbalina was a black and white mini-rex with the softest fur of any rabbit. Her markings down her back and tail were amazing, which is what can be seen in our logo or in a picture of her. Bumbalina was a very special girl. Sadly, Bumbalina passed away in 2006 after living a long and amazing life with Frannie.



Even 3 years after we've been saving lives, Bella and Bumbalina continue to inspire us. They will always be the driving force behind Hug-a-Bunny!

The Birth of Hug-a-Bunny

Way back in 2005, Frannie and I (Jamie) met while we were becoming certified therapeutic riding instructors. We quickly bonded over how similar we were, including the fact that we both had companion rabbits! Hers was Bumbalina, mine was Bella. Both of our ladies were rescued under extreme circumstances (Bumbalina after being released in a dangerous park, Bella from being fed to a snake) and we couldn't believe that they both started with the letter "B!"

We were both (and still are) long-time vegetarians and extreme animal lovers and we've always helped out other rescues and shelters on a small scale. We've always wanted to help out where we were needed since every animal is precious to us. After we became good friends, Frannie and I always talked about starting up our own rescue. We knew there were so many advocates out there for dogs and cats and we saw how many rabbits in our area were ending up in shelters and on the streets, and there was no one to do anything about it. It wasn't until one hot day in the summer of 2006 that we found our calling.

Frannie's boyfriend overheard someone he worked with asking another man if he would take his family's companion rabbit since his kids were sick of it and he no longer wanted it. He told the man that the rabbit was big enough to eat and he wanted to get rid of it as soon as possible. There was a comment made about "Sunday night dinner!" Alarmed, Frannie's boyfriend called her and we convinced the man to give up the rabbit. It was obvious what the fate of this rabbit was if we didn't jump in. To our disgust, when we got her she was in a tiny cage with no room to move, but she trusted us immediately. Even with her hard past, she was stunning and the sweetest rabbit in the world. We named her Lily and took her to a vet to have her spayed. At the time, since we weren't a formal rescue, we paid $400 out of our pockets to have her spayed. Amazingly, we found her a foster home, and just a few months later in November we found her a permanent home! Lily was our first rescued rabbit, and our first rabbit to find a loving, forever home. Hug-a-Bunny was born!

Seeing how much we were needed, Frannie and I immediately started our rescue! We began on a small scale by making connections with new foster homes (some of them are still fostering for us!) and we started saving lives. Even though in the past we were able to lend a helping hand to dog and cat rescues in our area, no one was an advocate for the rabbits. One of our first rescue cases involved Apple, who was found in a taped shoebox with three other rabbits and put in the middle of a parking lot. In the past, a rabbit like Apple would have been immediately put to sleep, but now she had a fighting chance. She was taken to a vet and had intense medical work done. She was horribly skinny with a severe upper respiratory infection. While the first few weeks were rocky, Apple pulled through and made a full recovery. Luckily, Apple is now healthy, happy, and in a loving home...which happens to be my home! Here's a picture of her now! You can also see Apple featured in our profile picture, kissing her bonded mate Basil.


Lily taught us a very important lesson. She showed us the resilient spirit of animals, rabbits specifically, who forgive and move on from their past. Lily is now living a happy life in her new home, as seen in the picture of her snuggling with her Beagle friend.

Lily also showed us that two people can make a difference, no matter how small it may start out to be. Three years ago, we were just two best friends with a dream to start a rescue that could save lives and never imagined that Hug-a-Bunny would make such a difference. Looking back, we can't believe how far we have come and we find it amazing how it all came together. We've been connected with amazing people and we are happy that we can make such a difference. Each adoption still feels like yesterday! Since we find most of our rabbits in such horrible condition and rehabilitate them, it's natural that we get very attached to them all. We look at Hug-a-Bunny as an extended family for us, and we keep in touch with most of our adopters! We cannot believe that we've had over 170 adoptions in just 3 years! We're happy you can follow and support our journey!

Our First Post!

Hey, Jamie here! Frannie and I are the founders and co-directors of Hug-a-Bunny Rabbit Rescue. We are always trying to find new ways to reach people and to help spread our message. We recently were introduced (thanks Shira!) to the concept of blogging, and we think it's a great idea! We can't wait to share information about rabbits in general and about our rescue with our followers! We're hoping to use this as a place to share news about our rescued Hug-a-Bunnies, adoptions, and fundraising opportunities. We also hope to use this blog as a vessel to spread more information about rabbits as companions, including general care and medical issues. Our vision is that this blog will help people realize what amazing animals rabbits are and that it will help raise awareness for our rescue. Thanks for visiting!