A place for any bunny in need

Over the past five years, many Baton Rouge bunnies have escaped a fate as sauce piquante, snake snacks or simply being “set free” in the wilderness with no survival skills. Instead, nearly 300 unwanted rabbits have landed on their lucky feet at Magic Happens Rabbit Rescue (MHRR).

As the largest rabbit-specific rescue between Arkansas and Alabama, the Baton Rouge bunny haven offers education through classroom visits, event booths and even bunnies for commercial photographers’ spring photo shoots. However, the group’s major focus is finding new homes for aging Easter bunnies, discarded pet-store impulse purchases and roaming rabbits.

“People get rabbits because they are low-cost,” says Wendy Lincoln, the group’s founder, “but they’re also high-maintenance.”
Lincoln recommends researching before purchasing a rabbit. Beyond understanding the temperament and requirements of the breed you intend to adopt, finding reliable rabbit information can be tricky. Lincoln says, “Most books contradict advice from the breeders. Some information applies only to outdoor rabbits and some is for house rabbits.” MHRR experts frequently consult with owners and potential adopters about rabbit-related concerns, from medical care to diet and exercise to pen design.

While pet stores typically sell rabbits from commercial breeders for $100, Magic Happens offers spayed/neutered, rescued rabbits for $50 and a (non-breeding) pair for $75.

Besides adoption fees, the group generates funds by offering $5 nail trims—definitely worth the money for any owner who has tried to clip a wily rabbit’s claws—and bunny-sitting and boarding services. The July 2009 Bunny Bowl team bowling fundraiser brought in $600.

Funds are generally used for spay/neuter, medical care, pens and, of course, sweet Timothy hay and carrots. The organization shelters most rescued animals in volunteers’ homes. “That way, the rabbits have more interaction with people, and the foster can evaluate personality and cage aggression,” Lincoln explains. However, in an effort to accommodate the group’s growing waiting list, an adopter and benefactor has offered up to $1,000 in matching funds for contributions to a new bunny barn fund received by September 15.

So far, MHRR had raised $316.30. The donations may not always be huge, but they certainly are heartfelt. Inspired by their newly adopted MHRR bunny, a pair of local school-aged sisters braved the summer swelter, set up a lemonade and cookie stand and collected $46.30 for the cause.

Even before the fundraising started, the staff had begun transforming a portable 12-foot by 24-foot portable metal building into a bunny barn. The space increases the rescue’s capacity by up to 36 rabbits, who will be comfortably housed in modular cages and exercise pens. Plans include a meet-and-greet adoption area, easy-to-clean tile floor, examination area, mini-fridge for medications and veggies and a three-section commercial sink for rabbit baths and housekeeping.

The scant $2,000 budget, culled from the seed money and matching funds, will be enough for the building to become functional—due largely to donated labor.

“Friends and family have been working on the building. We couldn’t afford to complete the building without their help,” says Lincoln. “People have been willing to back us and sponsor us. [This project] has encouraged them to donate even more. We have been very blessed.”

For more information, visit magichappensrescue.com.

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