From what I have read, the rabbits were brought in by a volunteer to be used as therapy animals, however that volunteer either fell ill or stopped coming, and the rabbits were left with no one to care for them. No one is denying that the stall they were in was too small for the number of rabbits, nor that they weren't being properly cared for. They were allowed to breed uncontrollably, reproducing quickly and causing crowded conditions.
There was mold and fecal matter everywhere, and while it could have been a lovely haven for rabbits that were properly cared for and of one gender, the volunteers and staff were unable to find the time to provide proper care. It was not a pretty picture - though I have seen worse.
What bothers me most about this story is that there is so little information available. I found only two news reports(one from NBC News, the other from Turnto10,) and they both say essentially the same thing. Rabbits were taken with upper respiratory illness and wounds, from dirty living conditions. Unless you watch the video, it is unclear as to if complaints led to a seizure, or if the animals were voluntarily turned over, however it seems that the staff were voluntarily turning them over and asking for help, because they were in over their head. And what thanks do they get?
It's mentioned in the news program that there is concern for the horses. That what was done to the rabbits will obviously happen to the horses. Information is not provided as to if the rabbits were simply brought in by a volunteer
without any conversation with the staff or farm owners, or if it was a planned acquisition.
From some readings, the farm was trying to get rid of the rabbits for an extended period, however they were not able to find help because the rabbits were privately owned and healthy. Rather than help them with the rabbits right away(IE, take all the males, and leave only females, or vice versa), they were ignored, and left to try and handle it on their own. When the riding program closed down for the winter season, far fewer volunteers were coming in, and the rabbits were not able to be cared for, due to the horses being cared for first.
As I see it, this was a poorly executed plan from the get go - people with little to no rabbit knowledge being put in charge of a small colony that was allowed to reproduce at will. The rabbits shouldn't have been there at all, but they were. When push came to shove, and the rabbits had to go, no one was willing to step up and help the riding center, which meant that the rabbits became neglected, and fell ill. There is no way to say if the stress of overcrowded living conditions mixed with mold and unsanitary conditions lead to the rabbits developing respiratory problems, or if it is an occurrence of a latent infection of pasteurella. Only time will tell, but it is easy to see that the farm itself(and breeders by association) will be blamed for any illness that should be transmitted from the "new rescue bunnies" to the "healthy rabbits needing foster". Who knows how far an illness will spread via volunteers, fosters, etc. Who knows how many rabbits will die because of this being allowed to go on. I am of the opinion that it would have been best to kill all 48 of the rabbits on the spot, and follow strict quarantine procedures afterwards, including(but not limited to), completely changing clothes, a hot shower for all humans, washing anything that was in contact with these rabbits or people who had handled the rabbits and disinfecting anything that cannot be washed via disinfectant spray.
So, now that we know how I'd deal with this situation(I take quarantine very seriously, I have not had an ill bunny since I started breeding*knock wood* and I don't want to start now), let's think about how Sweet Binks Rabbit Rescue handled it.
No mention of quarantine. They don't even use the world "snuffles" or "pasteurella". These rabbits all have "upper respiratory infections, respiratory distress, pneumonia, or worse..." Even after acquiring new, sick rabbits, they're pushing their current rabbits out the doors to foster homes. They need the room. They don't mention having a specific "sick room" which would house these rabbits safely, nor do they mention the issues/irritation at following quarantine procedure(I complain about quarantine a lot, like, several times a day while I have rabbits in quarantine). Seventeen rabbits, in fact, went into foster care AFTER they got the ill rabbits. Hopefully any rabbits currently in those foster homes don't contract any illnesses! Two rabbits were even adopted after this publicity stunt... erm... "seizure" and "rescue" event. They do state that they are "closing their doors" for a few weeks, but state that this is because they don't have time, not because of quarantine concerns.
Let's now look at the numbers. Most sources state that there was 48 rabbits. Two were dead, and two were euthanized immediately. That brings us to 44. One died on February 15th, which should leave us with 43 rabbits... however there was only 33 taken to Sweet Binks Rabbit Rescue. Where did the other 10 go? Were they euthanized or did they die as well? Or maybe 48 was a number someone estimated, and everyone ran with it, because the bigger the number, the bigger the public outpouring of support.
Another rabbit died. Yesterday, I think it was. He was unnamed, called #20, and though there are photos of him eating from a large pile of greens, the cause of death was given as "diseased lungs". For any of my readers who might not be rabbit people, throwing a large pile of fresh greens at any rabbit is a bad idea. They will eat them all, and develop digestive issues, which can range from just a sore tummy ache, to bloat, to death. And that's with a healthy rabbit, not one who was reportedly ill. Who knows what else he was fed? Refeeding an animal who has been neglected and potentially starved is not as easy as throwing food in front of them. In fact, providing unlimited food is a bad thing, it can cause more harm than help. I believe that #20 passed away due to ignorance by the rescue, digestive issues caused by inappropriate feeding for an ill/underweight rabbit with an unknown feeding history. They probably gave him a new brand of pellets and didn't ease him into eating them.
How many more rabbits will die, and have their death blamed on a farm who tried to get rid of them and find help, but couldn't until they were ill? The farm is now under investigation for asking for help. They wanted to be rid of these rabbits, but no one would assist them, and now they are being punished for it.
I think that's one of my main problems with this whole story. The farm is being completely vilified when they knew there was a problem, were trying to get assistance, and were turned away until the rabbits finally became ill because their reduced number of volunteers were unable to keep up with all the work. Now it's called a "seizure" and "rescue", when if the farm had received help when they first asked for it, it would have simply been rehoming.
Funny how these rabbits had no value to the rescues and humane societies while they were healthy, but now everyone is up in arms because they're in such horrible condition, and people are lining up to adopt them...