RABBIT OWNERS: PLEASE BE AWARE OF RHDV2 - A FATAL VIRUS TO RABBITS THAT IS GETTING CLOSER TO LOUISIANA
To View What Clinics Have A Vaccine Available Click Here
Click Here For Latest Info On RHDV2 And Its Symptoms
We need our fans on Facebook and Instagram to help us out! If every one of our followers that regularly sees and interacts with our content donates $1 a month, we'll be able to better cover monthly bunny and piggy expenses and be able to put some aside for unexpected/emergency veterinary care!
Click the donate button, then choose your dollar amount and be sure to select "Make this a monthly donation" before finalizing.
As of 2/8/2022 we are at $416 of our $500 monthly donor goal
Like most rescues, fundraising has been difficult since 2020 and 2021 has not been much easier. In October of 2020, our board members realized we needed to find another way to help raise funds for the pets in our care, and our monthly donor plan was created to help us plan our budget.
Every dollar helps - no amount is too small! Some donors choose as little as $3/month, others $5, $10, or $20.
In 2021 we have seen a serious uptick in abandoned rabbits, especially strays, and we had to limit owner surrenders being added to our wait list since the number of requests was far greater than the number of foster homes we have had. After Hurricane Ida we had another increase in requests as many peoples homes and lives were upended by damage from the hurricane.
We would love to keep on helping bunnies as we have, but our board members have come to the realization that we need a better long-term solution to help us ensure we consistently have the funding we need every month to continue to care for the 35-40 rabbits in our foster home program.
Monthly food/hay costs for both rabbits and guinea pigs averages around $1000 a month. This does not include vet care and overhead costs.
For 2021 intakes, we have averaged 8 rabbits a month and 13 guinea pigs - That’s an average of $400 for rabbits just to spay/neuter, microchip, and fecal test (does not include any additional medical cost/treatment). For guinea pigs neuter costs vary depending on the number of males we take in.
Now that Louisiana has a Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease Virus (RHDV2) vaccine available, each rabbit will need to be vaccinated prior to adoption, which will also add to new intake cost for rabbits.
Medical cases can cost us anywhere from $100 to $1000 depending on the care needed. We typically prioritize rabbits and guinea pigs with medical issues, and we generally post fundraisers when we do, but we would like to be able to more comfortably cover that without having to rely on emergency fundraising.
***Our goal for 2022 is to reach $500 in monthly donations***
If we are able to achieve close to 2,500 monthly $1 donors - We would be able to cover monthly costs, and the hope is we'll be able to put some aside for medical cases. We would also be better able to provide options such as more opportunities for low-cost spay/neuters for our community. Offering a spay/neuter coupon helps rabbits become easier to care for (calmer, easier to litterbox train) and more often stay in their homes without becoming "too much to handle" and then getting kicked out. We also try to offer this option to people who find stray rabbits that we don't have room for so that the bunny can be properly vetted before being rehomed.
Every penny donated goes towards the pets in our program. We are a non-profit, 501c3 organization. We are 100% volunteer run, which means that our volunteers and even board members are not paid for in-home care, answering emails and messages, transports, etc.
Magic Happens Rescue was established in 2004 and veterinary medicine has advanced significantly (and costs have increased) even in just those 17 years! By helping us be able to count on a set amount in our account each month, that will help us be able to take better advantage of this technology.
The following are cases from 2021 alone, these are bunnies that we are either currently treating or successfully treated earlier in the year. These are not all of our major medical cases, but they are a good majority. Click on the picture to enlarge.
Hermes was a found stray in Hammond. His finder noticed that his back legs were not working quite right. After a vet trip we are still not sure if he cannot use his back legs due to injury or genetic issues (i.e he was born with his legs splayed). Despite his disability, he does not let it slow him down much! Food is his absolute favorite and he loves pets and attention.
Because he cannot lift himself to urinate, he needs to be on special bedding and have his bladder expressed daily to help keep him dry. He is on supplements and medication to help him out as well! He has two stuffed animal friends that he likes to groom.
Zack was brought to Terrebonne Parish Shelter right before Hurricane Ida. We took him a few days after the hurricane and began treatment for his head tilt. After he had finished treatment, his tilt did improve some and he has had excellent balance. He is currently on a foster-to-adopt trial run to be a friend to another bun!
Annalee had been brought to a friend to be bunny sat while her owner was on vacation, and due to a series of unfortunate events, she was never picked back up. We took her in once we realized that she had scabs on her face and near her eyes, and the vet treated her for sphyllis. Once she had recovered, she went into foster care. She fit in so well with her new foster mom that she adopted her and bonded her with her other bunny.
Terry was a stray that had been brought to Terrebonne Parish Animal Shelter and had several botflies embedded in the skin on his cheeks. While the shelter staff did what they could, they felt he would have a better chance with us. Our veterinarian was able to successfully remove the rest of the botflies. Once he had been neutered and had healed, he was adopted out to be a friend to another bunny.
Ryuk was a found stray with a large lump on his back. Due to the size and location, the finder reached out to us thinking that he would need to be humanely euthanized. We took him in and realized that the lump was a large abscess, likely from being attacked by another animal and it become infected. Our vet was able to clean the abscess thoroughly and it was able to heal. You can’t even tell where it had been! He is healthy and still looking for a home.
Hiccup was surrendered to a local vet clinic that reached out to us. He had been dropped by a child and the family had not realized his leg had been broken for about a week. His leg needed to be amputated as the break was too old and in too awkward of a spot to fix. After he had recovered and was deemed ready for adoption, Hurricane Ida hit and we had difficulty finding a furever home for him. We sent him and a few other bunnies to Dolly’s Dream House so they would have a better chance at finding a home, and all were adopted to amazing homes within 2 months.
Zale was part of a group of ‘meat rabbits’ rescued in spring 2021. His rescuer realized that with his head tilt, Zale was going to need extra special care. We took him in and treated him for about 3 months, and while his head tilt did not fully resolve, we were able to find a wonderful experienced home for him through another rabbit rescue in Texas. He was adopted with his stuffed animal friends and his favorite Hop’n Flop bed!
Sir Bartholomew Flopsalot was abandoned outside in an apartment complex right before a winter storm in February. Strays often have some form of parasite, most are successfully treated after one round of medicine but some require more than one treatment! Sir Bartholomew had coccidia (an intestinal parasite), and because of the severity he required multiple treatments. He was adopted then returned shortly after due to housing issues, and was adopted out again later in the year.
The following are cases from 2020 alone, nearly every month we have had a significant medical case, sometimes two or three! These are bunnies that we are either currently treating or successfully treated earlier in the year. These are not all of our major medical cases, but they are a good majority. Click on the picture to enlarge. (All bunnies have been adopted!)
Sally was found as a stray in Amite with several healing bite/puncture wounds all over her face and shoulders, she was estimated to be around 8-12 weeks old. She healed up well and was adopted in January 2021!
Precious came to us after being given to a good samaritan who realized she/he needed veterinary care and contacted us. Precious we estimate to be very young, only about 4-5 weeks old, and they had a large abscess from a cat attacking them. The abscess was cleaned out, and then removed once he was old enough to be neutered. He was adopted in December 2020 with a bunny friend!
Sherlock came to us early October from St. Tammany Parish Animal Shelter. Due to the snot/scabbing/infection near his nose and genitals we are suspecting he may have syphilis so he is currently undergoing treatment at the vet and being quarantined for that. He also had a mild case of ear mites which has since cleared (adopted).
Mycroft also came to us early October from St. Tammany Parish Animal Shelter, he had severely overgrown/misaligned incisors and peg teeth that we had removed whenever he underwent his neuter. He is feeling much better and able to enjoy food much more easily now! (Adopted)
Will arrived underweight, with a matted bottom, and also had very overgrown incisors. He had his incisors removed when he underwent his neuter. He recovered quickly and was adopted about a month later by one of our volunteers!
Sonic came to us in June, she had been a stray in Lafreniere Park in New Orleans. The finder realized that she had a major infection/growth on her genitals which ended up being vaginal hyperplasia. What that is, is essentially too much tissue, the cells over-proliferated and can be the first stage of a tumor. Our vet was able to reduce it and spayed her. The hope is that because she was spayed, this will reduce hormones and prevent it from growing in size again. She also had ear mites as well as hookworms. Since the growth didn't return she was cleared for adoption about a month later and was adopted in September 2021!
Harvey was a severely underweight, lethargic stray that came to us in April. His former owner released him and a friend in their neighborhood. Harvey's friend unfortunately didn't make it, and a good samaritan contacted us about Harvey. He had parasites which were part of the reason for his being underweight, we're also not sure how long he was surviving in the neighborhood before he came to us. He fortunately recovered in about 2 months and was adopted in July 2020!
Cody was one of eight rabbits that we took in from Tangi Humane Society in February. He was the worst off of the bunch, besides ear mites he also had major urine scalding/staining, underweight, and runny eyes. The rest of his friends, who apparently weren't there as long as he was, had ear mites, were underweight, and some had bite wounds from being housed together. Cody, after various antibiotic drops and xrays, it was determined that he did have elongated toothroots that cause his eyes to run occasionally. His eye runny-ness has dramatically decreased since his arrival and he went out for an adoption 'trial run' in October 2020 and was finalized in November 2020.
Obi Bun Kenobi was one of our first medical cases of 2020. He was found as a stray in January, emaciated, urine stained/matted, holding his leg oddly, and he also had a severe case of ear mites. Fortunately he did not have any broken limbs but he did have parasites. It took him about 2 months to recover to the point that he was healthy enough for us to neuter, and he was then adopted later in the summer!
Browse our Chewy wishlist and donate an item or two for the bunnies!
Browse our Amazon wishlist and donate an item or two. While we accept food donations, we don't ask for them regularly as we are able to purchase hay & foods in bulk directly from Oxbow through their Rescue Rewards program for a much cheaper rate than it can be purchased by the public. We'd rather see your donations go further!
Select "Magic Happens Rabbit Rescue" to be your charity when you shop with smile.amazon.com and we'll receive a donation from Amazon!
All rabbits are spayed or neutered prior to adoption. Guinea pig boys have a better chance at getting adopted out with a friend if they are neutered. Sponsoring a spay or neuter helps adopting families by keeping adoption fees low, and it helps the rescue by increasing adoptions as well! By keeping adoption fees low, it also makes it more attractive for new pet owners to adopt a mature spayed/neutered rabbit or guinea pig rather than buying a baby and possibly not getting it altered later, or worse, surrendering it after puberty. Click here to learn more.
A donation to charity is a wonderful gift to give or receive. It's the perfect gift for the person who has everything! Click here to donate.