I just rescued a rabbit

[yorkshirelamb]

I live in an apartment complex, and today I noticed a rabbit outside in a wire cage. The door was open--didn't even shut, and the rabbit had a leash on to keep it attached to the cage. His/her water was in a mug, which I doubt he could even reach, and he was sitting on moldy hay. So I took him. The apartment obviously had several kids, so I don't think they paid that much attention to him. I'm surprised something hadn't attacked him already, especially since the cage was right on the ground. I've gently bathed him with water to wash off the grime and a few encrusted poops, no soap since I don't have any animal friendly ones. Right now he has water and is running around in my bathroom with the door closed, no exposed wires or anything. I'm going to get him some food and make a C&C cage as soon as possible. If the people miss him and come looking for him, or if anyone saw me, I'm going to cover myself by saying that his leash had broken and no one looked home (it was dark) so I took him in for the night. I'm hoping they don't miss him and I can keep him. I had rabbits as a kid so I'm not 100% clueless, though of course they didn't have a C&C cage. I talked to my mom a little and she agrees that I did the right thing, I just feel all jittery, like I've broken the law or something. I've never done anything like this before and could use a little reassurance.

[SkinnyPiggys]

Check out

House Rabbit Society Rabbit Care Guide

Morfz.com
(rabbit refs)

Good luck!

[yorkshirelamb]

Already checked out everything on that site . I've thought about a house rabbit and done some research before. So far, no signs of outcry from the previous owners, if they even notice he's gone.

[aNiMaLsAmArItAn]

That takes guts to save an animal that obviously belongs to someone else (even if the owers are clueless animal abusers). I applaud you for you generous deed, and I hope you can keep him!

[2bunny4me]

That took a lot of courage! You did not break the law (as far as I'm concerned). You rescued an abused, practically abandoned, helpless animal! Congrats! The previous "owner" probably thought the bunny got away, which is most likely what they were hoping for since the cage was outside and open. Rabbits don't bark or make any noise (that can be heard outside your apartment), so they won't know you are housing the bunny. It seems to me the bunny now has a loving bunny mommy! Good luck! Keep us all posted!

[yorkshirelamb]

Thank you everyone for your kind words! To keep you updated, the owners did finally post a 'missing' sign...four days after I took him. He now has a 2 by 4 C&C cage for nighttime and when I'm at work (I only work 4 hours nightly). The rest of the day he has free run in our kitchen/dining room area or gets cuddle time on the sofa. Each day he shows more personality and does more laps around the kitchen. He already knows that mommy equals treats! He pees in his litterbox 50% of the time and I haven't really been watching him to train him right away on that. He did have red urine in the night but I read that is a fairly normal occurance and his urine today was normal so I'm not worried about that. He's not too interested in any toys yet though--any tips about enticing him to play?