The Rabbit Welfare Fund. Registered charity number: 1085689
Although rabbits are the third most popular domestic pet in Britain, RSPCA statistics show that they are often the most neglected. Many still live lives of solitary confinement in small hutches, without the opportunity to satisfy their basic fundamental needs. Rescue Centres are full of rabbits who have suffered through the ignorance of their owners and then through no fault of their own become unwanted. Sadly many pet owners do not understand just what a rabbit needs to live a healthy, happy life. The Rabbit Welfare Fund believes that a hutch is not enough...
What is the Rabbit Welfare Fund?
The Rabbit Welfare Fund is a charitable trust fund Registered as a charity in March 2001, the RWF received its original funding from the donations given by members of the RWAF to help in its educational projects.
Practical action
Every year thousands of our educational leaflets are produced
and distributed via veterinary practices, rescue centres, pet
shops and directly from the RWF. The range of leaflets we
produce expands each year and addresses common health and
behavioural problems.
We hold an annual educational conference, and each year it
gets bigger and better. Veterinary Surgeons and Veterinary
Nurses along with rabbit owners and rescue workers can keep
up to date with the latest developments from our distinguished
panel of rabbit experts.
The RWF is delighted to be a partner with Bristol Zoo in funding
a 3 year Veterinary Resident. We hope this will have a great
impact throughout the veterinary profession and rabbit clients
will benefit as a result.
We were also involved in the consultation process of the updated 2004 Animal Act, and sit on the panel of other pro-active organisations such as the Pets Advertising Advisory Group. We are committed to getting our message across to the veterinary profession by attending the annual British Veterinary Nursing Association (BVNA) congress.
This is only the beginning. Of course we’ll continue to expand our range of education literature and hold our highly regarded conferences, but below are just some of the other steps being planned by the RWF to help make a difference…
- Working with schools to directly educate primary school children about caring for their pet rabbits.
- Providing grants to organisations or individuals to further our aims.
- Producing a ‘Rabbit Awareness’ Pack that can be used by vets, schools, pet shops etc to hold events for their clients, students or staff.
- Providing ‘Outreach Officers’ who will be able to work with local schools, pet shops and vet practices
How you can help
As you can see, we have the blueprint for
achieving a better life for all domestic pet rabbits,
but to continue we need your help! Please look at the opportunites for helping us to continue our vital work to imporove the lives of pet rabbits in the UK by visiting our Get involved page.
