What is Special Bunny?
What is Special Bunny Rescue?
Special Bunny Rescue is an all-volunteer special needs house rabbit rescue, rehabilitation, and adoption shelter located in Carnation, Washington. Special Bunny was inspired by our love for our first special needs bunny, Sunshine the dutch bunny (yup, that’s her in our logo!). She taught us the joys and challenges of living with a special needs bunny. We are a registered 501c3 non-profit organization.
We focus on house rabbits with special needs, but we can also help you if you are looking to adopt a ‘regular’ bunny rabbit! Many of our bunnies are only ‘special needs’ for a little while and are perfect in every way when we put them up for adoption!
Our Mission
Special Bunny serves house rabbits and the people who love them through rescue, rehabilitation, rehoming and sanctuary. We promote compassion, community and proper care, with a focus on elderly and special-needs bunnies.
Danny was abandoned when he got ‘too old.’ He is happiest when he’s being snuggled, and we’re happy to oblige.
Our Focus: Rescue, Adoptions & Special Needs Resources
House rabbits are the third most popular house pet in the US… but they are probably the most misunderstood. House bunnies are smart, loving pets that can be litter trained and even trained to do tricks. They bond completely to their human caretakers and to each other–like penguins, pairs of house rabbits bond for life. And with proper care their lives can (and should) be long. A well-cared-for house rabbit can live for 8-12 years. People who share their homes with house rabbits often adopt or purchase a rabbit without knowing much about their care. In the best case scenarios, rabbit owners learn all about rabbits and their care, and find themselves completely addicted to the delightful company of house rabbits.
Unfortunately, house rabbits are still all too often treated as ‘disposable’ pets. They are purchased when they are cute babies, and often abandoned when they grow up and it becomes clear that a tiny cage is not enough. Older rabbits and those with special needs are especially vulnerable, because it takes money and time to care for them.
We founded Special Bunny because we have a very soft spot for house rabbits with special needs. In our care, abandoned and abused bunnies find a safe and loving environment where they can receive the exceptional medical attention they need. Like all animals, rabbits don’t feel sorry for themselves, but accept the situation they’re in – and we aim to make that situation better!
And we take care of lots of sanctuary bunnies too!
Long story short, Special Bunny is the permanent home of over 60 house rabbits with special needs, and up to 30 rabbits who are waiting to be adopted into forever homes.
Yup. We take care of around 80 bunnies, every day, all the time. And we all also have full time jobs.
The bunnies live in a warm, clean, loving facility that also happens to be the home of our founder. For more information and photos, take a look our shelter tour page.
We are also building this website as a resource for bunny owners – especially owners of special needs bunnies. We have a lot of experience and our goal is to share it, so that we can help as many people as possible care for their own beloved pets.
How can I help?
There are lots of ways you can help us help the rabbits.
Donations. Like any other non profit shelter, we are always in need of money for food, supplies, veterinary care, and all the other expenses involved in taking good care of our bunnies.
Your time. If you live in the Seattle area, especially on the East side near Carnation, we could really use your help. We need people who can help us with our twice-weekly cleaning, small handyman projects, and even just petting the bunnies.
Foster parenting. We take pride in providing clean, warm, comfortable facilities for our bunnies, but we have so many that not all of them can get all the attention and room they’d love to have. We’re always looking for people willing to foster our bunnies, even for just a little while. This also enables us to help more rabbits. If you’re interested, you don’t have to have experience, because we have volunteers who are more than happy to help you every step of the way…they even make house-calls to help you get set up, and we can provide the supplies you’ll need.