Seven domestic rabbits, including a mum, dad and their 12 week old babies, were rescued by The Mayhew Animal Home last week after being callously thrown out of the boot of a car and left to fend for themselves on Hampstead Heath.

The beautiful bunnies were alerted to the attention of our Animal Welfare Officers after they received a call from two dog walkers who witnessed the cruel scene unfold from afar.

We was informed that a woman was spotted pulling up onto the Heath in her car, where she began to throw the seven rabbits one-by-one from the boot of her car and onto the Heath.

All seven rabbits were in good health when they arrived at our shelter, but were obviously in shock. The rabbits, consisting of a mum, dad and five 12 week old babies including one girl and four boys, are believed to be domesticated due to their sweet and easy-to-handle nature, but had not been neutered.

Our Vet Team promptly attended to the rabbits when they arrived, giving them check-ups and our Cattery Team settled them into large cages in a warm room with plenty of food, water and space to hop about.

Our staff has since named the male rabbits after the recent X-Files, naming the dad Mulder and the four boys Dana, X-Files, Scully and Fox, whilst the females were given daintier names, with the mum named Fifi Trixibell and the girl Toni Collette. Though some of the rabbits are a little shy, they are all kind-natured and calm, and have been enjoying a good nibble on straw and vegetables.

The rabbits will continue to be cared for by us until they have been neutered and vaccinated, and then they will be taken to a rabbit shelter where they will be rehomed.

Our Animal Welfare Manager, Zoe Edwards, said: “To dump rabbits like rubbish is a terrible act. We’re so glad that the rabbits were spotted in time and weren’t left to fend for themselves on Hampstead Heath for too long. Being what appears to be domesticated rabbits, it’s worrying to think what could have happened to them if they’d been abandoned there for much longer.”

“Thankfully the rabbits appear to be in good health, but are just in a little shock of course. We’ve popped them in cages with plenty of food, water and bedding to make them warm and cosy, and set them up with outside runs so they can really settle in and feel comfortable.”

“This is another case of pets not being neutered. The rabbits had the five babies and their owner probably couldn’t cope. We offer low cost neutering for rabbits, as well as cats and dogs, so there is no excuse not to get pets neutered.”

Our Animal Welfare Officers rescue hundreds of abandoned and neglected animals every year. You can find out more about the work they do on our website.

Though we now only rehome cats and dogs, we still rescue all animals and have even taken in foxes, snakes, tortoise, ferrets and parrots in the past.
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