Wabbits

Yesterday's post gave me the kick in the pants I needed to do something about the rabbits. I called the cathedral grounds office again and talked to the woman who has charge of them. I think most of my fear about making the call related to the sense that I was crossing social boundaries by trying to participate in the care of animals that don't belong to me. But if an animal is not being treated well, I think it's the responsibility of anyone who notices to do something about it, regardless of ownership. So I tried to pretend I was about 45 years old and a staunch community member who had a perfect right to say what I was saying.

The woman I talked to said that the rabbits were under the care of a veterinarian and they were just following his guidelines. I explained that the rabbit rescue societies I contacted said the rabbits should not be kept outdoors, and that if they were, they should be given hay for warmth and should be housed on Carefresh pet bedding, not cedar chips. The woman sounded like she was listening to me, and said she would ask the vet about it and would look into using Carefresh.

There are bigger fish to fry than these two rabbits, I know, and the amount of time I have spent worrying about them is probably ridiculous. But if I was a rabbit living in a wire pen outside, I'd want someone to take an interest in my welfare, so I kind of felt obliged to do something. It also seems like a tragedy of the commons situation. Because they're on public property, everyone probably assumes that someone else will look out for them. But ever since I heard about Kitty Genovese I've felt that I couldn't assume someone else would fix whatever was going on.

I still wish I could do more. But I think that aside from visiting to check on them periodically and give them hay on cold nights if they don't have any, I have done what I can.