We’ve all heard of rescue organizations focusing on cats and dogs, but it may surprise you that people are working all over the nation to rescue and care for domestic rabbits as well.
Why would rabbits need rescuing? One reason is that around Easter, many US families purchase bunnies for their children, thinking it would be cute to see them together and that they would be great photos.
They are unprepared for the commitment a rabbit takes (just like a cat or dog), and they may abandon the rabbit if they feel like they no longer wish to take care of it.
These rabbits end up in parks, playgrounds, surrendered at shelters, or other random places because people sometimes assume that since they’re rabbits, they’ll survive in nature.
That is not true, domestic rabbits do best in indoor homes with lots of attention and stimulation, preferably with another rabbit.
Domestic rabbits do not understand how to escape predators or blend into the outside environment. Some rabbits are rescued from hoarding situations or abuse, and some have special needs.
If you’re considering adopting a rabbit, check out some of our favorite rabbit rescues in Ohio.
Other articles you would like: Best Rabbit Rescues In The USA and Rabbit Rescues in Pennsylvania.
1. Ohio House Rabbit Rescue
The vision of Ohio House Rabbit Rescue is that every pet rabbit can have an indoor home full of love with access to the proper dietary, social, and medical care that they need to live a happy life.
They run a rabbit adoption center, rescue bunnies from dangerous or neglectful situations, and provide educational seminars and presentations to the general public about rabbit care.
In Central Ohio alone, around 900 domestic rabbits are surrendered to animal shelters. If these are not no-kill shelters, perfectly healthy rabbits risk needless euthanasia if they’re not taken by a rabbit rescue or adopted quickly.
The founder of OHRR saw a need for a rescue center in Central Ohio after rescuing nine domestic rabbits just on her own and hearing the jarring statistics above.
OHRR’s adoption center can care for 25-30 rabbits at a time, but that’s not enough. They rely heavily on volunteers in every facet, but they also get funding from grants and their retail shop.
Ohio House Rabbit Rescue Details:
- Location: Columbus, Ohio
- Phone Number: 614-263-8557
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: Ohio House Rabbit Rescue
- Social Media: Facebook
2. Buckeye House Rabbit Society
The House Rabbit Society is a national and international organization with chapters in 30 states. They also have chapters in Italy, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Australia.
Each chapter, however, is governed on its own—there is no central governing body, so these chapters act as independent rabbit rescues and educational centers.
The Buckeye House Rabbit Society was founded in 1997 and serves Northern Ohio. It is a non-profit rabbit rescue run entirely by volunteer staff.
It receives its funding from donors and sponsors. You can make one-time donations or sign up to sponsor Sanctuary Rabbits, which we will discuss below.
The Buckeye House Rabbit Society’s purpose and goal is to rescue. They aim to save lives, and usually, they rescue rabbits from animal shelters that are at capacity. They then work to adopt out rabbits they rescue by thoroughly vetting potential adopters.
They also have a foster program so bunnies can live in a safe and social environment to prepare them for adoption.
Sanctuary Rabbits are rabbits with special needs or behavioral issues that make them hard to adopt. These bunnies live out their lives at the sanctuary and are cared for by volunteers.
Sponsors can help pay for food, bedding, and medical expenses for these rabbits.
Buckeye House Rabbit Society Details:
- Location: Toledo/Fremont, Akron, Cleveland, Ohio
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: Buckeye House Rabbit Society
- Social Media: Facebook
3. Columbus House Rabbit Society
This is another independently run chapter of the national House Rabbit Society.
Columbus House Rabbit Society comes up with fun and creative ways of engaging with potential adoptive families and donors, and with people who just enjoy cute items with bunnies on them!
They have an online shop and a CafePress shop, and they also sell specialty bunny supplies to bring money into their organization so they can keep rescuing rabbits in need and educating the public about these lovely animals.
The Columbus House Rabbit Society has been rescuing rabbits and uniting them with their forever families for twenty years now.
Their main goal besides removing abandoned, neglected, or injured bunnies from dangerous situations is to get those bunnies adopted.
One huge part of the CHRS’s work is that they provide their publications and presentations to schools, businesses, and other organizations about the proper way to care for rabbits.
And they educate people on what rabbits need, how they behave, and why they make such wonderful pets.
CHRS even does individual personal consultations if you’re having health problems or behavioral issues with your rabbits.
It’s $12 each year to become a member of the CHRS, and membership fees help them fund their rescues while you get resources to keep you in the know about CHRS events.
Columbus House Rabbit Society Details:
- Location: Westerville, Ohio
- Website: Columbus House Rabbit Rescue
- Social Media: Facebook
4. River Road Rabbit Rescue
River Road Rabbits is a foster-to-adopt rescue in Athens, Ohio, that was formed to not only rescue rabbits that have been surrendered or abandoned.
But also to create rabbit-centered ways to educate the community and bring awareness about how awesome rabbits are as animals and as pets in your home.
For example, they do bunny-themed library readings for children, presentations on proper bunny care, and they teach you all about how to keep and care for a happy, healthy bun.
The reason River Road Rabbits does a foster-to-adopt program is that not everyone is as prepared as they think they are when it comes to owning and caring for a rabbit or two in their home.
They can see whether or not they’re a good fit for each other all while fostering bunnies so that River Road Rabbit Rescue can take in more rescued bunnies.
If you’re a veteran rabbit parent or a new bunny guardian, they are always there to answer any questions you have about caring for your bunnies, be it dietary needs, behavioral anomalies, best practices for bunny health, or anything else you can think of.
River Road Rabbit Rescue Details:
- Location: Athens, Ohio
- Phone Number: 740-517-3486
- Email: [email protected]
- Social Media: River Road Rabbit Rescue
5. Columbus Humane
Columbus Humane’s mission is to keep pushing forward with new ways to get ahead in animal welfare. They believe that innovation is essential to creating new methods and techniques to get needy animals out of shelters and into forever homes.
They also have a strong fostering program, so if animal welfare is your passion, you can open up your home to socialize (in this particular case) bunnies that aren’t quite ready for adoption.
This could be due to the need to get used to humans, other rabbits, and other animals, or perhaps they need a safe place to heal from a medical procedure.
Either way, you have the opportunity with Columbus Humane to train as a foster parent and you can have the love of bunnies in your home any time.
All of the bunnies at Columbus Humane are spayed or neutered and they are ready to meet their forever families. If you want to adopt a rabbit, Columbus Humane is always updating its page so that you know the bunnies you see all of the adoptable rabbits.
You can volunteer to care for these rabbits at the center and to educate the public on why it’s so important to spay and neuter your buns as well as methods on how to best care for your lagomorph friends.
Rabbits in captivity can live for up to two decades, so it’s essential to educate people on the long-term commitment that is having a rabbit.
Columbus Humane is currently raising funds for its new Essential Care Center, a facility that will provide essential pet supplies, education, and veterinary care to an area where 66% of pets have never even been to a vet.
Columbus Humane Details:
- Location: Hilliard, Ohio
- Phone Number: 614-777-7387
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: Columbus Humane
- Social Media: Columbus Humane
6. Dayton House Rabbit Society
We have another chapter of the House Rabbit Society working to promote rabbit welfare! The Dayton House Rabbit Society exists to rescue rabbits that are abandoned in the wild first and foremost.
Their next objective is to educate the general public on why this practice is so harmful to rabbits and what they should expect when it comes to taking care of a rabbit as an indoor pet.
As you may have gathered, many people have a lot of assumptions when it comes to raising rabbits in their homes, and they may not know that carrots are like candy to rabbits and are not a part of their daily diet.
That rabbits need plenty of room to jump and run; and that they are social animals that do best as part of a bonded pair.
DHRS teaches all this and more. Their final objective is to partner with other rescues to continue improving the welfare of rabbits and to find rabbits their forever homes.
You can donate directly to Dayton House Rabbit Society so you can help them purchase hay for their foster rabbits looking for homes, provide spay and neuter surgeries, and give them any medical care and enrichment that they need to be happy and healthy.
Donations also help to produce and distribute educational materials. You can also make DHRS your charity of choice on Amazon Smile so that whenever you make an Amazon purchase, Amazon donates to DHRS.
Dayton House Rabbit Society Details:
- Location: Vandalia, Ohio
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: Dayton House Rabbit Society
- Social Media: Facebook
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