An adorable picture of a family of rabbits rescued by the RSPCA in Berkshire looks like the mum is giving a home school lesson.
The Beatrix Potter style snap would strike a chord with many a harassed parent around the country as the chance picture of the family makes it look like the mum is giving a lesson to no less than seven of her babies.
Animal Collection Officer (ACO) Tasha Clarke rescued the three rabbits – one male and two pregnant females – at the end of March after a member of the public spotted the poor rabbits being abandoned in a cardboard box near a park in Slough. The rabbits were then taken to RSPCA Millbrook Animal Centre in Surrey for care.
Both the females gave birth during the lockdown. Clover, the grey rabbit, has seven babies which are around five weeks old and Buttercup, the brown rabbit, has six babies which are now about two and a half weeks old and have just started to come out of their next and explore.
Elizabeth Wood, deputy manager at RSPCA Millbrook, said: “Sadly these poor rabbits were abandoned by their previous owner so perhaps they knew they were pregnancy and thought they couldn’t cope. We would urge owners not to abandon their pets and to seek help from friends and family instead.
“The rabbits are all doing well and it’s really lovely to see them come out of their nest, start to eat their veggies and grow in size and confidence each day. We thought the babies looked like they were being home schooled by their mums in these pictures – and one was more successful home schooling session than the other.”
Despite enquiries, an owner has not been found so the rabbits will be available for rehoming when they are all old enough. However, there are plenty of bunnies looking for homes at the RSPCA for those interest in adopting a pair of rabbits now.
For more information or to donate whatever you can to help the RSPCA visit www.rspca.org.uk/covid
