This Romeo is Needing - Urgent Appeal

A glooming peace this morning with it brings;
The sun, for sorrow, will not show his head
Go hence, to have more talk of these sad things;

Our Romeo, a male rabbit who recently entered the network, has a tale that’s not quite as tragic as his famous namesake, but he’s having a good go at claiming the title.

In the short time he’s been with us, he’s already proven to be the most accident prone rabbit we’ve yet had to deal with. Having previously lived alone in a hutch, rarely getting out, when he had access to a proper run for the first time in a while he thoroughly enjoyed hopping around, playing with the toys, and when he saw other rabbits in the runs next door to him he was naturally curious. Unfortunately he stuck his nose in where it wasn’t wanted and needed a trip to the vet for stitches. No simple matter for a rabbit, getting stitches involves anaesthetic, but after a couple of days with lots of encouragement to get his appetite back, Romeo bounced back, and looked set to start looking for his forever home with a friend (formally introduced of course!) and lots of space to run around in.

No sooner had we got him back onto his food however, we noticed he was now limping. Still hopping about, but definitely holding his back leg up, not wanting to put any weight on it. As most rabbit owners are aware, rabbits have incredibly powerful back legs. These are great for running fast, jumping great heights and doing fantastic binkies, but every so often it gets them into trouble. We’ve all heard the horror stories of rabbits kicking their legs so hard that they broke their own back! So, another vet trip, another anaesthetic, this time to do an x-ray, and the worst was confirmed. Romeo has broken his thigh bone. How he managed this we can’t be exactly sure but the fact is he has broken his leg!

For Romeo, this is a disaster. He has been on Metacam for the past few days to manage the pain and has been confined to “bed” to limit movement of his broken leg: devastating for a bunny that had just rediscovered the joy of movement, but in this case necessary to minimise the damage.

After a consult with a senior vet we were left with three choices:

1. Leave it to heal on its own, managing pain with medication. Risks of this approach include the possibility of the bone healing out of place and resulting in permanent mobility problems, or the potential for a prolonged healing if the leg breaks multiple times during the healing process.
   
2. Surgery to pin his leg and stabilise it. This will increase the chances of a successful recovery but due to the type of fracture there are still some risks to be considered (not least the fact that it is a big operation for a rabbit to go through!).
   
3. Accept that he has had a significant injury, will undoubtedly be in pain and has already been through a lot. Helping him to hop off to rainbow bridge in peace may be an option.
   

After much deliberation we decided that we didn’t want to risk leaving it alone and possibly allowing the situation to worsen, and putting a rabbit to sleep that could be saved just doesn’t seem fair – he’s still eating well, and as curious and bright as ever, and seems to still have so much life about him despite his injury. So, we want to be able to give the second option, pinning his leg, a try in the hope that it will give him the best chance long-term. We have great confidence in the talents and experience of our vet and are hopeful that this would give Romeo the greatest chance of a full recovery.

But here’s the problem! The surgery, under normal circumstances, would cost in excess of £500. A great advert for the benefits of pet insurance, but sadly our rescue rabbits don’t qualify for insurance whilst in the rescue network, so this will hit our finances big time! The vet has very generously agreed to give us a discount off the normal cost, but we are still looking at the prospect of a bill into a few hundred pounds, on top of the costs of the anaesthetics he’s already had to get us this far!

This is an unexpected cost, and whilst our fundraising attempts this year have been reasonable there have been a number of our usual events that were cancelled due to poor weather, and turn-outs at community galas, shows & events have been lower as a result of the changeable weather too. We are fully reliant on all our fundraising events to cover our costs, as our minimum donation fees for adoption are considerably lower than the typical cost of preparing a rabbit for their new home. A single rabbit, for example, will cost in the region of £100 to neuter & vaccinate (assuming no other complications), and our minimum donation fee in that scenario would be £40. As with all rescue services, money is regularly tight and an unexpected bill to this magnitude could easily cripple us.

We believe the decision to proceed is right for Romeo, but we are concerned that having to cover his costs will result in a significant delay to the treatment of other rabbits in the network, and may result in us having to refuse those rabbits desperately waiting to enter the service for their chance of a forever loving home.

And so we turn to you for help. We really (heavily) rely on the generosity of the public to help see our rabbits achieve their dream of a loving family home with bunny friends and lots of space and attention.

ROMEO NEEDS YOUR HELP!

He is a lovely bunny who’s had a really tough few weeks, but he deserves every chance to recover well and go on to be a wonderful pet.

Please sponsor Romeo's recovery at http://www.justgiving.com/fbrc-romeo to help pay for Romeo’s much needed surgery. He desperately needs your help and every small donation will add up to ensure he gets the care he needs!

We simply can’t afford to do this without you.

Thanks




For never was a story of more woe
Than this of a bunny named Romeo

Bless him

Will donate some towards his care.

I can't stop thinking about Romeo

Will donate when I get home too x

Oh bless him.

I'll donate in a sec x

I will help love but it wont be for a few days. I am not putting it off I really do not have any money.

Hugs

JO xx

Oh Romeo Romeo you may get your Op after all

For those following his story, I just wanted to give you all a wee update.

Romeo was in for his first op yesterday and all went very well. The vet decided during the op though that the pin would need an external frame to give it added support. This of course means that he will need to go back in once the healing process is well underway to have the supporting frame removed.

He's back on his feet (all four of them!), and eating well just now.

So far a great success for the first stage, and we're very proud of how he's coping with it all. We're just so excited to see him through this awful spell he's had an hopefully he'll be safe in his forever home before we know it.

A huge thanks to all those who have supported Romeo through his operation so far. If you would like to support him through the next stages of his op, please see his page at http://www.justgiving.com/fbrc-romeo

Oh this has made me cry as I have been so worried about him

So glad he is doing ok and we wish him all the best with the next stage of his Op

What a brave brave boy Romeo is xxxxxxxxxxxx

* I thought he was a black and white butterfly lop and he's brown and white *

done

Finally got round to it, just sorry it can't be more.

I am glad he is over his first stage love, he is such a beautiful little bunny who is very much like my Mr Snuffles. I have made a note to send a donation but it wont; be for a couple of days I am sad to say. As our friend Sue above says, I too wish it could be more.

Please keep us posted.

Love and hugs

Jo xxx

Thanks for the update - I'm so glad he is doing so well

Although he might not thank you for posting photos of his bald bum on the internet

Does he know the photos are on the internet for everybunny to see LOL?!!

Hugs

Jo xx

Folks,

Just wanted to give you another wee update on Romeo.

He had his last checkup at the vets today and has been given the all clear now. His leg will always be a little weaker than the "healthy" one, but muscle tone and strength is coming back now and the vet is very pleased with his progress.

Now all we have to do is worry about paying the vet bills, and find the wee guy a forever home where he can be bonded with another rabbit or small group ;-)

Here's a brief video of the wee guy earlier this evening.

I havent seen any of his updates, but its lovely to see him doing so well!!

I hope he finds a loving forever home soon, he really deserves is after all hes been through. Merry Christmas to little Romeo

Oh Romeo - he is so gorgeous

awww what a precious boy romeo is

I love the little white tip on his nose.

Hugs

Jo xx

We are praying for Romeo!