Pumpkin and Sparkle, adopted from SDHRS in 2017, were recently returned in heartbreaking condition. They originally only wanted to return Sparkle because "we do not want to take care of her anymore because she is too ill". Because we never separate bonded pairs, after hours of discussion and despite the protest of their 14 year old daughter, we convinced them to return Pumpkin to us as well. When the bunnies arrived at the SDHRS, what we found, broke our hearts.

Ongoing medical care needs: Fluid therapy, daily flea comb brush, force feeding, daily antibiotic medication.

Mango was adopted out for a family with a 9 year old child. After 6 years, the child and the family lost interest and Mango was housed in their garage until they called us to take him back.

Upon returned, we discovered a mass on his should that required removal surgically. Thankfully the mass was benign but he will need constant monitoring to ensure another mass does not grow back.

Ongoing medical care: monitoring to make sure another mass does not grow back.

Pete was originally adopted out to be a companion for a teenager. He was later bonded to another bunny and both were returned to us 3 years later.

They both came back to us in poor condition. Pete had massive fecal build up on his bottom with extremely long nails. Both were very underweight and dehydrated.

Ongoing medical care needs: monitor feeding, sub q fluids administration and daily pain meds.

Griffin was returned to us because his owner could not afford the medical care he needed. He has an infection on one side of his mouth and will need surgery to pull the remaining teeth he has on one side of his mouth and to place antibiotic beads in his jaw in hopes that will help get rid of the infection.

Ongoing medical care needs: Daily pain meds and dental surgery.

Mallo suffered an injury due to an infection in his foot. He broke his foot and dislocated his ankle. Unfortunately, our only option was to amputate his leg. We were racing against time because he was running a fever and the infection was climbing higher up his leg.

Ongoing medical care: monitoring of his wounded area until he is all healed.

Emmy was abandoned at a local shelter covered in debris and with terribly overgrown teeth. Emmy's front teeth were removed in our care with the possibility that the front peg teeth would grow back. This is what we told the adopter.

However, when Emmy need dental attention, they quickly realized that they were unable to care for her financially and she was returned to us 6 months later.

Ongoing medical care needs: Need to monitor diet to make sure she will eat hay and teeth trim.

Lou was returned to us less than a year from being adopted out. The person had a baby and did not have the time to care for her.

In the past year, Lou has developed kidney stones. One stone has passed, but one still remains which we are trying to have her pass on her own. She has also developed eye issues that we are trying to treat with medication.

Ongoing medical care needs: Daily eye medication.

Linus was diagnosed with glaucoma which has caused blindness in his left eye and very limited vision in his right eye.

Due to his chronic eye issues, Linus needs to see a veterinary eye specialist for the rest of of his life to keep his eye issues at bay.

Ongoing medical care needs: Daily eye meds and regular visits to the eye doctor to maintain his eye health.

Baymax came in as a stray rabbit to a nearby shelter. The shelter reported a dislocated hip, but because he was still in good spirits and could hop on his own, we opted to see if he could maintain himself without amputation. Because of his gait, his foot is developing a severe sore hock which means he will now more than likely need a leg amputation sooner than later.

Ongoing medical care needs: Daily administration of topical soothing cream on his foot. Leg amputation.

Friday is 10 years old and bonded to his life partner Frida. He has been diagnosed with a heart disease with fluid around his lungs. As part of our promise to provide the best care, Friday has to receive regular EKGs to monitor his heart arrhythmia and track the progression of his condition, alongside his daily medication regimen.

Ongoing medical care Needs: EKG test, daily medication and monthly vet visits.

Rebel has chronic bladder sludge. Despite many diet adjustments to try to help her, but despite our best efforts she still needs to see a vet every few months to get a bladder flush done. This invasive procedure require anesthesia to perform. She has been hospitalized a few times because of the pain this can cause.

Ongoing medical care Needs: Routine medical bladder flushes and daily pain meds to relieve her pain.

Little Darla has been in our care since 2014 and has lost most of her vision due to cataracts. Recently, she has been diagnosed with a chronic ulcer and now will need her eye removed. Darla just went through her eye removal surgery today (12/18/24) at Pet Emergency and Specialty Center. We hope it alleviates the pain she is having because of the pressure build up.

Ongoing and current medical needs: Daily eye meds, regular vet visits to the eye doctor and now her eye will need to be removed.

Miles arrived at a county shelter covered as a stray rabbit, covered in fleas and dirt, both eyes swollen shut. He was diagnosed with E. Cuniculi, dental disease, eye issues and an ear infection.

We have managed to resolve all of the issues except for his eyes. He will need long-term care for his eyes now.

Ongoing medical care needs: daily eye meds, regular visits to the eye doctor to maintain his eye health.