RSPCA rescues more than 80 guinea pigs and rabbits crammed in a backyard

An RSPCA animal centre is urgently seeking new homes for more than 80 rabbits and guinea pigs who were removed from a property in Bognor Regis after their owner became overwhelmed.

The pets were found in dirty and overcrowded conditions in a backyard when RSPCA officers visited on August 9. Rabbits and guinea pigs were found living in small hutches and makeshift pens, some of which lacked sufficient food and hay.

The animal charity persuaded their owner to sign over 45 guinea pigs and 38 rabbits into its care so they could receive proper care with a view to rehoming them. A further 15 guinea pigs have been placed with an approved foster carer, while the charity continues to work with the owner regarding the remaining animals.

Most of the rabbits, who are mainly Netherland Dwarf breeds and some lops, were found to be in a healthy condition. But all the guinea pigs had mite infestation – and three have since sadly had to be put to sleep because of their condition.

The discovery emerged when a member of the public contacted the RSPCA after responding to an online post offering a pair of guinea pigs for sale.

The rescue illustrates the problems of rabbit owners failing to correctly sex and separate their pets who then breed out of control. In this case, the numbers multiplied from two rabbits to over 30 in a short period of time.

RSPCA officers often deal with issues by working with owners, and by providing advice and education – and said, in this instance, the rapid escalation of animals had got “totally out of control”.

The RSPCA Sussex North & Brighton Branch is now caring for the 83 guinea pigs and rabbits that were taken from the property and staff have begun a mammoth rehoming exercise.

RSPCA inspector Rebecca Carter said: “This shows perfectly the problems you get when owners don’t get on top of the situation, and how quickly things can spiral out of control. The owner had started with two rabbits, but didn’t realise one was male and the other female, and soon there were many more.

“The numbers of guinea pigs had grown for several reasons; the owner’s friends left guinea pigs with her and she had also bred some litters, It is much harder to rehome male guinea pigs, so she had been left with so many which made up most of the guinea pigs found on the property.

“The conditions were wet, dirty and cramped -and weren’t helped by the rapid escalation in animals. Things had got totally out of control.

“We needed to take these animals to ensure they receive better care in new homes. Rabbits breed very quickly and can do so from 12 weeks. Females are very fertile as was illustrated when we found a female rabbit with two different litters lying on top of each other.

“The owner was really upset that things had escalated and was trying to get the numbers of animals down. We are working with her now to reduce the numbers further.”

The RSPCA has urged rabbit owners to prevent the growth of unwanted litters by neutering and sexing their pets after the charity fielded a big 48% rise in the numbers arriving at its animal centres and branches last year. Many of these are full to capacity while rehoming rates from branches dropped by 23% between 2019 and 2022.

The numbers of guinea pigs who have been taken in by the charity this year is lower than the intake of rabbits. But those being looked after by the Sussex North and Brighton Branch make up a quarter of the total RSPCA intake in the first half of this year (165, up to the end of June).

Branch manager Jenny Eden said: “Most of the rabbits are quite young, while the guinea pigs, who are mainly boys, range from a few weeks to one who is four years old.

“We will neuter them and find them good homes. We have been inundated with rabbits in recent times and space really is at a premium, but we have sorted out some temporary housing on site to make sure these bunnies and guinea pigs will have a comfortable stay while they are with us. This shows why it is important to neuter your pets. No-one can possibly look after this number of animals, although it is fair to say that this isn’t a typical case of animal hoarding.”

Anyone interested in adopting any of the guinea pigs and rabbits in the care of the Sussex branch will need to fill in a perfect match form via the branch’s website.