27/11/2022
Respect animals.
Sentenced to life for a crime they didn't commit...
I wake up early in the morning and look around sadly at the enclosed bare walls of my room. I get up and wash myself, ready for another day. As always there's something to eat. Now what? There’s no-one here for company or even to watch. I look around, eager to get up and move about. The door’s locked, I can’t get out. It’s so claustrophobic in here, I long to be free, to run around out in the fresh air. Here he comes, my captor, come to let me out? No, just passing by. I sit and wait. Bored. I wait some more. Lie down. Sit up. Lie down. Sit up. I’m restless. I can’t wait to get out. I sit and nibble at some food. Wait, here he comes again. Yes, let out into the yard. Freedom! (For an hour at least, anyway). It feels so good to finally stretch my legs and have a larger area to play in. Today I don't want to run, I want to explore. Then it's over, here he is to take me back. I don’t want to go back inside. I try to tell him, but he won’t listen, he doesn’t understand me. I have to return to my cell, I’m not allowed to stay out. Locked away again, all on my own. I’m so lonely sat here with nothing to do and barely any space to move. I lie down and relax for a bit, but I’m not tired yet. I want to go out again, but I can’t. What else can I do but lie here, try to make myself comfortable, stretch out as best I can, and drift off to sleep?
I’m a rabbit living in the average hutch, sentenced to life imprisonment for a crime I didn't commit. It doesn't have to be this way. Just because I can’t talk, doesn’t mean I don’t matter. I have feelings, I’m a living and breathing creature that deserves a happy and fulfilling life too. Yes, something bigger than a cell costs more but I’m not just a rabbit, I’m part of the family. I have only one chance at life, just like you, so please give me the best life you can. All life should be valued, no matter how small. We rabbits have been misunderstood for far too long. Enough is enough, the time for change is long overdue. Just because people are used to seeing us living in these small cramped conditions, it doesn't mean that’s how it should be. Help me, you can make a difference, please don’t sentence me to a miserable life. The assumption is 'my rabbit rarely runs', that's true, just like you rarely run. But you can, if you want, I can't if I'm in prison...
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