Has anyone seen these rabbits in their PAH store? How can it be ethical to perform neutering on 4-5wk rabbits that should still be with their mum in the nest - then ship them across Europe to be sold in PAH at 8 wks :( :(
This is the reply to a letter sent about these :

Dear Miss ***In relation to our VIP rabbits, they come from a breeder on the continent, their facilities have been inspected by our Pets at home Head of Pets, who herself is an experienced Veterinary Surgeon. The rabbits are neutered, microchipped and vaccinated against Myxomatosis and VHD, however we recommend topping up the VHD vaccine at 12 weeks of age. They are 8 weeks old when we first offer them for sale. The new Nobivac Myxo-RHD Vaccine was only launched last week so at the moment is not being used on these rabbits.
As a business we are paying additional costs to carry out the trial to understand how we can replicate the process in the UK, the VIP rabbits are transport by air to minimise the length of time travelling. Any pets that are imported into the UK are done so adhering to strict importation regulations specified by DEFRA and the EU. This is a small trial which includes a maximum of 16 stores at any one time out of 314 stores, for example we only received 26 neutered rabbits into our stores as part of the trial last week.
Our focus is to establish if there is a market in the UK for rabbits that have been vaccinated and/or neutered, this will offer welfare benefits for the rabbits, reduced risk of unwanted pregnancies as well as a substantial saving for customers on having to pay for vaccinations and neutering at a later date. Being able to neuter, vaccinate and microchip the animals before they arrive in our stores, is key to helping us promote responsible pet ownership and ensuring that the animals in our care go on to live happy, healthy lives. We know that many people do not neuter or vaccinate their rabbits and are keen to try different ways of encouraging this.
We know from the rabbit welfare groups that rabbits are social and a male and female pair is the best pairing. We cannot recommend this as we sell rabbits at 8-10 weeks old and customers would end up with a lot of unwanted babies, the last thing we want. The only way we can find to enable this is by selling them neutered at a young age.
One of the key reasons for doing this is that this supplier has established breeding, weaning practices and takes a great deal of pride in the pets they breed. Their vet is highly trained and experienced in all aspects of animal care, but is a specialist in rabbits. He performs neutering procedures via surgery on rabbits at 4 - 5 weeks of age whilst this is younger than in the UK, the vet is very experienced at this and recovery time is short for these rabbits. It is our aim if the trial is successful to look for highly trained vets in this country with additional training who would be able to complete the neutering method so that we can reproduce the process in the UK, our Head of Pets will be investigating this possibility.
I would like to assure you that the wellbeing of our rabbits is vital and we do not undertake any trial such as this without due consideration to animal welfare.
Please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any further queries.
Kind Regards,
Emily
Pets at Home Ltd

It's a difficult one, yes it's too early to neuter but is that better than masses of unwanted perhaps abandoned or starving baby rabbits? I think it might be.

It is , but education could prevent that - educating the staff in accurate sexing & the purchaser in the importance of neutering prior to bonding rabbits. I suspect that the reason they are importing is that vets in the UK will not condone the practise of neutering at such a tender age - bucks are undergoing full abdominal surgery rather than a quick snip that can be carried out as soon as testicles have dropped.

> education could prevent that

Education isn't working, not with dogs or small animals sadly :-(

Don't get me wrong, I think in PAHs case this is purely a marketing ploy, a means to sell more rabbits or make more money. The idea of neutering so young doesn't sit well with me, but I can see that it would have benefits in preventing more rabbits. Round here I often see ads in the post office window for baby bunnies free to collect, and I also see lots of pet looking rabbits running wild, presumably abandoned.

In cats these days, it's getting so that you are considered to be an IRRESPONSIBLE breeder if your kittens (as in pedigree kittens) aren't neutered at time of sale. The GCCF recommends it, the FAB recommend it etc. It's definitely becoming the norm with all animals. It's however something I will NOT agree with in kittens or puppies. As for rabbits sold in petshops -probably just as well.

>bucks are undergoing full abdominal surgery rather than a quick snip that can be carried out as soon as testicles have dropped.

I'm sorry, but no way could I condone something so intrusive on such a young animal.  I am appalled.

I can't say I like it at all... it reminds me of the farms in the USA that mass breed ferrets for the pet market - pet store places an order, ferrets arrive by truck, often still with spay stitches in at 6-8 weeks old.

By far the best solution would be for PAH to stop selling rabbits - period. I think it is no coincidence that most of the rabbits in rescue are of the types and breeds sold by PAH. I would need to check this but I think the volume of rabbits going into rescue shot up dramatically when PAH started to stock them.

If they are being mass bred overseas then we have no idea of welfare standards, and I once spoke to someone who had been to a UK-based rabbit farm that supplied PAH. Forklift trucks loading cages into articulated lorries... is that any way for a household pet and companion to begin its journey?

It's no different from puppy farming in my view - I have always been against the way their smaller animals are bred and marketed... and farmed.

yet another good reason to boycott PAH.

Perhaps they should explore the possibility of stocking neutered juvenile rabbits that have been speyed at a suitable age - but I suppose the cost of raising them to such an age and the fact they are past the 'cute' stage would make them harder to sell - in fact that might be the solution to the impulse buying of rabbits? Those that genuinely want rabbits as pets would have no problem buying an older rabbit :) but profits come before welfare and so I doubt it would be implemented :(

How the hell do they get round Quarantine????

Rabbits imported from EU countries are exempt from Quarantine now - you just fill out a declaration - lots of my mini lops are bred from import stock.

http://www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-pets/pets/travel/pets/other-animals/

Whilst i dont agree with it being done at such a young age i do agree with animals being sold neutered. There are too many irresponsible people out there to 'trust' they will come back to get their animals neutered especially the sort who are buying their animals from PAH. If dont at an older age i would back this initiative wholeheartedly

Done at an appropriate age - I would have no problem with it :)

If they are being mass bred overseas then we have no idea of welfare standards, and I once spoke to someone who had been to a UK-based rabbit farm that supplied PAH. Forklift trucks loading cages into articulated lorries... is that any way for a household pet and companion to begin its journey?

I'd never even considered that's where their livestock would come from, I hadn't really thought of it at all tbh. :-(

What sort of money do these rabbits go for? I imagine if they are too expensive then Joe Public will get their rabbits from free ads or other shops anyway.

having witnesse first hand the place where their hamsters and small mammals were bred, I would make the effort to cross to the other side of the road rather than support this company.

Well the RWAF (Rabbit Welfare) have news that PAH has agreed to suspend the import of these rabbits whilst there is more research done into the practice - They were being sold for ~£100.
http://rabbitwelfare.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/pah-vip-trial.html#comment-form

> Well the RWAF (Rabbit Welfare) have news that PAH has agreed to suspend the import of these rabbits whilst there is more research done into the practice

WOW that is superb news :)
I remember a few years ago they were selling Conti/British Giants/crosses of, for £120 each as "House Rabbits" while the poor things lingered in shops at that price until they were 4-5+ months old... and therefore totally not fit for purpose, having been born in a cage in a warehouse, and then lingering in a pet shop for a couple of months, never having seen a house in their lives.

Its good news - hopefully they will abandon the whole idea of importing & neutering at a tender age - I have 2 litters of minilops 11days old I can't wait to get them all out in the front room in a couple of weeks, seeing them binky around the floor is fab :) it's going to be hard as last time we had babies Macey mothered them - will so miss that :(