Findus
Has it hopped away or been abandoned?
A few weeks ago, Findus the rabbit was discovered by holidaymakers on a road in the beautiful Austrian village of Grünau im Almtal. A rabbit was just sitting there – golden brown with long spoons, eating grass with relish.The people didn’t want anything to happen to Findus, so they took him with them and travelled around the surrounding farms. However, it turned out that Findus, who was about a year old, didn’t belong to anyone.They remembered Gut Aiderbichl – the two holidaymakers drove straight to Gut Aiderbichl, and the young rabbit was able to stay there.
Findus tells his story ...
“You want to know where I came from? Did I hop away or did someone abandon me? I’d say that remains my secret.”
The Aiderbich animal carers gave him the name Findus. Every animal at Gut Aiderbichl is given a name. This allows the animals to familiarise themselves with the voices and people, for example when it says: “Hello Findus. Well, are you all right?”. Building trust sometimes takes time. Findus didn’t make it difficult for us to get to know him.Upon arrival, the rabbit was given a health check and it was discovered that Findus had not been neutered. The ears, teeth and legs were fine.“Yes, so everyone around me was talking so cleverly, then I was put in a – I think they call it a box – and taken to a so-called veterinary clinic.
Then I lost the thread for a while – I don’t know, but after I got the thread back, something was different. It said I was now neutered! Never mind. No idea. I’m fine here!”
For some time now, Findus the rabbit has been happily and confidently hopping around the rabbit warren. Every now and then, Findus has a little rabbit race with his friend Karuso. Sometimes one wins, then the other.
“There are some really beautiful rabbits here. I particularly like Snowflake. She told me that she lived in a family because the children wanted a rabbit. In the beginning they spent a lot of time with her, but more and more the children lost interest in Snowflake. So she was brought to Gut Aiderbichl by the father of these children. When she tells this story, she hides her sad eyes behind her long fur hair. Even if many people don’t want to believe it – we rabbits have feelings and feel joy and sadness.”
Thoughts before the purchase
Rabbits should be kept at least in pairs. They are sociable, playful, active and curious. If kept well, they quickly become trusting and enjoy playing with their humans. Bored sitting in a corner, not interested in anything and reacting shyly to people, the animals only become so if they are kept incorrectly. So before you buy a rabbit, it makes sense to ask yourself whether you really have the time and inclination to keep and occupy rabbits in a species-appropriate way – for as long as they live. Rabbits can live for over 10 years.“Yes, exactly. And people, think carefully about whether you want to keep a rabbit. Trying out whether you like a rabbit is not an option. You can try apple juice or a juicy carrot, but not an animal …. With respect. Sorry. But moaning afterwards is no good – only abandoned animals”.
