by BBC News
Animal welfare workers have appealed to parents not to buy young children pet rabbits this Easter. The Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SSPCA) said it had seen increasing numbers of bunnies dumped after the holidays.
SSPCA centres were overwhelmed with 690 abandoned pet rabbits last year - up by more than 100 on the previous year. SSPCA vet Ian Futter said: "Rabbits do not make ideal pets for young children."
The warning comes after two cruelty cases involving rabbits this year.
In January, eight were abandoned near a main road in Oban. One of the rabbits died from exposure. Senior SSPCA inspector John McAvoy managed to catch five and a nearby family caught two, which they decided to keep.
The five captured by Insp McAvoy were taken to the society's Inverness Animal Welfare Centre, where they were later re-homed. He is still investigating the abandonment.
Rabbits are actually more of a welfare issue than dogs and cats SSPCA vet Ian Futter . Also in January, a domestic rabbit was dumped in a plastic carrier bag in the Meadows in Marchmont, Edinburgh. He was rescued and taken to the Dundee Animal Welfare Centre for re-homing.
Mr Futter said rabbits had become almost as popular as dogs and cats.
He said: "Rabbits are now the third most popular pet in the UK but contrary to popular belief, rabbits do not make ideal pets for young children.
"They are fragile creatures, requiring social interaction, daily exercise and plenty of attention. "Being prey animals, most rabbits will feel threatened or insecure when picked up and held. Rabbits do, however, make excellent pets in the right hands - but not child-size hands."
Diane Stewart, manager of Lothian Animal Welfare Centre, said: "Rabbits are not seasonal pets.
'Baby rabbits'
"Many people get them for children in the spring, but come winter they still need feeding and the hutch cleaning-out regularly.
"People get baby rabbits because they are appealing. But as soon as they grow older, the family loses interest."
Mr Futter added: "Rabbits are actually more of a welfare issue than dogs and cats.
"There are thousands of rabbits out there - sitting in hutches at the bottom of gardens - suffering unnecessarily from total boredom."
"This is worse than physical pain because there is no end to it."
"They are intelligent and make great pets but owners must be responsible for their mental as well as their physical wellbeing. They are social creatures and need social interaction."