Rescue Tails / A Duchess Becomes a Queen

Duchess Fiona of Key West! It has a nice ring to it. Sounding like British Royalty, few would imagine that Fiona was not British Royalty but rather a humble shelter rabbit in search of a home. She was granted the distinguished title in honor of her impressive fundraising campaign during the 2022 Annual Parade of Paws event, raising $3,800 for the shelter. During her campaign, Fiona became well-known, gaining recognition and support from the rabbit community and beyond.

A little background on Fiona. She first came to the FKSPCA as a stray, rescued from the middle of traffic on a Key West street. Beyond that, we knew nothing of her history except she was a very pretty, lop-eared female bunny. Her unique looks generated interest which led to three temporary homes, none of which worked out for one reason or another. Although we do our best to provide up-front education and counseling to increase the chances of success for our rabbits, at times there are situations beyond the control of us, our adopters, or the rabbits themselves.

For Fiona, in one home, her personality was too big for both the other bunny and cat in the home. Both animals were afraid of her, which is not as uncommon as one might think. Rabbits can be defensive and/or territorial in certain situations if they don’t feel safe or comfortable. In the second home, the hoped-for bond with her adopter never developed and she was returned. In her third situation, her needs become more than the family anticipated and eventually she came back to us.

Fiona’s track record was not typical for our rabbit adoptions which for the most part, are more successful than Fiona’s had been. We were getting concerned about when the right home for Fiona might be found. We hoped her widespread Parade of Paws campaign would lead to a new home, but that didn’t happen.

Both the intelligence and sensitivity of rabbits are so often underrated. Rabbit behavior is always a reflection of how the bunny is feeling. When Christina arrived looking for a rabbit, Fiona’s reaction to her was markedly different than what we so often saw with new people. Christina had rabbit experience and was rabbit-savvy! She was so calm and quiet, didn’t invade Fiona’s space, and allowed Fiona to decide to approach or not. This is the perfect way to interact with any animal who doesn’t know us but is especially important for prey animals like rabbits and guinea pigs. Watching them together, we knew we were witnessing the beginnings of a love affair and were thrilled when Christina decided to adopt Fiona.

Now weeks later, Fiona is a very much loved house rabbit with all the space, love, and quality care she needs and wants. Her trust is building and thanks to the Christina, our Duchess has now gained the rightful title of Queen Fiona!

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