Larry Lanius II, L2Photography.net
As anyone who has worked with homeless animals can attest, the effort the job requires can sometimes feel much greater than the good that comes out of it.
Joy Gioia, who manages the non-profit House Rabbit Society of St. Louis, recently told Paw Nation: "Sometimes it's heartbreaking, many times it's rewarding, and occasionally there are moments of pure gold such as what happened with Ruby Angel."
Here is the story of Ruby Angel.
The House Rabbit Society is a nationwide organization dedicated to rescuing, sheltering, fostering and re-homing abandoned rabbits. With so many rabbits in need, local chapters like the one in the greater St. Louis area usually aren't equipped to accept a rabbit brought in by an individual who simply isn't able or doesn't want to care for the animal. However, the folks in St. Louis recently made an exception for a rabbit named Ruby Angel.
Ruby Angel was named by her owner, an unidentified local woman, who thought the white mark on the rabbit's nose resembled an angel with wings. When employees at the House Rabbit Society of St. Louis heard the woman's story, it became clear that this rabbit was an angel in more than appearance.
Ruby Angel's owner had called HRS a few weeks ago after being offered a bed in a shelter for homeless and abused women, a safe place where she could get back on her feet after escaping her physically abusive partner, but where Ruby Angel was not welcome.
The woman (who remains anonymous out of fear that the man might locate her) has owned Ruby Angel for four years. During that time, both owner and pet have endured painful abuse at the hands of the man they lived with; in fact, he once knocked out Ruby Angel's two front teeth, the woman said (they have since grown back). When she turned over Ruby Angel to the HRS, the woman's face showed scars and her arms were badly bruised.
The woman had been living on the streets with Ruby Angel when the crisis center offered her a bed. Ruby Angel had been the only thing of value she'd taken before fleeing her home. She had begged on the streets for money and food, always making sure that Ruby Angel got to eat first.
Would you like to help women like Ruby Angel's owner this Christmas? Click here to learn more.
The House Rabbit Society of St. Louis decided to take Ruby Angel in until her owner can stand up on her own two feet again. The rabbit -- five years old, seven pounds, probably a Dutch-Flemish Giant mix -- was placed in a foster home and was scheduled to be spayed, per HRS policy.
The spaying was scheduled to take place on December 7 -- a day, it turns out, on which another small miracle would occur. While performing the procedure, the HRS discovered that Ruby Angel had advanced uterine cancer. But because the cancer was contained when it was found, it cannot spread. In trusting the HRS to care for Ruby Angel, the rabbit's owner wound up saving her life -- just as Ruby Angel had saved hers.
In the meantime, members of the St. Louis HRS have been so moved by the spirit of Ruby Angel that they've decided to help women like her owner this holiday season. They have started a drive for the shelter that currently houses Ruby Angel's owner and ten other women.
You can help women like Ruby Angel's owner by donating used linens, bedding and clothes, as well as new paper and hygiene goods, hand lotion, combs, brushes and gift cards to Target or Walmart to be wrapped as Christmas presents. Monetary donations are also being accepted to help offset the cost of Ruby Angel's care. Visit this special "Christmas Message" page on the HRS St. Louis website for more information.
Says Gioia, "We are very happy with how many of our members have come forward with donations to help a local women's crisis center all due to [Ruby Angel's] story."
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It is horrible that this women could not take her rabbit with her. She not only saved herself but saved her "baby". Thank god for the HRS that were took this angel in and saved her life in more than one way.
It is not horrible that she was unable to take her Rabbit into the shelter. Unfortunate,yes. You cannot bring animals into a living space with humans, especially those animals who have been living on the street and who are in many cases kept as protection and are dangerous around people they do not know. There is the question of who will feed these animals as in many cases these shelters are run on a very thin budget.These animals smell bad, have fleas and other skin problems that will soon transfer to the humans living there. It's simply a no win situation for all concerned when pets are allowed into any shelter system. Would you suggest that homeless animals should be allowed into Hospital situations also? Sometimes life is just a bummer and that's it.
What a jerk - that the loser guy even punched the bunny's teeth out!! Thank God they are both safe. I donated. This is a good cause to donate to. Any amount or item is helpful.
re BYL; gee your comment 'sometimes life is just a bummer' is so profound; NOT! We are not morons, clearly there is an issue with hygene, rules, and even the case for allergies in hospital or shelter environments. That being said, stories like these give people the opportunity to reach out, find solutions to problems, show compassion, donate funds and items; offer a kind thought, and share meaningful insight into ways to improve our society.
AND then there's JANE: Assuming you are emotionally challenged in some way, I would suggest you get help immediately, there are usually free clinics in most towns and cities. You perpetrated an egregious act of animal cruelty and your father was an aid in that crime.
AND iddottaw; your attempt at flamboyant animal hatred just shows you have a limited pre-frontal cortex, and you are probably tormented by an over active Amygdala.
It is unfortunate that pets can not be admitted into shelters but, as others have pointed out, there are health and safety issues involved. The shelter for abused women that I worked with had an arrangement with local vets, a boarding kennel, and the local animal shelter to care for the animals so the woman could and animal could seek safety and leave the abuse.
Often times a woman won't leave an abusive relationship to save herself, but will leave when a child or a precious pet becomes a target for abuse. In those cases the woman will often not leave unless they can take the children or pets with them. It would be a wonderful thing for people to volunteer at the shelter in the capacity of a foster home for the victims' pets.
There is also the problem of older male children not being accepted at the shelter. Because there is little privacy at the shelters due to space limitations, the shelters frequently won't let an abused woman bring a son who is over the age of 12 or 16. The other issue is that these children have witnessed so much abuse they often become perpetrators themselves so find themselves in a volitile situation in the shelter environment. In the case of our women's shelter, a local pastor ran a general homeless shelter. He lived there in the facility and had a guest room next to his room. The other boarders were upstairs. This kept the youngster away from the regular population and provided a safe place to stay.
Sometimes a woman would come into shelter with a large numbe of chidlren with more than one older male child. In that case she was rented a suite of rooms at a cooperating hotel. In case you think she was living in luxury at the hotel, that is not the case. Having numerous children in two rooms is far from luxurious.
Men who were being abused by their male or female partners were also put up in a room at the hotel.
Get involved. Call your local shelter and find out what you can do today to stop the cycle of abuse in your community.
It is horrible that this woman could not take her rabbit with her. She not only saved herself but saved her "baby". Thank god for the HRS that took this angel in and saved her life in more than one way.
oh my gosh! i was just looking on my email when i saw this story... its weird here's my bunny story: my rabbit oreo was 3 years old... she was strong and she never bit people until one day when my family was on vacation the day we came back my dad bursted in the room saying OH MY GOSH your bunny chewed it up! and i didnt know what "it" was so i walked outside and my dad was there with scissors trying to cut out the blanket wrapped around oreo's leg... oreo had gotten herslef tangled up and she chewed through the blanket so much that she bit into her leg... she kept chewing and now her leg was gone it was just bone, i almost fainted when i saw this ! i started bursting into tears saying " shes gunna die" but i prayed that she wouldn't... and God answered my prayer... she did not die we never took her to the vet ( finance issues) and I had my best friend sleep over for a week because i couldnt stand looking at her foot that she had to feed her for me! after a month or so her bones fell out and it was just a stub... so my dad put a plastic container around her foot so i wouldnt see it! * he wrapped it with black tape* after 1 year oreo had lumps growing in her ears... they used to stand up but the lumps were dragging it down so she had floppy years... i always prayed she would heal but she didnt... all animals have to die and the day after new years in 2007 oreo died. i didnt cry i just sat there and looked at her and said " you were a blessing to me" :') tears of joy!!!
I have no problem saying that your poor rabbit was a victim of animal abuse. Anyone who refuses to get a sick or injured help is neglecting the animal. Just imagine if it was you and you "bones fell out" or you had lumps in your ears. People who can't afford to give an animal the medical attention it needs shouldn't own pets. Too many animals suffer at the hands of their beloved owners. Oreo may have been a blessing to you, but to her, you were her abuser.
How is that an uplifting story? All it was about was how you let your animal suffer. Could you imagen the pain the bunny must have felt? ANd letting the bones fall out?! What about infection? Or shock? And the tumors in the poor things ears? that could not have been comfortable. and you just let your pet sit there. It sucks but at that point your local spca could have helped or as sad as it is having the bunny humanely euthenized, instead of letting it suffer and die more than likely in pain. I work at an animal shelter so i have heard the excuses and there are NO excuses you could have gotten you pet help, you chose not to.
Thats sick and abusive!
On the other hand...vets charge entirely too much!
very cruel not to have taken your beloved rabbit to receive proper care.
That is cruelty to animals, plain and simple. I hope Jane is too young to know better and will learn from this; the parents have no excuse for allowing the bunny to suffer to death. Absolutely hideous, rest assured little girl that if your local law enforcement knew who you were and had proof this happened your parents would be rightly charged with cruelty to animals. Just disgusting, shame on anyone involved.
I hope this family will at least do the right thing going forward and not obtain any more animals EVER since they clearly can't care for them adequately and are so awful they don't deserve to live with animals. I'm sure Oreo is at least in a better place now; of course hell itself would be an improvement over these people.
Reply to Jane: That is disgusting that you let your bunny suffer. What is wrong with you and your family. Please, don't own anymore pets!
Your an idiot. You were this animals caretaker. You took that role onl when you decided to get that bunny. That animal needed veteinary care. Why do people have animals when they can afford them.
I can understand your not bring able to afford the vet bill, but at the least you should have taken the poor thing to the animal shelter and them put her down. I know putting an animal down seems cruel and is a hard thing to do, but it is far kinder than letting your animal suffer the way she did.
In her defense, when you have an animal that doesn't act like it's sick, some people do not understand that the animal is suffering.
your a damn nut!!!!! I was 13 when my cat got out and got attacted by an animal. My mother was a single mom and we were just about homeless if not for my uncle letting us stay in his two bedroom trailer when he died. When I saw my cat I was heartbroken and saw in my moms eyes she was as well. I also saw in her that she knew there was no way she was going to be able to pay any vet bills....I wasted no time looking for any job that would hire me for any amoutn,went to the vet right away and set up a plan to pay them every cent I got. It was my first time out in the real world and paying a bill that I knew had to get done and I did just that. Its a shame your parents abused you and your pet like that but its even more of a shame that they raised you not to know you have to do what you have to do to keep your loved ones safe and healthy!!! Purhaps you put "too much faith in your god" and dont take on anything for yourself!
You're such a moron, "Jane". Was that supposed to be a "touching" contribution??? People like you, should be reported, to the (A)SPCA. Your so-called "love" obviously didn't extend very far, being that you callously overlooked the severity of "Oreos" ravaged leg. In situations like that, you handle your business. Doing whatever it took, to care for your pet. Had it been YOU, with such a severely damaged leg, i'm sure you would've put your resources together, to care for it. I bet you saw "Oreo" as just a rabbit, and not worth the cost. Typical. It figures. R.I.P. "Oreo". You're in a MUCH better place, than with your previous owners.
Absolutely disgusting that you can let an animal suffer like that. Can you imagine the pain that rabbit was in?!!! Do NOT own any more animals if you can't take responsibility for it. Just horrible how animals have to suffer because of cruel, ignorant people.
YOU ARE AN IDIOT THAT SHOULDNOT HAVE ANY MORE PETS
You're a disgrace. My wish is that someday you desperately need medical care and are forced to wait months and months to die in agony. Right before you draw your last breath, I pray that you see Oreo's face so that for all eternity you are reminded of what a horrible and selfish person you are. I hope you burn.