Photo credit: Antoinette Monod
Warren Peace Bunny Sanctuary started as a small sanctuary in the town of Oyama, Lake Country, B.C. back in 2007. Annie, the founder, converted her own property into a home for unwanted pet rabbits that would otherwise likely be dumped outside. As more people learned about the sanctuary, people started bringing other types of animals including guinea pigs, gerbils, hamsters, ferrets, cats, dogs, pigs, and even birds. Today, Annie, along with a small group of dedicated volunteers are often taking care of about 600 hundred animals at the sanctuary!
Although there are various types of animals at the sanctuary, the focus is still on the rabbits. They house around 150 rabbits, which are kept together with access to indoor and outdoor living areas. Rabbits in the colony have the option to go in and out whenever they wish.
According to long-time Warren Peace volunteer Barbara, the rabbits get along well with each other in this large crowd where they have the freedom to form smaller, close-knit groups and visit others.
Photo credit Christina Bombæk
This sanctuary differs from most rabbit rescues in that these rabbits are not intended to be adopted out. They come to stay at the sanctuary.
Rabbits dropped off here come in a range of conditions, with some requiring extensive medical treatment. Often, it is a lack of owner knowledge that has resulted in the decline of their pet rabbit. That is why Warren Peace focuses on educating the public on domestic rabbit behaviour, nutrition, and health so that people interested in getting a rabbit in the future are better prepared to take care of them. Before the RHDH outbreak and COVID-19 pandemic, the sanctuary would be open every Saturday for the public to come in, see the animals, and learn more about what the sanctuary does. This is something they hope to get going again as soon as it is safe to do so.
Photo credit: Barb Shoji
Support Warren Peace Bunny Sanctuary
As a non-profit, this sanctuary gets a lot of financial help from individual donations to help cover the costs of food, shelter, and medical expenses for their animals. The rabbits in particular go through $20 of kibble a day, 2 mini bales of hay per week, 3 mini straw bales per week, about $3,000 per month in medical expenses. In total, this can equal about $50,000 per year. The government does little in curbing the behaviour of dumping rabbits outside or in providing financial support. The sanctuary recently received local TV news coverage of their latest spay/neuter campaign for Valentine’s Day.
Thank you to Barbara, dedicated volunteer at Warren Peace Bunny Sanctuary, for all the information!
If you would like to support Warren Peace Bunny Sanctuary, please donate through Canada Helps or e-transfer to annie.warrenpeace@gmail.com.
Please check out their Facebook page to keep up with the latest campaigns in support of the rabbits!
Article written by:
Amanda Puitiza
Amanda Puitiza is a Peruvian American with a Master’s in Animal Behaviour and Conservation. Her career goals are to partner with others and use inter-disciplinary methods to help with the conservation of species in need. She has had and worked with rabbits for most of her life. When she is not enjoying time with animals, she can often be found reading or creating music.
