Rabbit rescuer steps in when pets lose favor

Alan Hawes
The Post and Courier

Jenni Beard runs the Lowcountry House Rabbit Society and is a Jefferson Award winner. Here, she holds a Lowcountry House Rabbit Society rabbit available for adoption at the Mount Pleasant Pestsmart.

To hear Jenni Beard tell it, the rabbit is a most misunderstood creature, a fluffy pet whose cuddly look often belies the high-maintenance animal that lies within.

People often buy bunnies thinking they are getting the equivalent of a warm-blooded stuffed toy, a docile pet that will sit in a cage and look cute. Only later, when the rabbits nip at their kids' fingers, burrow in the living room rug or chew through computer cords, do people realize they didn't get the pet they bargained for.

That's where Beard comes in.

The West Ashley woman is president of the Lowcountry House Rabbit Society, a nonprofit group dedicated to rescuing abandoned bunnies and

educating people about the realities of rabbit ownership. Beard, 38, co-founded the local chapter four years ago and now leads a group of some 15 volunteers who provide foster care and adoption help for these discarded bundles of fur.

A Web developer by trade, Beard spends nearly every waking hour outside of work helping bunnies find homes, advising beleaguered owners, conducting educational sessions and performing other rabbit-related tasks.

Kay Hyman, spokeswoman for the John Ancrum Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, said the work of Beard and her volunteers has proven invaluable in finding homes for some of the hundreds of rabbits abandoned locally each year. "She has definitely saved lives," Hyman said.

Beard's effort is all the more impressive when you consider that she suffers from the effects of Lyme disease, leaving her with chronic pain and fatigue that make it difficult for Beard to even get out of bed some mornings, her husband, Stephen Beard, said.

"She works tirelessly to do whatever she can to improve the lives of rabbits," he said. "This is Jenni's passion, and it has been forever."

Beard has been fascinated with rabbits since she was child in New Jersey. She had rabbit toys and figurines, blankets and T-shirts adorned with bunny images. She adopted her first rescue rabbit when she was 19. She has had 10 since, including the quartet of bunnies living with her now.

"I have just always had this rabbit magnetism," she said.

Beard said she's drawn to their intelligence, curiosity, playfulness and somewhat aloof nature that requires an owner to earn the pet's trust and devotion.

Many rabbits enter area homes around Easter, when they are given as pets to children. They later end up in shelters or abandoned on the side of the road after the child gets bored with the animal or the bunny begins acting up.

Contrary to popular belief, they don't like to be held (as prey, they naturally resist being carried) and require just as much work as dogs.

"If you don't provide them with enough things to play with, they can get into a lot of trouble," she said.

But with the proper understanding and rabbit-proofing to the home, bunnies can make wonderful pets if people are willing to put in the time, Beard said. She's always on the lookout for new foster homes and a chance to save more rabbits.

Seeing a troubled bunny saved from the street makes all the work worthwhile, Beard said. "When you see them bond with a human family and grow close to them, that's when you know you've made a difference."