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Therapy rabbits hop to it in Some Bunny to Read To
Therapy rabbits give kids ‘Some Bunny to Read to’
By LINDA M. LINONIS
boardman
The children were all smiles and the bunnies were all ears as they were introduced at the Some Bunny to Read To program.
The free activity at Beyond Expectations Speech Therapy, 725 Boardman-Canfield Road, Unit E-1, gives children from kindergarten through sixth grade the chance to read to registered and certified therapy rabbits.
The rabbits are from F5RS (Frisky Ferrets, Fuzzies and Feather Friends Rescue and Sanctuary). The reading program is offered by Andrea Moore, speech therapist who runs Beyond Expectations. Moore and Sassy Pickard of Youngstown, who founded F5RS, met at a business expo. Moore said she talked to Pickard about the possibility using therapy rabbits in a reading program. Some Bunny to Read To was the result.
The cute, cuddly and non-intimidating bunnies are perfect listeners, Moore said. A meet and greet took place Thursday at Beyond Expectations where each child chose the rabbit they’d most like to read to. At sessions that will take place at 2 p.m. Thursday, July 10 and 24, and Aug. 7 and 14, children will read to rabbits individually for 20 minutes. Registration is
required. Call 724-813-5709 or email F5rescue@yahoo.com
Therapy bunnies are Cricket, a brown 4-year-old mixed rabbit; Natalie Bunbun, a black and white Dutch rabbit; Buttons, a black and white mix; and Sara, a gray Lionhead rabbit who likes to wear a bow and is “the diva.” They’re all girls. Pickard said they all came from abuse and neglect situations. The bunnies picked for therapy use must undergo training, pass a test and get a medical checkup by a veterinarian.
At the introductory session, Pickard read “Be Bold for Bunnies” and “The Adventures of Flat Jefe.” As she read, the bunnies behaved, remaining in their baskets. Children had the chance to come up and pet them (from the ears back) and choose their reading buddy.
Pickard explained to the group that the rabbits are part of F5RS’s pet-therapy program. “We visit different places such as schools, hospitals and nursing homes,” she said. “They make people happy.” She said the bunnies visit six to eight sites a month. A regular stop is Park Vista retirement community in Youngstown.
Pickard said the bunnies are especially good for patients in hospitals and nursing homes because their baskets can be placed on beds or in laps of the wheelchair-bound people. “They love the attention,” she said of her furry friends.
The bunny advocate told children that rabbits like to eat timothy, hay and vegetables. “Though people think of feeding them carrots, that’s like candy for bunnies,” she said.
Pickard told the group that the bunnies were interested in them because they were “leaning forward.” “I’m reading bunny body language,” she said. “They’re happy.”
Pickard founded the rescue, a nonprofit organization, in 1995. It is affiliated with the umbrella national organization, Bunnies in Baskets, and Pet Finder.
“There are plenty of rescues for cats and dogs but not for smaller animals,” Pickard said. “Rabbits are the third most-bought pet and the first one to be abandoned,” she said.
Pickard emphasized that domestic rabbits can’t be released outdoors because “they don’t know how to fend for themselves and they’ve lost the fight-or-flight instinct and are easy targets for predators.”
The animal lover said the rescue group offers free educational programs and therapy visits to schools, hospitals and nursing homes. F5RS also has meet-and-greet sessions at The Shops of North Lima and will be visiting the day camp for autistic children at the downtown YMCA on July 29.
The rescue group has rabbits, birds, guinea pigs and ferrets for adoption. They’re cared for in foster homes. Potential adopters must complete an application form.