A little tricky to find, but my grandie and I were welcomed immediately. We told the kind staff member that we would like to see a certain bunny my grandie had seen on the website. Her guinea pig had recently passed and she was enamored with this bunny. He introduced us to the bunny and educated us on how to handle her, where she came from, and many specifics about bunnies in general. After a while he left us to hold her and pet her which was enjoyable and sweet. We took some information about bunny care. We learned a lot, and had a wonderful experience just holding a sweet bunny! If we ever decide to adopt a bunny, we will definitely choose one here. read more

Bunnies Urgently Needing Shelter. This place takes care of their animals, even if they have been there for a long time. The area around here has the Humane society, animal shelter, Dog Adoption, etc. So if you're not looking for rabbits, they have guinea pigs, dogs, cats, and maybe other kinds of rodents. I fell in love with my guinea pig, Marbles. My heart just broke knowing that these animals were not wanted anymore or were living under the crawl space of a house. I wanted to take them all in! But they were in good care, the workers there loved every single of their animals and constantly play with them and make sure they are happy. The bunnies lived in their own pens where they can run around and talk to the other animals. The guinea pigs sometimes play with rabbits together! Even if you don't want to adopt an animal, just stop by and pay the animals a visit. read more

B.U.N.S. - Animal Shelters Near Me - Santa Barbara, California

Before I moved away from CA, I used to volunteer at BUNS. The Bunnies and guinea pigs are well taken care of here, with 4 hours of playtime every day and healthy organic veggies, but they need a good family to give them individual attention. Everyone that volunteers here are very knowledgeable of bunnies and are very helpful. BUNS also offer services such as bunny dating (if you want to pair your bunny with a buddy), nail cutting, advice, etc... Even if you are not ready to take a cute bunny or guinea pig into your home, come by and play with them. Ask a volunteer and they will give you a carrot or some greens. Foster caring a bunny is also an option. read more

Unfortunately, I did not know that BUNS existed when I bought my bunny. I would have adopted instead of buying a bunny had I known that bunny shelters existed... but that's beside the point. My bunny was very sick and I couldn't get a vet appointment for her for until a week later. Peanut was my first pet and admittedly, I wasn't as knowledgeable as I should have been. I was worried and didn't know what to do, but I knew I needed to do something immediately. After some frantic Googling, I found BUNS. I brought her there and Jean helped me out more than I can even express. They truly care about bunnies there. Not just their bunnies, but all bunnies. I didn't even adopt Peanut at BUNS but they still bent backwards to make sure she survived. Peanut had an extremely high fever and a large abscess and needed to be seen by a vet ASAP. Jean called all the vets in the area and called in all her favors to try to get my baby an appointment. Unfortunately, no luck. But she didn't give up. She called a vet tech who volunteers at BUNS and together they provided antibiotics and the proper dosages to help get Peanut's fever down. Jean told me to keep Peanut's ears wet because bunnies lose heat through their ears and she taught me how to syringe feed a bunny. They know a lot about bunnies there. Peanut wouldn't have survived until her vet appointment without BUNS. BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE... the vet tech volunteer gave me her personal phone number and I called and texted her throughout the process. A worried first-time pet owner, I panicked if Peanut so much as hiccupped. Having her experience at hand really helped and calmed me down. I love and appreciate BUNS and their volunteers so much. They do so much, because they truly care about animals. read more

I attended the basic rabbit and guinea pig care class by B.U.N.S. last weekend at the animal shelter in Goleta. I brought my bunny as did several other people, but some families came to the class before getting a new pet (smart!) and the BUNS volunteers had two bunnies and one guinea pig from their adoptable animals there for people to sit with during the class. The teacher/trainer was knowledgeable and very friendly and welcoming. I was impressed by her positive attitude and her ability to make everyone feel comfortable. Some basic clicker training was gone over at the end of the class, but since there were several young kids present it didn't seem like that part was really sinking in with them. The adults got it right away though and it should be easier to practice at home in an environment where there aren't multiple people trying to click at the same time. The information packets they gave out were good and while the class didn't go into deep details about these pets, they covered all the basic topics. Guinea pigs weren't covered in as much detail (the instructor didn't seem as confident in her knowledge of those little guys) but no one had brought guinea pigs to the class I attended either. Overall I would recommend this class and would especially recommend adopting from BUNS. I walked through their bunny and guinea pig area before the class started and was surprised by the sheer number of animals they have that need homes, and also how very well cared for these animals were. They were all clean and had good space, hides, food/water and toys. I was very impressed by BUNS! read more

The lady here is either racist, has problems with students, or both! Haha She made me feel beyond uncomfortable from day one! She told me my bunny would die if I got him and kept him outside, ironically they're entire bunny sanctuary is outside, also followed with the advice that I should not get a bunny but had no reasoning. She is rude, unpolite, impatient, intolerable, and truly a bad representation of their business. It's a Good thing they do for the animals but her attitude made me so disgusted I had to leave before I caused a scene. I don't even want the bunny anymore just based on her service. Just a shame that her husband is so polite and that she is truly a pain in the ass. She made me felt Not welcomed as a black student. She made me feel diminished and unworthy of being a simple pet owner. Never going back!! If I could zero starts, I'd give negative. read more

I think this place is wonderful. It's truly a bunny and Guinea pig Wonderland. I have seen other shelter set ups and nothing compares to this place. The bunnies and guinea pigs have play time in the runs. Most of the people are inviting and nice. We adopted our bunny from here and he is so great! He was even litter boxed trained when we got him. If I lived closer I would volunteer here. It's worth the drive to meet some great bunnies and guinea piggies. read more

I rescued a bunny rabbit from being dinner for someone and took it in to the BUNS organization. They were very friendly and helpful. Within the week they found a home for it in the Montecito area and I am happy they were able to do so. Wish they could find ME a home in Montecito too. read more

I had the opportunity to adopt a wonderful little Lop from BUNS this past month. These animals are taken care of with an overwhelming amount of love and respect. I appreciated that it took time for me to meet him, get to know him and than process the paperwork to adopt him. This took sometime to get all done. I am appreciative to the staff and volunteers at BUNS for not pressuring me to get an animal right away. I felt a key to their Philosophy was 'Process over Product'. Yes, you maybe able to adopt out a ton of rabbits to students or people who fall in love with a story (product). Which generally results in being returned. The process is taking the time to create the right environment, get to know the animal and then from there embark upon adoption. OF COURSE the second I saw him I wanted to take him home immediately. In retrospect, I am beyond thankful for their honesty and respect to the process of finding the right guardian for these amazing creatures. Thank you for all that you do! read more

They obviously put great care into their animals, who all had nice shelter, spaces, loving environment, etc., which is of course the most important thing. They also have very high standards for adoption, which is also extremely important given how common it is for people to get pets and not realize or understand the responsibility required. However, they are so committed to the animals and *their* idea of how a pet rabbit should live, that they come off as judgmental and make you feel bad if you have slightly different ideas. For example, they strongly advise against rabbits living outdoors due to myxomatosis, which is indeed a horrible, fatal disease for rabbits. But they were not able to offer any statistics as to how common it is. Do 90% of bunnies that live outside die from it? Then absolutely they should be protected from it. If there are only several cases reported a year in the entire County (fewer than people that have died from the flu this year), then it is a different consideration. From what I can tell on line, it seems that it is actually more the latter, even if cases are likely under-reported. They should at least be able to offer some information so that people can make an informed decision. It was very black and white with nothing to back it up. It is lovely that people keep their rabbits indoors and I am sure people have loving relationships with them. But I don't think we can determine whether rabbits are inherently happier indoors or out - I think both are equally possible. Assuming we protect them from extreme heat or cold, and they have a nice habitat, my rabbits have always seemed extremely happy outdoors, in shady spot, with room in their hutch to roam, fresh flowers next to their home, birds in the trees, things for them to look at, etc. So when the woman gave me a look like I was the grim reaper for wanting to have my rabbits outdoors, and clearly was not happy with my response and would only very reluctantly would consider an adoption, it really rubbed me the wrong way. I have heard from many others, who would all be great candidates for adopting, many of whom have rabbits and are way into it, that they have been turned off by this attitude as well and have gone elsewhere to adopt. BUNS expectations for care are also out of whack and from the perspective of people who live for their rabbits. Of course, animals need fresh food and water, and love and places to roam, but to say one need to dedicate three hours a day to their rabbit is not only unnecessary, but totally unrealistic for most people. It is no wonder that they have so many rabbits sitting there awaiting adoption. read more

Great place to adopt a bunny. The staff and volunteers are very knowledgeable and helpful. It seems like this organization cares deeply about all of the bunnies in their care. A fun place to visit on a Saturday afternoon and get an overload of cuteness. read more