Atlas, the adorable dog-sized rescue rabbit whose story went viral last month, has finally found a forever home: a love-filled place with plenty of legroom in his native Scotland.
The Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals announced the good news on its blog this week. The charity said it had to sift through “hundreds of applications” submitted by people from all across the globe, including America, Canada and France, before it finally settled on a family in North Ayrshire.
“We were absolutely overwhelmed by the response to our rehoming appeal for Atlas,” the SPCA wrote. “It was great there was so much interest in Atlas but we decided to find him a home here in Scotland to avoid a long journey as rabbits are very susceptible to stress.”
The 8-month-old continental giant rabbit had been given up by his previous owner, the SPCA said, because they were no longer able to care for him.
“Atlas needs an owner with the knowledge to properly care for him, so ideally someone who has kept a continental giant before,” the SPCA’s Anna O'Donnell said in a press release. Atlas’ new home would also need to be spacious enough to accommodate the mega-bunny’s size.
Jen Hislop, a 43-year-old financial fraud investigator, fit the bill perfectly. She’s previously owned two giant bunnies and currently has a giant Rex rabbit named Coconut.
Hislop’s home also comes with a large garden enclosure so Atlas has ample space to hop around.
“I burst into tears when I got the phone call saying I had been chosen to re-home Atlas and I cried again when I collected him,” Hislop told the SPCA. “Animals are just pets to some people but my rabbits are family members.”
The big bunny doesn't just have a new home, but a new moniker too.
“I’ve decided to change his name to Atilla the Bun Binky Master Jazz Paws, but I think we’ll call him Atty for short,” said Hislop.
He “is an absolute hoot,” she added of her new furry friend.
As The Guardian notes, fully grown continental giant rabbits can measure up to 4 feet in length, weigh more than 44 pounds and can eat a bale of hay in a week.
The SPCA says Atty is still young and has more growing to do.
