HRS has a new monthly e-newsletter, to update our members on HRS activities all across the country and around the world. It will bring you the latest announcements. To join, click on this link.
We take great pride in our website, www.rabbit.org, which is loaded with useful information for all people who love rabbits. HRS has a world-wide network of volunteers, and communication is instantaneous. As the body of information on rabbits builds, along with our access to it, our rabbits benefit greatly. Many lives have been saved and mistakes have been avoided by people seeking help. HRS’s website is where you turn when you need information quickly. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the House Rabbit Journal was the only means we had to reach and educate our members. Now, the Internet does that much more efficiently. So why should we continue to produce a bound paper booklet that shows up in your mailbox? Like all print publications, the Journal must find ways to be relevant in today’s world. Fortunately, in the beginning of HRS, the word chosen for the title of its national publication was “journal” not “news,” so we could take more time in putting together articles. Education comes in diverse forms, and there are many ways to absorb information. Sometimes you want to read the material quickly on the screen, and sometimes you want to ponder over words on paper. Sometimes you want the education to come in obliquely, as you’re reading something else, like an entertaining story. This is the education delivery that we plan to continue bringing to our readers.
HRJ’s editorial staff functioned smoothly, until last year when we lost Amy Espie, the conscience of the organization. Amy could always come up with ideas for articles that should be published. We have struggled for several months, trying to fill the void left by Amy and have discovered that we can’t. In order for HRJ to continue, we need some new editors and writers, who can donate some time, mostly on a rotational basis. A writer can be anybody who has a story to tell. This may be a one-time contribution, or a story every once in awhile. We don’t publish eulogies, but we do want personal experiences that might be educational to someone else. For example, in this issue the article Kenney’s Story shows us how human behavior (overlooking a potential hazard) and rabbit behavior (a squirmy rabbit) can lead to a medical emergency and to considerations that sometimes have to be made. The reader has learned something from this article. Although HRJ is printed on paper and mailed through the U.S. Postal Service, we want all articles and photos to come via email Production is done completely electronically. If you have an article to share, that has not been previously published (even on the web) send to HRJ@rabbit.org We also need editors. An editor must be able to do online proof-reading and to correct someone else’s work. Editing for HRJ is sporadic at best (with months in between), but when an article does come in, we need to assign it to an editor who will work with the author. Editors must be familiar with HRS philosophy in order to assure that the author sends the right message. The House Rabbit Journal always chooses to publish what is in the best interest of rabbits.