Danielle Ashley, affectionately known as The Rabbit Maiden is a force to be reckoned with in the world of vegan animal advocacy, particularly specializing in rabbit welfare. Her unwavering dedication extends to advocating for animal adoption exclusively, firmly shunning any form of support for breeders.
As a proud mother to four beautiful rescue bunnies—Dandy, Doll, Doe, and Deebo—Danielle’s role in their lives transcends that of a caretaker; she sees them as her cherished children. Her journey with these lovable companions is chronicled on her Instagram account @rabbitsofmaiden, where followers can witness the heartwarming bond they share.
Meatless Movement had the opportunity to chat with her recently.
Danielle’s journey into veganism took a significant turn after the arrival of her first bunny, Dandy, in 2016. Rescued from a breeder who had initially dismissed him due to a seemingly minor ear injury, Danielle recognized the truth behind his condition. This pivotal moment ignited her commitment to animal welfare and galvanized her determination to raise awareness about the realities of pet breeding.
Danielle’s story is an embodiment of compassion, resilience, and dedication. Her advocacy for animal rights, her role as a loving bunny parent, and her dynamic pursuits in both her professional and personal life showcase a woman who is unafraid to stand up for what she believes in and who finds joy in every facet of life.
Tell us more about yourself, please
You can be apart of the problem or you can be apart of the solution. The choice is yours.💚🌱🖤🌱
Danielle Ruiz
My name is Danielle, I am 34 years young. I am an outgoing sassy Leo ♌️, a bunny mom of four rescue bunnies, and from sunny California, USA. I am currently working in the medical field full time. I am also a licensed Cosmetologist. I enjoy modeling, content creating, spooky things, and am obsessed with bunnies!
I became a vegan shortly after I rescued my first bunny Dandy, who I still thankfully have in my life. I rescued him in 2016 from a breeder who thought of him as trash because his ear had a dangling piece due to, in her words, “his mom over grooming him”, but now I know an injury like that would have been from a fight.
I can only do my best to get as many rabbits to safety as I can
Danielle Ruiz
This poor bunny was fighting and in danger since he was a baby due to the ignorance and carelessness of breeders. He was going to be discarded somehow if no one stepped up because he wasn’t considered “perfect” and of no value to her. Which I now know is typical behavior of breeders. After researching about their needs, because I never had a bunny before, I quickly learned that there are so many misconceptions and false information on the proper care of rabbits.
The research eventually led me into how bunnies are one of the most abused animals in the world. Animal testing, fur, and meat all came up during my research. I was appalled because at this point, I was in love and had four bunnies total. I could never imagine hurting my babies in such a way.
👏🏻🌱💚 Sending lots of love and positive energy to all beings all over the world💋🖤
Danielle Ruiz
So, I went cruelty free first and got rid of everything that was tested on animals/used them. However, my mind was slowly connecting the dots. I realized how could I truly be “cruelty free” if I am still harming other animals by eating them. I decided to further educate myself on where my food comes from.
I watched multiple documentaries and seen many different clips of some very horrifying scenes I will never forget. I was done from then on, I decided to go vegan at that point in June of 2017.
I remember that exact moment, of what felt like a light switch going off in my mind. I was eating a left-over barbeque rib and I remember taking a few bites into it and my eyes started noticing the red on it, the blood, the bones, the fat, etc. I was slowly realizing that this legit is a dead body part of a beautiful animal that was killed horribly and I started getting incredibly disgusted with myself and what I was supporting, to the point that I spit out what I had in my mouth and threw it away.
I never thought I would ever feel this way about eating animals because that was the “normal” my entire life. I was so disconnected from where my food actually came from and how it even became “food” in the first place. This entire journey was life changing and mind altering beyond anything I have ever been through.
What are your thoughts and emotions regarding your choice to follow a vegan lifestyle?
Best decision of my entire life!
Danielle Ruiz
I will never go back to eating animals because I now know it didn’t align with my morals. I loved animals all my life, but didn’t realize how hypocritical I was being. I am in the best health I’ve ever been in my 30’s, than I’ve ever been in my 20’s.
How might you encourage someone who hasn’t adopted a vegan/vegetarian diet to give meatless food a try?
Life is beautiful because life is nothing more than your reflection.💚🖤💚🖤💚🌱💋
Danielle Ruiz
I mean in reality you cannot force anyone to do anything, but I encourage people by telling them to just have an open mind about it. Give it a fair shot because you never know if you’d like something without trying it.
I also like to encourage people by posting the food that I eat because I noticed that method works extremely well. Most people think that vegans only eat lettuce and it’s boring or whatever. When I post photos of things like tacos, burgers, eggs, potatoes, sausages, etc. and people find out it’s all 100% vegan they are usually shocked that we have all that variety they never knew existed.
So that is my favorite method of encouraging people to try vegan food, living by example.
Luckily, my friends and family are super supportive and most of them like to eat vegan food as well. Either we will go out somewhere, where they do serve vegan options for me and sometimes we will go to an all vegan spot. Honestly, if I ever find myself at a place that doesn’t have hardly any vegan options, I do sneak my own food in sometimes, guilty! haha. I don’t care though, I will do what is necessary for myself.
Inspiring many to eat Vegan!
Danielle Ruiz
I’m a sucker for Mexican vegan food. I would have to say hands down my favorite place for that is in Las Vegas, NV called Pancho’s Vegan Tacos.
I absolutely love that place and the food is by far mind blowing. Even my non-vegan friends love it whenever we all go, they say it’s no different than animal-based foods in their opinion. I always stop there whenever I’m traveling there.
As far as home cooked meals go, I cannot go without my tofu scramble! I love it, you can pair it with so many different things and that taste is amazing. And tofu is super filling, to me it is very hearty and I love that about tofu. That’s my go to for meal prepping breakfast dishes for work.
What are a few misunderstandings people tend to have about vegans? How do you go about clarifying or providing education on these matters?
There are too many to choose from. That we are all hippies, criminals, and malnourished. Which are all far from the truth.
Any person can be considered any of those things regardless of their food choices/lifestyle, but it’s funny how all that automatically gets pinned on vegans without zero foundation. It’s all just ridiculous in my opinion and I pay no mind to those things, especially when someone is TRYING to personally insult me for just being Vegan.
This isn’t about me, it’s about the animals, bottom line. So, people can pick apart all my flaws or project false realities about me, but it will never weaken my stance about being against animal cruelty. And that’s my explanation usually to people is that I do this all for the animals because I value life over taste.
What advice would you offer to someone who is just starting to transition to a meatless diet?
Do your research whenever transitioning to a plant-based diet. Nourish yourself correctly because the people who claim “plant-based diets” were not working for them were probably only eating Oreos and fries thinking that’s all there is to it. I suggest everyone look up the basics, reach out to someone you know who is vegan already even if it’s online, and always read ingredients on every single thing. Mistakes can happen, like you eat something and didn’t know that gelatin, that is not vegan, is in a product or didn’t know that milk powder was added in something, it’s ok, just keep going. Eventually, you will be an expert at all of it.
I believe this is just the beginning. The beginning of the world that we once knew, begin to fall apart
Danielle Ruiz
I love being vegan, it was the best decision of my life. It’s given me so much in return like good health, no acne, energy, strength, happiness, weight management, and more clarity.
It has given me a platform to spread the message about veganism and proper rabbit care, which I am a huge advocate about. I also am able to help people who have come to me in the past wanting to make the change. I am always happy to help and love seeing how much a vegan lifestyle improves someone’s life, that never gets old.
Veganism has put me on such a beautiful path in life and has given me an actual purpose. I felt so lost before, now I feel like I have meaning. I finally feel aligned with my morals. Six years down and a lifetime to go being vegan and I couldn’t be happier! 🙂
Embrace the Future of Fashion in our Backless Bottoming PU Leather Slim Vest
Danielle Ruiz
Public figure
☀️Leo | 🌙Saggitarius | ✨️Cancer | 🧿Life Path 11
💚6 YEARS VEGAN💚
🐰BUNNY ADVOCATE✨️
📨DM TO COLLAB
🐇@rabbitsofmaiden
🌱@veganfoodobsessed
all images courtesy of Danielle Ruiz