Officials with the Bunny Run Rabbit Rescue are pleading with people to stop releasing rabbits into the wild, while urging city council to adopt a bylaw that prohibits the act.--NEWS PHOTO RYAN MCCRACKEN
Bunny Run Rabbit Rescue continues to tackle the city’s rabbit problems.
The organization has been identifying different areas in the city where domestic rabbits are an issue. It then feeds the rabbits to socialize them, so volunteers can safely get the animals into foster care.
The problems are simple, yet the solutions are complex, says Southern Alberta Humane Society president De Seaton, who spoke on behalf of Bunny Run.
“People who shouldn’t be buying rabbits as pets are buying them,” she said. “Whether it’s a week, month or year later, they end up dumping them outside.
“Once they’re in the wild, they multiply because people don’t spay or neuter their rabbits. It’s a problem that keeps getting worse in the city.”
Rabbits can reproduce every 28 days and will often have more than 10 babies. Seaton says Bunny Run has a few dozen foster rabbits in its care, but there are hundreds still in the city.
“It’s great to take in 30 or 40, but it’s just a small fraction of the total population,” she said. “It’s just a capacity problem – there is never enough room.”
On top of the quick reproduction of bunnies, domestic rabbits quickly die when left in the wild, says Seaton.
“The rabbits people are letting into the streets just aren’t fit for the outdoors – they’ve been domesticated,” she said. “They’re slower than the wild rabbits, they don’t have any prey instinct and many just can’t make it through the cold winters.
“People letting their rabbits go – it’s basically just a death sentence.”
Seaton says the Humane Society and Bunny Run would like to see a bylaw passed in the city that would charge people for dumping rabbits into the wild. They would also like to see rabbits no longer sold at pet stores.
“We’re talking about rabbits right now, and we’d like to see a ban there, but it’s an issue with all pets,” she said. “Shelters are full of dogs and cats. The bunny problem just gets worse and worse. People are letting budgies go into the wild. We even rescued a hamster from the wild.
“We have to find a solution for the city.”
Seaton says pet bunnies are popular items around Easter every year, and are more work than most expect.
“All pets are going to take work, whether it’s a dog, cat, hamster or a rabbit – it’s always going to be a commitment,” she said. “People just see rabbits as disposable.
“It’s really sad.”
Cottontails
While there are large problems surrounding domestic bunnies in the streets, wild cottontail bunnies are also facing their own struggles.
“No one wants to help these bunnies when they need it,” she said. “We had a bunny who was hit and had broken back legs. It needed to be euthanized and we had so much trouble finding a single person who would take it and help us.
“It’s just sad because it always comes down to money over the animal. No one ever has the time for these rabbits.”
Seaton says Bunny Run is in desperate need of rabbit foster families.
Southern Alberta Humane Society and Bunny Run Rabbit Rescue can both be reached on Facebook.
SAHS is hosting its annual Paws in the Park at Lions Park in Redcliff later this month.
